Geon, having spent a restless night under the influence of the earthquake, got up at dawn and headed to the terrace of Mochi. His attempt to catch a breath of fresh air on the terrace was interrupted by the sound of Yeongseok yelling from outside, causing him to pause and listen.
"No! Mr. President! How can you say that? After an earthquake, there can be aftershocks! Is it even humane to ask us to take the actors to Gorkha now?"
Worried that Yeongseok's loud voice might awaken others, Geon quickly closed the terrace door and stepped outside. He saw Yeongseok, gripping the safety rail of the terrace, turned towards the landscape outside while holding a satellite phone.
"The production team treats this as work! What about the actors? There's no prior agreement for entering a hazardous area. If it was supposed to be a shoot in a dangerous area, consent should have been obtained in advance. It's too dangerous, even if it makes for a hot topic!"
Yeongseok, hitting his chest in frustration, said, "You have to speak within the bounds of common sense, Mr. President. It's not something that can be resolved by asking for understanding. No matter how much a new broadcaster needs recognition, does that make sense? I'd rather take a part of the filming crew who agrees to go to Gorkha for coverage!"
Catching Geon's eye as he turned around, Yeongseok signaled with his hand to wait and continued to yell into the phone.
"If the news team has already left, then they can capture the scene! This is entertainment, entertainment! Waiting until the aftershocks are over and it's safe, then capturing the emotional scenes of clearing debris and helping, that I understand. But how can we enter today when the earthquake happened just last night? Did you not watch the news this morning? There were more aftershocks at dawn!"
"The first quake was a magnitude of 7.9, and the aftershock was 7.2! Imagine if another aftershock happens and our team is there. What if someone gets hurt? No, it would be lucky if it ended with injuries. Can you take responsibility if someone actually dies?"
As Geon quietly pulled up a chair to sit, Yeongseok continued his call from the other side of the safety rail, looking out at the landscape.
'It's the same country, but it's peaceful here. The earthquake struck a major city; how anxious and difficult must the people there feel?'
Clouds drifted leisurely over the Himalayas, entering Geon's view.
'Was this what Haileke meant? I said I would help within my capacity... but what use is my strength in an earthquake.. I'm just a small human being...'
Lost in thought, Geon's ears picked up Yeongseok's sharp yelling again.
"We can't take the actors! Understand that! How can you expect me to say that? There's been a major earthquake, it's dangerous, and yet you want us to enter a hazardous area because the broadcaster needs a hot topic? Do you think the companies they belong to will just sit by? Alright, I'll take only those from the filming crew who agree. I'll handle the content, so just know that! I'm hanging up!"
Yeongseok slammed the phone down on the table on the terrace and pulled out a cigarette from his pocket, lighting it up. As he took a deep drag, looking outside, he glanced at Geon and said, "Don't tell Chae-eun about this. I'll handle it."
Geon watched Yeongseok exhale smoke and smiled bitterly. After a moment of silence, Geon spoke cautiously.
"Bro.. I want to go see it."
Yeongseok stopped mid-drag, his body stiffening. After a moment of silence, he took another drag and shook his head.
"No, it's too dangerous. I'm a journalist, so this is my job, but you're not. Well, strictly speaking, I'm not even a correspondent, just an entertainment PD, but since I'm a shareholder and an executive in the company, I have to do it."
Geon quietly looked at the Himalayan landscape and mentioned Haileke's words.
"You heard what Haileke said, right?"
Yeongseok exhaled smoke and shook his head vigorously.
"That was just grabbing at clouds. And this isn't something you can help with your own strength."
After a pause, Geon spoke again.
"I just want to help, even if it's just moving a stone or a fallen tree, to be one of the many hands. It was a promise to myself."
Yeongseok chuckled and said, "In the end, that's all we can do there. No, if the government is controlling the
area, we might not even be able to get close. Capturing the tense national atmosphere while we travel to Pokhara will naturally make the program successful, so you should leave with Chae-eun from the Pokhara airport."
Geon looked at Yeongseok's profile and said, "You said we'd stay in Nayapul for about 3 days, right? If the situation is monitored and controls are lifted, and recovery work starts, couldn't I stay behind while sending Chae-eun back?"
Yeongseok took a deep drag of his cigarette, his gaze drifting towards the distant mountains. Geon waited quietly, and after a while, Yeongseok turned to look at him squarely. Geon met Yeongseok's gaze, and Yeongseok stared back, asking, "Are you serious?"
"Yes, bro."
"It's dangerous."
"I know, bro."
"It's not just about getting hurt. You could die, kid."
"If I die, you'll die too, bro. Won't be lonely, right? Haha, it seems better than me going back to Korea alone and hearing that you got hurt... Haha"
Yeongseok stared at Geon intensely. Geon, not backing down, returned the gaze. After a moment of looking at each other, they both let out a chuckle. Yeongseok took out another cigarette, lighting it and said, "Should quit these damn cigarettes... Sigh. Alright, let's go. First, make a call home with the satellite phone to say we're okay."
Geon quickly called home with the satellite phone, eager to reassure his worried family. When he explained the situation, he naturally faced fierce opposition. Unable to persuade Geon, Yeongha finally handed the phone to Shihwa, who tearfully begged him to come back, but Geon remained adamant. After over thirty minutes of persuasion, Geon sighed and hung up the phone. Yeongseok, who had smoked three cigarettes while listening to Geon's conversation, asked,
"What did they say?"
"You heard everything. It's chaotic, but I've told them I'm going."
"Man, you're as stubborn as an ox."
"Haha, I guess so. What will you tell Chae-eun?"
"I'll explain the situation and finish our original schedule. Then, I'll send her back to Korea from the Pokhara airport."
"Alright, then I won't say anything."
"What do you mean you won't say anything? I heard everything."
Suddenly, Chae-eun's voice startled both men as they turned around. Chae-eun, who had been hiding behind the curtains at the terrace door, walked out with her hands on her hips.
"You're not going without me! I'm coming too!"
Yeongseok, showing his palms, said,
"Whoa, Chae-eun. This isn't a trip. We haven't even discussed it with your company, and it's too dangerous."
Chae-eun, hands still on her hips, mentioned,
"Do you remember the 2008 Sichuan earthquake?"
"Yes, the earthquake in China. What about it?"
"It was a magnitude 8.0, worse than Nepal. I was a university student then and went there as a volunteer. It was a devastating earthquake with over 60,000 casualties. I can definitely be of help."
"No, Chae-eun. Back then, volunteers went after the aftershocks had ended, and it was deemed safe by the rescue teams. You know there could still be more aftershocks here, right? There were several aftershocks within 24 hours of the Sichuan earthquake. It hasn't even been 24 hours since this one."
"I heard everything. You said we'd wait three days in Nayapul, and if there are no more aftershocks, we'll go in. I'm coming too, just so you know."
Yeongseok covered his eyes with his hand,
"But we haven't even talked to your company. What about the contract?"
Chae-eun scoffed,
"If the person involved is okay with it, who's going to complain? I wasn't forced, and I'll talk to my company. If it's not too dangerous, my company wouldn't want to miss this opportunity."
This time, Geon tried to stop her,
"Sister, if it's about making headlines, I can help when we return to Korea. It's too dangerous here."
Chae-eun flicked Geon's forehead,
"What are you talking about? Headlines are the company's concern, not mine. I can't forget the horrors of the Sichuan earthquake from my childhood. If I can offer even the smallest help to those plunged into despair, especially when timing aligns like now, I won't back down."
Geon looked at Chae-eun with newfound respect. Chae-eun lifted her chin and leaned back,
"How about that? Always acting like a big brother, Mr. Geon? Do I seem a bit admirable to you now?"
Geon stood up from his chair, ruffled Chae-eun's hair, and said,
"Yeah, sister. You're incredible."
Chae-eun blushed as Geon, towering over her, patted her head. She glanced up at Geon, then startled when she realized Yeongseok was there, swatting Geon's hand away,
"What, what! Stop! Always acting like an older brother? You're more than ten years younger than me!"
Geon laughed, putting his hands in his pockets,
"Haha, it's because you're cute, so cute~"
"That's the problem!! You're the younger one! I'm your sister! Ugh!"
"Haha, got it, got it."
As Geon teased the blushing Chae-eun, he turned to Yeongseok, who was still smoking,
"Shouldn't you discuss it with the staff?"
Yeongseok extinguished his cigarette on the safety rail of the terrace and said,
"Those guys, they followed me from the previous broadcaster. They'll all agree. Don't worry."
Then the terrace door opened, and the staff poured in. Yeongseok looked at them in surprise as the AD stepped forward,
"Would have been sad if you didn't say the last word, right?"
"What? You guys were all listening?"
The AD grinned,
"Of course. How could we not come check with all that yelling since dawn? Everyone's already on edge."
Yeongseok made eye contact with each staff member. They all smiled back, nodding slightly or giving a thumbs up. After making eye contact with everyone, including Geon and Chae-eun, Yeongseok turned back to gaze at the endless Himalayan mountains stretching beyond the terrace and declared,
"Alright, we're all going together."
Passing through Syauli Bazar to reach Naya Pul, the crew had remained true to the concept of their journey. However, filming was challenging due to the national crisis atmosphere in Nepal. The crew laughed for the first time in a while after watching a trailer produced in Korea, which aired in a city hotel in Naya Pul, showing Geon revered as a deity.
In Korea, the trailer aired amidst news coverage of the Nepal earthquake, sparking tremendous interest. Various portal news sites churned out sensational articles about Geon getting caught in the Nepal earthquake, drawing widespread attention. MVN, aware that Geon and the production team were safe, was all smiles seeing the increasing number of cable TV subscription applications.
IP TV was charging for unlimited access to terrestrial channels, and other cable broadcasters were selling unlimited viewing on a monthly subscription basis, enabling immediate verification. MVN, finding itself at the center of attention, called Yeongseok hourly for updates via satellite phone. After spending 3 days in Naya Pul and confirming no further aftershocks since the early morning of the first day, the production team decided to enter Naya Pul. This decision leaked to the press intentionally by MVN, further fueling the buzz around "The Song of Himalaya."
Even before its first broadcast, "The Song of Himalaya," with its trailer of Geon as a deity and news of entering the earthquake's epicenter three days later, garnered hot anticipation. Yeongseok, receiving this news via satellite phone, felt a mix of pleasure and bitterness.
The AD hustled to the Korean embassy for filming permissions, while Geon and Chae-eun continued shooting in a restorative style, mostly staying inside the hotel. The AD, with his resourcefulness, managed to obtain filming permissions by partnering with the international relief organization Unichef.
Once the filming permission was secured, Yeongseok gathered the crew to head to Gorkha in a jeep. With domestic flights temporarily banned, the crew, weary from the long car journey, soon saw the local police's control line in the distance. Geon caught sight of the devastation in the Gorkha village, which would have been peaceful hills and terraced fields if not for the earthquake.
Despite days passing since the earthquake, the village engulfed in a cloud of dust was filled with screams, shouting, and children's crying; no house seemed intact. Simba, acting as an interpreter, showed the filming permits to the local police, who then issued entry badges.
As the crew started their vehicles, they were soon stopped. The road was cracked in many places, making vehicle entry difficult. Yeongseok got out of the car, saying,
"We'll stop here! The village is visible from here, so let's walk."
Under Yeongseok's lead, the crew entered the village cautiously after ensuring safety. The camera directors dispersed with their ENG cameras. The drone director controlled the drone to avoid colliding with others from different broadcasters, and only one camera director accompanied Geon and Chae-eun each. Chae-eun, upon seeing a young girl sitting on a rock and crying, quickly approached her.
"Oh my, look at this child! Hey, are you okay?"
The girl, not understanding Chae-eun's Korean, just dropped tears from her large eyes. Noticing no adults around, Chae-eun told Geon,
"Geon, I'll check on the children, you move as you see fit."
"Okay, sister. Be careful, and don't go near any houses with roofs left; they might collapse anytime."
"Got it, you too be careful."
As Geon walked uphill through the destroyed homes, he saw people sitting dazed among the rubble. Hearing commotion, Geon hastened his steps. A group of men was trying to lift a rock off a woman trapped underneath. The woman, too exhausted to scream, just clenched her eyes shut and grimaced in pain.
Geon hurriedly joined the men, squeezing in to lend a hand. The Nepalese men, surprised by the sudden appearance of an East Asian, nonetheless shouted and did their best to lift the rock. Geon, using all his strength, helped lift the rock.
"Ugh, lift!"
The rock budged slightly but did not lift. When Yeongseok rushed over to help and the camera director paused filming to assist, the rock was finally lifted with a thunderous noise. The women nearby hurriedly pulled the trapped woman out. Her lower body was severely injured, but luckily, she was alive below the mid-thigh.
Geon, bending down to offer his back, shouted,
"Please help me lift her! Ambulances can't reach here, we need to carry her down!"
Unable to understand his English, the Nepalese men caught on from his gestures and helped place the woman on Geon's back. With the woman groaning in pain on his back, Geon stood up and said,
"Madam, please hold on, I'll get you to the hospital as fast as I can!"
Geon, with the woman on his back, began to run downhill. Yeongseok and the cameraman quickly followed. As he ran, Geon saw countless people crying in despair: babies crying from hunger, perhaps having lost their parents; an old woman sitting on a rock with her head covered in dust, looking dazed; a woman kneeling on the ground, praying to the sky with tears; a man frantically searching the debris, calling out a name.
Geon clenched his teeth, biting his lips until they bled to hold back tears as he dashed down, leaping over the police control line to approach the waiting rescue workers.
"Here! A lady who was trapped under a rock!"
The rescue workers, who had been discussing over a map, quickly moved to action upon seeing the lady Geon brought, and several of them rushed her to an ambulance. Seeing Geon about to run back up, one of the rescue workers urgently called out in English,
"Come with us!"
Geon paused briefly for them, and in no more than a few seconds, six rescue workers, loaded with gear, followed him up. They dispersed upon reaching the top, each starting on their tasks. Geon raced back to where the lady had been extracted. The Nepalese men, exhausted from the prolonged effort, were sprawled over the rocks.
That day, Geon continued until sunset, clearing debris, transporting the injured, and recovering the bodies of the deceased. The rescue operation, which lasted until two in the morning, paused only at eight in the evening when darkness rendered visibility null. However, once government officials brought in large lights and set them up, the work resumed.
It was just past half-past two in the morning when a tired Geon entered a temporary tent down in the village. Turning on the tap, he first saw discolored water flow out. It took a while before the water ran clear. After a quick wash and a rough rinse of his dust-coated, whitened hair, Geon entered the tent. Inside, Chae-eun, also covered in dust, was drinking hot coffee. Seeing Geon, she stood up and said,
"Geon! Are you hurt anywhere? I saw you running down with someone on your back earlier."
Geon smiled weakly and replied,
"No, I'm not hurt. How about you?"
"I couldn't do much. They kept stopping me, saying it was too dangerous. Mostly, I just gathered lost children and handed them over to relief organizations."
"I see... Hah, sister, you mentioned volunteering during the Sichuan earthquake? Was it like this then?"
"No, that was three weeks after the earthquake had hit, so by then, anyone who could be rescued had been, and it was more about recovering bodies or helping with village reconstruction, not a hectic scene like this."
Geon flopped onto a makeshift bed, covering his face with his hands,
"I didn't expect it to be this severe. It's so different from what I imagined. How could something like this..."
Chae-eun brewed another cup of coffee and said,
"Yeah, everyone who sees a disaster site for the first time thinks the same. I felt that way too."
Handing Geon the coffee, he took a sip and looked outside the tent,
"There might still be people alive down there. But I'm too weak to help any further. I'm just in the way. I'm so powerless. Sob..."
As Geon began to sob, looking outside, Chae-eun moved to sit by his side. Hugging Geon's shoulder as he cried, Chae-eun said,
"I feel the same. We're so small and insignificant."
As Chae-eun too began to cry softly, the tent filled with the sound of their low sobs. Yeongseok, about to enter the tent, stood frozen at the entrance upon hearing their cries. Tired from assisting, but unable to maintain composure hearing the young duo's sobs, Yeongseok pulled out a cigarette and lit it.
Under the bright lights, with equipment being moved in the background, Yeongseok's eyes deepened. Entering the tent after washing up, he found Chae-eun and Geon had already fallen into a deep sleep from exhaustion. Considering Chae-eun's sleep, he gently woke Geon, who was sleeping curled up on the floor,
"Geon, there's a single-person tent next to this. You should sleep there. This is the command tent; people will be coming and going."
Just having fallen asleep, Geon groggily asked,
"Bro, did you just get here?"
"Yeah, I came a bit ago, washed up and came in. Wake Chae-eun and move to the tent together."
"Okay, bro. You should get some rest too. It must be tough."
"Alright, don't worry and sleep."
After ushering Chae-eun to the single-person tent and entering another himself, Yeongseok lit another cigarette while gazing at the disaster site. The chaos reflected in the smoke from his cigarette seemed almost like broad daylight under the bright lights. Yeongseok sighed deeply with the cigarette smoke,
"Sigh…"