Rainbow City

“Are you saying I can’t climb walls too?! Don’t discriminate!”Lee Chaeyoon ran from behind and jumped toward the wall. She leaped nearly twice her height and then landed lightly on the ground. Federico, who had been staring in a daze at the wall where Kwak Soohwan had disappeared, finally snapped back to reality. Federico could climb walls too, but there was no way he could do it at the speed Kwak Soohwan had shown.“How many mutants are there in Rainbow City?” Federico muttered as if in a trance.“Damn! I hate that word, ‘mutant’!”“Hey! Lee Chaeyoon, be quiet. Did you forget we snuck in?”“Your voice was louder just now!”The security light from the watchtower swept across the wall but passed without noticing the four of them, hidden behind a building.“Are all the city soldiers able to take on Adam barehanded?”“Kwak Soohwan’s the only one who crushes Adam with his hands.”Lee Chaeyoon never crushed a human skull with her hands. Although she had the strength to do so, she found it disgusting. Plus, even after being vaccinated, the military rule that you shouldn’t be bitten by Adam still applied. Therefore, fighting Adam barehanded was forbidden.“Then… are there many mutants like Lieutenant General Kwak Soohwan in Rainbow City?”“There’s only one person like Kwak Soohwan.”Seokhwa answered a few beats too late. Lee Chaeyoon and Yang Sanghoon chimed in, teasing, “Wow, showing off your boyfriend!” But in truth, they weren’t wrong.Kwak Soohwan was the only one in Rainbow City who was not only free from all viruses but also far exceeded the abilities of other mutants in terms of combat power. He might be unique not just in Rainbow City but in the entire world.“How strong is the Doctor, really?” Federico asked with a pure and childlike curiosity. Seokhwa blinked rapidly, uncharacteristically, as he couldn’t understand the intent behind the question.“How strong is our Doctor? Why do you ask? Of course, he’s the strongest in Rainbow City.”Crunch, crunch. Lee Chaeyoon grabbed a handful of snacks and chewed them. Surprisingly, there wasn’t even a rustle when she put her hand in the bag, but it seemed she couldn’t hide the sound of chewing.“Dr. Seok took down the strongest villain in Rainbow City,” Yang Sanghoon said seriously.“Yeah, that’s right. So there was this insanely strong mutant doctor named Choi Hoeon? Our Dr. Seok took him down. You know how strong he was? I lost to him in strength! Hey, you didn’t notice me until now, right? But that guy could sense me even from a few meters away!”Thanks to Lee Chaeyoon’s straightforwardness, Federico felt a bit more confident to express his curiosity.“Was there a fight between mutants in Rainbow City?”Lee Chaeyoon was about to start explaining, “Oh, that was—”“Major Lee. I think it’s better to stop talking about that,” Seokhwa said, still looking at the wall where Kwak Soohwan had climbed up. Yang Sanghoon lightly elbowed Lee Chaeyoon and subtly shook his head, warning her not to bring up that time. Besides, Seokhwa’s attention was completely focused on Kwak Soohwan, who was outside the wall.“But, Doctor, you’re not like a dog waiting anxiously for its owner to come back from work. Why are you so worried?”Talking about dogs made her miss her own dog, and she drooped her lips as she mentioned it.“Hey, isn’t it more like the owner waiting for their dog that ran away from home?” Yang Sanghoon whispered, and Lee Chaeyoon burst out laughing, holding her stomach. No matter what they said, Seokhwa waited only for Kwak Soohwan. Anxiously checking the minute hand on his watch, he bit his lips in nervousness several times.It had already been seven minutes since Kwak Soohwan climbed the wall. Seokhwa kept glancing between his wristwatch and the wall.He began to wonder how long it would actually take for a drink to cool. And just what temperature of drink did Cao Cao pour for Guan Yu?It might be a good idea to time how long it takes for a heated drink to cool with Kwak Soohwan next time. That way, he’d know exactly how long to wait when Kwak Soohwan says he’ll be back before the drink cools.Whirr. A dark figure suddenly stood atop the wall, and a coiled rope was thrown down. Yang Sanghoon caught the thick rope before it hit the ground. Soon, Kwak Soohwan started descending the wall, holding tightly onto the rope.He pushed off the wall with his feet, almost falling to the ground. It was a good thing he was wearing gloves, or his hands would have been shredded by the rope.After just a few quick movements, Kwak Soohwan landed softly on the ground, right in front of Seokhwa. He dusted off his hands and pulled the cape-wrapped Seokhwa into a tight hug.“Why am I so happy to see you after just a few minutes?”“Me too.”Seokhwa reached out and managed to wrap his arms around Kwak Soohwan’s large frame.“How did you manage when you were apart for months?”Lee Chaeyoon teased them, sucking on the crumbs left on her fingers. Yang Sanghoon nudged her with his elbow, silently shaking his head, reminding her not to mention that time.Kwak Soohwan stood still, as if he and Seokhwa were one, only stepping back reluctantly when Seokhwa gently pushed him away.“Well… you all must be tired. Let me show you to the dorms.”He was filled with curiosity about why Dr. Seok called everyone “Major” and what was happening inside the city. However, he suppressed his curiosity and focused on delivering his message.Seokhwa had been wondering where they would sleep anyway, and he needed a well-lit place to examine the blood in the syringe Kwak Soohwan had brought.“Colonel, would you like to check the kit with us?”“Yes, I will. Please follow me.”Just as he had guided the commander, Federico led the way. If he had objected to Kwak Soohwan’s independent actions, the situation might have become complicated, but Federico tacitly allowed the Invincible Platoon their autonomy, even though it hadn’t been formally approved by the commander.“He’s like an NPC, an NPC.”Yang Sanghoon whispered as he followed behind. In Rainbow City, which had become full of new distractions, console games from before the Adam outbreak had become popular, and Yang Sanghoon had gotten completely hooked.There were fewer than a hundred game consoles preserved in the city museum, making them quite expensive, but Yang Sanghoon had spent his entire two-year salary to buy one.“What’s that?”“It’s a helper character in the game I play.”Hearing this from Yang Sanghoon, Lee Chaeyoon quickly lost interest. Unlike Yang Sanghoon, who had found a new hobby, Kwak Soohwan still collected records, and Seokhwa gathered stones for his garden. Lee Chaeyoon, on the other hand, ran to try any new snacks as soon as they came out. The jeep Lee Chaeyoon arrived in was still full of snacks he hadn’t yet eaten.After walking for a while, they spotted an obelisk rising above the densely packed houses around the square. Seokhwa lifted his head to admire the obelisk.Bronze eagles and lions adorned each side of the square pillar. The base of the pillar had inscriptions in different languages, but Seokhwa couldn’t read them. He could only assume that they contained the message of the gods the people believed in. After crossing the obelisk and walking a bit further, they reached a long two-story building.It was different from the rough homes in the square, made of concrete. There were signs of patchwork where cracks had been filled in with cement.“This is where the officers stay. I live in Room 105 on the first floor. You can each use a room for yourselves.”Since he had expected at least dozens of people to support them, the prepared four-person rooms were more than enough. Federico added that they could use the rooms starting from 108.Room 108 naturally became Seokhwa and Kwak Soohwan’s, while Yang Sanghoon and Lee Chaeyoon took the next rooms in order. Since they had no other luggage except the backpack Kwak Soohwan was carrying for Seokhwa, everyone quickly gathered in Room 108.The room had two metal bunk beds facing each other. There was a wardrobe and a desk beside each bed, and a small barred window for ventilation.While Kwak Soohwan opened the window, Seokhwa removed his cape and hung it on the chair by the desk. He then sat on the floor and started taking out an aluminum case from his backpack. There was just enough space in front of the desk for the five of them to squeeze in and sit together.“Please, have a seat.”Seokhwa invited them to sit in a circle and laid out the kit. Lee Chaeyoon was the first to plop down opposite Seokhwa. However, the space was too cramped for the large men to sit comfortably, so they each took a step back and looked down at the kit instead. Among them, Kwak Soohwan’s gaze was fixed on Seokhwa’s round head rather than the kit.Inside his thick hair, his cowlick was neatly formed.“Major.”When Seokhwa turned his head, his eyes, even prettier than his cowlick, came into view. Before Seokhwa could say anything more, Kwak Soohwan leaned down and placed five syringes in front of him.“In order: the bus driver, one male and one female Adam found on the bus, and a middle-aged couple who were brutally bitten.”Kwak Soohwan had carefully stored the syringes in different pockets of his uniform to keep them in order. Seokhwa then took out five kits, lined them up, and placed each syringe on top.“You did well.”Though it had been easier than eating porridge for Kwak Soohwan, Seokhwa always made sure to acknowledge any effort.“Then reward me with a deep kiss.”“Now, I’ll begin the diagnostics.”Even though his words were half-cut, Kwak Soohwan chuckled in good spirits.When Seokhwa looked at Federico standing behind Lee Chaeyoon, he swallowed dryly and nodded. He suddenly noticed, having been too preoccupied to catch it earlier, that Seokhwa’s T-shirt was quite unusual.At the center of the T-shirt was a printed photo of a basalt statue. Beneath a hatted head was a wrinkled forehead, and the hands on its belly were crossed above and below. The statue looked like an old man. Federico, who had been involuntarily drawn to the T-shirt, soon focused on Seokhwa’s hands.Seokhwa picked up the first syringe and pressed the piston over the kit’s hole. After letting a drop or two fall, he repeated the same action for the remaining four kits.“…!”Before long, the results of the Adam virus test appeared on the kits, and Federico’s eyes widened. The bus driver and the couple who had been brutally bitten tested negative.“Why are these three negative?”“The bus driver appears to have died before being infected by Adam, and the couple likely died from being bitten by Adam.”This meant the couple were either immune or had received the Adam vaccine.“The chances of vaccine contamination are extremely low, so I was worried that a new strain might have emerged instead of the Adam virus, but thankfully, that doesn’t seem to be the case.”As Seokhwa spoke, he pondered whether the word “thankfully” was truly appropriate. However, no other expression came to mind.Thunk. Kwak Soohwan threw something in Federico’s direction. It was a rubber bracelet with dried blood on it. Upon closer inspection, the almost non-elastic rubber bracelet had a barcode engraved on it.“It was on the wrist of the couple who died from being bitten by Adam. I didn’t see it on any other bodies.”“…It’s an identification bracelet that all residents of the Fortress of God are required to wear.”Just as soldiers have dog tags for identification, all residents of the Fortress of God were required to wear bracelets engraved with a barcode.Federico stared at the bracelet in thought.“Stop trying to think too much and just spit out the truth.”Kwak Soohwan tapped a cigarette pack that he had pulled from his uniform pocket. Although the technology for making cigarettes had improved, it was still common for the tobacco leaves to be loosely mixed. If you didn’t tap the filter end, the smoke wouldn’t taste right. The sound made Seokhwa slowly turn his head.“It’s just vitamins.”Realizing his mistake, Kwak Soohwan made another absurd comment.Seokhwa had never explicitly told Kwak Soohwan to quit smoking. Yet, Kwak Soohwan often made the ridiculous claim that the nicotine in his lungs was being converted into vitamins. Seokhwa was curious about why Kwak Soohwan seemed to be cautious about smoking around him.Although he never smoked at home, the faint smell of cigarettes always lingered on his uniform after work. When Seokhwa told him he could smoke in the garden, what had he said?“Darling, you need to take care of my lungs. I’ll quit soon.”Yet, he contradicted himself by claiming that nicotine turned into vitamins.“The chemical structure of nicotine is completely different from that of vitamins. Nicotine can’t become a vitamin.”“But I’m the kind of guy who can do the impossible, remember?”“Maybe so, but this is definitely impossible.”Federico, who had been about to speak, opened and closed his mouth several times as he listened to their conversation. Though Kwak Soohwan had urged him to talk, he seemed uninterested.Kwak Soohwan put the cigarette back into his pocket and shot a sharp look at Federico.“You’re still trying to think this over?”Who hadn’t given him a chance to speak? Federico felt a deep sense of unfairness but concealed it as he began to talk.“Most of the Adams outside aren’t residents of the Fortress of God. So, most of them haven’t been vaccinated.”“And yet the commander says there’s something wrong with the vaccine? We flew halfway around the world because of that con artist, so how should we repay him?”“We drove here.”This time, Yang Sanghoon chimed in. Seokhwa had grown quite adept at filtering out Kwak Soohwan’s metaphorical expressions.“It’s true that the vaccine isn’t effective. Of the 5,000 vaccines we brought from Rainbow City, 1,000 were given to the Oscuros. But those who received the vaccine were still infected by Adam after being bitten.”“Oscuros?”Lee Chaeyoon asked again. Federico hesitated slightly before answering.“Ah… The residents inside the Fortress of God are called ‘Chiaros,’ and those outside are called ‘Oscuros.’”He added that Chiaro means light and Oscuro means darkness.“Not all of those who received the vaccine were bitten by Adam, so I can’t say for sure that all of them had problems…”Federico confessed the current situation honestly.The Fortress of God had a maximum capacity of 10,000, but now over 15,000 people were living there. Many more lived outside the fortress, all of whom wanted to enter. However, the conditions for entering the Fortress of God were stringent.Only those with skills needed by the fortress could enter, and the leadership controlled the population to ensure it didn’t exceed the capacity.“So you’re saying you handed out 1,000 vaccines as hush money to calm down the people outside.”Kwak Soohwan crossed his arms and stared at Federico.“…That’s not entirely wrong.”Kwak Soohwan openly sneered at Federico’s candid admission.“Is this naivety or just stupidity?”“Excuse me?”“You said the people outside are desperate to get into the fortress, but the fortress is already overpopulated and can’t handle it. Aren’t you afraid those Oscuros might start a riot?”“Oscuros.”“Got it, darling. Oscuros.”If anyone else had corrected him, Kwak Soohwan would have separated their face from their body, but he obediently followed Seokhwa’s words. Federico couldn’t refute Kwak Soohwan’s words. Today’s events had indeed unfolded much as Kwak Soohwan described. The influx of Oscuros trying to enter the fortress had only accelerated the spread of the infection.“If you want to keep the lid on a boiling pot, the solution is obvious, isn’t it? You need to bring in water from elsewhere to cool it down. That’s where our Rainbow City comes in.”“Doctor, he’s using difficult words again.”Lee Chaeyoon said this, asking to be scolded, while clenching his fist. Yang Sanghoon, showing little interest in the current situation, lay down on the bottom bunk and began to snore lightly.However, Seokhwa understood exactly what Kwak Soohwan was trying to convey.“It’s possible that the Fortress of God distributed fake vaccines to the Oscuros instead of the ones from Rainbow City.”This dangerous statement came from Seokhwa.Unless you were living alone in the mountains, it was common knowledge that Rainbow City had developed a perfect vaccine. The news of the vaccine’s arrival would have spread even here, and the Oscuros would have been even more desperate to enter the fortress.To quell the unrest, the leadership of the Fortress of God distributed 1,000 vaccines for free to the Oscuros. But the truth was that the vaccine, which they believed to be from Rainbow City, was not perfect after all. They had witnessed with their own eyes the people who had received the vaccine transforming into Adams.The boiling pot that was once directed at the Fortress of God was now also boiling over toward Rainbow City. Surely the leadership here had shifted the blame to Rainbow City.It was a negative strategy that had once been commonly seen in Rainbow City as well. Just as the former leadership had fully utilized the rebels to quell the citizens’ discontent, they were doing the same here.“Of course, I’m not ruling out the possibility that the vaccine was contaminated. Were all the vaccines distributed to the Oscuros in this form?”Seokhwa pulled out a pen-type syringe from his backpack. The vaccine developed by the city was easy enough for even a child to administer with a pen-type syringe.As Federico stared at the pen syringe, his face suddenly became uneasy.“No. Half of the vaccines we received from Rainbow City were in pen form, and the other half were vials. We distributed the vials to the Oscuros.”Thunk thunk. The sound of clapping was strange, probably because Kwak Soohwan was wearing leather gloves. Kwak Soohwan clapped his hands indifferently and swept the kit and syringe in front of Seokhwa into the trash bin under the desk. The bracelet with the barcode was thrown away as well.Kwak Soohwan held up his index finger.“First, Rainbow City only produces vaccines in pen-type syringes.”Then, he added his middle finger to make the number “2.” Federico’s face gradually stiffened.“Second, the vaccine produced by our Dr. Seok is damn resilient against any contamination.”“Major, that’s not true.”Kwak Soohwan smirked, turned his hand so that the back was visible, and then, with a snap, only the middle finger was left up.“And lastly, third. The bastards at the Fortress of God screwed us over.”“What?! They screwed us over?”Yang Sanghoon, who had been snoring, suddenly sat up. Despite snoring, it seemed he hadn’t been deeply asleep. Perhaps it was because he had always lived an anxious life since birth. Seokhwa, too, occasionally heard phantom cries of Adams. It was a symptom most residents of Rainbow City experienced together, called Adam Syndrome.“As I see it, your commander doesn’t seem smart enough for this, so there must be another brain inside the fortress, right?”Kwak Soohwan pulled a chair over and sat behind Seokhwa as if to protect him. Federico had also been puzzled. He had personally administered the pen-type vaccine, but outside citizens were given the vaccine in vials. At the time, he had simply thought the vaccines had come in two forms.“There is a messiah who represents the citizens of the fortress.”The expressions of the Invincible Platoon all simultaneously changed as if they were sick of hearing that word. Seokhwa felt similarly, though it was not clearly visible on his face.“A messiah…? Does this place also have a religious organization?”“It’s not a religious organization. It’s just that the citizen representative who has been leading the Fortress of God has traditionally been called the messiah.”Seokhwa let out a small sigh of relief. Religion had many positive functions, but in a situation like this, where they were threatened by Adams, it could easily turn into something like the Garden of Eden. Rainbow City had almost been destroyed by religion. In fact, religion was more of a tool that had been exploited, but still, it was natural to be wary.Seeing the reaction from the Invincible Platoon and Seokhwa, Federico quickly added more.“Well, the Fortress of God was originally the Vatican, after all. There are still places where Mass is held here, but the fortress currently allows a variety of religions.”The most strictly controlled aspect of the fortress was the curfew. Citizens were only allowed to be active within the walls from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. To move around after 5 p.m., military permission was required, and if the rule was broken more than five times, the violator was expelled from the fortress.“Did the messiah come out today?”At Seokhwa’s question, Federico nodded.“Yes. The messiah only engages in external activities from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. because they have to set an example for the citizens of the fortress.”“So, we can see them tomorrow.”Kwak Soohwan lightly poked Seokhwa’s cheek as he calmly accepted the idea of waiting until tomorrow.“Darling, your cheeks are soft enough.”Kwak Soohwan stood up from the chair and gave Federico a light push on the shoulder.“Why wait until tomorrow? Take us there now.”Lee Chaeyoon and Yang Sanghoon also jumped up, pressuring Federico to take them to the messiah immediately.“Major.”“Yes?”“How about resting for today and discussing everything tomorrow?”