Chapter 46

Taesoo Park was different from the last time Joonbum had seen him. He remembered his bloodshot eyes and shouting he could do anything. He looked like he was ready to fight if Joonbum did not accept his offer. Joonbum thought that maybe he would be able to acquire some firearms at most. He didn’t need to deal with him again after winter and if things really went bad, he would have just ignored him. All Taesoo needed was money, so Joonbum felt no danger in dealing with him.

‘A Humvee? And it’s the latest model!’

Joonbum could not believe what was in front of him. The Humvee was idling with its rough engine noise.

‘He must be out of his mind!’

He could not find any words to describe it.

“It’s loaded with amenities. You like it? It’s bulletproof too.” Taesoo spoke loudly as he was very proud at what he had brought. It seemed like he didn’t see any problems in bringing it here.

‘Is he really crazy?’ Joonbum thought as he stared. It was a Humvee designed for military use. There was no doubt about it.

“Is-isn’t this too dangerous to drive around? What were you thinking bringing this-”

“It’s okay. There’s no problem,” Taesoo answered, cutting off Joonbum as he knew what Joonbum was worried about.

“It’s 100 million. Are you buying it?”

“Huh? 100? 100 million?”

It was absurdly cheap. Joonbum wasn’t all that into cars, but he knew that newer Humvees cost more than 200 million at least. He couldn’t think straight with Taesoo’s offer.

“Yeah. 100 million only.”

Taesoo nodded proudly. Joonbum knew the dangers of illegally purchasing military equipment, but he was tempted at the price.

‘It’s not even half the price… No. No way.’

Joonbum shook his head at the thought. It was really tempting, but it was also too dangerous. If something went wrong, he would not be able to return to Earth. He needed more time to prepare.

‘This is dangerous. He’s crazy for money.’

He thought about the dangers of the deal as he looked at Taesoo who was rapping on proudly on the Humvee.

“You don’t have to worry about a single thing. I’m not doing this alone. You can’t get something like this alone, you know.”

Taesoo explained calmly as Joonbum watched him doubtfully.

“I got this off of a US military source. They used to sell this to the public after they were done using it. They couldn’t do it before, but the law changed. So they get to cash out old equipment they can’t use anymore. But there are some cases where the military keeps the old machines by changing the plates with the new ones and sell the new machines for more money. This is one like that. The man who sold this is going to retire. He offered it to me first when I called him. I think he wanted to get some cash before he returned to his country. I was lucky. I paid him 70 million, and I get 30. All the middlemen are going to be paid by him. So you don’t need to worry about a thing. This thing is worth over 250 million brand new.”

Taesoo explained quickly. He then lit up a cigarette as Joonbum was unresponsive at his explanation.

“Ugh, well I mean, if you don’t like it, I can get you some other things too. They’re all from the US military. I’ll get you whatever you need.”

He opened the Humvee’s back trunk and uncovered a cloth that revealed all kinds of equipment ranging from rations to cold weather gear. It was as if he was at a garage sale for military goods.

“I can even get you medicine.”

Taesoo started offering the other goods he could get his hands on, but Joonbum was still mesmerized by the Humvee.

‘Right, I think I saw it on the news.’

He remembered watching the news that there some people were smuggling military equipment to profit from it.

‘It was illegal then.’

Taesoo was right. There were people who did it when it was illegal, but now it was legal to purchase vehicles used by the US military. The vehicles that were sold were usually old ones, but they were sold in showrooms in a clean state after the sellers refurbished them. There were a lot of people who spent fortunes repairing such vehicles.

‘So these are the products.’

Joonbum looked at all the kinds of products that Taesoo brought. These were mostly smuggled out of the base and sold to the public.

‘Those might earn more money than one of these,’ he thought as he looked at the Humvee. The vehicle might outweigh the other goods in importance, but all the other items smuggled out of the military would be worth more.

“What about this? I can give this to you for one-third of the price.”

“Oh, is that…?”

Taesoo opened the bottle and thick scent filled the area.

“It’s nice, isn’t it? I can get more liquor if you want. Try it.”

‘This is a good idea.’

An idea came to his mind as he thought about the Gate that would be closing next February.

‘Liquor can be stored for a long time. If I bring in liquor this good…’

Quality liquor in the other world was scarce. It would earn him good money if needed it there.

“How many can you get? I’ll buy much as you can get. Can you also get your hands on a beer maker?”

Taesoo, who was concerned as Joonbum seemed unresponsive, brightened up as he started asking.

“Oh, are you going to make your own?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Of course I can. There are some soldiers who make their own beer here but dispose of it before going back. They even make whiskey too. How about that?”

“I’ll buy everything that works. I’ll need two sets of beer makers and all the tools needed to maintain them.”

“Sure. Anything else?”

“I need all the cigarettes you can get your hands on. Can you also get more cold weather clothing? Something like this white camouflage one? I’ll need about 300 of these, cheaper than the regular price. I need military backpacks for the same number also.”

Taesoo seemed to grow suspicious at such a request, but just shook it off. These were easy to get if Taesoo went to the night market near the base camp on his own.

‘I just need money. I don’t need to care where he’s going to use all of that.’

What he needed was money for his wife and daughter’s surgery. There was no room for suspicion toward his buyer.

“Erm, I will need at least a 100 million deposit…”

“I’ll do it.”

Taesoo was baffled by Joonbum’s quick response.

“I’ll take the Humvee too. I’ll trust your word. But make sure you don’t tell anyone about me. You do know that we both lose if something goes south, right?”

“Of course! Don’t worry. I’ll keep my mouth shut even if I do get caught. Bu-but, if that happens, can you look after my family? N-no. Nevermind that. Just give me the money and I’ll stay quiet.”

Taesoo seemed desperate.

‘He won’t betray me.’

Joonbum felt relieved as he saw that Taesoo was trustworthy. He had many connections in the area, so it would be easy to get more supplies. It was also reassuring that he would do as much as he could so that he could prepare money for his family.

“I’ll deposit the rest if you bring the requested items in two days.”

“Sure. You can take the car as is.”

“With all of that?”

“Yes. Take it and see if you need more. Oh, do you need those M-16 rifles? A lot of those have been getting disposed of lately. I can get them cheap.”

“How much?”

Taesoo answered.

“200 thousand each.”

“What?”

It was too cheap. Joonbum looked puzzled.

“It’s getting disposed anyway. Most are unusable with bent chambers or corroded parts. They just dispose of everything, but there are some that are still in good shape. I pick those out and sell them. It’s cheap, isn’t it?”

“Is that possible? How can it be that cheap…”

“It is possible. More than possible.”

‘Is it really?’