M 36

​Ki Tae-jeong stared at Lee Sehwa’s back. He was making an effort in his own way, but honestly, it seemed like Ki Tae-jeong could easily catch up with him even if he just stretched out his legs for a few steps. Anyway, Lee Sehwa walked diligently. Then he looked up at the ceiling for a moment… It seemed like he was trying his best not to cry. Well, there seemed to be a lot of sad things happening. He had a lot of tears and even below was well moistened. When looked closely, even his lips were consistently moist.

​”It’s getting annoying.”

​Ki Tae-jeong promised to save Sehwa’s life, no matter what. He didn’t think there would be any problem with having a child even if Sehwa was a little damaged from the knees down, but he knew very well that Lee Sehwa’s request to not give up on him was also hiding a plea to be ‘unharmed’. Until the end, unharmed. There was nothing difficult about doing it alone, but Lee Sehwa was the problem.​

​Ki Tae-jeong held the watch against the lock of Z2. The watches worn by soldiers were not just watches. From identification to security sensors, cards, mobile phones, tablets… It was literally a supercomputer on your wrist that could perform the functions of all electronic devices. And under the watch of Brigadier General Ki Tae-jeong, there was nothing that couldn’t be unlocked within the military. Of course, the current owner of the cloak couldn’t do it, but the hacker, Lieutenant Park, would be deleting the footage by himself.

​As soon as he opened the lid, he turned his shoulders as much as possible. Although the distance was a bit short, he had done something similar to this several times, both in training and in actual missions. And it always succeeded. Ki Tae-jeong brought out all the senses of his body to their limits. Even Ki Tae-jeong didn’t know how this was possible. Even the military people who brought him in were shocked and scared after learning about it. However, thanks to his unusual control of his senses, Ki Tae-jeong was able to avoid death every time.​

​All the annoying noises that had been piercing his ears faded away. Ki Tae-jeong even forgot the sound of his own breathing and focused only on the bomb’s trajectory. The only vivid sound was the sound of a round sphere flying in a parabola.​

Ki Tae-jeong picked up the bazooka that he had put down for a moment and launched himself. Lieutenant Park, who had witnessed everything from mock training to real missions, had once said something like this. The whole world seemed to stop and only the Brigadier General was moving at several times faster. He sincerely hoped for the same to happen this time.

​He casually pulled on the steel shelf displayed next to him and knocked it over. Even so, there were only a couple of them, so it didn’t seem like they would be able to serve as an actual shield. How much time was left? The speed of the spherical projectile slicing through the air gradually slowed down. It was the timing when the high curve started to descend.​

 He accelerated even more. The familiar back views shook in front of his eyes. Ki Tae-jeong gripped Lee Sehwa’s neck as he crawled like a turtle in front of him. Sehwa coughed and struggled as he held him tightly. It was fortunate that  he had large hands. He could hold the Z2 case and Lee Sehwa at the same time, though the case was still rattling around in his fingers.

The eyes looking back at him were wide with surprise. Well, he shouldn’t have worn the lens. While having such a calm thought, there was an explosion, and the bomb detonated.

No matter how small its power, a bomb was still a bomb. Ki Tae-jeong and Lee Sehwa were pushed forward by the hot air coming from behind.​

“Ugh… !”​

​In particular, Lee Sehwa could not even scream properly and fell heavily to the floor.​

​The somewhat fortunate thing was that the bomb hit the iron bars, causing the force to be directed backward. Thanks to the firefighting supplies stacked on the shelf, the flames didn’t rise as much as expected. Of course, it was only ‘as much as expected,’ and if he hesitated a little more, they would have been quickly engulfed in flames.

“Cough…”​

​Lee Sehwa fell and gasped, unable to come to his senses as it seemed he had suffered a mild concussion. Until a moment ago, only his skin seemed damaged, but now it was evident that Sehwa’s ankle was swollen. So weak, where could it be put to use.

​“The drugs.”​

When Ki Tae-jeong instructed him to hand up the item, this time Sehwa didn’t ask or act slowly, but quickly lifted his top. Surprisingly, he seemed to know that this was an urgent situation. It seemed like Sehwa wouldn’t have the energy to open the zipper, so Ki Tae-jeong took over from here. He opened the crossbody bag and swept the syringe inside into Z2’s case. As he closed the lid, there was a clicking sound, and the lock mechanism activated again.

​Ki Tae-jeong swept his disheveled hair back and shook the item towards the ceiling. A sound like a knock from the in-ear earphones he had been wearing flowed out. It was a signal that the confirmation was complete.

“It’s almost done.”​

​Ki Tae-jeong checked the condition of the old bazooka. It was already creaking from hitting the shelf a few times. Shooting it two more times seemed to be the limit. Any more than that, and the person holding the bazooka would become endangered. Ki Tae-jeong opened all the lids of the emergency oil drums on the lower shelf and looked at Lee Sehwa.

“You can hold it, right? It’s not a bomb anymore.”

The nod was emotionless. The heat was causing dirt underneath the skin that was starting to peel off due to the heat. The scruffy appearance was so… Even the mutts that lived in the factory would be cleaner than that. Ki Tae-jeong clicked his tongue inwardly, unaware that the corners of his mouth were softening.

“I can’t carry you on my back this time.”

And this time, he didn’t wait for Lee Sehwa’s answer. With Sehwa clutching the Z2 case like it was a treasure, Ki Tae-jeong slung him over his shoulder and ran again. The annoying shelves that had filled the corridor until 9-5 were gone. A bit further, and there was the exit.

At the same time, the ceiling shook uneasily. It seemed like the rat that had been hiding and observing was making its final move. Ki Tae-jeong momentarily put down Sehwa, who was slung over him like a sack, and swept away the iron shelf. The shelf that was about to fall was carefully interlaced with the iron bars extending below, unwittingly buying them time.

​“Lee Sehwa!”​

​When Ki Tae-jeong called out to Sehwa, who was still at a loss, his eyes, which had been clouded by shock, showed a bit of vitality

​Sehwa closed his eyes as if preparing himself, staggered with difficulty as he passed through underneath the iron bars to crush the shelf. Despite his feet soaked in blood, Lee Sehwa diligently walked towards Ki Tae-jeong. Well, he was running in his own way.

Actually, Ki Tae-jeong could have gone and helped. No, it would definitely be faster that way. All he had to do was drag Sehwa out instead of carrying him. Sehwa may whine that his foot hurts, but Lee Sehwa had said that he hated dying more than anything.

But strangely, Ki Tae-jeong couldn’t take his eyes off Lee Sehwa, who was limping toward him. The iron bars under the shelf being forcefully bent, the continuing explosions, flames flickering beyond… and how should he perceive Lee Sehwa’s expression, who was looking at him and only him, leaving everything else behind. Ki Tae-jeong looked at Lee Sehwa’s clumsy and poignant steps with eyes that seemed lost for a moment.​

​Ki Tae-jeong came to his senses when a paper-like wrapping of a hot dog-like object caught his fingertips. Ki Tae-jeong held Lee Sehwa tightly and opened the exit. It was an iron door with a lock, but when Ki Tae-jeong kicked and forcefully pushed it made a gap big enough for the two of them to escape.

At the same time, unable to withstand the weight of the falling iron bars from above, the iron shelf was partially crushed. Lee Sehwa shuddered at the gruesome sound that echoed throughout.

“…It’s over, it’s finally over…”

​Lee Sehwa looked around nervously while holding the case containing the drugs tightly.​

“Is it over now?”

​“Almost.”​

​Right behind the exit was an empty lot with several vehicles, probably being used as a parking lot by resident soldiers. It must have been an empty space from the time it was designed to install escape equipment in case of an emergency. And now they were using it as their parking lot. They were truly crazy bastards.​

​Ki Tae-jeong pointed out the luxury sports car parked nearby, which someone had probably put their soul into and bought it on installments. It seemed like he could hear the screams of the owner when they noticed it missing. Well, who told them to park here?

As he grabbed the hood to check the condition of the car, a tapping sound came through the in-ear. All necessary data had been secured, and since they had already destroyed the CCTV lines, now they had permission to rampage freely without worrying about being noticed.

​Ki Tae-jeong pressed his watch against the sensor on the door. A car registered in a military personnel’s name was subject to conscription in an emergency, even if it was personal property. It would have been a hassle if it had been an unregistered car, but fortunately, they could control it easily.​

While Ki Tae-jeong pressed the button to start the car and rolled up the sunroof, Lee Sehwa headed to the passenger seat holding on to the tattered fake face. A brilliant car logo flashed on the center fascia, and the AI announced in a cheerful voice that the autonomous driving mode had been set.

​“We’re going to leave now.”​

​Ki Tae-jeong pulled in the bazooka and closed the driver’s door. A long, large, scary object was majestically rising out of the sunroof, pressing down on the console. Sehwa held the bottom of the gun barrel without realizing it. It was shaking uneasily, and somehow it felt like it was going to crash down on him.​

Ki Tae-jeong irritatedly pressed various buttons as if the seat as the seat attached to the steering wheel was uncomfortable. It seemed like he was annoyed at the short-legged guy who owned this kind of car. As soon as he stepped on the accelerator, the car rushed out like an arrow. The wide-open sunroof allowed the formidable exhaust sound to flow in. Due to not properly fastening the seat belt, Sehwa’s body fell forward. It was enough of a shock to make the already tattered skin flutter significantly.

“Are you a cat? Why is your body so limp?”

Ki Tae-jeong scolded as he grabbed Sehwa’s hand.

​“Fasten your seat belt, and be sure to press this button when I give you the signal.”​

​The place where Sehwa’s finger touched was on the button labeled S near the gear.​