Hiding a House in the Apocalypse - Chapter 61



Only Krnovel

39. Campaign (2)

When he entered the monster dominion zone with Je-Pung-Ho, Park Sang-Min’s influence was tremendous.

He rode in an official car, had a chauffeur, and had aides who would yell at him and grab him by the collar.

Now he is alone and his car is running low on gas.

Black smoke rose from the exhaust pipe like a forest fire, giving off a foul odor, as if the correct oil was not being used.

“People really find proportional representation funny.”

It was a topic he barely brought up after swallowing dry saliva several times.

I kept my mouth shut and checked the direction in which the vehicle was passing.

It looks towards Yeouido.

“However, proportional representation is also a legitimate representative of the people as determined by law and public opinion. It is an advanced system first adopted by advanced countries such as Germany and Northern Europe, and plays a role in diversifying policies and expanding the interests of minorities.”

“Where are we going?”

“Oh, it’s toward the National Assembly building.”

“Are there just the two of you?”

“No. There will be reinforcements in front of the Capitol.”

As soon as the short conversation ended, I turned my head out the window.

Park Sang-min was at least a man of sense.

You can tell by the way he keeps his mouth shut, knowing that I don’t want to talk to him.

A group of people, including soldiers, were gathered in front of the Capitol building, where half of the roof had collapsed.

Looks like he got on the bus that was standing next to him.

“Congressman!”

“Congressman~!”

Middle-aged men and women greeted Park Sang-min with broad smiles.

Appeared as a follower.

It was impressive that there were more middle-aged and older women than men.

Park Sang-min went up to one of the women and did an excessive haircut, but I didn’t really care.

Because there were people several times more important than him in this place.

“It’s been a while.”

This is my senior rider, Baek Seung-hyun.

As I drove Park Sang-min’s car, my blood was already as cold as a reptile’s, but when I saw his face, my temperature really dropped to the point of freezing.

I thought for a moment during the short time I was giving the sermon.

How to deal with this human.

“······.”

First, let’s hide the house.

Yeah, that sounds good.

“Ah. Senior Baek. It’s been a while. How have you been?”

“Senior? That’s ridiculous.”

He offered me a cigarette.

It’s a pre-war item with a filter.

I held the cigarette in my mouth for a moment before he lit it for me, and for some reason I started to feel nauseous.

I am not a non-smoker.

The cigarette was smoked quite a bit.

I felt nauseous because the pungent corpse scent from the unlit cigarette flowed into my mouth through the filter.

“Good. The cigarettes of the past.”

I thanked him, driving away the corpse-like scent in my mouth with nicotine-laced smoke.

“It was hard to obtain.”

Baek Seung-hyun answered with a calm smile.

I wanted to ask how he got it, but I didn’t.

We stood side by side, smoking cigarettes and watching Park Sang-min’s actions.

It seemed as if he had come here to give a real speech rather than to subdue monsters, as he shook hands and hugged each and every supporter who came here.

Baek Seung-hyun looked at Park Sang-min with a calm expression and then exhaled white smoke.

“You were called too?”

“Yes. I have some connections.”

“I see. Are you still in the bunker?”

“No. I went to Incheon.”

“Oh, I’m from Incheon too. I’m from Michuhol.”

“This is Gyeyang.”

“Gyeyangyo?”

Baek Seung-hyun looked at me with surprised eyes.

“They said it was a total war zone there. Didn’t the giant bells come rushing in right in front of it?”

“At that time, I fled to the south.”

“I see. Is your home safe?”

“I’ll have to check. There’s nothing to live on, so I don’t think there’s anything to lose. Besides, what are you doing here?”

Naturally, the subject changed.

Baek Seung-hyun seemed not to doubt my intentions.

Rather, he answered my question with a faint smile, as if the new topic suited his taste.

“In a word, it’s a show.”

Baek Seung-hyun looked up at the sky.

A single line of indifferent clouds was floating leisurely across the blue sky.

“Mr. Park, I want to be a representative of the people, but I have nothing to show for it, so I’m planning a show where I’ll have to vote in the Capitol. But there’s a capsule inside the Capitol, right?”

“Remove the capsule and build up your achievements?”

“That’s the story.”

“I heard you were a monster.”

“That’s what it’s known to the public. It’s a capsule.”

Baek Seung-hyun hit the floor and spat.

He saw a group of distressed children sitting in the corner of the crowd.

“Maybe I put it there myself.”

“That’s something only a fanatic would do.”

“Are you going to do it?”

Baek Seung-hyun looked toward the National Assembly building.

“well.”

He smiled broadly.

Soon several vehicles arrived in front of the Capitol.

The flags fluttering on their cars told us what kind of people they were.

“I’m going to go now. It wasn’t Park Sang-min who called me, it was someone else who called me.”

Baek Seung-hyun had connections with the Pioneer Corps.

It wasn’t just a matter of connections, it was a complete mess.

Standing next to the bandits in plainclothes, Baek Seung-hyun burst into a more genuine and hearty laugh than when he was with me.

“Then, Congressman, I will go and do some reconnaissance.”

After a while, Baek Seung-hyun entered the Capitol with a group of pioneers.

While waiting for them to return, Park Sang-min approached.

“Mr. Park Hunter.”

“yes.”

“I think you know Hunter Baek.”

“Because we went to the same school.”

“Ah~.”

“Aren’t you a graduate of the school?”

I asked, knowing that it wasn’t true.

“I am from the evaluation center.”

“okay.”

“We are about to begin the operation.”

“Let’s listen to the briefing.”

I don’t really have any intention of joining in on Park Sang-min’s fun.

What I was asked to do by Woo Min-hee was to campaign, not to get elected.

So, all you have to do is pretend.

Do you think everyone gathered here will vote for Park Sang-min?

I don’t think so.

Park Sang-min innocently talked about his plan with a smile on his face, not even knowing what I was thinking.

“The plan is simple. Hunter Park and I will enter the Capitol together. There is a capsule in the Capitol. We will deal with it. It is not difficult at all. To be honest, it is incomparably easier than it was when Chairman Je Poong Ho was there.”

“Sir, do you have any combat experience?”

I asked Park Sang-min.

Park Sang-min made a surprised expression and shook his head.

“I will not participate in the battle.”

“why?”

“Hunter Park has to do it. I heard that he can defeat the capsule alone. And it’s very easy.”

Suddenly, a doubt occurred to me.

What kind of life do you have to live to be able to laugh so heartily and force sacrifices on others as if it were natural?

“Mr. Park Hunter?”

He tilted his head and demanded my answer.

He answered with a sigh.

“That was a long time ago. As for me now······.”

It was when I was trying to make excuses and get out.

“It’s for the people.”

Park Sang-min cut me off.

“yes?”

I don’t really want to show my feelings to this person, but when I heard that just now, I couldn’t help but show my true feelings.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

It was quite a sharp remark.

By the way, this person named Park Sang-min.

There is no shaking.

“I’m not babbling. I’m doing this for the people.”

For a moment, I felt a strong suspicion that the people he was talking about were not a first-person pronoun, a variation of Park Sang-min’s “I.”

“No, what kind of work is that for the people? Isn’t that something you want to do to get elected as a member of the National Assembly?”

“Even that is for the people.”

“yes?”

“now······.”

Today seems to be a lucky day.

You don’t have to get angry at Park Sang-min, because he knows how to shut his mouth somewhere else.

“I can’t do this!”

Baek Seung-hyun and the group of pioneers who had entered the assembly hall rushed out.

Because the voice was so loud and fierce, both Sangmin Park and I stopped talking for a moment and turned our heads in that direction.

“It’s too dangerous. A capsule? It might be different if you had Hunter equipment, but you don’t have that either.”

This is Baek Seung-hyun’s voice.

He is screaming.

I know this because I’ve talked to Baek Seung-hyun a few times, but this isn’t something you say to a colleague sitting next to you.

He is the type of person who speaks in a small but clear voice and, as expected from someone who came from high school, rarely swears.

“What the hell are you talking about with something like this? What the hell~~~! Are you telling me to lose?”

That is, Baek Seung-hyun is talking to Park Sang-min.

“Hunter gear? Don’t you have one?”

The pioneer member next to him laughed and asked loudly as well.

It looks like it was probably agreed upon in advance.

“What we have now is for mutation hunting. We need something stronger. You seem to be making fun of capsules, but capsules aren’t eggs. They’re summoning beacons. If you don’t have close combat equipment, prepare plenty of reflective bullets. Bring two or three shooters who can do intimidation. There are a lot of conditions.”

Baek Seung-hyun passed me by, gave me a meaningful look, and shut one eye tightly.

“If you tell me to jump in without that, I’m asking you to die.”

It’s a little confusing.

Before, when Baek Seung-hyun appeared around my territory, he only gave off the stench of a marauder, but now he’s helping me against Park Sang-min.

A member of the pioneer group looked back at us.

“But what if that person makes a claim?”

Even though Park Sang-min was right next to him, he spoke as if telling the pioneers to listen.

When the supporters of Park Sang-min who were behind heard this, they protested, but the members of the pioneering group just snickered.

In the meantime, Baek Seung-hyun delivered the decisive blow.

“What’s that little punk going to do with his strings off?”

I looked at Park Sang-min’s face.

The face of the man who had been trying to drive me into a corner with a shameless smile turned pale.

“He’s a bastard who didn’t even have a single district to begin with, but he’s a bastard who relies on connections. He’s going to be a tightrope walker. The bastards who were supporting him are busy taking care of themselves, and he doesn’t even have any supporters in the first place. Just look at the faces of the bastards gathered here. That’s all there is. That’s all the supporters that bastard has scraped together, even his soul.”

Baek Seung-hyun turned around with a cigarette in his mouth.

Park Sang-min couldn’t say anything.

As if enjoying his helpless reaction, the pioneers followed Baek Seung-hyun around and spoke to him in a flattering tone.

“Baekhyung. Isn’t this factual violence too much?”

“That’s right. I’m not trying to kill you with facts.”

Laughter followed, but there was nothing Park Sang-min could do.

I couldn’t even raise a small protest.

That’s the reality of that arrogant man.

Soon a young man who appeared to be the leader of the pioneer group approached us.

“Oh, sir.”

A rough attitude and challenging gaze that shows no sign of respect.

“Our hunters can’t do it. We need more support.”

I looked at Park Sang-min’s face.

He pretends to keep a blank expression, but it seems he can’t hide the fact that his face is turning bright red.

“······Just go.”

Park Sang-min said in a suppressed voice.

The pioneer man turned around without even answering.

“Hey. Work is done. Let’s go!”

Several vehicles started up competitively.

Brrrrrr-

The crude flag waved fleetingly to the vibration of the engine.

Baek Seung-hyun, wearing a German military helmet and goggles, approached us riding his trademark vintage motorcycle.

“Hunter Park!”

“yes.”

“Do you have a personal identification number? Let’s have a drink later.”

“No, I don’t have a personal identification number.”

“Wasn’t it there?”

“It was there, but it’s gone. There were a lot of things going on in the meantime.”

Meanwhile, Park Sang-min looked at me with a strange look, but that expression only lasted for a moment.

“Is that so? That’s too bad.”

“What is that?”

“Me?”

“Yes. Senior Baek’s identification number. I was thinking of contacting you later if I ever get your identification number.”

As far as I know, Baek Seung-hyun, unlike me, was not given a personal identification number.

It seems to be there now.

It’s because I see you emphasizing that you are so confident.

So I expected him to answer.

As expected, Baek Seung-hyun answered brightly with a smile on his face that looked like an adult but was also childish.

“This is DARAM.”

“Squirrel?”

“Oh, because I like squirrels.”

“yes?”

I glared at him with a serious expression.

Baek Seung-hyun observed my expression and then answered with a smile on his face.

“······Actually, I received it from Hunter Kim Da-ram.”

That’s a lie.

Why would that possessive woman hand that over to you?

“Oh, I see.”

“Let’s have a drink sometime. You said Gyeyang, right? I’ll come see you when I have time.”

I have a lot of questions to ask, but it’s true that he has more friends than I do.

And that’s with a dozen or so friends wielding guns.

Still, I wanted to confirm one thing.

“Commissioner Kim Da-ram. Do you have any news?”

He looked straight at me and asked.

“well.”

Baek Seung-hyun pressed the accelerator, making a loud engine roar.

“I heard that he went to the Legion faction.”

He stared at me.

“You made a bad bet.”

Is that really true?

Kim Da-ram is a smart woman.

There is no one around me who is as smart as she is.

I’m sure she’s not dead.

The motorcycle carrying Baek Seung-hyun left the place with a loud noise.

Park Sang-min approached me with an awkward smile.

“Haha······. Hunter Park.”

Now it seems like he has no one else to rely on but me.

I lost all those supporters, all the power, all the aides who showed their loyalty by grabbing me by the collar.

All that’s left is a handful of helpless supporters.

“Good luck, Sangmin Park!”

When one woman shouted a cheer without thinking, the other women followed suit.

“Good luck, Sangmin Park!”

“Congressman Park, cheer up!”

“Woo. Milk. Skin. Park. Sang. Min!”

Even mixing in trendy words that I can’t even remember when they came from.

“······.”

Park Sang-min stood in front of me, wearing lukewarm rather than hot cheering.

“Mr. Park Hunter.”

“I’m sorry, but I have absolutely no intention of taking any risks.”

I plan to leave after talking things over nicely.

Anyway, there’s no way this guy will give me a ride, so I’ll have to wait for Woo Min-hee’s people to arrive.

By the way, this guy Park Sang-min.

It wasn’t like that to Baek Seung-hyun, but it seems like it’s going to be sticky to me.

He looked at the supporters behind him and began to talk in a small voice.

“I made a real mistake when I was Chairman Je-pung-ho. I didn’t go to that school, so my network was limited. I didn’t recognize great people like Hunter Park.”

“I’m not like I used to be. It’s been over four years since I’ve been on the battlefield. Well, I guess I’ll leave now.”

The day I was about to leave, he stopped me.

“How could it not be done for the people?”

“yes?”

This guy.

“For the people.”

Why on earth are you doing this?

“Please, could you come with me to the Capitol?”

He pretended to be conscious of what was behind him.

A handful of supporters were just looking at his back.

“No.”

Park Sang-min suddenly started crying like a child being punished.

“My mother is here too······.”

A middle-aged woman in the crowd shouted in a shrill voice.

“Sangmin! Stop it and come here!”

Park Sang-min is the person who bowed his head excessively earlier.

This person appears to be Park Sang-min’s mother.

“Come!”

It is a great pity, but our brave defender of the Constitution, Rep. Park Sang-min, was never able to return to his mother’s arms.