Taesu knew it all too well now.
And so he did not look back.
He couldn’t look back.
“…….”
He did not answer, either.
That must have been the sight they wanted to see.
And the old people remained silent about the past to the very end.
It must have meant they wanted to continue the lives they had settled into here.
Taesu felt that clearly.
At least that was something about their decision he had to respect.
‘But…….’
No one knew what would happen later.
There was something he had already resolved in old man Wang’s house.
That was for another day.
For now, he let go of every lingering attachment.
With that renewed resolve, he pushed through the flurrying snow and ran toward the helicopter.
Soon, the helicopter that had landed in the field came into view.
“Hmm?”
The moment Taesu saw the helicopter, an unexpected look crossed his face.
It had been painted white, with a red cross painted over it.
It was a marking that made it obvious from afar that it was for transporting patients.
That wasn’t the problem.
What surprised Taesu was the helicopter’s shape.
It was a transport helicopter with two propellers.
That wasn’t an NGO helicopter, but a PKO helicopter.
Then?
As he drew closer, he saw that, unusually, the rear door was open.
On either side of the wide-open door stood soldiers holding submachine guns.
They were wearing air force helmets, not bulletproof helmets.
Taesu’s sharp eyes recognized their familiar features at a glance as squad leader Sam and Corporal Ryan.
“It really is them.”
It seemed they had contacted them by radio while flying over.
He could also see Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon already aboard the helicopter.
Pabababa.
“Ugh.”
An artificial gale created by the propellers came rushing at him.
It was the situation he had feared.
Since there were two large propellers, the wind force was tremendous as well.
Taesu’s gaze immediately turned toward the village.
Rustle, rustle.
The bundles of straw laid over the roofs were whipping about violently.
Some had already been blown away.
The walls, built by stacking stones and filling only the gaps with earth, were also shaking.
Several houses were receiving the same shock at once.
It was worse than expected.
If any more time passed like this, the houses would be damaged.
“That won’t do.”
Tap tap tap.
Taesu put even more speed into his run toward the helicopter.
He was passing by the pasture when it happened.
“Get there safely.”
“Thank you.”
Voices of farewell squeezed through the loud roar of the rotors.
When he turned his head right away, Gang Yeonghun, Kim Gwanghyeon, Lee Manseok, and several villagers were waving their hands widely.
Their faces were filled with regret at this sudden departure.
Even so, they did not block the way and instead opened it wide for him like this.
Taesu had no time, so he greeted them while running.
Whoosh, whoosh.
He waved both hands high above his head and shouted.
“I’ll come again.”
“We’ll be waiting.”
“Stay healthy while you wait.”
As they exchanged greeting after greeting, he passed the pasture.
Taesu felt no less regret than they did at the moment they grew distant from one another in an instant. Still, if they had talked, even an entire day would not have been enough for this farewell, so this was better.
He drew even closer to the helicopter.
Step.
Village chief Jeon Nosik stepped forward.
He did not block Taesu’s path, but moved aside and said,
“Don’t worry about the houses. Go and come back safely.”
“Yes. I’ll be back safely.”
Taesu offered his farewell and passed him by without stopping.
Only then did the rear door of the helicopter come fully into view.
Squad leader Sam held onto the door and gestured inside.
“Dr. Choi, hurry.”
“Okay.”
Tap tap tap.
Taesu let go of every lingering attachment and ran, looking only forward.
He climbed straight into the transport helicopter.
The moment he boarded—
Thududududu.
He felt the helicopter immediately rise vertically.
When he looked back, everyone had boarded, and even the rear door was closed.
Their agility was so astonishing and fascinating that it made him wonder just how much training they had undergone.
‘I thought they were army, but were they air force?’
The thought even occurred to him.
That was something to ask later.
Taesu quickly headed to the helicopter window. Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon were already settled in place, looking outside.
Step.
Taesu looked out beside them.
As the helicopter’s altitude rose rapidly, the village grew smaller and smaller.
Seeing it from the sky like this, he truly felt how small a village it was, small enough to be covered by the palm of his hand.
Having stayed there for so long, the regret of leaving so suddenly struck him all the more strongly.
Then, at that moment—
Taesu’s eyes, which had been soaked in sentiment, widened.
“Huh?”
Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon beside him were the same.
“Everyone……”
“What the hell is affection, anyway?”
Their short murmurs were drowned by the rotor noise and reached him only faintly.
The startled expressions on the three men’s faces soon changed into bright smiles.
Below, all the villagers had come out and were waving their hands widely toward the sky.
They paid no mind to the snow pouring down.
The three men soon waved their hands from the helicopter window as well.
Their farewell continued until they could no longer see one another.
The transport helicopter’s lifting power was tremendous.
Thududududu.
It left the village behind as quickly as the rotor noise pounded deafeningly against their ears.
The three men also moved away from the window.
Only then did the inside of the helicopter enter their eyes.
“Huh? Wow.”
The three of them were startled.
The interior had been arranged almost like an emergency room.
There was a firmly secured ECG and ventilator. There was also a large cabinet.
As they looked around, squad leader Sam, Corporal Ryan, and another unit member, Private Anthony, each handed them towels and helmets.
The helmets were the same type as the ones they were wearing.
The three men quickly wiped their damp hair and faces roughly with the towels, then put on the helmets.
Tap tap.
The moment they tapped the helmets to signal that they had put them on, squad leader Sam said something, and his voice came through inside the helmet.
“Can you hear my voice?”
“You’re speaking through the helmet?”
“Yes. It has a built-in short-range two-way communication device.”
“Civilization really is something else.”
Taesu expressed his strange admiration.
But Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon passionately agreed.
“The towel just now was really soft and fluffy, too.”
“Modern civilization sure has a lot of convenient things.”
They weren’t just saying it.
Life in the Korean village had been quite far removed from civilization.
And they had stayed there for quite a long time.
It was only natural that they would marvel at advanced conveniences they were encountering again after so long.
On the other hand, squad leader Sam, who was listening with them, still wore a hardened expression.
It was completely different from his usual smiling face.
The atmosphere was unusual.
The three men sensed it and closed their mouths as well.
“…….”
“…….”
Thududududu.
Only the sound of the rotors filled the helicopter.
After the atmosphere settled a level lower, Taesu was the first to speak.
It was not a greeting.
The mood was not suited to exchanging greetings right now.
Now was the moment to focus on the emergency patients.
Following that priority, he asked about the destination and situation.
“So where exactly are we headed, and how many injured are there?”
“The distance is short, so we’ll arrive soon. And there are two injured.”
“How were they hurt?”
At Taesu’s follow-up question, squad leader Sam answered with a troubled face.
“That’s not clear.”
“What do you mean?”
“There were three climbers in total. The one who contacted us was the guide.”
“Yes.”
As Taesu prompted him while storing it in his head, squad leader Sam continued his report.
“The guide said he stepped away for a moment, then heard a loud rumble. When he returned, the two people were gone.”
“And?”
“He searched around and found them. He says they seem to have fallen below a low cliff.”
At those words, Taesu’s brow furrowed sharply.
A fall from a cliff.
Taesu knew all too well how dangerous that was because he had witnessed it himself.
No, he could not forget it.
It had not been so long ago, and even now his chest stirred at the memory.
“Hmm.”
At Taesu’s low, deep breath, Jeong Minsu glanced at him.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Sam, what happened after that?”
When Taesu asked with a heavy gaze, squad leader Sam’s voice also sank even lower.
“The guide called to them over the radio, and they did answer. But they said their whole bodies hurt and they couldn’t move.”
“Their whole bodies hurt. Is that all?”
“No. They say, judging by the blood scattered over the snow, it’s presumed that their injuries involve some degree of bleeding.”
“Anything else?”
At Taesu’s question, squad leader Sam thought for a moment before answering.
“They still haven’t been able to move, and the guide says he can’t go down because they’re below the cliff.”
“When was the first contact received?”
“Based on the current time…… about two hours and thirty-four minutes ago.”
Squad leader Sam answered while checking his digital watch.
At that moment, Jeong Minsu tilted his head.
Before, even if he had a question, he would have asked it through Taesu.
But during the time that was by no means short, Jeong Minsu had changed as well.
Today, he asked directly.
“Sam, wait a moment. That doesn’t match the time when I first radioed you.”
“Dr. Jeong. That’s because we received the contact after we had already set out.”
“So you’re saying you switched to a helicopter midway.”
“We kept sending radio transmissions before and after that, but we couldn’t get in touch.”
At that, Jeong Minsu, who had been asking the question, slightly hunched his neck.
“Back then, after I relayed the news, I was checking to see if I’d missed anything, so that’s what happened. I’m sorry.”
“In a situation like that, you must never leave your post. Please keep that in mind from now on.”
“Ahem. Yes. I understand.”
Since it had been his own doing, Jeong Minsu ended the conversation with an apology.
But Kim Hyeokgwon was different.
“Sam, wait. Then if you switched to a helicopter midway, who is leading those vehicles here?”
“I heard Corporal Guspia is the leader, and Dr. Jonathan and Dr. Wallik will join them.”
“Dr. Jonathan and Dr. Wallik?”
Kim Hyeokgwon repeated those names and turned his gaze to Taesu.
They were names too familiar to Taesu as well, so he asked squad leader Sam again.
“You said those two are moving out?”
“That’s right. I heard that after the recovery operation, they’ll each move to their assigned locations.”
“Then that means they’re allowed to go outside?”
At Taesu’s continued question, Corporal Ryan stepped in and answered instead.
“There were a total of seven medical volunteer sites marked on the External Cooperation Department’s operation status board.”
“Simultaneously, then.”
“They said they would disperse the maximum available PKO forces and carry out escort operations.”
“That must mean the war situation has stabilized that much.”
“They’re focusing on major cities and smaller cities where a certain level of safety has been secured. They still judge the other regions to be dangerous.”
“Then those two……”
Taesu trailed off slightly.
At that, squad leader Sam responded again.
“First, they’re scheduled to stop by the village, replenish the medicines that have run low, and deliver relief food.”
“That’s something to be grateful for. But the exact location…… There’s a GPS transmitter, isn’t there.”
When Taesu reached the conclusion on his own, squad leader Sam nodded.
“That’s right. We’re tracking them based on that.”
“It really is useful in many ways.”
“Ahem.”
Squad leader Sam suddenly cleared his throat softly.
Taesu and the other two immediately understood his intent.