The Second Korean War, which broke out in the twenty-first century.
The war that the United States had started over North Korea's nuclear weapons looked to be over within a year.
The North Korean leadership had fled to China, and the entire territory of North Korea had been occupied by the ROK-US Coalition, save for the guerrillas.
Since the government could declare a ceasefire at any moment, I too was waiting for my delayed discharge.
But suddenly, a deployment.
Absurdly, this deployment wasn't to enemy territory, but to an area occupied by allied forces.
Below the southern foothills with a view of Heaven Lake on Baekdu Mountain, a hastily constructed base had been erected at the place I arrived by vehicle.
For something thrown together in a hurry, the unit's security was incredibly tight.
However, it was even more chaotic, and no matter how I looked at it, it did not resemble a military camp.
Everywhere in the base were traces of dug-up earth and all kinds of excavation equipment left behind, and I could see civilians and technicians as well.
This place seemed less like a military camp and more like an archaeological excavation site.
The vehicle I was in passed through the camp entrance where an armored vehicle was stationed and stopped immediately.
People were gathered there.
Dozens of people who looked like they'd been conscripted, just like me.
‘There are civilians here?’
They must have been people deployed here like me, but the makeup of the assembled crowd was unexpected.
"The war is practically over, and yet we're being conscripted? Staff Sergeant, do you know what this place is?"
"I don't know either. I was packing my bags to go home when I was suddenly pulled out. What on earth is going on."
Among them were soldiers and officers who were bewildered.
But the majority were not soldiers.
Ordinary middle-aged men and women, and young people.
These were civilians.
"Does anyone know what's going on? We were suddenly dragged here, and no one's told us why!"
There was a young man looking around anxiously,
"Is there no one in charge? So what if we're at war, is it okay to drag civilians here like this?"
and an angry middle-aged man.
"Let's wait quietly. It'll be trouble if you lose your temper and get shot."
There were some trying to think rationally like this, but
"Mom… *sniff*."
there were also women shedding tears in terror.
This was right below the Chinese border. These were people who had no business being here.
I was blankly watching them when one person approached.
"Sergeant Hyeon!"
It was someone I knew.
A non-commissioned officer in his mid-thirties called Master Sergeant An.
He wasn't a special forces operator, but I'd seen him during an operation not long ago.
He came close and asked in a low voice, leaning in.
"Good lord, were you called here too, Sergeant Hyeon?"
"Good to see you. Has it been three months?"
"I'm not happy to see you. Because I still have nightmares now and then since that day."
At his grumbling, I nodded too.
The operation we'd been on together had been an extremely arduous one.
Of course, it hadn't been a particularly special operation for me, but for him, who had been conscripted as a technical non-commissioned officer, it must have been anything but easy.
After his brief complaint, he asked something else.
"Haven't you heard anything, Sergeant Hyeon?"
At his question, I shook my head.
"I haven't heard anything separately. Just looking at the people gathered here, I think this is different from the operations we've done before."
Even if I had heard something, I probably couldn't have told him, but this time I hadn't heard a word.
Before, they'd explained as much as possible for the sake of the operation, but this conscription was different from other times.
"Looking at the people they've gathered, it seems like a different kind of job, right?"
During the war, I'd carried out several operations I couldn't speak of to others, but I'd never been called up like this before.
Moreover, women and civilians.
Some even looked like minors.
I could tell it was different from existing operations, but I couldn't fathom what kind of operation this was.
Just then, people climbed onto the platform at the front where the group was gathered.
A two-star general, a man in a suit who appeared to be a civilian, and even a US colonel.
The status of those who had ascended was incredibly high-profile.
As they took the stage, everyone looked at them.
"You've all waited a long time. Now that all personnel are assembled, we will begin the operation briefing."
As everyone's gaze gathered, the major general opened his mouth.
"The people gathered here are individuals selected to carry out a special operation for the ROK-US Coalition. This operation is a critical mission that will decide national security and the final victory of the war, so strict secrecy is of the utmost importance."
‘The final victory of the war?’
A weighty statement had come out right from the start.
The war was virtually already over.
Aside from the guerrillas hiding in tunnels, there were no enemies left to fight, yet they were suddenly talking about victory.
The fact that a two-star general had uttered such words meant there was something different about this operation and the war.
Amid growing questions, the speech continued.
"From now on, you will receive training here for one week before being deployed to the operation area. This training is to ensure the smooth execution of the operation, so everyone must do their best."
"One week?"
At the general's words, all the soldiers were dumbfounded.
Gathering people and giving them only a week of training.
Since civilians were included, training did seem necessary.
But what could they learn in one week?
Moreover, giving soldiers and civilians the same training.
It was impossible to guess what they were trying to do.
But the truly shocking words came after that.
"For that reason, from this very moment, you are isolated from the outside world. The operation is expected to last at minimum several months, and at maximum over a year. During training and the operation, contact and meetings with the outside world are prohibited."
Crazy!
This even shocked me.
The war was about to end, and yet isolation for over a year?
The soldiers were also bewildered, but the civilians shouted at the general in horror.
"That's absurd! What about my company!"
"What about school!"
"I couldn't even properly tell my family I was being dragged here!"
Men shouting in anger and women whimpering.
Unbelievably, they had brought the civilians here in the same manner as the soldiers.
"Everyone, quiet! As of moments ago, you are all military personnel under martial law. Do not forget that insubordination may result in summary execution!"
Click.
Along with the general's words, the soldiers lined up below the stage raised their rifles.
They didn't point them directly at the shouting people, but everyone couldn't help but feel the changed atmosphere.
Those who had stood up and shouted sat down with pale faces, and the whimpering women covered their mouths.
Watching that scene, I couldn't help but tilt my head in confusion.
‘Why are they doing this? Isn't this too excessive?’
To drag civilians here by force and then treat them so coercively.
I didn't know what operation this was, but treating people like that, the operation couldn't proceed properly.
‘Is it an operation that's okay to handle that way? Or is it an operation so urgent that they have to go this far?’
Neither option was a good one.
After silencing the people, the general continued his explanation.
He explained the quarters where they would stay during training and the rules they had to follow, and even personally conducted indoctrination.
Indoctrination in a situation like this.
Everyone's dissatisfaction grew as large as a mountain, but neither the general nor the others cared.
After the general finished speaking, a man who appeared to be a government official opened his mouth.
"On behalf of the government of the Republic of Korea, I apologize for the forced conscription. However, as General Jeong said, this is truly an important matter for national security."
An apology had finally come.
It was a perfunctory apology, but it was a hundred times better than none.
The man continued.
"It may be small compensation, but all of you will receive a base allowance of fifty million won per month, including during training, for the duration of the operation.
Depending on performance, there will be additional allowance beyond that.
All compensation will be paid to you tax-free on the very day the operation ends."
Hearing this, people's expressions changed.
Not only the soldiers who had been rolling around battlefields on wages that didn't even meet minimum wage, but also the civilians who had been struggling with wartime prices.
An annual salary exceeding six hundred million won, and additional allowance beyond that, was enough money to change many people's minds.
However, not everyone was like that.
Those for whom fear remained greater than money, and those who were already wealthy, did not change their minds.
And those who knew what being paid such a large amount of money meant grew even more worried.
Giving such absurd compensation for a single operation meant it was just that dangerous.
That day, under the pretext of security, they didn't reveal the slightest bit about what dangers there were or what kind of operation it was.
Instead, we began training from that day.
Under the watch of soldiers, we changed into training uniforms, ate rice that felt like grains of sand, and gathered at the drill ground.
There, together with drill instructors wearing red caps, unexpected people were waiting for us.
A traditional martial arts instructor holding a long spear, a person holding a real sword, and even a person holding a shield.
Judging solely by the weapons they held, they looked like medieval cosplayers.
As we looked at them with dumbfounded expressions, the instructors distributed spears.
"This isn't even a proper spear?"
Master Sergeant An stared at the spear with a dumbfounded face.
The spears they distributed were stone spears—roughly carved wooden shafts with stone tips bound to them.
Just what were they planning to do with these?
Everyone made absurd expressions, but once again, they ignored them.
"We will now teach you spearmanship. There is much to learn and little time, so we will teach only the basics of spearmanship."
First, the man holding a spear began demonstrating with a serious expression.
Everyone watched him with faces of disbelief, but instead of a proper explanation, all we heard were the instructors' shouts.
From that day, we began learning spearmanship.
Thrusting, swinging, blocking, hooking, pushing.
They were basic moves, but we were able to learn proper spearmanship.
What we learned wasn't just spearmanship.
Though they were basics, we also learned swordsmanship, shield techniques, and simple self-defense.
While learning to slash, we injured opponents, and while pushing with shields, we tumbled to the ground.
Thus we spent the days learning how to use ancient weapons, and after sunset, we learned various survival skills.
We learned to start fires with bare hands, procure water, and make campsites; we even learned to distinguish edible plants and butcher wild animals.
During the training, people's worries grew even greater.
Because now, it was impossible to know where we were going and what we would be doing.
Teaching survival skills and medieval weapons instead of guns in the twenty-first century.
There was nothing that could be done with such things now.
But they did not resolve our doubts.
Even as worry mounted, the education and training continued.
Time spent rolling on the ground and having knowledge crammed into our heads.
Amidst all this, there were people showing outstanding skill.
People who had learned survival skills as a hobby, and those who had trained in traditional martial arts, combat sports, and self-defense.
I was one of those people.