GB 44

As night fell, Haero quietly slipped out of the room. The atmosphere was certainly a bit looser even after roll call. There was a strange excitement in the air.

Although he was unaware, being completely disinterested in school gossip, it was somewhat customary to allow newly admitted cadets one weekend to socialize and get to know each other. His senior classes had experienced the same.

In any case, he cautiously snuck into room 301, where people were huddled together in the relatively spacious room. It didn’t seem like the entire class was gathered.

As Haero appeared, Tan Shui, who was sticking an adhesive cigarette to his gums, raised his hand in acknowledgment, “Oh, over here!”

Tan Shui was in the center of the group. Thanks to him calling out loudly, Haero ended up sitting in the middle of the room, the focus of attention.

“We’ve never spoken during class. I heard your emergency medicine grades are good. Are you taking the advanced course?”

“You’re a good swimmer. Do you practice separately?”

“Wow, I’ve only seen you in passing. This is the first time seeing you up close.”

Haero was a bit overwhelmed by the barrage of comments directed at him. “Yes, I’m taking the advanced emergency medicine course, and I’ve been swimming since I was young.”

He took emergency medicine because of Yoon Moo-hwa. 

Yoon Moo-hwa often came back with minor injuries besides his eyes, and when it wasn’t serious enough for the hospital or when he returned to port, he would often roughly treat himself after the wounds had somewhat healed. Given how sensitive Haero was to Yoon Moo-hwa’s injuries, counting each new scar on his body every time he returned from a mission, it was perhaps natural that emergency medicine was the first subject he chose.

While Yoon Moo-hwa was the initial motivation, it also unexpectedly suited Haero’s aptitude. It was quite interesting. After all, Haero had been very good at and enjoyed memorizing herbs since he was Number 8.

“If you’re going to take the advanced course, why not just go to medical school and become a military doctor instead of the Naval Academy?” Someone snorted and threw in a comment. 

Haero tried to see who it was, but couldn’t find them in the confusion of the crowd.

Above all, at that moment, someone offered Haero a glass of alcohol. “Come on, let’s have a drink first!”

Tan Shui took the glass and handed it to Haero. Everything proceeded steadily amidst the chaos. Haero inadvertently gulped down the contents of the glass.

The liquid was clear, but unlike its colorlessness, the moment he swallowed, his nose stung and his throat felt like it was burning up. Surprised, Haero found chewing tobacco in his mouth. Not knowing what it was, he chewed and immediately spat it out due to the bitter taste. 

Tan Shui’s eyes widened as he exclaimed, “Why are you spitting out this precious thing!” Then he put it back in his own mouth and chewed.

Stinging nose and throat, extremely astringent tongue. Haero couldn’t regain his senses, as if he’d been hit repeatedly, “What is this?”

“You don’t do this?” Tan Shui’s reaction was rather puzzled. 

Haero shook his head. “How can I do something I don’t even know about? It’s not some weird drug, is it?”

“No, it’s an artificial tobacco leaf. It’s not addictive like gum and not bad for your health. The kind of adhesive I use is strong, but this one isn’t that potent.”

Naturally, Haero didn’t believe it. In his view, all drugs had two sides, and there was no completely harmless remedy or medicine. Especially if it was a substance that provided pleasure, it would have some other effect.

Haero shook his head with a suspicious look. “I’m not doing it. You go ahead.”

“Okay? Then is alcohol alright?” Tan Shui casually showed a glass he had received from someone.

‘This tastes different from what I’ve had before.’

Haero chewed his lips. This liquid, seemingly a mix of various alcohols, was bound to be different from the fine drinks Haero had at hotels.

After hesitating, Haero decided to drink just a little. It felt awkward to refuse at this point, and he was also curious about his alcohol tolerance. Before long, Haero became slightly drunk, though his complexion remained unchanged.

Tan Shui was probably the only one who noticed Haero was drunk. He noticed Haero’s head nodding irregularly. However, the social gathering was meant for getting drunk, making mistakes, and experiencing awkwardness. Tan Shui, the youngest of five brothers, was the organizer of this gathering and knew that most things would be overlooked for tonight.

“Cadet Haero, it’s impressive that your complexion hasn’t changed at all!” So he subtly praised Haero.

Not really understanding what being drunk feel like, Haero thought, “Is that so? Am I okay since my complexion hasn’t changed?” Typically, drunk people don’t realize they’re drunk.

Haero nodded, thinking it was okay for him to stay longer. He thought he was nodding up and down, but in reality, it was almost diagonal.

Soon, a cheer erupted from the expanded gathering that now included the room in front. The source of the sound was the front room.

Tan Shui, who could guess what had happened without looking, grinned and helped Haero stand up. “Cadet Haero, you’re in your prime. Let me show you something good.”

Not knowing what was happening, Haero found himself being dragged up by Tan Shui’s grip.

What they were watching in room 310, opposite to 301, was a video playing on a semi-transparent pad.

“What’s this? Is it two men doing it?” Tan Shui showed interest as he took a seat.

It was an era much closer to 2100 than 2000. Compared to all the glaciers on Earth melting, same-sex relationships were hardly surprising.

What surprised Haero wasn’t the relationship between two men, but the explicit and high-level scenes he hadn’t been exposed to due to the kids-lock Yoon Moo-hwa had shamelessly set without his consent.

While he had received sex education, there was a complete difference between objective and boring information for knowledge and explicit and stimulating information for arousal.

It felt like he was sobering up. However, the alcohol that had momentarily receded came back like a bigger wave. He suddenly felt dizzy. So Haero couldn’t even get up from his seat.

“Hey, this is a bit boring, isn’t it?” Tan Shui grinned as he evaluated the video.

Haero didn’t know if that was considered boring or intense. He just felt dizzy.

In the atmosphere where everyone was silently focused on the video, even swallowing saliva felt awkward. Haero randomly picked up a glass and drank. What was inside was stronger than the mixed drink he had earlier.

A cadet who had been exchanging silly jokes with Tan Shui suddenly noticed Haero and shouted urgently, “Oh no! That’s the one I mixed!”

The bottle he was shaking was vodka. It was a small bottle due to its high alcohol content.

“Cadet Haero, are you okay?” Tan Shui belatedly worried. 

Haero shook his head, then nodded, then staggered as he stood up.

“Someone needs to take him back to his room. He’s such a baby.”

“Don’t tease him.” Even as he tried to stop the others from snickering, Tan Shui was laughing too.

Haero waved his hand, insisting he didn’t need help. However, before reaching the door, he tripped over someone’s leg. It wasn’t intentional; Haero just couldn’t avoid it despite seeing it.

“Oh dear. I’ll take him to his room.” Finally, Tan Shui took responsibility and stood up.

“It’s fine. I’m okay.” Haero thought he had firmly refused, but in reality, his voice was muffled and barely audible, his pronunciation slurred.

Tan Shui effortlessly lifted Haero, supporting him with an arm around his shoulders. “Which room is Cadet Haero’s?”

Haero mentioned his room number. Due to his slurred speech, he had to repeat it about six times before Tan Shui understood. “That’s a single room. Cadet Haero really is getting special treatment, huh?”

‘Special treatment, what’s that?’ Haero frowned. His eyes were already almost closed.

“Who exactly is this person taking care of you? Colonel Yoon Moo-hwa, was it? A colonel is high-ranking, but to this extent? Or is Colonel Yun Moo-hwa’s background extraordinary?”

“… Shut up!”

Haero disliked hearing Yoon Moo-hwa’s name from others’ mouths, regardless of their intentions. Becoming a topic of gossip because of him was an experience Yoon Moo-hwa didn’t need to go through. In fact, Haero knew he was a blemish on Yoon Moo-hwa’s brilliance. Even if neither of them thought so, others constantly judged them that way. Though he had always pretended not to care, such a reputation was quite hurtful to his pride.

So, for someone to mention Yoon Moo-hwa along with him even now– after he had come this far, from being a child raised in a suspicious criminal group on a pirate island to entering the Naval Academy as the top student– felt too insulting. It disregarded both his own efforts and Yoon Moo-hwa’s patience in allowing him to enroll here.

As soon as he shook his head, he felt extremely dizzy.

To prevent any potential incidents, all rooms in the dormitory had no locking function. Tan Shui pushed the door open with his shoulder and dragged Haero inside. While smaller than the shared rooms, it was still quite nice for single occupancy. 

Tan Shui whistled as he looked around. “Not bad, huh? There must be a reason only the cream of the crop get to use these.”

Some things never change, even as glaciers melt– inequality being one of them. Tan Shui thought, sadly but realistically, that it was natural for some cadets to ostracize Haero and view him unfavorably.

Tan Shui laid Haero on the bed. 

Haero exhaled heavily as he lay at an angle. His furrowed brow made it seem as if he was having a nightmare.

Sighing and placing his hands on his hips, Tan Shui surveyed Haero’s room.

Instead of leaving immediately, he curiously looked around. His attention was drawn to a book that stood out on Haero’s otherwise neat bookshelf.

“A diary?”

The book’s spine showed signs of frequent handling. When he opened it, it wasn’t a diary.

Instead, it opened to a specific page. A digital card was acting as a bookmark between the pages.

“Congratulations on taking your first step into the world as an adult. I’m glad to be able to watch your progress. Good luck with the entrance ceremony.”

“‘Good luck’? Not even ‘congratulations’?” Tan Shui snorted.

He couldn’t understand that this was more than enough congratulations for Haero.

Tan Shui was simply impressed by the digital card.

It was a detailed piece of work, with the texture of paper and the feel of a pen so meticulously recreated that it looked genuinely analog. It must have been quite expensive. But if they wanted it to look like this, why not just write it directly on good paper with a good pen? Can’t they write? No, this would even replicate the sender’s handwriting.

Coming from a family that ran a large antique stationery store, Tan Shui knew quite a bit about these things.

Why insist on a digital card when there’s an easier way to send it directly?

“Ah.” Tan Shui grinned as realization dawned on him. “It’s from Colonel Yoon Moo-hwa, isn’t it?”

Unable to send it directly due to distance, but wanting it to feel like it was personally delivered.

So that’s what it was.

Tan Shui rubbed his chin with a satisfied expression. Then he turned to look at the heavily drunk and sleeping Haero. “He cares that much? Sure, you’re pretty, but aren’t there plenty of beautiful people around?”

Especially for someone like Yoon Moo-hwa, with his fame, status, wealth, and looks, he shouldn’t be lacking for options.

“Maybe he has problems down there.” With the other person unable to hear, Tan Shui spouted rude comments freely. He too was slightly tipsy, making it hard to filter his words.

If Haero had been awake, he might have lunged at Tan Shui and beaten him severely. But if Tan Shui had asked, “Am I wrong?”, how would Haero have answered? How could he answer something even he didn’t know?

Fortunately, Tan Shui finished exploring the room before Haero woke up. He put the digital card back on its original page and returned the book to its place.

Haero’s face was pale. While turning red from drinking is dangerous, turning pale is even more so. Wouldn’t there be a problem if he sleeps like this?

However, after worrying briefly, Tan Shui compromised by leaving the door slightly open as he left the room.