EBCGM 03

Chapter 03 …

If You Can’t Avoid It, Enjoy It

“Everyone, get up!”

“G-Get up—!”

As soon as I wrapped up the mandatory self-introduction and talent show ordered by the squad leader, I could feel Cheon Gyeong-tae glaring at me as if he wanted to slit my throat. His eyes said it all: Just wait until later, you’re dead.

Sure enough.

“…Phew, today is really my day. Let’s talk after roll call, you bastards. Got it?”

Spitting out threats to the rest of the guys, his tone was clearly meant for my ears. Classic Cheon Gyeong-tae. But the other Sergeant—the one who had traded sharp blows with him earlier—wasn’t about to let it slide quietly.

“Who the hell was that comment meant for?”

“…?”

“What, you wanna strip your stripes and step outside? Think you got what it takes?”

“No, that’s not what I—!”

“Why wait until after roll call? We can handle it right here and now. Am I wrong?”

At his cold cut-off, Cheon Gyeong-tae—along with everyone else in the room—quickly averted his eyes.

“Listen up. After roll call tonight, unless you’re on guard duty, nobody steps out of this barracks. If I catch anyone sneaking off, I won’t let it go.”

“…”

“No answer?!”

“YES! UNDERSTOOD, SERGEANT!”

Was he stepping in just to help me out, or did the two of them have long-standing bad blood? From my perspective as the new guy, there was no way to tell.

“Salute—!”

“Did you wrap up the recruit orientation?”

“…Ah, yes, Corporal.”

“What’s with that pathetic voice? Why are you mumbling like a coward?!”

“It finished well, Corporal!”

“A squad leader is supposed to set an example, for crying out loud. Whatever. Get ready for bed, everyone. No more noise.”

“Yes, Corporal. Salute—”

“Dismissed, you idiot.”

The duty officer for the night was a young Corporal. As he stepped into the room, the icy tension in the barracks thawed just a little bit. He seemed to have zero interest in me, the new recruit. I figured he was just going to leave after inspecting the barracks, but—

“Hey, new guy. I heard you’re twenty-eight?”

“Pri-vate Han Taepyeong! Yes, that’s correct!”

“Same age as me. Nice to meet you, man.”

Turns out, the duty officer was the exact same age as me.

“If any of these assholes try to mess with you, just let me know, okay?”

“Understood.”

I knew that whenever a superior speaks to you—no matter what they say—you’re supposed to start by barking out your rank and name. It wasn’t that I didn’t know the rules; I was just caught off guard by all the unexpected attention.

“Alright, that wraps up tonight’s evening roll call—!”

The second the duty officer finished his sentence, the guys in my barracks—and even soldiers from other rooms—rushed out into the hallway all at once.

“Hey, do you smoke?”

“I used to for a little bit, but right now—”

“Doesn’t matter, follow me.”

What if someone jumps me out of nowhere? How should I react? While I was rapidly running through scenarios in my head, the Sergeant who had backed me up throughout the orientation pulled me outside. Despite our noticeable height difference, he threw an awkward arm over my shoulder. Thanks to him, the other seniors couldn’t drag me off into a corner.

“Here. Want one?”

“To be completely honest, I quit smoking—”

“Oh, you completely quit? Damn, you’re a real cold-blooded viper, aren’t you?”

“A viper?”

“You know what they say—never trust a guy who managed to quit smoking. It means you’ve got insane willpower.”

He had a cigarette dangling from his lips when he offered me one, but seeing that I was serious, he casually slipped it back into his pack, saying there was no need to force it.

“Look, man. I came to the military at an older age, too, so take it from me.”

“…?”

“Just aim for the middle. Don’t try to be too good, but don’t be useless either.”

Suddenly calling me ‘man’?

“Whether you actually studied in the States or not—honestly, I don’t give a damn. I’m just telling you this because I’m genuinely worried.”

“Worried about what—?”

“They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but let’s be real: you stand out way too much. Great build, sharp mind, and if you studied in the States, your family must be pretty well-off.”

Phew—

He exhaled a long trail of smoke, continuing his piece of advice.

“…Who you were on the outside, what family you come from, what school you went to, what you were good at—none of that shit matters in the military.”

“It doesn’t matter?”

“Yeah, because it won’t help your military life one bit. If anything, it’ll just poison it. Thinking about it, the real world isn’t all that different, right? People naturally hate someone who’s too perfect. Strictly speaking, this place is just a tiny society. Just stay average. Like I said, don’t be too good, don’t be too bad.”

I understood what this veteran sergeant—whom all the lower ranks were terrified of—was trying to say. But I couldn’t quite bring myself to accept it. Everyone has their own unique abilities and talents. Was I really supposed to hide mine completely? For two whole years?

“Even if it sucks, there’s nothing you can do about it—especially in the military more than out in society. That’s the only way your service goes smoothly.”

He was much shorter than me, but his frame was noticeably solid. Sitting there, I felt like this was the first genuine, real conversation I’d had with anyone since being assigned to the unit.

“Damn, made you inhale secondhand smoke for nothing.”

“No, sir. It’s totally fine.”

“Alright, let’s head back in—”

After our brief conversation, we left the smoking area and headed back toward the barracks. Once again, he threw his short arm over my shoulder.

“…By the way, did you really study in America?”

“Ah, yes—”

“Where in America?”

“I went to school in Cambridge, Massachusetts.”

“I have no idea what or where that is, but damn, I’m jealous! When do I ever get to visit the States?”

I couldn’t tell if he believed a hundred percent of what I said, but just having someone talk to me normally was a relief. If it were any of the other guys, they would have started tossing around insults and sarcastic jabs right away.

When we stepped back into the barracks—

“Hey, starting today, this guy sleeps next to me.”

“…Pardon, Sergeant?”

“You heard me. Move your locker over to that side right now.”

“Right now, Sergeant?”

“Why? Got a problem with that?”

“No, sir! No problem at all!”

“It’s his very first day at his permanent unit. I’m saying this one last time: don’t even think about dragging him out for a ‘squad meeting’ behind my back.”

No matter how little time a senior soldier had left on his service, no one dared to mess with a high-ranking Sergeant who held that kind of authority.

“Salute—!”

“Salute.”

“Headquarters Company morning roll call report…!”

My very first morning roll call at the unit.

Waking up at the crack of dawn for stretching and running laps around the parade ground—it was a routine guaranteed to put anyone in prime physical shape.

“Phew! Phew!”

“Who’s the bastard not singing the military song?!”

Laps were the one thing senior soldiers tried to dodge by any means necessary. They would make up every excuse in the book, or use their connections with officers to get out of running.

Yet there I was, pacing right at the front of the pack.

The body never lies. All the athletic training I had done during my study-abroad days in the States was paying massive dividends. In particular, playing American football alongside Westerners with terrifying physical specs wasn’t something to be brushed off. Running a few laps around a dirt field was nothing to me. Back in my football days, I had survived far more brutal training sessions.

Even as soldiers who had been in the army much longer than me started dropping behind, I didn’t lose my running pace for a single second.

“The new guy who came in yesterday doesn’t seem like a total waste of space, does he?”

“What can you tell just from a morning run—”

“I guess.”

Sarcastic comments whispered loud enough for me to hear leaked out from the ranks. A waste of space? Just yesterday they were making a fuss about a “huge unit” joining the platoon.

Well, to be fair… last night I did send Cheon Gyeong-tae flying to protect my precious assets.

“Return to the barracks! Wash up and get ready for breakfast—!”

“YES, SIR!”

Now that morning PT was over, I quietly followed behind the rest of the company. As I was walking back—

“Hey! You!”

A voice called out from behind me.

“Hey, you son of a bitch. Are you ignoring me?”

“When did you call me, Sergeant?”

“Haha… look at this guy?”

“I didn’t hear—”

“Shut the fuck up and follow me, you bastard.”

Cheon Gyeong-tae.

A Sergeant from my own company with four stripes on his chest. At his order, a few other soldiers fell in line behind us.

We moved behind an old, decaying storage shed where broken equipment was piled up. The moment we stepped into the shadows—

“Say what you just said again.”

“Say what—”

“You said you weren’t ignoring me?”

“Yes, Sergeant. Did you actually call my name?”

“So you’re gonna play dumb to the very end? I clearly shouted ‘Hey!'”

“My name is Han Taepyeong, Sergeant.”

“Haha! Is this bastard playing word games with me right now? Fuck, is enlisting late something to be proud of?! Is it?! If you’re gonna act like a big shot, you should’ve enlisted earlier, you idiot!”

Cheon Gyeong-tae stepped closer, shoving my shoulder hard with one hand.

“I never said I was proud, Sergeant.”

“Fuck you, everyone’s talking about how amazing you are. Huge dick, tall, and that fake bullshit about studying in America.”

It’s not a gimmick. And I never boasted about any of it with my own mouth either.

“Scum like you won’t learn through words. You need a beatdown to get your head straight. Am I right, you bastards?!”

“…Y-Yes, Sergeant.”

“You guys are getting beaten up because of this new asshole today, got it? First guy, step up.”

In the end, he was trying to inflict violence on innocent lower-ranks.

Seriously, think about it. What did I actually do wrong? Just because this is the military, just because he holds a higher rank—is it right to act like this? All I did yesterday was defend my own body.

“Private First Class Lee…”

As the Private First Class—my senior—dropped his head into an at-ease stance, Cheon Gyeong-tae’s right hand sliced through the air. It was a open-handed slap aimed straight for the face. The poor guy trembled, shutting his eyes tight.

“Clear water flows from the top down, you—!”

Just as Cheon Gyeong-tae’s right hand was about to strike the private’s cheek—

GRAB!

In a split second, someone snatched his wrist mid-air.

“What crazy son of a bitch dared to grab my wrist—?!”

“What did you just call me? A crazy son of a bitch?”

“S-Salute!”

“Salute my ass, you piece of shit!”

“Ugh!”

The person who grabbed him instantly executed a flawless shoulder throw, slamming Cheon Gyeong-tae straight into the dirt floor.

“You bastard, are you out of your damn mind looking for a death wish first thing in the morning?!”

“O-Officer! I’m so sorry…!”

“I recall catching you pulling a similar stunt not too long ago.”

“…That’s!”

“Shut up and get up.”

“Yes, sir!”

Out of nowhere, a First Sergeant had materialized behind the old storage shed to deliver a dose of pure, unadulterated justice.

He wasn’t particularly tall, nor did he have a noticeably imposing build. On the surface, he looked like an ordinary middle-aged man.

SWISH!

The Logistics Officer—a First Sergeant—grabbed Cheon Gyeong-tae, who was both taller and bigger than him, and threw him over his shoulder again, slamming him hard onto the dirt floor.

BANG!

“You just spouted off that words won’t work and someone needs a beatdown to get their head straight, didn’t you?!”

“…!”

“It’s always the bastards spitting that garbage who deserve to get broken like this! Am I wrong?!”

At the thunderous roar of the First Sergeant, soldiers and officers alike came sprinting toward our location from every direction.