“Wow!”
I let out an exclamation at the rare power outage in the building. But shortly after the lights went out, they came back on. Maybe the emergency generator didn’t work? They did say they were doing inspections last time because of the incoming typhoon.
“Wow, even the city had a blackout?”
Bora also seemed amazed by the blackout. While power outages due to strong winds during a typhoon were common, seeing the entire city plunge into darkness like this was truly a rare sight.
I followed Bora and pressed myself against the window to look outside. The cityscape in the distance was so surreal. The city, which should have been brightly lit, now looked like a city of death, shrouded in darkness. Only sporadic lights were visible, making it look like a scene straight out of a movie.
“Whoa! This is so cool!”
I held a bowl of ramen and slurped it while staring at the outside view. This was a sight you couldn’t buy with money. Bora, equally fascinated, took out her phone and started snapping pictures of the darkened city.
“No signal either…”
Bora seemed like she wanted to upload the photos somewhere. Realizing that the phone signal was down, I checked my own phone. My phone was also acting like it was in a no-service zone, with no signal or data.
No way!
I quickly glanced at the TV. The TV was frozen on the announcer, who was stuck in a ridiculous pose, probably due to a glitch.
“Bora… the TV froze!”
Bora also looked baffled.
“Guess we’ll have to stay together tomorrow too?”
“Really?”
“Yeah, we can’t just leave Hana alone.”
“Can’t we just take a car and go home?”
“With this weather… do you think we can even make it to the parking lot?”
Bora smiled subtly while looking outside. As she said, the wind was howling, and it seemed dangerous to go out. I looked at Bora and said,
“Bora, let’s stay together until the typhoon passes!”
“Okay! I’ll stay by Hana’s side until the typhoon is over!”
We were lucky to be in a safe place, but what about everyone else? The typhoon lingered over South Korea for more than a day.
—
Before the second day arrived, the typhoon finally retreated. If it had stayed just one more day, the damage would have been unimaginably catastrophic.
This typhoon, ‘Nabi,’ caused unprecedented damage in South Korea since its founding. The wind speeds were fierce, and the typhoon, laden with moisture, dumped rain clouds all over the country, leaving devastation beyond words.
Though the full extent of the damage hasn’t been fully calculated yet, the initial estimates already exceed 50 trillion won in damages. Considering South Korea’s annual budget is around 600 trillion won, that’s nearly 10% of the budget. The southern coast, central regions, and even Seoul were completely engulfed by the typhoon, leaving the entire nation in chaos.
There wasn’t a single city left unscathed. In rural areas, houses collapsed, leading to fatalities, showing the cruel side of Typhoon Nabi. Even in cities with stronger buildings, the damage was severe, so other areas were beyond description.
The streets were filled with countless displaced people, and firefighters ran tirelessly, sweat dripping from their feet, to rescue those still trapped. Soldiers, police, and volunteers all stepped up to try and heal the wounds left by Typhoon Nabi.
Experts unanimously agreed that this typhoon seemed designed to obliterate South Korea. It wiped out the nation’s growth momentum.
The Starlight Research Institute also took a hit from the typhoon. However, being a research facility, it was somewhat prepared, so the damage was relatively minor compared to other places.
Maru barely managed to make it to work. It was almost tear-inducing. While it’s strange for an office worker to be happy about going to work, Maru felt relieved to be there.
Living in a house without internet, electricity, or gas was like being a caveman. At least they had a gas burner, so they didn’t starve. If they hadn’t had that, the situation would’ve been unimaginable.
As Maru passed the entrance of the research institute, people inside were busy cleaning up. Everyone was holding tools, tidying up the mess left by the typhoon. But among them, Maru spotted a familiar head of hair.
“Hana, what are you doing?”
Hana was sweeping the floor with a broom.
The report said Maru asked. Hana answered as if it were obvious.
“Are you cleaning, Maru?”
Seeing her small hands holding a giant broom, it was hard to believe. Wouldn’t she just be in the way? Maru took the broom from Hana instead. It seemed like she could clean faster herself.
“Ahh, give it back, Maru!”
Hana jumped around, circling Maru. Maru started cleaning the area much faster than Hana had been doing.
Then, she picked Hana up and carried her into the research institute, dragging her along as Hana flailed about, insisting she’d clean more outside.
“Maru, have you been well?”
Once inside the building, Hana asked Maru how she’d been. Maru replied that she hadn’t been doing well. She thought a spring typhoon like that wouldn’t come again until the day she died. When they reached the 10th floor and entered the office, there weren’t many employees around.
Only Bora was there, her head buried in her desk. She looked like a gambler who had just lost big and was utterly defeated.
“Hello!”
Bora lifted her head to respond to Maru. Her voice sounded like she was on the verge of death.
“Maru, have you been well?”
“Senior, did something big happen?”
Seeing Bora so drained of energy, Maru asked if something had happened. Bora looked like someone on the brink of the world collapsing.
“My car… my car…”
Bora explained that her car had been destroyed by building materials blown around by the typhoon. It wasn’t just a simple part that broke—the front bumper and engine were smashed, and it was beyond repair. It was a situation that made you realize just how scary the typhoon had been.
“Can’t you get insurance or something?”
“Disaster situations aren’t covered by insurance…”
Bora explained that car insurance didn’t cover damages in disaster situations. Maru, who didn’t own a car, couldn’t fully understand Bora’s frustration, but she could somewhat grasp the sadness.
However, Bora soon perked up. A notice came through the messenger that the company would compensate for damages caused by the disaster. It was true—when the company had money, the employees had it easy.
“Yahoo!”
Bora let out a cheer of joy. She didn’t forget to say that Starlight Research Institute was the best.
“Anyway, Maru, good job. Since you’re here, I’ll head off now.”
Bora, who had been trapped in the building for two days because of the typhoon, quickly packed up to leave. She probably never expected to be stuck in the building for two days, but since Hana lived there, she hadn’t suffered from a lack of daily necessities.
In fact, it might have been better than being at home. Unlike during the blackout, the building had emergency generators, so the power stayed on. Maru, too, must have experienced significant inconvenience from the blackout.
As Bora left, employees who had endured the typhoon started arriving at the office. No matter how strong the typhoon had been, the employees still came to work.
—
Kim Sehee had thoroughly prepared for the typhoon, but seeing its power from inside her house, she had no choice but to accept it. Starlight Food, which had recently been making money through farming, was going to suffer massive damage.
The plants they had worked so hard to grow were clearly going to die in the typhoon. But Kim Sehee told her employees to stay home no matter what.
The plants grew quickly, so even if it took a month, they could recover at least half the harvest. But if the employees got hurt or were swept away by the typhoon, that would be an even greater loss.
Unlike plants, people couldn’t be reborn or replaced.
However, an unexpected sight greeted Kim Sehee when she arrived at the farm.
