Chapter 93: |
00093 <-- #Night by the Lakeside -->
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#Night by the Lakeside (12), Santa Margarita Lake
When Gyeoul returned to the office, someone was dying.
A soldier without legs was gasping for his breath.
"Lieutenant. Can't... can't you save me?"
Gyeoul held his hand.
"I'm sorry, Page."
The soldier, Stan Page, was the machine gunner in the weapons squad. In the final moments of the battle, a mortar shell tore through below his knee. Several fragments were also embedded in him.
Page sobbed.
"It's strange, sir."
"What is?"
"Sir, I thought... I thought if I was with you, I wouldn't die."
"..."
"It's cold, and it hurts."
The soldier was the closest to the fire. On the opposite side were the pregnant woman and the medic. The pregnant woman sobbed with the soldier. It wasn't from pain. She silently cried while lying down and looking at the soldier. The medic turned the pregnant woman's face straight.
Jeffrey asked, "Hey, Page. Is there anything you want to say... before you go?"
"I don't... want to die."
His pale lips trembled. With wide-open eyes, he was already looking at a distant place.
Gyeoul administered the morphine. Milliliter by milliliter. The soldier's face relaxed. The strength left his hands.
"Ugh, uhm..."
Over a few minutes, his breathing gradually became longer and gentler. It slowed down, faded, and eventually disappeared completely. It was a death that seemed like falling asleep.
There was only one body bag. The second deceased was covered only with the uniform he was wearing. Now they laid the third deceased beside him.
Colleagues bowed briefly. Tears were held back. There were prayers from some civilians. There would be enough time again once they returned to the base.
Gunfire persisted outside. Occasionally, there were also echoing explosions. But, the frequency gradually decreased. The people inside could hear a mixture of faint cries and screams. It wouldn't take much longer.
Gyeoul called the medic into a quiet corner.
"White, how is she?"
"She's been having contractions since the beginning of the conflict. I estimate she's in the stage where the cervix is opening."
"How much longer?"
"Honestly, I don't know."
The medic, who had been expressionless until now, revealed a heavy fatigued face now that there was no one around. He hesitated while trying to wash his face. It was due to his hands that had been disinfected separately. Clenching his fist, he closed his eyes, sighed, and continued speaking.
"I'm not an army doctor. I've completed all the training at Fort Sam Houston, but there wasn't a course on obstetrics. Taking out bullets and delivering a baby are entirely different areas."
Fort Sam Houston was the location of the U.S. Army Medical Department Center and School. The medic training conducted there, upon completion, only reached the level of an Emergency Medical Technician (Paramedic).
Gyeoul nodded.
"I understand."
"Regarding childbirth assistance, I only know what I picked up in the medical unit. But, I have to act like I know everything. I'm the only one they trust."
"..."
"Damn it! I'm afraid I'll ruin everything. Every time I'm asked how to handle this, or if it's going well, I get dizzy. I'd rather deal with the mutants and scavengers. It would be better to perform field surgery on their victims."
There was a momentary pause. Gyeoul waited silently. Sometimes, someone just needed to be listened to.
After a suppressed groan, White's rough breaths steadied, and he continued.
"The pregnant woman's condition is pretty bad. Her temperature is 38 degrees. I've taken a risk and gave her antibiotics, but there's still no effect. She hasn't been eating properly, so muscle loss is severe. It's doubtful whether her uterus will contract properly. We can't even guess the impact of malnutrition and infection on the fetus. Most likely, it will result in a miscarriage. Both the pregnant woman and the fetus... it's difficult. I'm not confident about an emergency cesarean section in a critical situation. Moreover, the mother won't be able to handle the bleeding."
At this moment, a suppressed groan echoed inside the office. The pregnant woman was enduring pain. Her husband was massaging her vigorously. It must have been hours, and every movement was painful, but she wouldn't stop. She was desperate.
The medic was pondering over words he found difficult to say. It was a principle to give up on those with no hope. Just like he had let Stan Page die.
Looking into his eyes, understanding his thoughts, Gyeoul relieved the medic of his dilemma.
"Do your best with what you can. Don't worry about the outcome. We can't give up. Those people there are civilians. We are soldiers."
"Fine, I understand. May God help us."
"Oh, White."
Gyeoul stopped the medic who was turning away.
"The mutants will approach soon. Even if we lure them to another direction, there shouldn't be any light here. Can you proceed using night vision?"
The medic's expression twisted—frustrated. But he still nodded.
"I'll try. But if we turn off the lights now, how will the indoor temperature be maintained?"
"We'll gather combat ration heating packs to heat water."
Gyeoul immediately instructed the squad members. They took out drawers from cabinets, filled them with water, and placed heating packs inside. About 300 heating packs were obtained from thirty days' worth of combat rations.
Each pack could maintain boiling for almost 20 minutes. When the basin would be refilled with water, the heat packs would still be able to rise the temperature but not as hot as before. Dividing the amount adequately, it would be enough to last until morning.
To the soldiers estimating the amount to use, Gyeoul said, "Don't save them now. Once you raise the temperature, it won't be difficult to maintain it."
"Aye."
He also closed all the windows facing the river direction, which were kept open to release smoke. After the windows were covered in steam, it would be challenging to peer inside the darkened building even with good night vision.
Jeffrey approached Gyeoul. After listening outside for a moment, he spoke.
"Captain Harris might already be dead... Well, even if he is, it can't be helped. What are you going to do from now on? Are you going to turn off the lights and quietly wait until those things that seem to have passed by come back?"
"No. It won't be easy to stay quiet. There's the pregnant woman. No matter how loud the river and the weather are, if even one of those things has keen ears, it's dangerous. I'm thinking of going out to lure them. If there's a visible target, they won't focus on minor noises. They'll become noisy themselves."
"Bait? That's incredibly dangerous."
"Not really. I'm going to lure them from across the river."
"Ah."
The width of the upper reaches of the Salinas River was about ten meters. Considering the increased turbulence due to the dam sluice opening, it was a width that mutants couldn't even begin to consider. Nevertheless, depending on the mutant's enhancement level, they might be able to jump across.
'At most, it's just a couple.'
With that level, Gyeoul was capable of handling it somehow. If they're like bugs, their heads would be gone before they even land. Gyeoul was considering it no big deal.
"Tell the soldiers outside to tie a few ropes. They'll use them to cross later."
"Ropes... That should be easier than earlier. How many are you going to take this time?"
"One squad. You can arrange that."
"No, that's not the issue, but just one squad? We don't know when mutants might appear on the other side... Why not take more with you? I heard you almost got ambushed on the way here."
Gyeoul tilted his head.
"Didn't Elliot tell you?... You must have heard. It was an incident unrelated to the size of the force."
"I'm just saying, just in case."
"Trust me, it'll be fine. First and foremost, protecting the civilians is our priority."
"How about I go instead? I'm always teased for being a lazy squad leader who just plays around."
"You can't because you're not good enough."
"No, why are you like this to me?"
While complaining at the inside jokes, Jeffrey no longer delayed. He issued orders to the external perimeter forces via radio, spread the situation, and prepared the deployment team, then left.
Before departure, they would need to reconfirm the travel plan and the rendezvous point in case they won't be able to return.
Now it was time to deal with civilians. They still didn't know the situation, and were just making guesses. They'd be in darkness for a long time, so reducing their anxiety was essential. Gyeoul didn't want them to have panic attacks. This, too, was Gyeoul's role.
"So, Lieutenant, you're going to lure them yourself?"
After hearing the explanation, an old man who had ambushed with the officer asked a question. Gyeoul affirmed.
"Yes. Currently, there is a battle between Captain Harris and the mutant group beyond the eastern ridge. It seems almost over from the sound, but the terrain here is not favorable: to the west, there's the upper Salinas River, to the north, there's the dam, and to the east, there's the lake."
"So you mean there's a high chance that mutants wandering around will come here. Is there any chance Captain Harris won?"
This time, it was Kathleen, the officer, who asked. Gyeoul nodded again.
"The number of mutants was quite large. There was no hope for Captain Harris. It would be fortunate if those remaining after the fight move south. But it's hard to expect that. That's why we needed to bait."
Among the gathered people a little apart from the officer, a hand was raised. It was a bearded man with very loose clothes.
"So, we just have to wait here?"
"Yes, that's right."
"You're not trying to abandon us, right?"
"No, not at all. I plan to go out with a small number of troops. The rest of the forces will stay with you. Please trust us."
The boy made a gentle smile. Even to those who had reached their limits, the smile of the highly renowned young officer had an appeal. Another voice, a question, emerged.
"With no mutants now, can't we run away, even if it's across the river? I mean, to somewhere safer!"
"Lady, it's extremely cold outside. Many people seem to find it difficult to move right away."
"We're fine!"
She said loudly. The scope of 'we' was clear. Some wore unpleasant expressions and remained silent.
Gyeoul didn't look at the offended side. He simply made a quiet request.
"Please lower your voice. There might be strays who left the mutant group nearby."
"Oh, sorry."
It wasn't an apologetic face. It felt restless, different from polished selfishness.
Anger was visible from the officer and the woman close to her. Kathleen put her finger on the trigger. Her gaze was fixed on the young officer. It seemed like she wasn't aware of her actions.
'You can't ask me to kill everyone who isn't noble.'
How much responsibility can be attached to cannibalism on the verge of death?
In the boy's opinion, it was rare for someone's sin to be entirely their responsibility.
The sporadic gunfire outside stopped. Their defense estimated by the "Combat Sense" overlapped with the map memorized by the "Memory." Gyeoul estimated the remaining time. The margin of error was significant, but it wasn't unusable.
"We don't have time for long explanations. Please follow my decision right away. If you don't trust me, I won't be able to protect you either. Please cooperate."
"But Lieutenant, it's not fair to risk so many people for one woman!"
"Anything more would be a distraction from the mission. You need to take care of yourself, ma'am. It puts everyone at risk."
As Gyeoul's tone changed, the woman closed her mouth tightly. Tears welled up in her eyes. She clutched a palm-sized booklet to her chest and closed her eyes.
"We'll put out the fire. It's inconvenient if mutants see the light. It'll be dark and long, but please endure it calmly. I'll make sure you survive."
Cold water was poured on the still-burning firewood. Shhhh! A fierce steam rose and the smell of charcoal wafted through the air.
Six infrared lights were arranged around the pregnant woman. When they tried to place more, the medic, White, refused. Night vision goggles were burdensome for the eyes. Too much brightness also made it difficult to take care of the pregnant woman.
Sergeant Lieberman brought a map to the young officer.
"I discussed and planned the route and the rendezvous plan with the squad leader. What do you think?"
"Well... It's okay. Let's proceed as planned."
There's nothing particular to see, so Gyeoul accepted it as it is. He quickly incorporated it into his own map. Swish, swish, swish. It was quickly finished with the [Memorization] correction. Then Jeffrey approached.
"Elliott's squad suffered heavy losses, so we decided to send Hernandez's squad instead. There are seven members. Just in case, I handed over one rocket launcher and one machine gun from the weapons team. Since we probably won't need them here anyway."
"Okay. Depending on the size of the mutant group, we might be able to sweep them away by relying on the terrain. Where is everyone now?"
"They're already ready. You're the only one who needs to go."
Before leaving, a few people escorted the boy. Jeffrey and Lieberman wished him good luck. Outside the door, a pair of civilians, the officer, and the old man followed. Two soldiers stayed behind to prepare for contingencies. Gyeoul tried to usher the two people inside.
"Why deliberately let the rain hit you?"
The old man said, looking at the remnants of blood on Gyeoul's face, "Lieutenant. I must say this."
"What...?"
"Thank you for your dedication. Sincerely. And... It's regrettable that you have to fight like this at your age."
It was the first acknowledgment he heard in a long time since the Silver Star Medal ceremony. At that time, it was a journalist, so in a sense, it was the first time. Gyeoul asked, "What's your name?"
"Chapman, Douglas Chapman."
"Thank you for your support, Mr. Chapman."
Gyeoul shook hands with the old man. The female officer gave a salute instead of a handshake. She must still be tired, so it was a rare display of strength and discipline for her. After responding with a salute, Gyeoul spoke to her.
"Don't hate people too much. Otherwise, you'll end up hating the whole world. I'm speaking from experience, so don't just let it pass by."
Kathleen looked very bewildered. Gyeoul smiled.
"Go inside."
And he gestured to the soldiers. The door closed, and the sound of locking echoed. When he turned his head, there were flashes of lightning, black shadows of mountain ridges, and pale preachers of the plague.
Gyeoul headed towards the soldiers waiting for him. Now, it was time for the dawn to deepen.
--------------------------=TL Note=-----------------------
Should I translate/edit chaps 46 to 85?
---------------------------= Afterword =-------------------------—
(This part is machine translated.)
#Additional Information Regarding Publication
There are many questions. I'll answer them all at once here.
- Is Noblesse serialization being suspended? : No, it's not. I've already obtained permission from the editor since the time of the contract.
- Won't there be any issues then? : There might be various difficulties, but it can't be helped...
- Will it be available on platforms like RidibooksX? : Yes. However, there might be a difference in timing.
- When will the printed book be released? : There is no fixed schedule for the release of the printed book. It seems like it will take quite some time.
- How many volumes have been serialized so far? : About 4 volumes.
- Will there be a lot of revisions? : I plan to revise the first episode. Many people find it difficult to read... and scenes that are not suitable for minors will also be revised. Other than that, I will try to fix parts where punctuation marks are used differently from the author's intention or small expressions.
- Are there any events like the author's signed books or photo postcards? : Well... there is really nothing decided about the format of the printed book release. And... do you want something like the author's signature? What are you planning to use it for, some kind of magic...?
#Innocence and Anger
I felt a bit hurt reading the comments from the last chapter. Some readers expressed anger. In the online environment, it seems like everyone gets angry too easily.
There might be requests to shorten the afterword and extend the main text. Anyway, you want to read a little more of the novel, right? There's no need to get angry.
Above all, readers expressing anger means that the author's supply of innocence was insufficient. People who are full of innocence don't get angry easily. They always smile and, little by little, thoroughly annihilate their opponents. That's what innocence is.
Everyone! Until my innocence is completely exhausted, where are you all going to vent your frustration?
The author's vitality is drying up again today...