Taesu had grasped the situation as well, but he had no intention of getting drunk on popularity.
And to finish things off, he approached the deputy commander.
Step, step.
“D-don’t come any closer!”
The deputy commander shouted a warning.
No, he was thrashing about in terror.
Taesu aimed the muzzle at him indifferently.
Then he began aligning the rear sight and the front sight.
He truly looked as if he intended to fire.
“Let’s wrap this up.”
That was all he said.
He meant to knock him out.
Taesu handled guns well, but he had not learned to shoot them at people.
And if he really did fire, the NGO would be put in a difficult position too.
There was nothing to be gained from creating that kind of situation.
Even so, there was a reason he was threatening him like this.
It was largely a matter of making him experience firsthand the irresponsible behavior that had driven countless people to their deaths—putting him in their shoes.
But then it happened.
Flash!
Sunlight suddenly struck Taesu’s eyes.
It happened in an instant, enough to make him squint.
Someone had deliberately sent that light.
Sensing it instinctively, Taesu raised only his eyes and looked up at the sky.
A dozen or so parachutes were spinning as they descended.
It was the PKO.
Each unit had a different mark on its parachutes.
The parachutes now in sight bore a red fox that looked almost like a cartoon character.
Redfox.
It was the radio callsign of the PKO Director of External Cooperation.
It was the arrival of Squad Leader Sam and his squad members.
But their timing was far too exquisite.
“You said you were on my side.”
It did not seem that way right now.
Just then, Jeong Minsu called out to Taesu, who was wearing an odd expression.
“Did dust get in your eyes?”
“Look at the sky.”
“The sky is… wow. Seeing it like this, it is pretty cool.”
At the same time as Jeong Minsu’s offbeat reaction, everyone finally looked up at the sky and discovered the parachutes.
Perhaps because it was a tactical drop, they were descending at a considerable speed.
Two of the parachutes landed nearby.
The ones who emerged after pushing away their parachutes were Squad Leader Sam and Assistant Squad Leader Leo.
Thanks to his thick brown hair, Assistant Squad Leader Leo gave off an atmosphere rather like a lion.
Step, step.
The two men approached Taesu, unconcerned by the tense atmosphere.
Of the two who stopped before him, Squad Leader Sam spoke.
“Security unit directly under the PKO Director of External Cooperation. We have arrived under orders to guard the NGO.”
At that moment, Assistant Squad Leader Leo checked the positions of the squad members over the radio.
“Have you completed landing?”
—Team Two is in support position on the rooftop of the building to the right.
—Team Three is 656 feet from Redfox Baby, roughly 200 meters. The sniping distance is too short, so it’s uncomfortable.
—Team Five assault members, ready to kick those bastards’ asses.
They were merely keeping up the form of a radio report.
Their tone and voices were filled with sarcasm meant for the other side to hear openly.
Soldiers were not supposed to let their backs be taken so easily.
No matter what criticism the Indian soldiers heard, they had no excuse.
Just then, Squad Leader Sam held out his hand to Taesu.
Snap.
Seeing that, Taesu smiled bitterly and held out his own hand as he said,
“I didn’t think you’d come all this way… huh?”
Swoosh.
Avoiding Taesu’s hand, Squad Leader Sam extended his hand into the air again and made his purpose clear.
“I’m not asking for your hand. I’m asking for the gun.”
“It isn’t mine.”
“Since I know that, you should hand it over all the more.”
“Hmm. Here you go.”
Thud.
Taesu obediently handed the pistol to Squad Leader Sam.
He knew very well that provoking Squad Leader Sam for no reason would only make things tiring for himself.
Squad Leader Sam took the pistol and handed it to the Indian Army adjutant as he asked,
“This belongs to your side, correct?”
“Thank you.”
“A soldier who had his gun taken, huh. Heh.”
Squad Leader Sam even let out a meaningful laugh.
“Ahem!”
The adjutant, his face flushed bright red, returned the gun to its holster.
The other Indian soldiers were already lowering their rifles.
They looked as if they had lost all will to fight, unable to move even a finger.
Meanwhile, Squad Leader Sam approached Taesu again.
Step.
And stood behind him.
Assistant Squad Leader Leo was protecting the other medical staff.
Just as the PKO’s mission dictated, they placed the protection of the NGO doctors as their top priority.
Then Squad Leader Sam quietly spoke so that only Taesu could hear.
“We were delayed because we were quite far away.”
“You should’ve come a little later.”
“Someone ordered us to keep a close watch so Dr. Choi wouldn’t cause trouble.”
“I’m the one who got caught up in trouble.”
Taesu corrected him.
Squad Leader Sam believed him, yet pretended not to.
“From what I saw while descending, Dr. Choi was Doctor Terrorist.”
“Countless people died. And yet they shamelessly threatened us to treat them.”
“They really are the bad guys over there.”
Squad Leader Sam spoke as if he had expected as much. Just then, Taesu asked,
“How do we wrap this up now?”
“Proceed as you planned.”
“That was just the timing to wrap it up.”
Only then did Squad Leader Sam realize his mistake.
“I really should’ve come a bit later.”
“You take care of it.”
“What about you, Dr. Choi?”
The moment Squad Leader Sam asked, Taesu began walking away with an indifferent expression.
“I have patients to see.”
“Heh. Just like Dr. Choi.”
Squad Leader Sam thought Taesu was impressive, pushing the work onto him and leisurely walking away.
Taesu soon arrived at the medical tent.
Everyone was watching him with their eyes wide open.
And above all, no one dared to open their mouth, leaving the place silent.
The patients’ ceaseless groans.
The emotionally charged voices of people exchanging opinions.
All of it had disappeared.
Instead, every gaze was focused on Taesu.
Taesu gave a slightly awkward smile.
This attention was something he had already expected.
‘I must look like a proper mad bull.’
Taesu’s judgment was correct.
It was something no one from Malnoi could ever have imagined.
To them, the very existence of soldiers was something to fear.
Since he had rendered such soldiers unable to move an inch, it had to be strange and astonishing.
On top of that, until now, Taesu had been a warm doctor who showed everyone a smile.
Even when they got irritated, he laughed it off, and even when they got angry and shouted, he did not lose his smile.
It had reached the point where rumors spread behind his back that he was frivolous.
That same Taesu had subdued the soldiers with a powerful image.
Then he had returned, saying he would continue treatment.
The people had no idea at all how they were supposed to act.
On the other hand, Taesu felt even more awkward under the endless stares.
“Haha. Well, this is something.”
Just then, Kim Hyeokgwon approached and looked at him incredulously.
“Why are you acting embarrassed now?”
“It’s embarrassing when they stare like that.”
“Don’t say nonsense that doesn’t suit you. Dr. Jeong said there was an ambiguous patient over there.”
“Please lead the way.”
At Taesu’s request, Kim Hyeokgwon immediately moved.
“This way.”
Kim Hyeokgwon walked ahead at once.
Taesu followed right behind him.
Before long, however, he spotted the Korean medical staff with Assistant Squad Leader Leo.
They, too, were looking at Taesu.
But their reactions were quite different from the people here.
Their eyes were wide open, and their mouths hung agape as if their jaws would fall off.
“That’s Dr. Choi, right… sir?”
“Have I perhaps been… rude to you until now?”
The men’s voices were unsteady and trembled faintly.
On the other hand, Nurse Lee Chorong and Nurse Hwang Jisu had sparkling eyes.
“Dr. Choi, you’re the best.”
“I like men who are dependable like that.”
The chatter was slowly growing longer.
It seemed that, now that the tense situation had been settled, they felt relieved.
Taesu quietly advised them.
“There are still many emergency patients.”
Glare.
He lightly added a sharp look as well.
Its meaning was all too clear.
Everyone jumped in surprise and flinched hard.
“Hup. W-we should go.”
“Let’s go together.”
“Patients come first. Of course, of course.”
Rustle, rustle.
They scattered quickly, as if they had heard an order from the hospital director himself.
With a bitter expression, Taesu gave a small shrug.
“I don’t think there’s any need to make such a fuss.”
Though he said that, it did feel slightly good to have his orders conveyed so well.
As expected, a leader needed weighty and powerful charisma.
Meanwhile, he had drawn closer to the people.
Step, step.
As Taesu approached more and more, the people’s expressions grew complicated.
They looked as if they wanted to avoid this place immediately.
But they could not leave, not knowing what might happen afterward.
Even as they hesitated, the distance between them and Taesu shrank.
Just as their inner conflict was rising exponentially,
someone standing at the very front quickly stepped aside.
And that was the beginning.
Rustle, sweep.
A path opened in the middle as if the Red Sea were parting.
Meanwhile,
Taesu instinctively realized that the people found him frightening and difficult to approach.
“What should I do?”
“What do you mean? This is great.”
Kim Hyeokgwon made very comfortable use of the open path.
Then, spotting someone, Kim Hyeokgwon immediately raised his voice.
“You there. We’re on our way to see you, so why are you stepping aside?”
“You said you were looking for a patient.”
“The person who was lying down saying he was dying until just now is standing perfectly fine.”
“We’ll have to lay him back down before we can do anything.”
Taesu clearly made the request politely, with a smiling face.
But Kim Hyeokgwon did not.
“@%#@%#@.”
He shouted loudly as he scolded the standing patient.
It was an opportunity that did not come often, so Kim Hyeokgwon looked somewhat excited.
Under Kim Hyeokgwon’s fussing, the patient had no choice but to lie back down.
With a gentle expression, Taesu spoke in English.
“I’m Dr. Choi. Where does it hurt?”
“I’m all better… It doesn’t hurt.”
The young man, who looked to be in his mid-twenties, spoke with a stiff face.
But he could not hide his badly swollen hand.
Since English worked, Taesu spoke directly to the patient.
“Your hand is very swollen.”
“That’s…”
“In cases like that, there’s usually something wrong with the shoulder.”
“Huk.”
Swoosh.
The patient quickly hunched his shoulder.
But cold sweat was running down his face, and his lips were chapped and peeling.
He was clearly in considerable pain, yet he was more afraid of Taesu.
‘Should I lighten the mood?’
Taesu seriously pondered that point.
He reached a conclusion sooner than expected.
He concluded that this situation, where they were afraid of him, was not bad either.
He did not enjoy borrowing the power of fear.
However, there were still far too many patients waiting.
For the sake of quick treatment, he judged that it would not be bad to push forcefully at times.
He put it into action immediately.
Taesu hardened his expression and pressed him in a low voice.
“Tell me properly where it hurts.”
“I, I mean…”
Rattle, rattle, rattle.
The patient’s mouth moved rapidly like a motor.
Since he was already so frightened that he could not even meet Taesu’s eyes properly, the answer came spilling out.
“That’s how it hurts.”
“Mm. Then it’s the right arm. Let’s take off your clothes.”
“Yes. Ugh.”
Even though he was in pain, the patient forced himself to twist his body and showed his injured arm.