Chapter 419 – Caravan (3)
As it got closer to the Korean Peninsula, merchants from other countries joined the trade route.
When the number of people reached a large group of well over 100 people, everyone relaxed. At this scale, even if there are remnants of the Chinese army, they will not be able to attack them carelessly.
“Captain Taraz.”
The mercenary leader, who was looking around, brought his horse and stood next to him.
“What’s going on?”
“Please show mercy little by little.”
He pointed behind him with his thumb.
“Hehe… Heeooh…”
Hehe…”
Two naked Chinese prisoners of war are following with their necks tied with a rope.
The rope was connected to the donkey’s body, and the head male and his younger brother were very nasty.
They seem to have realized that they are humans who can be tormented as they please, and they forcefully drag him away, crying as if laughing.
“If it weren’t for the ups and downs, they would have been scooped up alive and sprinkled with salt. “Six people were killed by those guys.”
“There’s no need to give any compensation, right? “From the beginning, it was a journey I followed with the risk of death.”
“The people under my leadership died. Does it matter whether there is compensation or not?”
“That’s true.”
As Taraz’s eyebrows rose, the mercenary leader also took a step back.
“Furthermore, because of those guys, we had to fight the infection needlessly and the schedule was delayed, so we have to pay for it.”
This time, Taraz pointed backwards with his thumb.
Someone murmured! The sound of phlegm gathering in his nose was heard.
Hehe!”
A Mongolian merchant spit bright yellow phlegm at a Chinese prisoner.
“Assalamu laikum. Caw! Hehe!”
The Middle Eastern caravan leader also spat on the captive after greeting Taraz.
The two prisoners were covered in filth, as each unit that joined them was given a grand welcome.
The massacres, rapes, and looting that occurred when the Chinese Army Brigade was in existence were famous from Central Asia to the Far East.
Those who were directly harmed are not the only ones holding a grudge.
There was too much unnecessary waste, such as giving up good pastures and settlements or going back long distances to avoid the Chinese army.
The merchants who had retaliated, albeit in a small way, expressed their gratitude to Taraz with a relieved face.
“You are very popular.”
“I have to make up for the loss in this way.”
It was Taraz who shook hands with all of them, made friends with them, and went into networking.
“Spasiba!”
The Russian merchant who came to vent his anger held Taraz’s hand tightly with both hands.
“I feel so refreshed! Thank you so much! The road will be safer now.”
“I didn’t catch it, but Shelter’s army caught it. “I’m just showing off.”
“It is an undeniable fact that those guys showed themselves because of you. “In any type of hunting, the most difficult thing is to find the prey.”
The name of the man with a cheerful smile is Jerry. He was a scavenger and operator of a merchant in the Manchurian area and could speak four languages.
Based on his language skills, he exercised great influence by mediating disputes and acting as a middleman.
“What is that?”
The mercenary leader pointed to the carriage led by Jerry.
Something was protruding from the top of the carriage, but it was covered with a large cloth. The silhouette wrapped in a cloth looks like a small Buddha statue.
“Something to give to the shelter. “I’m really looking forward to it because I think I’ll get a good deal.”
“Did you really find the lost item?!”
Taraz and the mercenary leader shouted at the same time.
Lost and found refers to equipment belonging to a shelter that breaks down for some reason and falls behind.
If you retrieved it and returned it, you were sure to pay the corresponding price.
Money is money, but the biggest thing is that you can put your stamp on the shelter.
If you can win even a little favor with the most powerful force, the benefit cannot be converted into money.
“I didn’t find it, I took it. “You probably know that when the Chinese brigade was annihilated, the supply units in the rear were scattered in all directions, right?”
“I know. “I had a lot of fun hunting at camps that seemed a bit large, especially camps for military veterans.”
The mercenary leader nodded.
The panicked remnants of the defeated soldiers, carrying food, medicine, ammunition and equipment, were a walking treasure trove.
“I was lucky enough to find a team that was running away, and this is the loot I got from them. When he spotted us, he smiled calmly and asked for a deal. “I’m so dumbfounded.”
Everyone laughed at those words.
“So, did you pay money to buy it?”
“Instead of money, I put a bullet in the map. Just like what they did.”
The mercenary leader and Taraz clapped quietly.
“During the fighting, the guy who was carrying the lost item fell down the mountainside, so we had a hard time finding it. “When I found him, he was surrounded by wolves.”
Jerry made a chewing gesture.
“But why did you put it on the wagon instead of putting it in the luggage compartment?”
“Should I say it’s a kind of free pass admission ticket?”
Jerry pointed to Baekdu Mountain, which was beginning to appear in the distance.
“Now, territorial natives will appear, and we have a hard time getting rid of them. I’m sure you’ve all experienced this too, right?”
“Of course I experienced it.”
Taraz and the mercenary leader spoke in unison.
It is a world that has become much more closed and exclusive than the Dark Ages of the Middle Ages.
When foreigners were active on the Korean Peninsula, Koreans, ranging from investigators to camp leaders and military officers, often complained about their efforts.
“But if there are lost items, it’s a different story. It’s okay if you quietly pull up the tent and show it to the guy who is making trouble. ‘How dare you disturb me while I’m on my way to return my lost property?’ If you say one word, they’ll all yell at you and turn you off.”
“That would be refreshing. I wish someone would start an argument.”
The mercenary leader chuckled.
Looking at it like this, the lost items covered with cloth on top of the carriage felt like an icon of God.
* * *
There are many merchants that come and go from the Korean Peninsula, so I don’t pay attention to each one, but I do pay attention to those involved in specific events.
“Let me know when the rescued caravan arrives.”
An alarm command was set through the PDA. I hope you reach the Korean Peninsula safely.
As the sunset approached, the last course of our secret trek was decided to be fishing.
As we wait in a quiet place on the coast, a cargo drone descends from the sky with two fishing rods attached.
“Thank you!”
Me receiving it silently and Seyoung receiving it with a thumbs up.
We moved to a fishing spot on the rocky coast and threw a float.
“This place is pretty crowded now.”
More sincere Muslims prayed in the sea breeze on the West Sea coast, which was at least a little closer to the holy site.
Each person lies down on a black rock, laying down something like a thin blanket.
I was worried about friction with Koreans, but it was an unnecessary worry. Most religious people’s faith had already evaporated, and laborers and peddlers were always welcome.
Even if they do the same work, they can be hired more cheaply than Koreans, and because they come from a much more difficult environment, they have a strong spirit of hunger.
“This is my place!”
However, there was absolutely no concession when it came to good fishing spots.
“Owner of this land. Excuse me. “Isn’t it?”
With clumsy movements, the foreigner pointed to the rocky mountain where the shelter was buried.
“Oh, it’s noisy, go over there! That way!”
The middle-aged Korean man, who had nothing to say, raised his voice and drove them out.
“Wouldn’t they try to enforce Sharia or build a mosque?”
Seyoung seems a bit worried.
“Are you okay. Because they are different from Muslims before the war. “I also ate pork well.”
It survived while other religions were collapsing, but because the world was so difficult, it had no choice but to deteriorate.
Female Muslims do not wear hijab. I believe that as time passes, doctrines will become weaker and more secular.
Anyway, if you try to do something stupid, they can immediately push you away like a bulldozer.
The restricted sea area where fireweed is grown is empty, but below it, between the South Sea and the West Sea, many ships travel.
Due to fuel problems, oil pumping ships disappeared, and sailing yachts became popular.
“If you look at it like this, it looks like a summer resort.”
“In times like these, it’s good to drive recreational boats. All the heavy and powerful ones were conscripted and then sank or abandoned a long time ago.”
There are quite a few Japanese ships that sailed around the South Sea for the purpose of trading, as well as Southeast Asian ships that made long-distance voyages from further south.
The sea that China once tried to monopolize by calling it the East China Sea is now everyone’s.
Survivors from Taiwan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Singapore are actively navigating the sea.
They even partially drove out the infectious agents from the southeastern coast of China and even established an outpost. These are places that are good to protect because they have rough terrain or are close to semi-islands.
Even if you advance just 200 meters inland, it is a place so dangerous that your life is at risk, but there is no reason to enter it anyway. It only secures a berth for transit during the voyage.
The final destination of Southeast Asian ships is to come up to the West Sea to obtain shelter supplies. However, because the journey is difficult, not many have arrived yet.
Additionally, there is no population center capable of producing enough supplies to regularly operate large trade ships.
Except for the Korean peninsula, the world has just gained some breathing room, but each day is still rolling along in a painful dot system.
* * *
3 days later. The alarm sounded, and the courtesy caravan arrived.
The upper procession observed by the drone from above has expanded, and surprisingly, the Chinese prisoners of war are still alive.
“Surprisingly. “I thought they would bury me or burn me to death on the spot.”
“Judging by his condition, he is almost on the verge of death? “I had wounds all over my body, but the dirt had caused an infection.”
Artemis made a diagnosis at a glance.
There is one more surprising thing. There was a stalker robot fixed to a Russian caravan wagon, and it looked vaguely familiar.
“Could it be… Echo?”
The damage was so severe, but I could tell it intuitively. He is a comrade in arms from the expedition that went with me to the other side of the universe.
“Echo is right. “There are traces of auxiliary devices attached for the Tanis expedition.”
At Artemis’s hand gesture, the drone screen was enlarged. It was confirmed that it was an Echo through traces of modifications left on several parts of the Stalker.
“If you see that the identification signal is not displayed, does it mean that the power is turned off?”
“Isn’t it obvious? It must have already been discharged. Or the signal transmitter may have been damaged.”
“Assemble a strike force immediately. “I will meet you personally.”
With those words, I moved to the helicopter landing pad without looking back.
Artemis, who would normally wait politely and tell you to greet her at the shelter, did not stop you this time.
As they landed in front of the parade from the dispatched helicopters, everyone looked shocked.
After a difficult journey, we have finally entered the Korean Peninsula. I expected rest, food, alcohol, women to relax my body, and most of all, a perfectly safe place to sleep, but guess what?
Because out of nowhere, three platoons of heavily armed stalkers blocked their path.
Dozens of drones are flying in the sky, and large, imposing helicopters are slowly raising their rotors.
“Put it all down! Put it down no matter what!”
The shouts of merchant owners were heard in Korean through the interpretation machine.
Merchants as well as mercenaries threw their weapons on the ground. He raised his hands to the sky and appealed with his whole body that he had absolutely no intention of fighting.
It seems like everyone has been very carefully warned. Under no circumstances should you go against the army of machines.
“Well, we came for peaceful purposes.”
“Me too.”
“There must be some mistake! We are not slavers! Those guys are Chinese marauders! We are punishing murder and robbery! “It was also a gift to the ruler of the city.”
The caravan leader, who identified himself as Taraz, explained.
A naked, rough-looking Asian man is tied up. Did he think that was misleading?
When I see him talking in his native language rather than Korean, he seems to know that the device in my ear is a real-time interpreter.
People who have received requests from the shelter often wear this while doing outdoor activities, so its existence is quite well known.
“So why bother creating this division when you can just kill and bury them?”
“You cannot arbitrarily kill people on the Korean Peninsula!”
I could hear the caravan leaders whispering through my enhanced hearing.
“Besides, the city owner hates the Chinese army so much, so I thought he would be happy if I offered it to him. You guys also had fun spitting, right? But now you’re saying something else.”
“I didn’t spit. If this doesn’t go well, it’s all your fault…”
“Stop.”
When I raised my hand, everyone immediately joined in the crowd.
“I know you are not slave traders. Rest assured, I am not here to punish or detain you.”
“Whew.”
“Hwia!”
I could hear about 10 people sighing in relief at my words.
“Well, well, then what happens to us…”
Instead of answering, I walked towards them. The merchants all bowed down and made way like the Red Sea parting.
I stopped in front of a carriage.
The upper body of the stalker seen in the drone video is hanging. Rather than tying it down like luggage, a nice chair like a noble’s seat was installed on the carriage and placed on top of it.
“It’s an echo.”
Although the memories were gradually fading, the battle scars engraved here and there were identical to those of the expedition team in my memories.
But damn it.
There is no lower body and both arms are tattered, leaving only the skeleton. Above all, the forehead and head cap were broken.
Echo lowers her head like a corpse and doesn’t even move. Did this guy also meet the same fate as Charlie?
Keying.
At that moment, Echo’s head, which had been lowered, slowly lifted.
A faint red light came into the black, unlit electronic eyeball.
Seeing that the brightness is very dim and blinking, it seems that the battery is almost dead.
Slam!
But his salute was like a sword.
[Hello, Administrator? Long time no see.]
“… Good return.”
I also saluted.
Echo’s neck turned, and she glanced at the surrounding caravans.
Giyiing.
Kirik.
The damage may be severe, so it rattles and moves at an angle.
[They are good people. You saved me from being eaten by wolves. Just before the battery died, they listened to my request and charged it to the minimum level.]
The Stalker’s limbs and neck are edible because they are artificial muscles.
So, when you find a damaged and discarded object later, it is often completely eaten up by animals.
Since it is not 100% organic, it will not taste very good. Should we call it meat mixed with rubber, like bread mixed with sawdust from the Middle Ages?
I looked at the caravans.
“Everyone, straighten your backs. They are the most welcome guests I have had recently. “You brought my favorite soldier.”
My words were sequentially translated and sent into several languages.
I burst out laughing when I saw the faces of people who spoke the language as their native language light up one after another.
“Alpha, our party’s sapper is back.”
A stalker came out from behind me and took a stationary stance.
It looks the same as other stalkers, but the difference is that it has a medal on its chest and a warp gate mark on the side of its shoulder.
Now the same treatment will be given to the Echo in front of you.
[Return completed.]
[Welcome back, Echo.]
Echo reported and Alpha accepted.
Although I am the general commander in terms of organization, Alpha, the assault leader, also serves as the team’s squad leader.
The greetings exchanged between the Iron Soldiers were much shorter than mine.
However, through the brain implant, it was possible to sense that they were sending and receiving unique radio waves.
It is a sound that does not have the form of language or letters, but is close to a kind of idea.
I can’t explain it exactly, but if I were to compare it to the closest human emotion, it could be called joy.
Kirik.
Kiririk.
Echo’s neck turned with difficulty as she looked behind us. I followed his gaze and looked back and realized what I was looking for.
“It’s a shame, but only the three of us made it back alive. Charlie’s body was saved, but his memory center was destroyed. “I haven’t found you yet.”
By the time I finished speaking, the red eyes that had been blinking hard had turned almost dark.
[Thanks. I do…]
Kyuwooung.
With those words, Echo’s barely maintained strength ran out.
Return report.
Salute.
Confirmation from expedition teammates.
Echo, who had been pushing herself to the limit for her three wishes, gives up her difficult head.
