Chapter 29: The Corporal’s First Vacation

“That’s what I’m saying. It’s strange for the promotion review results to come out that quickly. Isn’t there really something going on?”

Despite that, Corporal Kang Cheol-su continued to raise doubts.

Even though he spouted nonsense in a tone that suggested he couldn’t accept it, it had no effect.

“Ah. Why is this bastard being so pathetic today?”

“A junior worked hard to reach Private First Class and even made it to Corporal, and you’re bashing him like this?”

Rather, it had the opposite effect.

The seniors criticized Corporal Kang Cheol-su more intensely than before.

“Do you even know that Hyun-jun goes to the individual training room every single day, whether it’s a weekday or the weekend, without missing a single day?”

Even Corporal Han Ji-han, who usually didn’t get angry, was at the point of losing his temper.

“Hey. Do you want to die?”

What was particularly surprising was the reaction of Sergeant Yun Seong-jin.

He usually didn’t have much interest in his juniors, but he got angry about this matter.

“Sergeant Yun Seong-jin. It’s not that….”

“Shut your mouth. Do you think the Hunter Army is that careless? If you have a complaint, go to the Battalion Commander yourself and protest.”

Sergeant Yun Seong-jin threatened that he would kill him if he ran his mouth any further.

In the end, Corporal Kang Cheol-su had no choice but to whimper and shut his mouth.

“Suddenly some weird bastard cut in and ruined the whole atmosphere.”

“Tell me about it. It was good until just a moment ago.”

The atmosphere darkened abruptly.

The squad members left the living quarters one by one to eat breakfast.

Even in the process, they kept throwing words at Corporal Kang Cheol-su, which seemed to slowly grate on his mental state.

Judging by his face, which was flushed as if it were about to explode.

As expected.

The backhanded insulting skills of the Corporals who had eaten their share of time were considerable.

“…Ha. Shit.”

Corporal Kang Cheol-su sighed and scratched his head vigorously.

Before long, only Kim Hyun-jun and Corporal Kang Cheol-su remained in the living quarters.

“Corporal Kang Cheol-su.”

Kim Hyun-jun lowered his voice so that only he could hear.

“If you don’t want to die, stop acting up.”

“…Hey. What did you just say?”

Corporal Kang Cheol-su stood up as if he were about to start a fight right then and there.

Even so, it wasn’t scary at all.

“Why are you acting like an amateur. I’m a Corporal now, you know?”

Kim Hyun-jun continued, curling the corners of his mouth.

I remember everything you’ve done to me so far.

We’re both Corporals now, but because I’m treating you as a senior in terms of time, I’m giving you the minimum respect due to a senior.

You’ve already been branded as a near-waste by the squad members.

Haven’t you realized that yet.

Finally, he even told him to look forward to the moment he becomes a Sergeant.

“How long do you think it will take for me to reach Sergeant?”

When the conversation reached that point, Corporal Kang Cheol-su finally seemed to realize that he was screwed.

Considering the performance Kim Hyun-jun had shown so far, it wasn’t unreasonable for him to reach Sergeant.

“Do, do you think things will go your way? Do you think Sergeant looks that easy?”

That was what he thought inside, but Corporal Kang Cheol-su still denied it outwardly.

Now he even looked pitiful.

‘They say people don’t change easily.’

Kim Hyun-jun tapped him on the shoulder.

“Corporal Kang Cheol-su-Cheol-su. Unlike some people, I don’t have the confidence to fail the Sergeant promotion exam?”

“You, you bastard! Don’t call my name like that!”

“I understand. Corporal Cheol-su-Cheol-su. I have to reach Corporal quickly, so I’ll head out first?”

Whether he got angry or not, Kim Hyun-jun left the living quarters while leisurely waving his hand.

Kang Cheol-su, who was suddenly alone, slumped down onto the bed as if his strength had drained away.

“…Shit.”

He wished the current situation were a dream.

***

“From there, stretch your arm out with discipline and sharp angles. That’s it. Keep your gaze fixed forward.”

On top of the parade ground platform.

As soon as he finished breakfast, Kim Hyun-jun was called by the Platoon Leader and was receiving a kind of drill instruction.

The Platoon Leader seemed to be paying even more attention, perhaps because he heard that it would be featured in the Hunter Army news.

“The visual aspect is important in things like this. Until you come down from the platform, think of yourself as a disciplined and dignified soldier.”

“Yes! Understood!”

The Platoon Leader’s guidance continued for about 30 minutes.

Perhaps because he had received a badge during the Private First Class promotion exam, it wasn’t that difficult for Kim Hyun-jun.

“Battalion, attention!”

As time passed, the parade ground was soon filled with soldiers.

As the Battalion Commander stepped onto the platform, the Company Commander raised his voice as if he had been waiting.

“Salute the Battalion Commander!”

“Loyalty!”

The energetic voices of the soldiers rang out.

The Battalion Commander started by saying they were working hard to protect the country and then brought up the story of the villain.

“Even though he originally went out for simple support purposes, with a moment of wit and a brave spirit, he pursued and suppressed the villain….”

The Battalion Commander spoke at length.

To summarize, it was praise saying that Kim Hyun-jun had accomplished what even the special forces were struggling with, and that this was exactly what the Hunter Army was about.

“It was a shame that he didn’t receive the essential equipment that should have been provided by the Special Task Force….”

Whether the Battalion Commander held a grudge, he didn’t miss the chance to take a backhanded swipe at the Special Task Force.

“Private First Class Kim Hyun-jun. Forward.”

“Private First Class Kim Hyun-jun!”

And so, the commendation ceremony officially began.

“Loyalty!”

Kim Hyun-jun received the certificate of commendation from the Battalion Commander with disciplined movements.

The Battalion Commander smiled broadly and personally replaced the rank insignia attached to his chest.

“It was a brave and wonderful performance. I’ll look forward to your future endeavors.”

“Corporal! Kim Hyun-jun!”

As he shook hands with the Battalion Commander, camera flashes went off as if they had been waiting.

Clap clap clap clap.

The sound of loud applause filled the parade ground.

‘So this is how it feels to receive a commendation and get a special promotion.’

Kim Hyun-jun felt his heart swelling.

He had received a badge during the Private First Class promotion exam, but the feeling was different from back then.

‘This never happened once before the regression.’

Forget commendations and special promotions.

Hadn’t he struggled with just the regular promotion exams?

If it were before the regression, he would still be a Private.

‘Already a Corporal.’

A smile naturally formed at the faster-than-expected promotion.

He was grateful to the special forces soldiers who let the villain slip away, and also to the villain who was stronger than expected.

If it weren’t for them, he wouldn’t have been able to receive a commendation and become a Corporal like this.

“Corporal Kim Hyun-jun. Congratulations on your promotion!”

As soon as the commendation ceremony ended, Private First Class Jung Ye-na ran over and gave Kim Hyun-jun a headbutt(?).

Even though their senior-junior relationship had been reversed, she treated him as a senior without any awkwardness.

As if it were natural.

One might expect her to feel awkward like the other Private First Classes who were previously his seniors.

“Thanks. But you also helped, so I don’t know why they left that part out.”

“What did I even do. All I did was attach a note to a rubber arrow and shoot it.”

She said it was fine because she received more merit points than she expected.

She said her conscience would prick her if she received any more than that.

“More than that, don’t I have a good eye? Do you believe me now when I said you’d reach Sergeant in no time?”

Private First Class Jung Ye-na opened her eyes wide as if to show off.

Kim Hyun-jun chuckled and replied.

“Just you wait. I’ll pay you back double.”

“Then I’ll look forward to it. I can’t wait for long, you know?”

Private First Class Jung Ye-na said she had to go because of her daily duties and ran toward the living quarters.

‘Now that I’ve become a Corporal, I’d like to take care of something for her if possible….’

The things she helped with were useful in reaching Corporal.

The same went for catching the villain right then.

The idea of shooting an arrow from a distance because there was no radio was still fresh even thinking about it now.

‘By the way. It would be perfect if I could go on vacation now.’

Now that he had become a Corporal, he had some breathing room in his range of activity.

He might be able to open a few of the honey pots he had checked before the regression.

However, the problem was that he wasn’t sure if he could go on vacation.

Even though he had reached Corporal.

It was because a villain response training was scheduled in a few days, and a guerrilla training was scheduled in three weeks.

‘The Battalion Commander is very strict about vacations. Especially when training is scheduled.’

Let’s plan the vacation schedule after the guerrilla training is over.

Just as he was about to prepare for his daily duties as usual, the Platoon Leader came and handed him a vacation pass.

“Hyun-jun. You go on vacation today.”

“Corporal Kim Hyun-jun. Do you mean today?”

“Yeah. It’s a fresh vacation pass that just came out. The Battalion Commander told me to send you on a reward vacation as an exception.”

“Is that okay? There’s villain response training and guerrilla training scheduled later.”

“Normally it wouldn’t be, kid. It’s possible because it’s you. The Battalion Commander said that if you’re good enough to catch a villain, you don’t need villain response training.”

An unexpected vacation attack from the Battalion Commander.

Kim Hyun-jun felt dizzy!

“Get ready and go quickly. Apparently, he can’t give you a long one because of the training.”

“Yes! Understood!”

After receiving a 2-night, 3-day reward vacation, Kim Hyun-jun quickly finished his preparations and headed out of the unit.

“Corporal Kang Cheol-su-Cheol-su. Work hard while I’m gone. I’ll be back after a good rest.”

“…….”

He didn’t forget to tease Corporal Kang Cheol-su.

He had only endured it until now because he was a Private First Class, but not anymore.

“My first vacation after becoming a Corporal.”

Coming out of the unit, Kim Hyun-jun stretched his body.

Looking at it this way, he might seem like a terribly unlucky soldier whose vacations kept getting delayed, but that wasn’t the case.

It just looked that way because his promotion speed was so fast.

“They’ll be surprised to know I’m already a Corporal, right?”

Heading home, Kim Hyun-jun curled the corners of his mouth.

He hadn’t informed his parents about the promotion.

He did that to surprise them when he went on vacation later.

It wasn’t just the rank insignia.

The certificate of commendation received for capturing the villain and the photo that would later be published in the Hunter News.

Plus the reward money.

“If I’ve done this much, they won’t tell me to stop being a soldier anymore.”

Surely that would be the case.

***

“Loyalty! Mom. I’m on vacation.”

A quiet restaurant with no customers.

When Kim Hyun-jun opened the door and went inside, his mother, who was wiping a table, rushed out.

“Hyun-jun? It’s still a long way before you’re supposed to come on vacation. Is your body okay? You’re not hurt anywhere?”

A face full of surprise and worry.

Kim Hyun-jun showed the rank insignia to his mother, who was checking his body first.

“I came on vacation because I became a Corporal. A reward vacation.”

“Huh? A Corporal? Aren’t you a Private?”

When he explained what had happened, Kim Hyun-jun’s mother was startled.

At first, she didn’t believe it, thinking her son was playing a prank.

Even if she didn’t know the military well, she knew that promotions don’t happen that quickly.

Also, she knew that her son’s training performance was poor during boot camp.

That was why she had tried to stop him from serving in the Hunter Army.

“Here’s the certificate of commendation. I received it today.”

However, seeing the certificate of commendation handed over as if he had been waiting, and the account where the reward money had been deposited, she had no choice but to believe it.

“Do you still want me to stop being in the Hunter Army?”

“…How could I.”

Kim Hyun-jun’s mother still inwardly wanted to stop her son.

Because whether this or that happened, the fact that it was a dangerous job remained unchanged.

“If my son wants to do it, he should.”

But looking at her son’s hands, which were deeply calloused, she didn’t want to oppose him anymore.

Since he must have put in a lot of effort to become like that.

He said military life suited his temperament, so what was the point of trying to stop him anymore.

“Who do you take after that a great soldier came out of our family.”

“At least I didn’t take after Dad.”

“That’s true. Your dad was just a driver.”

Kim Hyun-jun laughed loudly at his mother’s firm answer.

“Let’s go out for a meal when Dad comes. It’s on me.”

He planned to spend the day with his family.

Before the regression, he had been neglectful of his family, and since he had received a 2-night, 3-day vacation, he had some leisure.

[Honey Pot List]

He had decided how to spend the remaining two days.

Since he had regressed, shouldn’t he take what he can take?

Since he was a Corporal, there would be some restrictions, but it was much better compared to when he was a Private.

‘2 days should be enough.’

It was enough time to take care of his own things and also pack the items needed for Private First Class Jung Ye-na.