The Cook of a Perished World - Chapter 312
Episode 312 Cooking Study
Brigadier General Cho Beom-seok.
That was before an old man named Jo Beom-seok retired.
It was the last name called.
Thanks to this, the people in the association call him General.
actually.
‘It’s an embarrassing title.’
He was very embarrassed by that name.
There is a system called the term-based brigadier general.
Among those who would have originally finished their military career at the rank of colonel.
To the few who are carefully selected, they are given the rank of brigadier general for a two-year term, and then are sent to a different post and discharged.
A system in which those who have devoted their entire lives to military service but cannot achieve the rank of general are given the experience of becoming a general as a kind of courtesy… such a system.
It’s the same brigadier general.
It is a title that is very distant from a real general.
‘I thought my abilities were sufficient.’
Unfortunately.
When he was serving, ability was not the only thing needed to advance in the military.
Delayed by academic ties.
Besides that, all other factors except skill were needed.
‘I didn’t have any.’
Jo Beom-seok, who had no academic background or background, was awarded the rank of colonel based solely on his ability.
Originally, it would have ended there, but in recognition of his abilities and achievements, he was given the rank of brigadier general with a fixed term.
To be honest.
There was a time when I was tired of the military’s situation…
but still.
‘I’m still a soldier.’
Jo Beom-seok was still a soldier at heart.
He has thought of his group as a sort of reserve unit.
I was filled with the desire to join a full military unit and carry out joint operations.
-So, I recommend it to survivors in Gyeonggi-do.
and.
In the meantime, that radio came out.
‘I can’t believe a recommendation came down from the Corps.’ This is
the guideline from the military base
.
‘It’s no different from an order from the higher ups…!’
Beomseok Jo, who was mainly active in the Gyeonggi Province unit.
A corps of soldiers from Gangwon-do.
Their command system may be slightly different.
Nevertheless.
This is an order given by a complete army in a destroyed world.
I absolutely had to follow it.
‘But…’
when the radio starts playing.
Beomseok Jo lowered his head and was lost in thought.
‘In the current situation, following those instructions is too risky.’
He thought that what the humans in the Northern Branch had said made sense.
Nevertheless, I rejected their offer once.
Everything.
Because of that anxiety factor.
‘It’s too dangerous to carry out a large-scale operation with this element of instability intact… What should I do?’
When you are worried about that matter.
His eyes focused on one place.
‘…that friend.’
Other people didn’t notice because they were concentrating on the radio.
A young man standing behind the leaders of the Northern Branch.
‘Rather than being embarrassed by that radio, I feel relaxed.’
That young man, despite the shocking content played on the radio.
I just listened to the content calmly.
It is clear that he is an unusual person.
A young man who was suspicious of everyone because he was a stranger who suddenly appeared at this time.
But…
‘You said you were a stranger…?’
I wonder if it makes sense to be a stranger in the world now.
Anyway, that rare being was that young man.
‘Then you can believe it.’
The stranger who raises everyone’s suspicions.
For the current Jo Beom-seok…
he was the only trustworthy person.
* * *
“There is a traitor among humans.”
“…!?”
“A traitor who cooperates with that ‘Cause of Cold’.”
Even I couldn’t help but be surprised by those words.
It was surprising that the old man suddenly started talking to me.
I never thought the contents would be like this.
The most surprising thing is.
“…Why are you doing that to me?”
Not that content.
That’s what he said to me.
Identity unknown, past unknown, identity unknown.
If there is a man who is the most suspicious in Gyeonggi-do, the country will vote for me.
Although we have built up a certain level of trust with the humans of the Northern Branch, there are others.
In particular, the old man in front of me couldn’t think of any reason to trust me.
“Wouldn’t it be better to tell someone else? If you want, I can arrange a meeting with other leaders of the Northern Branch…”
“No! “You must never reveal it to them.”
“yes?”
“At least it must never be revealed to the association’s insiders.”
He took me to a darker place.
I continued speaking only after confirming that there was no one in the surrounding area.
“I’ll be honest. “I was against your opinion at yesterday’s meeting.”
“That’s right.”
“In my heart, I thought it was the right thing to say.”
“…yes?”
“I’ve been thinking the same thing as you recently.”
What does this mean again?
“The basics of strategy are knowing yourself and knowing your opponent. However, even though we had given up the climate of Gyeonggi-do to an unknown enemy, we did not really know anything about that enemy. “I always thought it would be dangerous if we didn’t investigate the cause in detail.”
“Then why yesterday…”
“One of the reasons was because I thought it was too risky a gamble. The reason I opposed the previous association president’s operation was because I agreed with the significance of the expedition, but thought the operation was too reckless. But if for no other reason, I probably would have agreed with you. “You guys have confirmed my thoughts.”
What other reason?
“The reason… came about during the process of coming here.”
“Ah… about that.”
“You know it too. “We were attacked by monsters on the way here.”
Of course I know.
Because it was I who saved them from that attack.
“Actually, being attacked by monsters is a common occurrence. But this attack was a little different.”
He turned his head towards the wall as if imagining an imaginary enemy.
He muttered with sharp eyes.
“As you know, moving between branches is not easy in this world.”
A snowstorm blowing excessively.
As a result, it is not easy to even recognize the existing path.
The moment you lose your bearings in a blizzard, you won’t even know where you are.
All around is pure white scenery.
Because there is nothing that can serve as a guidepost.
“So, I usually ‘create’ a travel route to some extent. For example, there is a place where there is an indicator that can be checked even if snow piles up, or there is a place that can be used as a road by removing obstacles in advance and treating it to some extent. “I usually use a fixed route so I don’t get lost.”
Me too.
When I was in the ‘Northern Branch’, I once used that route when heading to another group belonging to the branch.
“There were monsters waiting on every route.”
“….”
“We are not fools either. There could be problems if the movement route is occupied by monsters, so I created several movement routes. There is also a route that allows you to move to another route when you deviate from the existing route. But…”
Jo Beom-seok said, clenching his teeth.
“On every route, without a single exception! Those monsters went first and took their place. Do you understand what this means?”
I answered while frowning.
“Are you saying that those monsters… have information about humans?”
“okay.”
The kind of thing that Beomseok Jo mentioned.
This is absolutely impossible unless the movement routes of humans are completely known.
‘I guess that’s why I thought there was a traitor among humans.’
but.
There were still some puzzling parts.
“But why are you revealing that to me?”
“It’s simple. “Because you are not a member of the ‘association.’”
“…?”
Why are you telling me that?
“I heard about it from people from the northern branch. “You are a stranger who has never belonged to any other group before, right?”
“For now, yes.”
“I don’t know how someone like that exists, but… I was also curious so I checked. At least, it is certain that you have never joined any power, especially any association, that exists within Gyeonggi-do. And the only people who know our travel route are the humans in the association.”
That means.
“What I’m saying is that even if you tried to leak that information, you couldn’t. “Because you wouldn’t know anything to begin with.”
It’s a natural thing to say.
Actually, I can’t stand it because this old man just told me how to make such a route.
for that reason.
I suddenly became the person with the least chance of being a traitor.
“That’s true. But does that mean you can trust me? “The part about being a stranger must be suspicious enough.”
“That’s right. Maybe he was once part of a band of marauders… but that doesn’t matter. At least he’s not an ally of the ‘Cause of Cold’.”
“How are you so sure?”
“If you are really our enemy.”
He looked at me and said.
“at that time. “There’s no way he could have saved us.”
“….”
I understood the meaning behind those words.
I said in shock.
“…Have you been noticing?”
“No one knows yet except me. “Was it a secret?”
“It’s not like that.”
There is no need to keep saving them a secret.
I was so excited that I couldn’t even think about it.
It was a story that, if revealed, would actually improve my standing in this area.
by the way.
“How did you know?”
“It’s nothing special. “I just… thought it was a voice I heard somewhere.”
“yes?”
I often hear people say that I have a scary face.
Even the voice wouldn’t be that unique.
“I remembered it because I thought it was a strangely familiar voice when I first heard it. “I knew it was that voice when I was talking to you.”
“Is that so…?”
“So, are we by any chance a nine-faced person?”
As soon as he heard my voice in the midst of his busy schedule, he thought it was familiar.
It must have been a truly impressive voice…
“No way. “This is my first time meeting you.”
“Uhm, right? “I can’t remember why your voice sounds familiar…”
Unfortunately.
There was nothing in particular that came to mind about my connection with this grandfather.
“No, but. Even though you knew, did you reject me so coldly yesterday?”
“I told you there was a reason. Grace is grace and work is work.”
I thought that if I revealed that fact, I might be able to persuade this old man.
Apparently that wasn’t the case.
“I will repay this favor later, but that is not important right now.”
okay.
That story wasn’t important right now.
An important thing is.
Even though he knows that I am his benefactor.
There is a reason why they had to refuse my request.
“Those monsters were driving us south… towards the source of the cold.”
“Hmm…”
“The cause of the cold and the monsters that attacked us are not related at all. “You saved us from them, so we can at least trust you.”
understood.
In addition, I was able to find out why he rejected yesterday’s offer.
‘If we try to investigate the cause, it will most likely be a large-scale operation.’
but.
What if there is a traitor among humans?
“You were worried that the operation would be leaked and you would fall into a trap.”
“I see.”
He nodded with a heavy expression.
“I have always thought that although the leaders of the Association may have different opinions, most of them are good people. But the circumstances suggest that there may be a traitor among them.”
“….”
“I wanted to carry out the operation after hunting down the traitor, but unfortunately, it didn’t seem like we had much time.”
The rate at which temperatures drop is accelerating.
If you waste time hunting down traitors, their power will grow stronger and you will never be able to attack them again.
“I will return to the southern branch and prepare for the operation as I said at that meeting.”
“Can I trust you?”
“Of course, I plan to keep in mind the possibility that there may be a traitor among the southern leaders. If there is a traitor in the southern branch, I can somehow coordinate the information. “But I can’t do anything about anything other than the South.”
“Then what you said you wanted to ask me was…”
He called me.
There was something I wanted to ask of you.
And that request is exactly that.
“Either find and eliminate the traitor….”
“….”
“Or, I want you to act so that even if there is a traitor, the operation is not hindered.”
In those words.
I said with a frown.
“…You know it’s not an easy request, right?”
“I know.”
I am a stranger
No one except those in the Northern Branch will trust my words.
Or find a traitor among them.
Please make sure there are no problems even if there is a traitor.
‘Crazy difficulty level.’
the problem is.
“But it’s also something we have no choice but to do.”
If you can’t do this.
The point was that it would become very difficult for humans in Gyeonggi-do to survive.
…write.
I can’t help it.
“…All right. “Let’s try something.”
“Thank you.”
He nodded and got up.
* * *
and.
After Beomseok Cho left for the southern branch with his group.
I was in trouble.
‘Please don’t mind if the operation is discovered because of the traitor…’
The reason Jo Beom-seok was confident that he could control the traitor in the southern branch.
This may be because he is a person who can exert such influence in the southern branch.
On the other hand.
Right now, I can’t exert any influence except in the Northern Branch.
It was difficult to build trust like it was with the humans in the northern branch.
‘What should I do?’
After some thought.
The conclusion reached
was… quite simple.
“Hey junior.”
“…Seniors?”
I don’t know how great that traitor is.
I wouldn’t have fallen for that guy…
No.
There was one piece of information that he probably didn’t know, as no one else in the association knew.
‘chef.’
Except for my junior, no one knows that I am a chef.
The people of Gyeonggi-do do not know the potential of chefs.
‘Tell me to plan a strategy that might get discovered.’
It is impossible for me to be politically involved with them now.
So what can I do…well.
Isn’t it obvious?
‘Cooking.’
I walk into the kitchen.
I spoke to that junior.
“Teach me how to cook.”