Chapter 106
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: The Raiders
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Before I was summoned to this other world, whenever I watched apocalypse-themed comics, movies, or dramas, there was always this one cliché group that showed up.
This held true no matter the setting—as long as there were humans involved, they were bound to appear.
Raiders.
They're the kind who raid protagonist groups or others who've been diligently growing food or crafting tools for survival, snatching away supplies and useful gear.
With humans around, it's inevitable.
People who don't create anything themselves but steal from others to get by easily exist in every world, apocalypse or not.
It's actually weird that they haven't shown up here yet.
They probably should have appeared much sooner, but the massive Zombie Wave event until recently might have held them back.
Even raider groups wouldn't find it easy to deal with hordes of zombies.
They might have stronger forces than regular survivor groups for plundering, but those Zombie Wave hordes were no joke.
Now that the zombie threat seems gone for a while, they've started slinking out.
They must have learned about the Haedong Faction in the meantime and decided to hit this place.
For me, dealing with raiders is no problem at all, but to the Haedong Faction, it's like a natural disaster striking.
In hindsight, I should have designated their building as part of my additional territory so I could teleport there instantly.
Because I didn't, it took me about ten minutes to get here—and in a fight, that's an eternity.
For now, I decided to head inside to assess the situation.
I activated Shadow Veil to hide in the shadows, then moved through them into the Haedong Faction building.
Right as I entered, I saw corpses sprawled on the floor, bleeding out.
Some were faces I'd seen on previous visits to the Haedong Faction; others were strangers.
Judging by the wounds, the Haedong Faction guys had been shot to death, while the strangers looked like they'd been stabbed with blades.
The raiders probably got ambushed by Haedong Faction members upon entering the building.
But in the end, guns beat knives, so the Haedong side got overwhelmed.
There were more Haedong corpses in sight, anyway.
About eight dead, give or take.
If something this dangerous was going down, why didn't they call me sooner? This is way too late.
They're gangsters, sure, but they paid me coins faithfully for treatments without causing trouble. It's a bit sad seeing them dead.
Bang!
"Argh!"
Then, from deeper inside, a gunshot rang out followed by a man's scream. I rushed toward the sound.
It came from the room where Lee Kang-jin and his men always hosted me during visits.
I slipped through a crack in the door and peered inside. It was already a mess in there.
Haedong Faction members lay bleeding from gunshot wounds, and a few presumed raiders were down too—but not many.
Precisely, Lee Kang-jin was the only Haedong survivor. He was shielding the three women I'd brought him behind his back, arms spread wide.
His leg was trembling, blood streaming down it—probably from a bullet wound.
The raiders watched him with amused grins.
The one who looked like their leader, gun trained on him, spoke up.
"If you'd just opened the door peacefully from the start, your men wouldn't have had to die."
"Hah... you bastards..."
"Get lost already. We've got plans for those women behind you. They're backed up enough as it is—plenty to keep a guy busy."
Without another word, the raider leader squeezed the trigger lightly at Lee Kang-jin. Flames spat from the muzzle as the bullet sped toward his forehead.
Bang!
The women behind Lee Kang-jin squeezed their eyes shut at the sight.
Lee Kang-jin kept his eyes open until the last moment, glaring at the raider leader with eyes full of resentment.
Everyone there probably pictured the bullet punching a hole in his forehead, sending him crumpling backward.
Ting!
But with the gunshot came the sound of the bullet ricocheting off something, pinging off to the side. It echoed through the room.
"Huh? What the hell? No way I missed at this range?"
The raider leader muttered in disbelief, seeing Lee Kang-jin standing unscathed.
And who could blame him? They were only about two meters apart.
Missing at that distance? Impossible.
Refusing to accept it, he aimed at Lee Kang-jin's body this time and unleashed a barrage.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
But every bullet struck something else before reaching him, veering away.
"What is this? What the hell's going on?"
As everyone stared in confusion, only Lee Kang-jin started to brighten, like he'd realized something.
"Could it be... Mr. Jaehwan?"
"Yeah, it's me. I'm here."
I slowly rose from Lee Kang-jin's shadow, revealing myself.
"Ah, ah! It really is you, Mr. Jaehwan!"
"Yeah, man. Sorry I'm so late."
I'd cast a barrier just before the first shot, saving him from the bullets.
Any later, and he'd have a hole in his forehead.
"Wh-what the? Where'd he come from?!"
"H-he just popped up from the floor!"
"Shit! What the hell are you?!"
The raiders who'd been chuckling at their leader's shooting froze in shock, swinging their guns toward me.
Normally, people would hesitate at my sudden appearance, threatening with guns while sizing things up. But these guys opened fire without a second's pause.
Over ten of them blasting away nonstop filled the room with gunfire.
"Wh-what's happening..."
But like with those rat bastards last time, regular bullets couldn't harm me.
A simple barrier around me kept every one at bay.
The enhanced rounds from the rats had nearly pierced it once, catching me off guard—but I could fend those off with focus.
Wary of that, I scanned them closely, but no enhanced ammo here.
A shame. I'd wondered how to get my hands on some.
Time to clean up everyone except the leader, maybe?
I could wipe them out with black magic, but wasting Demonic Energy on trash like this felt wrong. Better to handle it personally.
I reinforced the barrier over Lee Kang-jin's group and lunged forward, swinging a full-force punch at the farthest guy's head.
Thud!
He rocketed into the wall with a crash, the impact site caved in—skull clearly shattered.
That kicked off a total massacre in the room.
One by one, my fists crushed skulls, dropping them instantly. The survivors fired wildly at me.
Rat-tat-tat!
"U-uaaaagh! Get away! Stay back!"
Of course, it was useless against me.
One even shot his own teammate aiming at me. Saved me some effort.
Bouncing off walls and ceilings, I zipped around the room. In under a minute, all raiders save the leader were dead—by my hands or friendly fire.
The leader collapsed in place, tears beading in his eyes.
He couldn't believe it, probably.
I get it. Who'd imagine a monster like me dropping in out of nowhere?
As I approached slowly, he dropped his gun, slamming his forehead to the floor, begging in a whimpering voice.
"Sp-spare me! Please, spare my life!"
Typical for these types: other's lives are worth less than ants, but when it's theirs, they grovel pathetically.
Others' lives cheap, their own precious.
If you're gonna act like that, at least have the overwhelming power not to lose.
I glanced at Lee Kang-jin. He was glaring at the guy, face ready to explode.
No wonder—most of his men were gone.
I was about to stomp the bastard's head when an idea hit me.
"Hey, lift your head. I'm not killing you yet, so look up."
"Y-yes?"
At my baffling words, he tremblingly raised his head.
"All the guys outside—are they your men?"
He shot me a confused look at the sudden question, but when I raised my arm slightly, he blurted out,
"Y-yes! They are!"
"Anyone else running with your group besides those outside?"
"Y-yes..."
"Good. Then take me to them."
No way the raiders who hit here were the only ones. Might as well wipe them all out at once.
No reason to spare scum like this.
Plus, another use popped into mind.