🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 55
Kim Do-woon was dragged out of the reconnaissance plane. Someone hoisted him onto their back. It was probably Lee Kyu-min.
Im Eun-ha wasn’t built to carry Kim Do-woon herself, and within their squad, Lee Kyu-min was the only one she could trust to take his weight without hesitation.
Eun-ha’s voice cut sharply from nearby.
“Open the clean room! Now!”
“Squad leader, shouldn’t you check on the battalion commander first?”
“No matter what, you still need to go—”
“Move! Choi Jae-hyung, what are you doing not opening the clean room?!”
“Squad leader, the battalion commander comes first! We’ll take care of Kim Do-woon—”
“Lee Kyu-min, go in!”
The body firmly carried by Lee Kyu-min tilted slightly. Kim Do-woon’s whole body hit the floor with a thud, but he didn’t even feel pain. His senses were dulled.
Then he felt someone pressing the mask to his face, fumbling urgently with it.
The sharp, bitter air of the clean room hit his nose and mouth mercilessly, rushing through his veins and spreading across his body. His senses came alive, and a surge of pain shot up his spine.
Kim Do-woon lay face down on the clean room floor, clutching his chest, coughing violently. He struggled for breath, blinking his eyes.
Through his blurred, watery vision, he thought he saw the squad lowering their bodies and surrounding him tightly—but then darkness swept over him.
“Kim Do-woon!”
His head snapped sharply to the side, his cheek stinging. He tried to open his eyes, but his body wouldn’t obey. It felt impossibly heavy, as if it would sink and never rise again.
“Kim Do-woon, get a hold of yourself!”
Another slap hit him. Wow, our squad leader sure has a strong hand, he thought blankly.
Immediately after, the mask was ripped off. A hand pushed something deep into his throat through his open mouth.
He twisted instinctively, trying to resist, but the pill forced its way into his throat, sliding slowly down his esophagus. When he tried to gag, his mouth was covered.
“Here’s water!”
“Move the water! It’s blocking his airway! Come on, hold him! Don’t let him spit the pill out!”
“Sit him up! Make him swallow the pill!”
Someone forced Kim Do-woon’s upper body upright. His back pressed against a cold wall. His whole body was drenched in cold sweat.
The instant his head slumped forward again, someone held him upright. Cold water poured over his head.
Gasping, Kim Do-woon blinked. Through the drops on his lashes, he first saw Lee Kyu-min.
He held Kim Do-woon firmly against the wall so he wouldn’t fall, almost in tears himself.
“He’s fine, he’s conscious!” Lee Kyu-min said frantically. Eun-ha, next to him, was also drenched in either sweat or tears, her round face glistening.
She hurriedly unbuttoned the top of Kim Do-woon’s uniform, tugging at the knots roughly and making eye contact.
“Are you okay? You went into shock.”
Eun-ha’s voice trembled.
Why is she crying? Kim Do-woon thought. What am I to her? Just a disposable tool?
She tugged his uniform open roughly. Once the tight clothing loosened, his breathing became slightly easier.
Just as his eyes were about to close, he was slapped again. Blood mixed in his torn mouth.
“Lee Kyu-min, make sure he doesn’t pass out.”
“Understood.”
“Once his breathing and pulse stabilize completely, then move him to the medical room. Don’t move him recklessly before that.”
After giving instructions, Eun-ha wiped her face roughly with her palm and stood up abruptly.
Except for Lee Kyu-min, who still held him tightly, the surrounding squad members immediately got up. Tension was palpable.
Eun-ha asked,
“Did the Phantom get onto the track properly?”
“Seol Ah-yeon got it in accurately, but…”
“Did I ask for your thoughts?”
“We can’t contact the track side right now. It’s probably chaotic.”
“Go check and report back.”
One of the members immediately saluted and left the clean room. Just as the door was about to close, someone ran in urgently. It was An So-young, who had taken care of Baek Yi-hyun and Seol Ah-yeon and brought them to the other clean room.
Uncharacteristically flustered, her face betrayed her usual calm.
Eun-ha frowned.
“An So-young, why are you here already? Where’s the battalion commander?”
“He detached from the weapon and left immediately.”
“Already?”
“He had instructions and went to the track side.”
“Even though he can barely stand?”
Eun-ha’s reaction was natural. The last time Kim Do-woon saw Baek Yi-hyun, before returning to the battleship, his condition was appalling.
As soon as Seol Ah-yeon placed the Phantom onto the track, An So-young quickly loaded Seol Ah-yeon and Baek Yi-hyun onto the aircraft and transported them to the battleship’s clean room—but Kim Do-woon had an uneasy feeling that it might already have been too late.
This wasn’t a minor side effect of pushing an A-class weapon to its limit. Something in Baek Yi-hyun had been severely damaged when the wings induced the Phantom’s nightmare. The last time he saw him, Baek Yi-hyun was completely unconscious.
Yet…
“He’s recovered?”
“So quickly? That’s impossible.”
“It seems the effect transferred to Seol Ah-yeon.”
Kim Do-woon couldn’t believe his ears. Did he hear wrong because of the shock?
The other squad members also looked stunned. No one could react, staring blankly. Eun-ha finally asked, her voice strained,
“What do you mean?”
“From the moment we put them in the aircraft, something was off. Seol Ah-yeon, who was fine, suddenly collapsed, and right after, the battalion commander woke up. By the time we entered the clean room, he was already able to converse with me. All the side effects of the battalion commander transferred to Seol Ah-yeon. Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense.”
An So-young spoke rapidly, clenching her teeth. Kim Do-woon stared at her flushed face in disbelief.
It was impossible. Transferred? He was too stunned to even question it. But An So-young wasn’t the type to lie.
Eun-ha’s voice cracked as she asked,
“And the battalion commander?”
“He had nothing to say. He went straight to the track as soon as he recovered.”
“And Seol Ah-yeon?”
“The battalion commander carried her. The last time I saw her, she was limp like a corpse. When I first helped the battalion commander, she was exactly in that state.”
Kim Do-woon thought he needed to check personally. As he tried to push off the floor and stand, Lee Kyu-min grabbed his shoulder.
Holding him down, Lee Kyu-min asked An So-young,
“Did they… have a relationship?”
“Nothing happened.”
An So-young glared at Lee Kyu-min in frustration. She repeated,
“You saw it yourself. I immediately put them onto the aircraft and into the clean room—there was no time for anything. The battalion commander was unconscious. How can an unconscious person have a relationship?”
“Maybe Seol Ah-yeon initiated it? Clinging to him, crying and hugging him…”
“Nothing happened! There wasn’t even space for anything! And if they had done anything, would I not have noticed? His condition just changed instantly! I swear, they did absolutely nothing—”
“They didn’t do nothing.”
It was Choi Jae-hyung. Leaning on one leg in a tilted stance, he added,
“They were sticking together, weren’t they?”
Then Choi Jae-hyung’s gaze shifted to Eun-ha. He said,
“Isn’t that right? They were holding tightly from the reconnaissance plane. That counts as contact.”
Eun-ha snorted.
“Just that could cause transfer? Never heard of it.”
“I saw it. During the Titan engagement—Moon Da-yeon and Oh Seung-hoon. Even just a kiss caused transfer. I saw it with my own eyes.”
“They’re married. Completely inseparable.”
“Then I guess the battalion commander and that stranger are married too.”
“Choi Jae-hyung.”
“Is there proof otherwise?”
“She said they didn’t know each other.”
“What if it’s a lie? Pretending not to know to hide being a stranger? Holding each other as strangers could explain the transfer even more.”
Choi Jae-hyung spoke, spitting the words, surveying the room. Kim Do-woon saw the familiar contempt in his eyes.
Not the playful mockery Choi Jae-hyung used in public, but unfiltered disdain directed solely at Kim Do-woon.
With a long-standing resentment etched on his face, Choi Jae-hyung asked,
“Anyone here know the battalion commander’s background?”
Kim Do-woon felt Lee Kyu-min’s grip on his shoulder tighten.
Watching Lee Kyu-min’s profile staring straight at Choi Jae-hyung, Kim Do-woon realized that the battalion could self-destruct in ways no one expected.
Believing Baek Yi-hyun was flawless had been a misconception. He was simply so extraordinary that everyone overlooked his unclear background.
After a tense silence, Choi Jae-hyung twisted his mouth.
“Anyway, I don’t know.”
