Chapter 27
Haija Village:
Jang Mok-hwa lifted her head again and looked at the two of them.
“Awakened ones are humans who have become strangely mutated for certain reasons. They possess bizarre and terrifying abilities.
In the past, some people considered the abilities of awakened ones to be laughable. But later, it was revealed that even the silliest ability can unleash incredible power if used in the right situation.
So far, no faction has been able to determine the rules for the birth of an awakened one. Every experiment attempting to artificially create one ended in failure. That’s why the number of awakened ones is extremely small, and encounters with them are rare. That’s why I’ve omitted explanations about them until now.
Ah, and this is confidential.”
Yong Yeohong asked, looking worried.
“Team leader, if we encounter such a powerful awakened one, how should we respond?”
Seong Geon-woo remained silent, saying nothing.
Jang Mok-hwa smiled and answered.
“Except for a very few exceptionally strong awakened ones, the abilities of most awakened ones are limited in range, and that range isn’t very wide.
So, if you come across them, just maintain distance and handle them from afar using your guns.”
“I see…”
Yong Yeohong began imagining such a scenario.
Seong Geon-woo also nodded slightly, deep in thought.
Jang Mok-hwa then looked at the two team members and added,
“But don’t focus only on such dangerous humans. Our bodies are fragile, and if we’re not careful, even a child of eight could kill us.”
Baek Saebyeok, riding a large motorcycle, after taking a long detour, entered a muddy-looking path that led into the swamp.
After traveling for about ten minutes, a small red dot appeared on the road ahead of her.
A faintly flickering red light.
A warning.
Baek Saebyeok immediately slowed the motorcycle and raised her head to look forward.
About 100 meters away stood a reddish-brown wall. The wall stretched long on both sides, curving around somewhere beyond Baek Saebyeok’s line of sight.
Most of the bricks forming the wall looked mottled and worn, but some looked freshly baked, as if made within the last year.
At the top and outer edges of the wall, rusty iron wire was strung, leaving only one path to pass through.
Between the wire and the wall, and on several wooden frameworks behind the wall, patrol guards stood holding guns, dressed in dirty, mismatched clothes.
The person who issued the warning to Baek Saebyeok was a guard standing atop the highest framework. He wore a stiff yellow shirt with a dark blue jacket over it. The jacket, made of what looked like cloth, made him appear large and bulky.
In the hands of the automatic rifle-wielding guard was a black object that looked like a pen. The small red dot that appeared before Baek Saebyeok originated from that object.
Baek Saebyeok stopped the motorcycle, removed her helmet, and struggled to push back her short hair that barely covered her ears.
She was intentionally revealing that she was female.
This was not to seduce or charm anyone, but to ease tension and put the other side at ease.
Baek Saebyeok knew well that order in Ashland was rare. Both men and women were equally at risk in front of firearms, but there were still differences between the sexes.
In terms of physique and aggression, men were always more dangerous than women.
Even among strangers, men were more likely to be treated with caution than women.
During her years wandering the wilderness, Baek Saebyeok had disguised her gender as needed: when exploring ruins, hunting outdoors, passing through dangerous areas, or dealing with bandits, she hid her long hair and painted her face to pass as male. Conversely, in settlements with some order or when interacting with large forces gathering intelligence or hunting relics of the old world, she deliberately showed she was female.
She had cut her hair to a length neither short nor long, gaining some confidence after joining Van Gogh Bio.
Placing her helmet down in front of her, Baek Saebyeok slowly rode the motorcycle forward.
Throughout, the red dot remained before her, occasionally scanning the motorcycle—indicating that the settlement had not lowered its guard and was still targeting her.
When the distance narrowed to about 30 meters, Baek Saebyeok put one foot on the ground and shouted loudly:
“I’ve come to see Chief Jeon Du-ha!”
Even after repeating the same words twice, there was no reply, but she waited patiently.
A few minutes later, one of the guards on the wooden framework stepped down using a slanted plank.
Five or six minutes after that, an old man appeared atop the wall.
He wore a thick dark blue hat, shaped as if a basket had been placed on his head.
His hair under the ears was white, and his eye sockets were sunken. His gaunt, deeply wrinkled face made him look quite old.
But his dark brown eyes were still bright, and his expression was stern. This was Jeon Du-ha, the chief of the settlement.
He wore a wrinkled suit jacket with a yellowed white T-shirt underneath and an oversized, mismatched olive-green coat. His wool trousers were dark yellow, puffed as if he wore several layers underneath.
Jeon Du-ha stared seriously at Baek Saebyeok.
“Ah…”
Realizing she was far away and he could no longer shout as before, he quickly turned to a nearby guard and called out in a sharp voice:
“Bring a megaphone! Honestly, what’s the use of a head if you don’t use it!”
The guard hesitated.
“The chief’s megaphone is dead. We couldn’t replace it with the same battery. I… I’ll shout for you instead.”
Jeon Du-ha pondered briefly and spoke.
“Tell her this: Baek Saebyeok, where have you been for the past year? I thought you’d been eaten by beasts!”
“Baek Saebyeok…”
The guard finally recognized her.
“Is this the Baek Saebyeok who visited often before?”
“If not her, who else? Even past seventy, I can still recognize her. Why are you acting like a dutiful servant when you’re only twenty?”
Jeon Du-ha scolded the guard, who muttered quietly, accustomed to the chief’s temper:
“She’s prettier than before… I wouldn’t have recognized her without a closer look…”
Jeon Du-ha, irritated, finally shouted loudly:
“Baek Saebyeok, where have you been for the past year? I thought you’d been eaten by beasts!”
Unintentionally softening her expression, Baek Saebyeok replied loudly:
“I’ve been elsewhere. Chief, I came to exchange goods!”
This place was called Haija Village. Baek Saebyeok had been told by Jeon Du-ha that it was called this because, before the old world was destroyed, the village was surrounded by water.
Due to the destruction of the old world, long chaos, and several geological disasters, the surrounding water had become part of the swamp, naturally concealing Haija Village.
Only residents of Haija Village and previously invited guests could find the hidden path through the swamp and reach this labyrinthine settlement.
Unlike other mobile outposts, Haija Village had clean water and enough farmland, and it had never been relocated since the old world’s destruction.
Jeon Du-ha wanted to continue speaking loudly, but a tickle in his throat forced him to cough a few times before he could speak.
“Come in, come in.”
He finally waved his hand in resignation.
The nearby guard immediately shouted:
“Come in! Leave your guns with the person at the door!”
Thwack!
Jeon Du-ha slapped the guard and scolded him:
“Who told you to add commentary? Baek Saebyeok is trustworthy!”
“But it’s been a whole year.”
The guard stubbornly replied.
After two seconds of silence, Jeon Du-ha descended the wooden framework without saying a word.
Baek Saebyeok complied, handing over her gun on her back, her holstered pistol, and the large motorcycle to the guards at the gate.
Soon after, a black double gate opened.
Jeon Du-ha, standing in front, looked Baek Saebyeok up and down and smiled.
“You seem to be doing well. You were all covered in mud before.”
Instinctively, Baek Saebyeok closed her eyes and reopened them.
“I was taken in by a team.”
Jeon Du-ha nodded slowly.
“Well done, well done.”
He shifted the conversation.
“And your robot? What was it… 35 or something?”
Baek Saebyeok lowered her gaze, hesitated, then spoke.
“It’s broken.”
Jeon Du-ha was momentarily speechless. A few seconds later, he asked as if nothing had happened:
“What do you want?”
“Parts for the vehicle…”
Baek Saebyeok replied calmly.
“That’s enough! No need to explain in detail. I wouldn’t understand anyway. I’ll go and show you directly, so pick what you need yourself.”
Jeon Du-ha laughed, cutting her off, and turned to enter the village with her.
Although called a village, the area was not large, and its concept differed entirely from villages in the old world.
The first thing Baek Saebyeok noticed was three three-story buildings in the distance. They weren’t tall but stretched wide, with each floor divided into several rooms.
The three buildings were not in a straight line but formed a slightly tilted triangular formation.
According to what she knew, the residents living there were guards and their families. Skilled technicians who could repair guns or understand old-world agricultural technology might also live there.
On both sides of the triangle were two large toilets, one horizontal, the other vertical.
In front of the three buildings was a small cement plaza, and beyond that, three smaller plazas made by compacting the earth were lined up.
On either side of the plazas were rows of houses, close to the outer walls, occupied by the original residents of Haija Village. Given the village’s population, most families had a guard member; otherwise, the village could not maintain its security.
Above the four plazas, countless houses had been built haphazardly. Some were made of mud, some of bricks, and some resembled tents.
These buildings housed wandering survivors accepted into Haija Village or original residents who broke the rules.
