The Military Chef of a Ruined World - Chapter 410



Only Krnovel

Episode 410 Survivors. (3)

“Your seats are over here.”

The conference room was a large semicircular auditorium.

Lieutenant General Kim Myeong-hwan guided us to a seat in the auditorium.

A place with a sign that says [Gangwon-do].

The soldiers and I walked quietly to that spot.

Then, I felt the eyes of those who had already arrived inside turn towards us.

I could vaguely sense the emotion contained in that gaze.

Curiosity and anticipation.

Vigilance and anxiety.

and.

“… … .”

A little bit of shock and… … horror.

It wasn’t difficult to figure out what caused that feeling.

Before coming here.

We and the survivors of each force gathered here fought against the monsters.

Each force fought at a fairly distant location.

I was able to witness some of the fighting, even from a distance.

You would also be able to check the situation after the battle ended.

And, if you look at it that way… … .

‘No force has slaughtered as many monsters as we have.’

We were the ones who majored the most.

Well, actually, it’s mostly thanks to that monster guy that he gave up his control over the monsters at the end.

We have unintentionally made our military power known to the world.

The people that the survivors gathered here are most wary and concerned about.

It was us.

‘You’re really staring at me.’

We felt those gazes as we entered the conference room.

I sat down in my assigned seat and looked around, frowning slightly.

‘There are a lot of empty seats.’

Did you expect quite a few forces to come?

There were a lot of places where signs were placed.

But most of those positions were empty.

Even though we were obviously the last ones to arrive.

I looked at the seats where people were sitting.

And the first thing I discovered was.

These were quite familiar faces to me.

“You… … !”

An old man looks astonished when he sees my face.

I looked at that face and smiled and thought.

‘association.’

The Gyeonggi-do association is also a representative of one force.

I knew they would accept this invitation, so it was obvious that they would come face to face with me.

“You said it wasn’t a lie, right?”

“… … That guy. He really was in the legion.”

Behind the old man stood Han Yi-seo and Heo Yun-chang.

Since you’ll be talking to people, it’s the right decision to bring Han Yi-seo along.

Heo Yun-chang must have accompanied them as an escort.

“… … .”

And the old man who is their leader.

Jo Beom-seok looked at me with a face full of astonishment.

‘Perhaps the trio from the Northern Branch told me that I came from the Legion… … .’

But seeing it in person would have been a whole other story.

It must have been quite shocking.

I was wondering how to react.

Smile.

With a light smile.

I waved my hand in that direction.

“… … Heh heh.”

An attitude similar to giving a light greeting to an acquaintance you meet in passing.

Jo Beom-seok let out a hollow laugh, perhaps because he found my appearance quite absurd.

A happy face.

It was quite reassuring to know that there were trustworthy people here with me.

Since then.

I looked at the people sitting in other seats.

Phew… … .

A scarred man smoking a cigarette with his legs propped up on the table.

“Hehehe… … .”

An old woman with a cautious look sitting nearby.

“… … .”

A pleasant-looking old man dressed in white.

Behind them stand people who are also dressed in pure white, in silence.

‘Including us and the association… … there are five in total.’

no.

To be exact, there was one more place.

A semicircular lecture hall.

What I saw were these people sitting around the circle.

“Then, the soldiers from Gangwon Province are also here.”

and.

On the other side… … .

“As scheduled… … we will begin the survivor meeting.”

The force that called us here.

People from Seoul were sitting.

* * *

The place where the Seoul figures are located is where the hosts would normally be.

If we were to consider it a small meeting, it would be equivalent to the highest seat.

There were quite a few people sitting there.

“First of all, I would like to thank everyone who fought against those monsters… … .”

While the young man who appeared to be the moderator of the meeting continued speaking.

I looked at the faces of those sitting.

Among them was a person I had already met, General Kim Myeong-hwan.

“… … Private Shin.”

at that time.

Private Seo Su-hyeok whispered to me in a small voice.

“Hey, that guy sitting fourth from the left. His face looks familiar.”

“What does it mean?”

“I’ve seen it on the news a lot. He must be a politician. Probably someone in a pretty high position.”

At those words, I couldn’t help but open my eyes a little wide.

And of course,

Private Seo Su-hyeok’s keen eye was not wrong.

“Before we begin the meeting, I would like to introduce the key figures currently leading the South Korean government.”

The man who seemed to be in charge of the event began explaining while pointing to the people sitting there.

“Former Vice Minister of Public Administration and Security, currently serving as the commander of Gangnam Autonomous University… … .”

“Commander of the Capital Defense Command… … .”

“… … Former member of the National Assembly… … .”

I was honestly a little surprised when I heard about those people.

‘I didn’t know there were so many high-ranking officials.’

Seoul is said to have close to 10% of living people.

If it is said that many of the high-ranking officials among them survived, that in itself is not strange.

‘Those who held high positions before the destruction still maintain those positions to this day.’

What surprised me was.

This was the exact part.

Gangwon-do, where we were, too.

It’s not that the number is small, but there were often people who originally had quite high positions.

There were quite a few cases where people who could be called local leaders survived.

but.

It was extremely rare for them to maintain that position over time.

‘It’s a world where survival is the top priority.’

A world that has been destroyed.

The status before destruction was not important.

More important than that is the strength needed to survive.

‘In the end, the leader of the survivor group was a powerful Awakened person.’

It wasn’t just us.

Kang San, the president of the Gyeonggi-do association, was an old man who lived alone and had talent for fighting.

None of the branch representatives held any high positions.

However, the reason they were established as representatives of the group was because they possessed abilities that were advantageous to their survival as Awakened.

‘Aren’t they these?’

At least as I see it now.

Seoul appeared to retain its status as it had before its destruction.

I don’t know how that was possible though.

‘The efficiency… might not be bad.’

Those in high positions would have previously been in a position to manage many people.

It depends, but there is a high probability that he has the ability to lead people.

If someone was of high status before the destruction, they could be a good rallying point for people in the early stages of the destruction.

‘If some time had passed after the destruction and many people had died, then it would be different. But if it was in the early stages of the destruction, when many people were still alive, then some of the laws of the old society would still remain.’

Many people probably thought that this destruction was only a temporary situation and that society would likely return to normal.

They will find it difficult to ignore someone in high position.

After the destruction has continued for some time, it is highly likely that his position as the leader of the group has already been solidified.

It’s hard for such a person to survive.

If he could survive, it would be a good enough condition to lead the group.

‘Yes, to the extent.’

Even more favorable conditions… … .

Assuming there are no awakened ones.

* * *

“I’m from Gyeonggi-do. My name is Jo Beom-seok.”

After all the people from Seoul were introduced.

Next, the introduction of those from other regions outside of Seoul began.

“… … Jo Beom-seok? No way.”

President of Gyeonggi Province Association.

When Jo Beom-seok revealed his name.

“Are you Colonel Cho Beom-seok?”

“That face… is it… Kim Myung-hwan?”

Among the people in Seoul.

Lieutenant General Kim Myung-hwan, who was sitting as a representative of the military, opened his eyes wide and spoke.

“Lieutenant General Kim Myeong-hwan. Do you know him?”

“Hmm. He was the brigade commander of the unit I served in before. Colonel Cho Beom-seok… … No, he was a brigadier general when he was discharged.”

The interested gazes of people in Seoul were focused on Jo Beom-seok.

“You were a great soldier even during your active service. I didn’t know you would survive this destruction, Colonel.”

“… … That’s an old story.”

Jo Beom-seok smiled faintly at the title of colonel.

He then shrugged his shoulders and said:

“I am now a civilian, not a soldier. I am the second-generation head of the [Gyeonggi Survivors Association], a guild formed by survivors from Gyeonggi Province. My name is Jo Beom-seok.”

Jo Beom-seok finished his introduction calmly.

The people on the Seoul side looked at him with expressions of interest.

– Gyeonggi-do’s representative… …the most populous region.

– You’re from Jangseong. That’s interesting.

A small, muttering voice.

Jo Beom-seok was a person whose history would not have been strange if he had been sitting with them if he had lived in Seoul.

When it was revealed that he was a person of that status, the way they looked at Jo Beom-seok changed.

“Then… …can I hear where the next person is from?”

After Jo Beom-seok’s introduction was over.

People’s gaze shifted to the person sitting next to him.

Jo Beom-seok had a high status before the fall of the association, and his attitude as the current president of the association was also dignified and exemplary.

Most of those present here would think that he is a man fit to lead a force.

“Kang Shin-cheol.”

……the other side.

“Excuse me, I’m from Daejeon.”

The next person to be introduced is Jo Beom-seok.

He was a middle-aged man with wounds all over his body.

Phew… … .

He was just as we entered the room.

He put his feet on the table and smoked a cigarette without caring about what other people thought.

He said, blowing out a puff of smoke.

“I don’t have any particular affiliation other than the association over there or anything. That’s the end of my self-introduction.”

“… … .”

In that overly brief introduction.

There is a slight silence in the conference room.

“How rude.”

And a little later.

Some people from Seoul frowned and said:

“Doesn’t the author… … know that this is a place for dialogue between the government and survivor representatives from each region?”

“You should be a little more polite, Mr. Kang Shin-cheol.”

“Tsk.”

There were even some who openly clicked their tongues.

and.

I looked at their faces.

Because he is a former member of the National Assembly.

Those who say they were current vice ministers of some department.

They were looking down at the man named Kang Shin-cheol and pointing out his actions.

Yeah, that’s right.

Certainly, from my perspective, the man’s attitude was not desirable.

but.

For some other reason, I was a little frowning.

‘You’re questioning me like I’m your subordinate.’

Whether you come from Seoul, Gyeonggi-do, or Daejeon.

Each of those gathered here represents a region.

I was assuming in this meeting that all of these people were basically equals.

but.

‘This seating arrangement is like that… … and so is the so-called government.’

It is a place where the government and survivor representatives from each region can talk.

It felt a little cheap.

“Heh heh. Manners, X-rated.”

The man named Kang Shin-cheol just chuckled as if he found the reaction funny.

Seeing that, Lieutenant General Kim Myeong-hwan asked cautiously.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Try it.”

“I understand that the message we sent was delivered to the representative forces of each region. You must have received that message as well. But what do you mean by saying you have no affiliation?”

Phew… … .

“Literally. I have no particular affiliation.”

“So what is that… … .”

“What association did that old man over there belong to?”

He looked at Jo Beom-seok and said.

“Oh, then should I call you the president instead of grandpa?”

“It doesn’t matter as long as you call it in a way that can be understood.”

“Heh heh, well. Anyway. That whatever-what association probably refers to [the guild]. Well, it’s simple.”

He chuckled.

He said, blowing out smoke from the cigarette he was smoking.

“It seems like the name of the group is given from [Guild]. If there are too few survivors, they don’t even get a name… … Something like that.”

“… … .”

In that regard, of course we do.

The faces of those so-called government officials also hardened.

and.

When I heard that, I thought.

‘The forces gathered here total only six.’

There are a total of seventeen administrative districts in South Korea.

The story was that only six of them gathered together.

Some of them are too far away.

Or, there may be places where people did not respond to this invitation despite their own judgment.

Still, six out of seventeen was too few.

The reason is… … It was obvious without having to think about it.

After the day of destruction.

I was wondering if there might be such a case.

No, the worst case scenario, which I thought was very likely.

“Everyone in our town is dead.”

… … most of the population of a small region.

“The only ones who survived were me and about 20 of my friends.”

In the case of something that had already been annihilated.