The only man on the military base

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Chapter 59. Group Leave for New Officers (1) 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

A month passed as I continued my enviable days, now in intimate relationships with Hyun-joo and two other women-something any man would be jealous of.

In that time, I had thrilling sex with Seona noona in the fitness room, and explored the supply sergeant’s "tendencies" in depth, but not everything was rosy.

A tragic incident occurred: a second lieutenant from a frontline infantry unit, whose face and name I didn’t even know, took his own life.

He was a stranger to me, but hearing that a peer who was commissioned the same year as me had died left a corner of my heart unsettled.

At the same time, I couldn’t help thinking, "If it was so hard, why didn’t he just apply for hardship discharge?" While I was going about my usual routine, unexpected good news came my way.

"Ah, Jaejun and Minju, you two are going on leave next week."

"Huh? Really? So suddenly?"

Our artillery brigade, to which my battalion belongs, decided to pay more attention to the welfare and conditions of new officers after this incident, and as part of that, they were sending us on a 3-day, 2-night special leave the following week.

When I heard this from the battalion personnel officer, I was so happy I cheered-this was my first leave since joining the unit.

I completely forgot the fact that I was getting leave because of someone’s death.

After all, people care more about their own happiness than others’ pain...

But my joy didn’t last long. As soon as I heard the personnel officer’s explanation and read the official notice, both Minju and I had a "huh?" look on our faces.

We were getting a 3-day, 2-night leave, but for two of those days, we had to follow a schedule set by the brigade... Is this really leave?

They were giving us "leave," but since they needed something to report as an achievement, the leave schedule was filled with activities that would look good to the higher-ups.

Looking at the plan in the official notice, I thought, "This is so typically military," but I started to accept it, since I wouldn’t have to use my annual leave and the schedule wasn’t bad-in fact, the female officers might even like it.

[Day 1: Visit OO Healing Garden and nearby historical site.

Day 2: Morale-boosting experience at OO Land

Day 3: Free activities]

I barely held back a laugh at the phrase "morale-boosting" attached to the OO Land trip, but the thought of being able to relax and have fun on a weekday for the first time in ages quickly brightened both my and Minju’s faces.

Meanwhile, Kim Somi, the 1st Battery FDO and my senior by a year, was extremely jealous when she heard the news...

She was about to undergo her battery’s evaluation and was "being worked to the bone," as she put it, and hadn’t taken a single day of leave all year. When she was a second lieutenant, the higher units or battalion never provided this kind of "welfare."

So when we ran into each other in the hallway, she told me how jealous she was and even joked about "deserting."

"Wow... I’m so jealous. You guys get to go to Healing Garden and OO Land? I seriously want to desert."

"Are things really tough these days?"

"Yeah, I’m dying... I’d be so happy if I could just get three days-or even just one day-off."

She looked so pitiful as she said she just wanted a single day to rest...

And then I realized: this could be my future, or rather, it’s almost guaranteed.

"Yeah, a career officer isn’t for me. Even Somi, who’s just a short-term officer, is getting ground down like this..."

A week passed since I first heard about the leave. On Wednesday morning, unlike usual, I was wearing black slacks and a beige t-shirt instead of workout or combat gear, waiting for Minju at the entrance of my apartment.

As I waited, some officers who knew about the new officers’ leave looked at me with envy and nodded in greeting.

Then, I heard footsteps behind me and Minju’s voice, which I hadn’t heard in a while.

"Kim Jaejun!"

She seemed really excited about going on leave, calling my name in a lively voice I never heard when we were buried in work.

When I turned toward her, she looked like a totally different person-not in her usual workout or combat clothes, but dressed in the bright, stylish way unique to women in their twenties.

Short denim shorts that showed off her pale thighs, a white short-sleeved blouse, and sandals showing her white feet.

She looked nothing like a soldier-she was just like one of those pretty young women you see in the city center.

I was so surprised, I even forgot to say hello for a moment.

"Minju was always pretty... but was she this pretty?"

I’d thought she looked good in her usual workout or combat gear, but her vibe in casual clothes was on another level.

It was like... her class had gone up a notch?

While I was momentarily at a loss for words, Minju looked me up and down and spoke first.

"Oh... Kim Jaejun~ You look different dressed like that~"

She commented on my appearance in a tone that was half teasing, half genuine, then put her hands on her hips and asked how she looked.

"How do I look?"

"...You look pretty."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Your clothes are really nice."

"Oh, come on! You really..."

I was surprised by how honestly my feelings slipped out, but then quickly tried to play it off as a joke, making Minju pout and glare at me cutely.

To a stranger, it would have looked like a young couple teasing each other.

Just then, a silver Korando from the guard post pulled up in front of us.

The passenger window rolled down, and one of the gun crew leaders from Minju’s 2nd Battery appeared.

"FDOs, get in. I have to take you both to brigade and make a few other stops, so we’re on a tight schedule."

"Okay!"

With her slightly rushed tone, Minju and I quickly got in the back seat, and as soon as we were buckled up, the driver headed straight for brigade headquarters.

On the way to the brigade HQ in the outskirts of Gyeonggi-do, the gun crew leader in the front said what felt like the hundredth time:

"By the way, you two are really lucky. The brigade is giving you free leave."

Around 8:20 a.m., we arrived at brigade HQ, where we switched to a Starex van with other lieutenants and headed for the OO Healing Garden, the first stop on the schedule.

Again, I realized how high the average attractiveness was among our battalion’s officers.

Of the ten lieutenants in the van, nine were female, and Minju was by far the most beautiful-a true "crane among chickens."

The other female officers weren’t unattractive, just average, but Minju’s beauty was on another level.

"They really must have picked our battalion by looks."

Just as I was thinking again about the battalion’s selection standards, the female officers, who’d been chatting, suddenly turned their attention to me.

"So... you’re Jaejun, right?"

"Yeah, that’s right."

"What’s it like living in a unit with only female soldiers?"

"Well... aside from a few inconveniences, it’s not that different."

It started with a question from a girl with narrow eyes sitting in front of me, and then, one after another, the other female lieutenants (except Minju) started asking all the things they were curious about.

Answering their endless questions, I found myself talking nonstop until we arrived at the garden.

"Damn... I stayed up late with Seona noona last night and wanted to nap on the way here..."

While I was regretting that in my head, the captain from brigade personnel, who was leading our group, handed out tickets and gave us instructions as we got off the van.

"Alright, everyone. You’re officially on leave, but don’t forget you’re all soldiers-officers, at that. Enjoy the garden, but remember your responsibilities. Understood?"

"Yes!"

We were told to enjoy the garden for a set time, but absolutely not to cause any "incidents" that would make things troublesome for ourselves-a warning disguised as advice.

With "Have a good time and meet back here in two hours," the captain ended the briefing, and the OO Healing Garden part of the schedule began.

Everyone split up into small groups with their fellow battalion lieutenants and headed into the garden.

I walked in with Minju at my side.

Still, what were they thinking, putting a "garden" on the schedule for a bunch of lieutenants in their twenties?

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