Hiding a House in the Apocalypse - Chapter 291



Only Krnovel

118. Story (1)

There are several annual events in Korea.

Typhoon is one of them.

I had a feeling it had been going on for a few days.

High clouds filled the sky without a single gap, light rain fell intermittently, and occasional gusts of wind raced across the mountains and fields.

It was a common precursor phenomenon when a typhoon is coming.

Crucially, Woo Min-hee posted on the bulletin board that a strong typhoon was approaching.

Although the Korea Meteorological Administration has collapsed, forecasting using supercomputers is impossible, judging from the scale and direction of movement seen so far by weather satellites, it is moving counterclockwise toward the metropolitan area with the intensity of the infamous “maecyparis.”

An emergency has been declared.

Having already personally experienced the horrors of natural disasters several times, I called up everyone – even Da-jeong – and gave instructions on how to get to work.

For the first time in a while, an excavator came out of the garage and dug up the ground, and a small bulldozer was busy moving a huge pile of dirt outside the outer wall.

It is such a grand project that anyone passing by will inevitably be able to spot it, but that doesn’t mean the construction can’t be done.

On the day of the typhoon, I made everyone stay in my safest shelter.

The situation was so serious that even Cheon Yeong-jae, who always slept outside, put his sleeping bag inside my bunker.

As the typhoon made landfall, I chewed caffeine capsules and stayed up all night.

Where does rainwater collect and where does the collected rainwater flow?

We kept a close eye on the flow of rainwater toward the drainage ditches we had dug in advance, and when it flowed in an unintended direction, we used a shovel to block the water’s path with a pile of dirt and tried to direct it in the desired direction.

Excavators were also used without sparing any effort.

“Damn. It’s pouring down like crazy.”

The weather forecast was accurate.

The rain poured down as if there was a hole in the sky.

It reminded me of last year’s heavy rain.

But unlike last year, I think I’ll be able to get through it easily because I have trustworthy colleagues.

At around 2 a.m., when I saw the rain starting to let up, I decided to rest inside the bunker first, following my colleagues’ advice.

I walked carefully between the sleeping bags to go down to the second floor so as not to disturb anyone else’s sleep.

As someone who values ​​privacy extremely, I had already created my own shelter on the second floor where the generator is located.

The supplies are a glass of water in a water bottle, several dry towels and clothes to wipe yourself off, and a laptop.

After washing myself off, putting on some fresh, fluffy underwear, I climbed into my sleeping bag feeling good and turned on my laptop.

“······.”

Knock knock

Non-paying newbie: What if there are 304 Koreans?

I was about to type in the title and write the content as “Korea Ginseng Corporation.”

I think my sense of humor has gotten better lately.

To be exact, it’s a direct copy of something someone wrote on our bulletin board two years ago.

It was when I uploaded a spleen-pushing drip and was waiting for a response.

Someone knocked on the hatch.

“Skeleton. You’re still not asleep, are you?”

It’s the voice of the defender’s younger brother.

When I opened the hatch and came out, a bright light dazzled my eyes.

Everyone was awake and sitting around a brightly lit light bulb.

I think I know why.

Kookookookook!

In a situation where torrential rain and thunder are currently raging and you never know when an emergency will occur and you will have to go outside, everyone has chosen to stay awake instead of sleeping.

“Since we’re all gathered in one place, let’s tell some funny stories. I think we’ll all sleep tonight anyway. Who knows when the water will leak in?”

Cheon Yeong-jae livened up the atmosphere.

As someone who thinks that it’s better to get at least one hour of efficient sleep, it’s an inefficient method, but I joined in because there’s no guarantee that the typhoon will go as I expected.

People’s eyes were turned towards me.

You could say it’s the leader’s responsibility.

It looks like I’ve been chosen as the first batter.

I nodded slightly and pictured a man in my mind.

“There was a great man named John Nae-non.”

“Did you fuck me?”

Cheon Yeong-jae held up one finger to show that he was talking nonsense.

It means warning.

“······As everyone knows, Jon Nae-non is the founder of Palenet. He was a hunter who graduated from the academy, but he amassed a lot of money with his innate business acumen and ability to smell money. With that money, he created Palenet. And he became a legend. I respect him greatly and strive to become someone like him.”

I’m not good at telling long stories, and I never had that kind of education.

What matters is the core.

Although it is a short piece, I think it summarizes well the life of a man who lived a heroic life as Jonnaenon.

But my thoughts may not necessarily be the same as others’ thoughts.

“?”

“Huh?”

“what.”

The reaction from those around me was lukewarm.

Even my former internet friend Defender said some insulting things that I couldn’t just ignore.

“He’s a fraud. He’s just using Viva! Apocalypse! as a springboard to fill his own stomach.”

When I tried to refute immediately, Cheon Yeong-jae said.

“next.”

Should we move on to the next topic?

Well, I guess it’s a good thing.

Because a giant of John Nae-non’s caliber can only be evaluated within historical units.

By the way, the silence is getting longer.

Does everyone have nothing to say?

Well then, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to make an excuse for John Nae-ron here.

As I was thinking like that and choosing good stories from the discussion, someone raised their hand.

It’s Ha Tae-hoon.

“hmm?”

I felt curious.

He’s not really good at telling interesting stories, so what on earth is he trying to say?

Still, it was his turn, so I decided to just watch in silence.

“Do you all know Park Penguin?”

Everyone nodded.

It’s definitely a reputation worthy of being called the leader of a giant shelter.

At least among them, it seemed like Park Penguin was considered a higher level figure than Jon Nae-non.

“Honestly, that person wasn’t anything special, was he? If you look at the history of the first shelter director, most of them were CEOs of large corporations, chief justices of high courts, or university presidents, weren’t they?”

Is this a shelter story?

This is an area I don’t know much about.

There were stories about shelters on the bulletin board, but most of them were minor, fragmentary, and extremely personal complaints and grievances.

Although there were occasional tales in the form of stories, none of them were particularly impressive.

Maybe the country is less interesting because people won’t have to live in a shelter forever.

However, Park Penguin is someone I know well.

Rather than saying that I know him well, I think it would be more accurate to say that I understand the fame and power he has recently gained.

At this point in time, when the country has collapsed, being able to mobilize and employ over ten thousand people is in itself an omnipotent power.

But that penguin, or to be exact, the father of the two sons named Park Jin-gu, was an ordinary person before and after the war.

That’s for sure.

The business card “Park Jin-gu, President of Aram Iron Gate Center” displayed on one of my walls clearly testifies to this fact.

“That person was originally in Gwangjin-gu. As you know, a nuclear weapon was dropped there too. Those who disobeyed and stayed outside all died, but those who were in the bunker survived. As you all know, the first shelter was built by bunker unit, right?”

Ha Tae-hoon looked around as if trying to get everyone’s consent.

Everyone nodded, but I was the only one who didn’t react and just blankly stared at Ha Tae-hoon.

“······After the shelter system was created, the usual things happened.”

Are you ignoring me?

Although Ha Tae-hoon is two years my senior, this professor is not someone who would be ignored.

“for a moment.”

Raised his hand.

Ha Tae-hoon looked at me.

“That’s how the first refugee camp was built?”

Everyone was looking at me.

The reaction was not friendly.

As expected of someone who is good at improvising, I quickly resolved the situation.

“Oh, that’s right. That’s right. Senior. Keep going.”

After a brief awkward silence, Ha Tae-hoon began to tell his story.

“It’s a famous story. Some people might know it.”

Park Jin-gu, who later became known as Park Penguin, was a very ordinary person.

He spent his youth doing a few foolish things, met a woman he liked, got married, and had children.

After finishing his short but dirty and deadly career at work and taking over his father’s store, he faced the war unprepared and ended up in a shelter.

The shelter is filled with a motley group of people.

There were people from all walks of life who had never met before in their lives.

People who had been treated with respect before the war, such as judges, doctors, and professors, were naturally respected in the shelters, but that respect was quickly offset by the harsh conditions and inadequacies of the shelters.

Soon, those who were powerful, could treat others rudely, and were endlessly selfish began to raise their voices and take priority in distribution and other matters.

Ordinary people had their complaints, but they had to endure them for various reasons, such as the harm done by powerful and loud people, fear, and the limitations of realistic power.

With the entire country paralyzed by war, there was no way a proper reporting system could function, and ordinary citizens who complained to the government were publicly beaten by notorious thugs for reporting it to the government.

A man named Jeongwonsik was a headache at the 23rd shelter in Gwangjin-gu.

He was a so-called mixed martial artist, a strong man who had a record of winning professional matches held in the United States.

At first, Jeongwonsik was as docile as the other refugees, but he soon revealed his true colors and began to threaten and bully people, relying on his power, especially his fists.

There was something that Jeongwonsik always said.

“If you try to trick me, I’ll fight you. If I win, I’ll just bow my head. I’ll bow my head and do whatever you say.”

A man in his thirties was saying things that you would only hear at a gathering of teenage boys, but he had some basis for his words.

Because in reality, there was no one inside the shelter who could win against him.

At the time, the head of the shelter was the Chief Justice of the High Court, and he was clearly aware that the monster called Jeong Won-sik was causing problems, but as he was in office, he pretended not to know about the real problem.

When Jeongwonsik realized that even the shelter director was afraid of him, he became bolder and more vicious.

He laid hands on a young girl who had lost her parents and family.

The next day, the woman was found dead with her neck hanging, but everyone just kept quiet and said nothing.

It was by chance that the gardener met Park Jin-gu.

Park Jin-gu’s son, who was playing ball, threw a ball and it flew towards Jeong Won-sik as he passed by.

The ball didn’t even reach Jeongwonsik, but he called the boy over and slapped him.

It was a merciless blow that flew off two teeth.

As if that wasn’t enough, Jeongwonsik climbed on top of the unconscious child and strangled him while laughing and asking.

“Where is your father? Tell him to crawl out quickly.”

When Jin-gu Park, who heard the story from a neighbor, arrived at the scene, his son was on the verge of being beaten to death.

As soon as Park Jin-gu saw that sight, he felt a rush of anger, but he endured.

“Is this your kid?”

Jeongwonsik slapped Jingu Park on the cheek and started a fight with him, just like he did to his son.

Park Jin-goo bowed his head and asked for forgiveness.

“I’m truly sorry. I’m truly sorry for raising my children so poorly.”

Jeongwonsik reacted with surprise.

Usually, when a child is beaten to this extent, the parents, who are usually the authors, would rush in without hesitation and beat up those people like dogs, which was one of his pleasures, but Park Jin-gu did not fall for his provocations.

Jeongwonsik felt a bit of a bad feeling at that time, but he tried to ignore it and continued to do his usual habit of trampling on those weaker than him.

“What did you do before the war? You old man.”

“I opened a hardware store.”

“F-Fuck. You did something fucking stupid. Just get out of here, kid. Take that ignorant brat with you.”

Park Jin-gu took the unconscious child away without saying a word.

People were muttering, and Jeongwonsik opened his eyes wide and looked around at the people, shouting.

“You complaining kid? Come out. Just leave. Why are you so scared? If a guy has balls, you know. Huh? You have to know how to get it on.”

While Jeongwonsik was yelling, Jingu Park quietly went to find people he was usually close with.

They were ordinary fathers who did public service work together.

Park Jin-gu said as he handed them each a pack of cigarettes from the rations.

“Jungwonsik. They’re trying to kill him.”

The neighbors were surprised to hear that.

It was because Jin-gu Park, who I thought was just an ordinary person like them, spoke about murder so calmly.

“Aram’s dad. What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“How are you going to kill him? How strong is Jeongwonshik?”

Then, Jin-gu Park quietly picked up an iron pipe that was lying on the floor.

“No matter how good a person is at fighting, if he gets hit in the back of the head with this, he becomes a cripple.”

Park Jin-gu held the pipe and hummed softly with a determined look on his face.

“I’ll strike first.”

At this, another man waved his hand and said,

“No killing. Get caught. You know those cops? They can’t help a damn thing.”

“That’s right. Aram’s father knows, right? They turn a blind eye to anyone they see as dangerous, no matter what they do, but they catch any kid who does something bad.”

To this, Jin-gu Park answered with a big smile.

“Then shouldn’t we just look dangerous?”

Park Jin-goo took the lead.

“See you at 2 a.m.”

Although many people died at that time, murder was rare.

It was a time when Defender’s posts were popular and could have a great impact on a pure and clear soul like mine.

Park Jin-goo had that kind of determination.

That morning, Jin-gu Park appeared behind Jeong Won-sik, who was concentrating on playing Hwa-tu while holding a Hwa-tu card.

He was holding an iron pipe in his hand.

When the people playing Hwatu together shouted, Jin-gu Park swung the iron pipe with full force without any hesitation.

Bang!

The garden was overturned.

In an instant, he realized what had happened to him and tried to get up by moving his exercise-trained limbs, but his body would not move.

Pure murderous intent easily surpasses shallow malice.

Park Jin-goo continued to swing the pipe.

puck!

Another bone was heard breaking.

“100 million!”

Park Jin-goo shouted as if trying to cover up Jeong Won-sik’s screams.

“Everyone come out!”

Only when Jeongwonsik was struggling and unable to get up did his colleagues rush out and lynch him.

His arms and legs were torn to pieces, and every bone and tendon in his body was bruised.

“S, please spare me······.”

While Jeong Won-sik, who had become unconscious, was begging for his life, Park Jin-goo glared at the man and woman who were playing Hwatu with him and spoke calmly.

“Jung Won-sik fell down the stairs after drinking today. Do you understand what I mean?”

Jeongwonsik died three days later.

No one was arrested and no one was charged.

But everyone knew.

Who solved the problem of the tyrant garden?

Everyone now knows who the real workers are for this shelter.

It was the first step for the man who would become known as Park Penguin.

“······That was Park Penguin. I thought you were talking about someone else.”

“It’s a template story. You can find it in any shelter. But it’s always fun to hear a story about a piece of shit getting screwed.”

“Mr. Park Penguin. He looks ordinary, but he really has a strong personality. When he was spinning around in a group like a penguin, I wondered what he was doing, but it actually worked. Thanks to him, he saved all the children.”

Ha Tae-hoon’s story drew a good response.

A completely different reaction from the legendary tale I told.

“hmm······.”

Should I tell you another story?

What would be a good story to tell to make everyone understand the awesomeness of John Nae-non?

While I was seriously thinking about it, someone else raised their hand.

I stared at the new storyteller’s face with a hint of annoyance.

This is Bang Jae-hyuk.

I remember this guy as not being very fun.

My leg hurts, so I wonder if he’s going to tell me a story about getting shot in the knee.

Amidst all the speculations, Bang Jae-hyuk smiled brightly.

“Do you all know what a vivarium is?”

Vivarium.

It means creating an ecological environment within a limited space.

“There was a large ecological center in Chungcheong Province.”