Chapter 251: It’s Difficult To Understand (2)

Du-du-du! Du-du! Du-du-du-du!

AK-47 gunshots echoed as Gérard reported their situation.

“Daye! Cha Dong-Gyun!” Kang Chan called, then swiftly charged ahead.

Swoosh! Swish!

The ground was slippery. Rocks and the ground itself kept crumbling under their feet.

They stumbled every time they lost their footing, but they didn’t slow down.

Kang Chan turned left and immediately crouched, Seok Kang-Ho and Cha Dong-Gyun stopped behind him.

Haah. Haah.

The enemies were in a large cave about twenty meters below them.Sparks flew from inside it with every rifle shot.

Still crouching, Kang Chan turned to Seok Kang-Ho. In response, Seok Kang-Ho raised his hand, sending a signal to their men. Kang Chan soon heard the soldiers coming to a stop.

The French team and the Spetsnaz were waiting at similar spots across the mountain.

Chk.

“Those fuckers pulled an RPG on us out of nowhere.”

Evidencing what Gérard said, they could see two black craters in front of the French team where the grenade had hit.

Chk.

“Any casualties?” Kang Chan asked.

Chk.

“We’ve got two lightly injured men,” someone answered.

Kang Chan took a slow look at their surroundings. They were about ten meters away from the roof of the cave.

Chk.

“They don’t seem to have seen us yet. We’ll go around the mountain and get to where the cave is. Keep drawing their attention until we’re in position,” Kang Chan said.

Chk.

“Yes sir,” Gérard answered.

Chk.

“Andrei, I need you and your team in front of the cave. It would be best if you don’t get spotted, but station somewhere you can avoid an RPG just in case.”

Chk.

“Copy,” Andrei responded with determination.

Kang Chan couldn’t bring himself to trust that kid, but doubting the Spetsnaz's abilities would be nonsensical.

He slowly moved to the back.

Pew! Pew! Du-du-du! Du-du-! Du-du-du-du!

When the French team tried to shoot down their enemies, the latter immediately retaliated.

“We’re climbing to the top and head down to the left side of the cave,” Kang Chan ordered his men. “Stalling will put us in more danger, so we’re cornering them instead. Make sure you don’t make any noise.”

After looking at his men, Kang Chan led them up the mountain.

They had all gotten used to their formation by now. Kang Chan was naturally at the very front, and Seok Kang-Ho and Cha Dong-Gyun followed behind him. Choi Jong-Il, Kwak Cheol-Ho, and Woo Hee-Seung supported the two from the back.

Rustle. Swoosh!

The falling dirt and pebbles put them on edge. Fortunately, the gunshots drowned out the noises they made.

Haah. Haah.

Kang Chan remained alert as he headed forward.

Even though they were walking on rough and dried terrain, the mountain had quite a lot of low trees and plants.

They were now only fifty meters away from the cave.

Haah. Haah.

Clatter! Clank!

They heard rocks rolling down the mountain with each step they took.

The moths that were difficult to differentiate from tree branches, the vividly colorful frogs, the large mosquitoes, and other insects of this mountain were just as scary as their enemies. After all, touching or getting bit by some of them could result in surprised reactions, sudden loss of consciousness, and even death.

Among them, the ants had to be the scariest. The soldiers never knew when the ants would crawl into their military boots and bite their feet. By the time they had looked down to check the stinging pain, they would already be feeling sick and dizzy.

Hence, the one leading their formation always had to examine the ground and make sure they avoided the nests of such ferocious creatures.

Du-du-du-du! Du-du!

Pew! BAM!

After a couple of gunshots, another explosion resounded, sending tremors through the ground.

Soil fell from the sky.

Damn it!

Kang Chan kept moving. Soon, they found a winding path to their right.

Rustle. Swoosh. Rustle. Swish.

If soldiers who had served in locations with paths like these were tossed into makeshift cities with asphalt roads for training, they would never make a noise no matter how much they ran.

Du-du-du! Pew! Pew! Du-du-du-du!

France’s special forces team kept drawing the enemies’ fire toward themselves.

Chk.

“Spetsnaz on standby,” Andrei radioed in.

After another five minutes of walking, Kang Chan and the South Korean team finally reached their destination.

Kang Chan gestured to his eyes with his index and middle finger, then pointed to areas left, right, and opposite of the cave. Cha Dong-Gyun assigned two people to stand guard at each area.

There was about ten meters in between the top of the mountain and the cave.

Chk.

“We’re going down to the cave. Spetznas, France, cover us. Make sure tangos can’t fire at us,” Kang Chan ordered.

Chk.

“Understood,” Gérard answered.

Chk.

“Roger,” Andrei replied.

After getting their confirmation, Kang Chan pointed to Seok Kang-Ho, Cha Dong-Gyun, Choi Jong-Il, and Kwak Cheol-Ho. He then carefully laid down in the direction of the hill.

Rustle! Rustle!

The slope was so steep that they would slide down if they relaxed let gravity do its work.

Following Kang Chan, Seok Kang-Ho went prone and crawled down.

Swoosh!

Dirt fell from under their heads and shoulders, but Kang Chan’s position stopped them from rolling past him.

Pew! Pew! Pew!

Ta-da-dang! Ta-da-da-da-dang! Ta-da-da-da-dang!

When the Spetsnaz opened fire at the entrance of the cave, the enemies inside stayed behind cover instead of immediately returning fire. They seemed to have been caught by surprise.

Kang Chan let himself slide down, using the gunshots to cover any noise he could make.

Ta-da-dang! Ta-dang! Ta-da-dang! Ta-da-da-da-dang!

Having caught onto Kang Chan’s plan, the Spetsnaz blatantly fired at their enemies, denting and chipping away at the wall at the entrance of the cave.

Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

Under the cover of the rapid gunshots, the four quickly made their way down the hill and stood behind Kang Chan.

All preparations were complete.

Ta-da-da-dang! Ta-da-dang! Pew! Pew!

Kang Chan held up his right hand and straightened his index finger. He then raised his middle finger.

One! Two!

Whoosh!

When the firefight stopped, Kang Chan, Seok Kang-Ho, and three of his men ran into the cave.

Unless they were stupid, they wouldn’t just stand at the entrance of the cave.

Pew! Pow! Pew! Pow! Pew! Pew! Pow!

Kang Chan and Seok Kang-Ho killed three hostiles as their men took cover behind the walls of the cave and provided cover fire.

Like lightning striking through the night sky, sparks flashed inside the dark cave, briefly illuminating rebels with rifles at the ready.

Click! Pew! Bam! Pow-pow-pow!

Where do you think you’re aiming?!

Pew! Pow! Pew! Pow!

Special forces found fights like this easy.

If it wasn’t for the damn suicide bombers and the RPGs that the enemy fired at random, this would have been almost no different from shooting at training dummies.

“Sit down!” Kang Chan yelled in Korean.

He then gestured at the hostages to sit back down. Since the hostages were standing up, it seemed safe to assume that all of the rebels had died.

The light coming from outside lit up the cave a little.

This is the scariest part!

A rebel hiding among the hostages could end them all with a press of a button.

Pew! Pow! Pew! Pow!

“Sit down!” Kang Chan yelled in Korean again after sending two bullets to the cave’s ceiling.

When the cave finally quieted down, he raised his hand to his helmet.

Chk.

“Spetsnaz, meet the hostages in front of the cave! Gérard, keep an eye on our surroundings and cover us if necessary!” he ordered.

Chk.

“Yes, sir.”

Chk.

“This is Kang Chan. Team One, Head down to the entrance of the cave. Teams Two and Three, guard our perimeter and provide suppressive fire if needed.”

Chk.

“Understood,” Lee Doo-Hee answered.

Seok Kang-Ho and Choi Jong-Il stood at the left wall of the cave, and on the right Cha Dong-Gyun and Kwak Cheol-Ho were aiming at the hostages with their rifles on their shoulders.

𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

“I’ll start sending the hostages out of the cave. You have the permission to shoot as soon as you notice something odd,” Kang Chan said. He then approached the hostage at the very front.

Haah. Haah.

Kang Chan sharply examined the hostage, then looked straight into his eyes. The hostage glanced back at him, fear evident in their gaze.

Kang Chan nodded toward the entrance of the cave, signaling that they could leave. When the hostage hesitated, he repeated the gesture, finally making them inch their way toward the entrance. They moved so slowly that it seemed as if they were crawling.

Click!

Kang Chan pointed his gun at the woman sitting behind the hostage. If they let their guard down in situations like this, the hostages would all run outside. Worse, a bomb could explode right in their faces.

Even though there were approximately two hundred hostages, they decided to inspect them one by one anyway. Even if they spoke the same language, this would have still been their best and only option.

One by one, the hostages were sent out.

Kang Chan’s procedure was so slow that it could be mistaken as him stalling for time. However, the hostages seemed to have understood his intentions. They were now silently waiting for instructions instead of rashly standing up and running out.

“Daye! Check the first row of hostages. Make sure you thoroughly examine them!” Kang Chan said.

“Alright.”

Kang Chan walked to the right, and Seok Kang-Ho scanned the hostages at the front before letting them go outside.

Looking at them was enough to tell who had a bomb attached to them. After all, those who did would already be crying during times like this.

Haah. Haah.

Upon receiving Kang Chan and Seok Kang-Ho’s orders, the thin, dirt-covered hostages with big eyes and rough, chapped lips ran outside so fast they quickly ran out of breath.

Among the hostages were women with children in their arms. Kang Chan nodded at one of them.

Would people believe that these women were just fourteen or fifteen years old?

These young girls gave birth despite suffering from aids and malnutrition. They didn’t wear a hijab, but since they were influenced by Islam, they couldn’t eat at restaurants or eat with men.

Even if they had food, the men and children would eat first. Since they were also still breastfeeding, they often lost weight until they eventually collapsed and died.

Kang Chan quickly sorted through the hostages and then sent them outside.

Click!

They had sent about a hundred and thirty hostages outside when Kang Chan pointed his rifle at another woman carrying a child.

Haah. Haah.

She was crying, the tears from her round eyes rolling down her cheek and chin.

Damn it!

Kang Chan looked at the child in her arms. The child looked so exhausted that they were barely conscious. Flies buzzed around their eyes, nose, and ears. Moreover, their stomach was so bloated that they looked as if they had just eaten their full.

It seemed the child had already died of starvation.

“Daye,” Kang Chan quietly called. Seok Kang-Ho already understood the situation.

“Cha Dong-Gyun. Make your way to where I am slowly,” Seok Kang-Ho softly said. He then walked over to Kang Chan, who was still looking right into the woman’s eyes.

Kang Chan nodded at the woman.

‘I’m going to remove the bomb.’

She was still crying.

‘It’s okay. I’m going to save you and your child. Don’t worry.’

Seok Kang-Ho carefully stood beside Kang Chan.

Kang Chan slowly crouched and put his rifle on the ground.

Clank!

He then held up his hands.

“Four o’clock, two meters away from us,” Seok Kang-Ho said, informing Kang Chan where they should go if worse came to worst and the bomb exploded.

Kang Chan didn’t look away from the woman, not even for a second.

‘Let me rescue you both.’

The woman looked at Kang Chan with suspicion.

“Dhibaato lahayn,” he said ever so softly, telling the woman that everything would be okay in Somali.[1]

Having worked in Africa for ten years before, it would have been rather strange if he didn’t pick up at least this much.

Haah. Haah.

Don’t cry. We’ll survive this.

The woman flinched when Kang Chan approached her, but she didn’t protest or twist away from him.

Kang Chan slowly reached out and put his hands under the child.

It’s okay! I’ll rescue your child no matter what.

They would all die if he lost eye contact with the woman now.

It would also be over if someone beside her suddenly stood up or yelled that an outsider had touched a woman.

Haah. Haah.

The woman looked at her child. He and his men would always be in the most danger whenever hostages looked away from them.

“Dhibaato lahayn,” Kang Chan repeated.

The woman immediately looked up at him.

Can I trust you?

Kang Chan softly nodded when he saw the suspicion in her eyes. Soon, she passed her child to his arms.

He slowly pulled the child toward him. Nothing happened.

Keeping his eyes on the woman, Kang Chan moved his arms to the left. Seok Kang-Ho then took the child from his arms.

I’m going to rescue you as well.

Kang Chan lowered his arms, then carefully took out the bayonet that he had on his ankle.

Swoosh.

‘Don’t be anxious. You’ll be all right.’

The woman looked anxious, but they couldn’t stall forever. Kang Chan carefully walked behind her. Under the blood-stained clothes, he found dynamites wrapped around the woman like a belt.

This bomb’s got to have a cable connecting it to a switch somewhere.

It could be tied to the ground so the bomb would explode if she stood up. It could be wrapped around her hands or ankles as well. It could even be tied to a child.

Seok Kang-Ho just watched Kang Chan in silence. Although he had the child in his arms, he would shoot immediately if the woman moved even just a tiny bit suspiciously.

Kang Chan slid his bayonet under the leather strap attaching the dynamite to the woman, then pulled the bayonet toward him.

Snip!

He still couldn’t see any cable.

Their enemies often hid the cables in areas that were difficult for others to touch. The most common ones were the groin and thighs since they could position the cables to trigger the explosion if the hostages stood up.

Snip!

The woman’s chest heaved as she breathed deeply.

Snip!

There was only one leather strap left.

Snip!

When Kang Chan cut it, the dynamites fell forward. He slowly made his way to the front of the woman, and then looked into her eyes.

‘Where is it?’

The woman dropped her gaze. She wasn’t telling Kang Chan where it was. Rather, she was instinctively looking at the most dangerous thing around them with the hope that she would live through this.

When she looked up again, Kang Chan met her gaze and nodded.

Her dark hand lifted her clothes, revealing a cable wrapped around her knee.

Things like this were nothing.

With his left hand, Kang Chan grabbed the cable and bent it. He then slid his bayonet through the loop.

Snip!

Grabbing onto one side of the dynamites, he carefully pulled them away from the woman.

Swish.

Along with what seemed like a snake brushing against clothes, the explosives were finally pulled out from under the woman’s clothes, putting them in full view. Attached to them was the device that would trigger the explosion.

‘Phew!’

Kang Chan softly sighed after pulling the last cable. He then nodded at the woman.

The woman hesitated but soon wobbled to her feet. She walked over to Seok Kang-Ho and took her child. Together, they headed out of the cave.

Kang Chan sheathed his bayonet at his ankle and picked up his rifle. Afterward, he continued examining the hostages with Seok Kang-Ho.

They checked them all in a span of thirty minutes. It seemed the enemies only attached a bomb to one person.

When they went outside, they found the Spetsnaz and South Korea’s Team One guarding the hostages, who were now sitting in a group in front of the cave.

Kang Chan felt drained. Perhaps it was because he hadn’t done this in a long time.

There were a few things he wanted to complain about, but that was a problem for another time. Right now, taking care of the hostages took priority.

Chk.

“Command, we have rescued two hundred hostages. Requesting evac, over,” Kang Chan radioed in.

No one answered.

Chk.

“I repeat. We have two hundred hostages with us. We need evac stat. Do you copy?”

Chk.

“This is Command. You can’t take the hostages back to base,” the headquarters finally answered.

Kang Chan was surprised.

Chk.

“If we leave them here, they’ll either be killed or taken hostage again. If we can’t bring them back with us, we should at least set up a temporary barracks in front of the base.”

Chk.

“I repeat. Do not take the hostages to the base.”

What’s going on? They’re telling us to let the hostages die after rescuing them?

Kang Chan turned his head to Andrei, his eyes filled with suspicion.

Does this fucker know something?

However, looking at Andrei made him conclude otherwise. The man had always looked simple-minded, but he looked as if he really didn’t know what was happening right now.

“Andrei!”

“Oui, Monsieur Kang,” Andrei answered, hiding his dissatisfaction.

“I will no longer follow Command’s orders. The Spetsnaz can do what they want.”

Click!

Kang Chan held up his rifle as Andrei gave him a serious look.

1. This is what the author put but we weren't able to confirm if it's correct. ?