22-37

EP. 37# 3. (Livestock University Student, 3rd Year, O Ji-hye) - The Patriot (4)

"Virgins, gather at the stage! Let's go!"

As most students leave the hall, the instructor gathers us at the stage.

I walk towards the stage, stumbling because I'm not used to high heels.

I wanted to run, but I couldn't.

I'm grateful just to avoid falling.

There are only three virgins like me.

Out of 500 students, only three are virgins.

"You are traitors!"

The word "traitor" is terrifying for citizens.

Once labeled a traitor, your life is over.

You might be sent to a forced labor camp like my dad, or women might be taken to a production factory.

In severe cases, you could even face execution.

In this era where every person is precious, execution is rarely carried out, but those who commit heinous crimes can be executed.

That means being a virgin is almost like committing a grave sin.

Why?

What's wrong with having a sense of chastity?

What's wrong with wanting to have sex only with someone you truly love?

"A woman's duty is to bear children, which is patriotism!

Sex is a pure act of creating children.

But you haven't had sex.

That's akin to treason!"

Treason.

Traitor.

These frightening words are spoken in a forceful tone.

The instructor and remaining assistants stare at us with a menacing gaze.

My body trembles like a leaf.

The other two women are the same.

"But you are young, so you might not know.

I'll give you a chance to be patriotic.

Instructor Shim, take these women there!"

"Yes, understood!"

Where...?

Where are they taking us?

"Follow me."

"Yes...yes, understood!"

We follow Instructor Shim with awkward postures.

As evening falls, the winter cold feels even more biting.

We're almost naked, which makes the cold unbearable.

"Get in."

"Yes, understood!"

Instructor Shim puts us into a van.

It's an old vehicle with a musty smell.

The seats are damp and unknown.

It's dirty.

I don't want to sit, but the van is too low to stand.

I sit down, and so do the other two.

It feels like we're being transported like livestock, heading to a slaughterhouse.

There are four seats, and we have to sit facing each other.

Two women sit beside me, and one sits in front of me.

That woman is very small, with a small chest and short stature.

She looks like a middle school student.

Her trembling figure in the female animal attire is pitiful.

"Ha...who's going to care for whom?"

I feel sorry for myself too.

I want to cry and refuse, but if I do, I'll be hit.

As trainees, we have no human rights.

It's unfair and unfair again.

But there's nothing we can do.

The violence is terrifying.

No one can stand up against it.

The end of resistance is only horrific pain.

The tinted windows are dark, so we can't see where we're going.

"What does patriotism mean?"

We're being taken away like pigs in a pen, heading to a slaughterhouse.

The van stops.

"Attention. Where are you headed?"

"Attention. We came from the 3rd Training Facility."

"Ah, you're going there.

There will be a checkpoint. Open the rear door."

The old sliding door starts to open automatically.

Two soldiers with guns peer out from the door.

Their faces are expressionless, but we're frozen in fear because of their guns.

"Confirmed."

"Thank you."

The van moves again.

I look out the window again.

There's a large area with several big buildings.

It's guarded by soldiers, but it doesn't seem like a military base.

What is this place?

Where are we?

The van heads towards the back of the building and stops at a vehicle elevator in a corner.

The elevator opens with a beep.

Please...please don't let this be some strange place...

"Get out."

"Hurry up, you bitches!"

Whoosh!

"Ahh...Ahh!! I'll get out!!"

The female instructor treats us the same as the male instructors.

I move quickly, but the girl with a middle school appearance has her hair pulled.

"You bitches are so lazy. That's why you're being taken here."

"Ahh...I'm sorry...I'm sorry......"

We get out into a basement.

The lighting is red, and there's a heavily locked iron door.

"Where...where are we?"

A woman who was dressed like me asks.

It's surprising that she has the courage to ask again after being beaten.

"Ah, this is the National Assembly building."

"What...the National Assembly?!"

"Why are we here?"

"You're brave to ask after being treated like that at the training facility."

The woman who asked covers her mouth.

The instructor laughs, seeming to enjoy it.

"Yes, since there are only three of you...if it gets out that I answered for you, you'll face punishment right away. Understand?"

"Yes!"

"Don't raise your voice. What do you want to know?"

"We...why do we have to be here? Why...? Why...?"

"You're not livestock university students, are you? Seoul University students?"

"Yes......"

"Well, I shouldn't tell you, but I'll let you know as a former classmate.

The state considers women who don't marry by 22 as failures.

The underlying ideology is that women should be treated as female animals.

So, the goal of the training facility is to erase your sense of human rights.

You are virgins, and the hardworking members of the National Assembly usually prefer virgins.

You can think of it as being brought here to be offered to those esteemed members."

"...Ahh......"

The woman collapses on the spot.

My mind goes blank.

We're women with human rights.

And yet, they want to turn us into livestock?

"How did you end up here? Exclude that woman who's a fraudulent entrant."

"No...I'm not a fraudulent entrant!!"

"Wow, you're brave. Ignorance is courage, they say. Do you want to get hit?"

Thwack!

I collapse at the sound of Instructor Shim's paddle.

"Hehe, you're like a fool."

I've become a fraudulent entrant.

No...it's not true......

Tears start flowing again.

"So, how did you end up like this? I've been curious all along."

"...My dad had a lot of debt, so I was sold to a creditor."

"Oh...your dad is a terrible person. He used you as collateral."

"Yes......"

"Do you call that man your father? He's a dog. Especially since you're a Seoul University student..."

"I was sold to a broker...after the training facility...to pay off my dad's debt at the brothel......"

"Ah, this is terrible..."

Instructor Shim hugs the woman.

"What can I do...?"

The instructor hugs her.

"I wish I could help, but the law treats women as commodities that can be bought and sold..."

The woman starts crying again.

"Take some comfort in knowing that I'm here. I ended up here because I almost got expelled from Seoul University for fooling around..."

The instructor is worse than the male instructors.

"Ah...that's...that's......"

"I'm sorry...I couldn't help you."

The instructor's radio suddenly beeps.

"Get up. The tragic drama ends here.

If you don't listen, things will get tough for both of us. Do you understand?"

The woman who was hugged by the instructor nods, but I and the girl with a middle school appearance can't.

The only companion that woman has now is the one who was sold here.

Me, a fraudulent entrant.

The girl with a middle school appearance, who seems a bit dim-witted.

They've been treated like livestock from the start.

It's unpleasant.

It's infuriating.

But the fact that we can't do anything makes it even more infuriating.

[Arrived at the entrance.]

Beep!

Clang!

The thick iron door opens.

[Enter and retreat.]

[Roger.]

"Take care. I'll go this far."

The female instructor looks only at the woman who was sold into prostitution.

The engine starts, and the sound of the van moving into the vehicle elevator is heard.

Clang!

"Ah...?"

Clang, clang.

Collars are put on us.

Numbers 1, 2, 3 are engraved on them.

A robust man in a waiter's uniform puts them on.

"Let's go serve the country."

We're taken to a room with a large mirror.

"Ladies, do you know where you are?"

"...We're here to serve the members of the National Assembly...I think."

"You're right. You've been chosen.

You've maintained your virginity, which allows you to meet the esteemed members of the National Assembly, whom you might never meet otherwise.

By serving them and relieving their fatigue, this is true patriotism, isn't it?"

"But...we still have human rights..."

The girl with a middle school appearance speaks up.

"It seems you didn't go through the proper orientation. Once you enter the training facility, you have no human rights.

That means you're in the same situation as the female animals that gave birth to you."

Thwack!

The man roughly grabs the girl's hair despite his gentle tone.

"Ahh...Ahh!!"

"Be careful not to make such noises in front of the members, or you'll be sent back to the training facility for punishment. Understand?"

"Yes...!! I'm sorry!! I'm sorry!! I won't do it again!!"

Snap!

Thud.

"Members will enter now. They'll choose from behind the mirror, so stand properly and smile, okay?"

We stand up straight and start smiling at the mirror.