WeTried Translations
Translator: Coughing Baby
Editor: Coughing Baby
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 334: Sunlit Shade (1)
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On the morning of the eighth day after returning to Fort Roberts, Gyeoul attended the joint funeral service for the dead members of his unit. Folding the Stars and Stripes with the chaplain was Gyeoul’s duty as commander. He had done it before at Private Stan Page’s funeral, so there was no need to practice again.
The bereaved families reacted in different ways as they received the flag, now thickly folded into a triangle. Some parents and children wailed in grief. Some spouses wept quietly.
From the looks around him, he sometimes sensed an unpleasant difference in attitude. Most of it was empathy and pity toward grief, but some of it was tangled jealousy and envy. Why would anyone envy people who had lost their own flesh and blood? Gyeoul quickly understood why.
‘Citizenship and fallen soldier’s compensation.’
Refugee-born volunteers were recognized as citizens from the moment they received rank. Of course, there was a mandatory term of service. Under President MacMillan’s emergency executive order, if they lost military status before completing five years, they also lost their citizenship.
There were exceptions. Discharge due to injury carried no penalty. Fallen soldiers received even greater honors. Not only were their bereaved families recognized as citizens, they received either the number of months served multiplied by one thousand dollars, or ten thousand dollars, whichever was greater. That was the fallen soldier’s compensation.
In truth, even this was hard to call enough. Before the plague, the fallen soldier’s compensation had reached a total of five hundred thousand dollars when the death gratuity and death insurance payout, SGLI, were combined. That amount had fallen sharply after the quarantine war began. The cause was the growing financial burden.
Even that was not paid in a lump sum now. No, the government had no ability to pay it that way. The compensation incurred by the failure of Manifest Liberation alone came to twenty-seven billion dollars. So for now, bereaved families had to choose one of two options: apply for installment payments over five years, or receive wartime government bonds equal to the compensation.
Even so, from the perspective of refugees lacking so much else, it was certainly worth envying. Gyeoul could not see them as especially wicked people. Their lives had improved greatly, but a refugee’s position was still unstable. Their treatment could change any number of ways depending on the character of the administration.
‘In the worst case, they could even be deported.’
It was not a joke. It was one of the Republican Party presidential candidate’s pledges. Refugees who undermined national security would be sent outside the borders. They said they would designate a holding zone on some island and provide minimal supplies and weapons, but in reality, the idea was no different from deportation.
Naturally, the primary target would be Chinese refugees. But refugees of other nationalities held the same status. That meant even the most favorably viewed European and Korean refugees were not entirely safe. So with the presidential election about a month and a half away, citizenship had to be more precious to them than to anyone else.
The bereaved families had many other benefits too. The right to use military medical facilities and military commissaries for one year, compensation for leave the fallen soldier had not used, a small housing subsidy, and so on.
Given all that, it was only natural that Gyeoul received a shady request.
“You want me to help get a marriage recognized?”
The joint funeral service had barely ended when Baek San-ho brought his group over and earnestly asked for a little of Gyeoul’s time. At Gyeoul’s question, he nodded, embarrassed.
“That is correct, Lieutenant Colonel Han. The people here were practically spouses to the soldiers who died. Because of their situation, they simply could not hold proper ceremonies.”
“After the military government office was established, they accepted marriage registrations between refugees while investigating family relations, didn’t they?”
“Yes, they did. But, you know how policy can be. Sometimes it is not publicized enough. I believe they may have failed to report it because they did not know. Their circumstances are pitiful, so as base commander, please show them mercy. Haha.”
It was flattery, subtly lifting up Gyeoul, who was not yet the formal base commander. Gyeoul quietly looked over the people behind Baek San-ho. The young men and women could not meet his eyes. Their number matched the number of the fallen. A few had red eyes, but even they did not look truly grief-stricken. With 「Perception」 as well, Gyeoul was certain. He tilted his head and asked.
“Say it clearly. Did they fail to report it because they did not know, or are you asking me to pretend that is what happened?”
“...”
“I do not like lies very much.”
Exposed to deliberate 「Threat Level」, Baek San-ho stiffly swallowed, yet did not lose his smile. He held fast to his servile attitude.
“Oh dear, I apologize from the bottom of my heart. My explanation was lacking. I never meant to deceive you, Lieutenant Colonel. I simply made a mistake because I become so very nervous in front of you.”
“So in the end, your intent was for us to pretend that is what happened. What more is there to explain?”
“Oh, my. Why such a rush? If you hear the circumstances, Lieutenant Colonel, you will certainly, yes, certainly understand. This is all necessary for the bereaved families, the community, and our alliance.”
“For the bereaved families and the alliance?”
“Exactly.”
Baek San-ho nodded eagerly even at the displeased question.
“Why would I not know this is not an honorable thing? I am human too, yes, yes, I am human too. But the number of citizenship holders is directly tied to the alliance’s overall interests. Is this not too precious an opportunity to let slip away? It gives the living a chance, so the fallen soldiers, yes, the dead soldiers, will not dislike it either. Naturally, we will also give the bereaved families some compensation. Yes.”
Gyeoul narrowed his brows.
“Wait. Have the bereaved families already agreed?”
“Uh... Not yet.”
As the mood worsened, he hurriedly added an excuse.
“We intended to tell the families after receiving your permission, Lieutenant Colonel.”
“Their feelings come first, don’t they?”
“Of course! Their feelings come first. That is precisely why. It is already such a difficult decision, so if we bring it up, only to say later that it cannot be done, would that not reopen the wound in their hearts? I considered it all! I considered it! Yes, that is why I am speaking to our commander like this.”
“You are not trying to use my name to get their agreement more easily?”
“Hahaha...”
Baek San-ho was a man whose eyes disappeared when he laughed. After taking out a handkerchief and wiping his broad forehead, he admitted the charge with surprising obedience.
“To be honest, there is a tiny bit of that, just a tiiiny bit. We were going to persuade them by saying this is something Lieutenant Colonel Han Gyeoul permitted. It gives young people a chance! It benefits the alliance! And if you receive some compensation, would it not help your lives too? Bereaved families are, after all, in a period when making rational judgments is difficult.”
“...”
“But please understand this one thing. This Baek San-ho has not the slightest selfish motive! Honestly, ten thousand dollars in fallen soldier’s compensation is too little, is it not? How are parents who lost grown children supposed to live from now on? Most Americans rely on pensions in old age, but even if they receive citizenship, how much of a pension can refugees build when they are already awkwardly old? Would the dead soldiers truly be glad to see their remaining blood relatives fall into homelessness? They would shed tears of blood even in the afterlife.”
His clenched fists shook with passion. Baek San-ho’s heated speech resembled a politician’s address.
“These friends here have agreed to pay one-tenth of the money they earn once they find work, until the total reaches forty thousand dollars. As a price for buying citizenship, it is certainly cheap, but for young people who have nothing right now, it is still a great price, yes, a very great price. Since the matter is what it is, we cannot leave the promise in writing, but I, this Baek San-ho, will stand as guarantor.”
“From the families’ perspective, how can they trust that?”
“Here! Lieutenant Colonel Han knows me, doesn’t he? And I am a man with credibility.”
The businessman thumped his own chest, then coughed in pain.
“Ahem. In any case, I have no way to live outside the alliance, and the same goes if I fall out of your favor, Lieutenant Colonel. How could I set foot anywhere on American soil then?”
Gyeoul deliberately sighed to see his reaction.
“How much were you supposed to receive as the broker?”
“Receive money? Me? Absolutely not! This is never a request I am making out of self-interest! Did I not tell you I have not the slightest, not the slightest selfish motive?”
“If I find out later that something like that happened, I will be genuinely angry.”
“I am truly innocent!”
Baek San-ho spread his hands with a deeply wronged look.
“I know you may not like the idea of trading a dead person’s place as a spouse for money. You must want to wash your ears, yes, wash your ears. Still, ordinary people cannot help making mistakes, big and small, as they go through life. It would be good to live with a conscience, but conscience does not put food on the table.”
No matter how smooth he was with words, he was not someone who would move without profit. And now he claimed he wanted to speak for people who had nothing.
‘If that is true, he is trying to clean up his image.’
Just leaving Gyeoul with a decent impression could be counted as a profit for now. He might not be a good person, but he was someone with a practical eye.
It might also have been a way to flaunt his influence to those around him.
Beyond that, there was a high chance the men and women he had brought actually had quite a bit. The faces avoiding his gaze had pale skin, and by the standards of the refugee zone, they were very well dressed. Recently, refugees who had assets inside the United States were beginning to stand out economically. As always, 「Insight」 took Gyeoul’s side.
‘By clothing alone, they are about on Commissioner Song Ye-kyung’s level.’
Either way, on the surface, it was a proposal for the bereaved families. Some of the families might well accept it despite everything. At the very least, it was not a situation where he could openly say something harsh.
After drawing out the conversation and thinking it through, Gyeoul slowly shook his head.
“It is too unrealistic. If this became known later, it would turn into a troublesome scandal.”
“Would the secret really leak?”
“I do not know. Who knows what will happen? For example, what if one of the bereaved families blackmails someone? If they are not paid more, they will reveal the truth.”
“Uh...”
“I might be the one being blackmailed. I do not want to create needless weakness over a small matter.”
He did not bother mentioning it, but Baek San-ho could also be the one doing the blackmail. It would be useless, though.
Clear regret flashed across Baek San-ho’s face. As expected, this had to be something that benefited him in some way. His mouth opened quickly. In the end, it closed without a sound. He seemed to have come after thinking it through in his own way, but he had not expected this much. Still, he looked as though he did have a solution. The fact that he could not say it meant it was not a proper method.
After a while, the businessman who had failed at bargaining drooped his shoulders.
“Sigh. It cannot be helped. I thought it would be a deal that benefited both the families and the young people.”
“I will pay attention to the families’ livelihoods too. You do not need to worry.”
He left out the fact that another method would likely be prepared for the job seekers’ citizenship as well. Baek San-ho would show interest. Gyeoul did not want to waste any more time here.
‘He is such an ambiguous person...’
Baek San-ho constantly tried to cross the line for his own benefit, but he did not commit truly decisive wrongs. One could call it a sense of reality. If he had not had that, Min Wan-ki would have cut him out long ago. Gyeoul had forbidden his usefulness as a living sacrifice.
Judging from Elder Kang Yeong-sun’s notes, he also seemed to have sensed some danger signal when he was dismissed from his middle manager post in the alliance. If that was true, it had turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Baek San-ho. As long as there was enough preparation to seize it, luck did not care about a person’s character.
Baek San-ho bent at the waist at a right angle.
“Though it ended up this way, thank you for giving us your precious time. I will come to see you later with something better.”
Then he urged the people who had followed him.
“What are you doing? You should hurry and pay your respects too.”
There was no such thing as an elder’s pride. Gyeoul answered them with a polite bow of his head. Even if this was America, when an older person acted like this, he could not receive it stiffly.
Baek San-ho bowed several more times before turning away. A sticky premonition clung to that retreating back. No matter how well the refugee community was managed in the future, that type of person would remain until the end. If Baek San-ho disappeared, a new Baek San-ho would appear. Ordinarily selfish people.
‘Right now, I need to focus on other problems.’
Gyeoul took out his phone and pressed a speed dial key. Soon, Jin-seok’s name appeared on the screen. The signal did not ring many times.
「This is Park Jin-seok. What is the matter?」
“Lieutenant. I have something to say, so come to my office by two.”
Yesterday, he had received new contact from the public affairs office. The entire former independent company’s trip to D.C. had been confirmed. So now, it was time for Gyeoul to make a decision too.
Jin-seok’s answer came one beat late.
「...Understood. Are there any other instructions?」
“No.”
「I see. Then I will see you then.」
The call ended simply.
Footnotes:
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