Kim Gayoung stopped climbing the stairs on the second floor and asked.
"Why, why?"
"The water is rising faster than expected. I don’t know how long they’ll keep arguing, but if the water rises just 5-6 cm more, everyone will have to get off because of the weight of the water. And freshwater weighs 1 kg, but seawater weighs 1.025 kg. No matter how much you calculate, you have to multiply by 1.025."
This was the first time I heard this. I did quite a bit of tutoring after entering university to earn money, but I don’t remember if it was part of the standard curriculum. I just thought that if water is 1, then the specific gravity of seawater is 1.025? Seawater is heavier than regular water. Is it because there are a lot of microorganisms in it? You seem like someone who takes care of jellyfish and their tanks.
Kim Gayoung playfully patted Yugeun’s shoulder as she climbed the stairs and asked with a laugh.
"So that’s why you got off? You were going to get off anyway?"
Sighing, Yugeun continued walking up the stairs with Kim Gayoung and said.
"You don’t know how tense the atmosphere got after the two of them got off. No one else got off after that. They just kept pouring out their accusations. When they asked me if I had a reason to stay in the elevator, I just got off as quickly as possible."
Yugeun’s trembling voice made both me and Kim Gayoung climb the stairs weakly. I looked at Yugeun’s back and asked.
"Yugeun, you had a reason to stay, right? You weigh less than 75 kg. Or maybe you were injured or something."
"The Kanu next to me said, 'I’m getting off. Keep fighting. I want to watch the fight, so I’ll keep the elevator door open.' ... I felt really stupid and useless for trying to stay in the elevator."
As we chatted, we slowly reached the third floor, concerned about Yugeun’s back. Suddenly, the elevator shot up past us and stopped at the fourth floor. We were startled, but we could see it had stopped at the fourth floor, just above us. The sound of footsteps indicated that people were hurriedly climbing the stairs between the first and second floors.
When the three of us reached the fourth floor, the elevator that had been on the first floor was stopped with its doors wide open, and the water inside was draining out. As a result, the fourth-floor corridor was flooded. Checking inside the elevator, only Kevin and Lee Jihyun were left. Kevin was using the axe like a broom to scrape water off the floor. He raised his hand to wave at me as he recognized me.
Lee Jihyun, standing right next to the elevator door, also waved at us. She was waving frantically, and it seemed she was urging us to get in quickly.
"Get in quickly! Hurry!"
"Why?"
Even as they asked, people quickly got into the elevator as Lee Jihyun gestured.
"I’m closing the door! We’re going by ourselves!"
"Really?"
"Just us?"
Not only was I surprised, but Yugeun, Kim Gayoung, and Kevin were also shocked and looked at Lee Jihyun. Especially Kevin’s face showed that this was completely unexpected. Lee Jihyun, grinding her teeth, said.
"My patience is gone. Actually, it was already completely drained when we arrived at this underwater pollution center. I’ve only endured this far for the three of you, not for the other people. ... You’re lucky. Your calves are in such a state, so you’re staying here. No one was willing to carry a 190 cm tall person up to the fourth floor."
Lee Jihyun pointed at Kevin’s leg, wrapped in a towel and bandages. Kevin, frozen in place, blinked his long-lashed eyes a few times before finally speaking to Lee Jihyun.
"·····We agreed that if they walked up the stairs to the third or fourth floor, we would take them with us."
"For that result, so many people showed their worst sides. I saw it all, and it was quite a spectacle."
Kevin, who had never heard Lee Jihyun speak sarcastically, was completely flustered. It seemed he had only seen her as a robot, expressionless and emotionless, giving information and guidance. Lee Jihyun didn’t seem to care whether Kevin was holding the axe.
I thought Kevin would immediately agree and say let’s go, but I was quite surprised that he didn’t. Hiding my thoughts, I asked Lee Jihyun.
"You want us to go by ourselves?"
"Yes."
"But you said we should try to rescue as many people as possible before we go to the rescue point, right?"
"Radioactive fish, even if you catch them, you can’t eat them. The same goes for people. They’ll all shrivel up like squid cooked in hellfire. Even the good people here should go with us!"
Oh, I never thought Lee Jihyun would say something like that. Yugeun was standing there with her mouth slightly open, staring blankly at Lee Jihyun, while Kim Gayoung kicked the water pooled on the elevator floor and said.
"I disagree."
Kim Gayoung kicked a few drops of water out of the elevator.
"There are no good people in this world. They’re almost extinct. Even if you think only good people will survive, they’re probably just hiding their bad sides well. Think about it. I saw you kill someone at the bio-center. I appreciate that you see me as a good person, but honestly, I’m not an angel. People like Yugeun and Muhyeon here are. Some of them might be decent, and some might be crazy but hiding it well. Besides, those who are left behind will survive if they can, and those who are taken will die if they must. I don’t think you need to make a difficult choice and leave them behind. That’s my opinion!"
Then Kim Gayoung poked Yugeun’s side, who seemed to be in a daze. Yugeun jumped up and shook her head at Lee Jihyun.
"I know they’re not people I like. I don’t like them either! But the reason they got off the elevator was that we promised to take them if they walked up the stairs to the third or fourth floor. We should keep our promise. We’ll take anyone who makes it to the fourth floor!"
I quickly added to Yugeun’s words.
"I agree with Yugeun. Now that we’ve drained the water, the elevator can hold 50 people, but we can only take 12. It’s incredibly inefficient to take just the five of us here and escape. The elevator might stop or the power might go out while we’re on our way up, leaving those people trapped here in the underwater pollution center because they trusted the elevator for their escape."
I mentioned efficiency because engineers like efficiency, and I noticed that Lee Jihyun unconsciously nodded at that point.
"Also, some of them were the ones who agreed to drain the water from this underwater pollution center, and they swam with us to turn the valves in the seawater. Just because you saw inhumane and immoral things doesn’t mean we have to make inhumane choices."
Lee Jihyun frowned, as if the thought had occurred to her. I tried to comfort her as much as possible and spoke slowly.
"I know you’re very tired and stressed, Jihyun. But I hope that when you think about this later, in a more comfortable and stable state, you won’t regret or feel guilty about leaving those people behind. I hope you’ll think, 'I should have waited a bit longer and taken them.'"
It might be better to just take the elevator and leave. But I thought it would be better to take them and avoid regret.
I hope that one day, you won’t lose sleep over the choices you made. Lee Jihyun hesitated for a moment and then said to us.
"Taking those people with us might be even less efficient. It could be more dangerous or more difficult. This might be the last chance to get them out."
"Saving lives is always inefficient."
Lee Jihyun sighed at Yugeun’s words and said.
"Which life is more valuable? ... Haven’t we talked about this before?"
"During the walk to my lab, we had a similar conversation."
Yugeun gave Lee Jihyun a small smile, and Lee Jihyun, after looking at Yugeun, sighed deeply and leaned against the elevator wall, crossing her arms. Kevin, gauging Lee Jihyun’s mood, spoke hesitantly.
"·····We made a promise, so we should take them. I’ll try to stop anyone who gives you trouble."
He then shook the axe he had been using as a cane. Lee Jihyun, still leaning against the elevator, scowled and said.
"I don’t want to love my neighbor."
People who had climbed the stairs started arriving at the fourth-floor corridor. Surprisingly, the first one to arrive was Emma. She must have gotten off earlier.
Behind her, Carter, Sam, James, and Kanu appeared. Logan and Benjamin followed, a bit further behind. From a distance, it looked like Benjamin’s face was completely swollen.
Emma, walking down the fourth-floor corridor, stepped on the water that had spilled out of the elevator and lost her balance, falling forward. Carter, seeing this, jumped over Emma and ran to the elevator. As Carter entered the elevator with a loud "Hey!" Lee Jihyun, with her arms crossed, looked at him disdainfully.
Sam and James helped Emma up from the water and pulled her into the elevator. Kanu walked in calmly and got on the elevator. After Logan and Benjamin, who were walking from a distance, also got on, Lee Jihyun closed the elevator door. She pressed the BA button, which was for the ground floor (0th floor).