Chapter 45: THE MORNING OF DISCHARGE
Perhaps it was because of the intense time spent during the day.
Lost in thought, the day had passed quickly. The day before discharge had completely ended, and Seo Juhwan now lay awake in the darkened barracks with his eyes open.
'I can't sleep.'
The fact that tomorrow was his discharge kept sleep away entirely. He quietly got up from his bunk and left the barracks. He was thinking of smoking a cigarette.
'Hmm. Going down to the first floor sounds like too much trouble.'
The 4th Company, which he belonged to, was on the third floor.
Going down to the first floor just to smoke a cigarette seemed like unnecessary effort.
He glanced momentarily toward where the night watch was stationed.
'They're already sleeping.'
The night watch, sitting in a chair with his head down. It didn't seem like he needed to worry about being caught.
Seo Juhwan quietly approached the glass door. A bicycle lock was attached to the glass door to prevent soldiers from going out at night.
'How careless. Really careless.'
For soldiers with some experience, this kind of thing was no problem at all.
He was a short-timer private first class who would be discharged tomorrow.
This was easier than flicking a bean.
He twisted the junction like a screw instead of the lock—
Click.
The handle came off easily.
Seo Juhwan went outside and sat down on the stairs, putting a cigarette in his mouth.
Click.
He lit it and took a deep drag, then exhaled. This gave the feeling that his stuffy chest opened up a bit. Of course, it was just a feeling.
"Phew. Even for a second discharge, the feeling is strange."
Seo Juhwan chuckled, recalling his life before regression.
He felt less of it now, but back then the feeling was really unsettling.
Of course, it wasn't because he was sad to leave the military, but because of the anticipation and fear about the future. Moreover, the incident with Han Soo-ah had made him lose his mind even more.
"The moon is bright."
Back then too, he had fallen into meaningless sentimentality and snuck out of the barracks in the early morning. And he had sat on these stairs smoking a cigarette. Even the rural night sky and the brightly rising moon were the same.
"Or are they different?"
Suddenly, Seo Juhwan tilted his head.
Thinking about it more carefully, the situation seemed completely different. Back then, he didn't have the leisure to appreciate the moon like this. The moon stayed in his memory because of the memory of crying while looking at an unusually bright moon.
But how about now?
After regressing, he had prevented Han Soo-ah's death. Furthermore, he had directly caught the murderer who was the cause of her death and overcome his trauma. Because of that, he had no reason to cry while looking at the moon.
And that wasn't all.
Hadn't his relationship with Jeong Sora completely changed? She, who had only been remembered as a good superior, was now like a close older sister. And a special kind of relationship at that.
"No worries about money either."
In his past life, due to his cursed luck, finding employment itself was abysmal, and nothing worked out because misfortune clung to everything he did. He had been so poor that he couldn't even enjoy hobbies.
But now?
The Bitcoin he had invested in kept hitting incredible daily highs. Just the money he'd made so far was already in the hundreds of millions. Even considering when it would crash soon, he could definitely make 500 million.
500 million at twenty-three years old.
Compared to truly rich people, it was embarrassing. But it certainly wasn't a small amount either. And he had several other ways to make money easily. If he just didn't forget the surging stocks he remembered and utilized them, he would never have to worry about money in his life.
And money aside, the positive changes in his relationships were especially gratifying.
"Haha. So much has already changed."
Realizing this new fact, a pleasant laugh escaped him. Only about a month had passed since the regression, yet so much had changed.
"I'm looking forward to it."
A smile formed on his lips as he looked up at the moon.
Before regression, that night when he had cried due to fear and trauma about the future.
Now that place was filled with anticipation and excitement.
Somehow his chest felt ticklish.
***
The morning of discharge had arrived.
Even though Seo Juhwan had fallen asleep late in the early morning, he woke up with a clearer mind than ever before.
"You're being discharged! How can you leave me!"
Lee Junghoon had been whining since morning.
Seo Juhwan wore a smug, victorious smile.
"If I don't go, you'll go instead. And you even helped with my discharge, so why are you saying different things?"
"That's true, but... man, isn't it sad to be apart from me?"
"Ugh, hyung. We've been in the same room for over a year, so it's getting creepy now. Let's keep some distance and live."
"Hmph. You've become quite cold-hearted."
"Anyway, you're on leave in February anyway."
"Are discharge and leave the same thing?"
"Of course they're different."
"Annoying guy."
"You know I'm the one who gave you that leave, right?"
"I'm incredibly grateful for that!"
"Hehe. You can curse at me if you want."
"Argh!"
Active duty soldiers could never match discharged soldiers. Lee Junghoon trembled with frustration and smoked cigarettes aggressively.
After morning roll call, Seo Juhwan and the members of the 4th Company gathered in front of the barracks.
Jeong Sora walked through the soldiers once and said:
"Is everyone here without exception?"
"Yes!"
"Then stand nicely for a photo. Juhwan, come to the center."
Centered on Seo Juhwan, Jeong Sora, Lee Junghoon, and the other 4th Company members gathered around.
"Then we'll take it! One, two, three!"
Click! Click! Click!
The photo shoot was over.
After the shoot ended, Jeong Sora called Seo Juhwan forward. And she suddenly pulled him into a tight embrace.
"Huh!"
"Ooh!"
Exclamations and gasps of surprise came from the soldiers' mouths. This was the first time that Jeong Sora, known as the incarnation of FM and famous for her strictness, had embraced a discharged soldier this way.
Jeong Sora, not caring about the soldiers' gazes, patted his back and said:
"You've worked hard all this time. Thank you for being discharged safely and healthy. Thanks to you, Juhwan, I also had a pleasant time here."
"Th-thank you so much!"
- 175 Advanced Chapters of {The Desire System: Reincarnated with a Demon God's Gift}: patreon.com/aristo0_0