Chapter 267
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 267
Chapter Title: Enemies Immune to Bullets and Shells
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Enemies impervious to bullets and shells.
They were nothing short of a disaster, and whenever such monsters appeared, the generals had no choice but to grit their teeth, abandon the territory they'd reclaimed from the monsters, and issue retreat orders.
It was heartbreaking, but what could they do when they had no weapons that worked against them?
"Ghost-type monster! Why the hell don't bombs or airstrikes work on those bastards at all! Grim Reaper! ...Because of that thing, my division's troops...! My promotion...!! My dream of pinning on four stars!! Guh, grrrk...."
"Whoa! The division commander's clutching his neck and collapsing again! Call the medic! Medic!"
The reason humanity hadn't been utterly wiped out by those monsters was that, in such moments, survivors of the Tower's trials—or superhumans, now collectively called 'Awakened'—stepped up as humanity's protectors.
Now, in Korea, those who specialized in dealing with monsters were starting to be called 'Hunters.' For a fee, they took care of monsters hostile to humanity that bullets and shells couldn't touch.
(Or they were affiliated with government agencies or the Ministry of National Defense, operating as dedicated monster special forces.)
Humanity caught its breath thanks to the Awakened..., but defense ministry generals around the world suffered a severe blow to their pride.
The army, meant to protect the people and the nation, had lost its original purpose. Now, whenever ghost-types, spirit-types, or shielded monsters that repelled bullets and shells appeared, they had to run away crying like kids scared of ghosts. It was a bitter reality.
Some unorthodox elements in the military—not the mainstream traditionalists—proposed forming special units made up of Hunters to counter them, and most countries were indeed doing just that.
But just as wuxia novels had righteous sects and demonic cults, so too did the military have its righteous and unrighteous factions.
The Hunter special units they advocated were demonic paths, and those pushing for them were from the demonic cults.
The righteous path must always walk the pure, unwavering way of justice.
The moment you picked up the 'magic sword' of a Hunter special unit just to win, you became demonic.
In other words, 'ordinary humans' had to defeat the enemy with 'weapons ordinary humans could use.'
For example, like in fantasy movies or dramas, plating bullets with silver and enchanting them?
Only then could you be seen as a true, pure-hearted scholar..., no, a defense ministry general, not some unorthodox heretic.
This wasn't just a Korean mindset; defense ministry generals worldwide thought similarly.
(Some pointed out it might be because they didn't want Hunters taking the pie of national defense, but let's move on.)
But just because everyone thought alike didn't mean it was proven effective.
"Still no results from the Defense Science Research Institute? On imbuing bullets or rifles with magical effects. It's been ages since we placed the request—why no word yet? What the hell are those bastards doing, sucking down salaries safe in the rear while our boys are dying out there? What the fuck are they even doing? Haa..., shit...."
"...As far as we know, no significant progress yet. Even the Americans, who invest several times more in this field than us, haven't reported anything special. So either the direction is wrong from the start..., or we need enchanters or alchemists far beyond what we've imagined—true experts in higher-dimensional magic...."
"Haa, what a fucking..., every time those ghost monsters show up, we get our asses handed to us and run like hell, morale among the frontline troops and junior officers is in the toilet. We're soldiers, damn it. Abandoning the sacred soil of the homeland and just running? What kind of bullshit is this? We haven't even fought properly. This isn't the war I've known all my life.... I'd rather the North Korean army come pushing in. This fucking crap...."
"Commander. Maybe we should form a dedicated special unit using magic items and artifacts available on the market...."
"Hey, what have I been saying all this time? Then how are we any different from those so-called Hunters or the new monster-specialized special forces?"
"... ."
"And don't you know the magic items and artifacts on the market are all melee weapons? Different lengths, different weights, all over the place. Plus, artifacts are picky about users. Some can use them, some can't. And the price? You gonna buy it with your money? Tiny things cost hundreds of millions or billions, and decent ones run tens or hundreds of billions."
"...My apologies. That was out of line."
"...Yeah, fine. Price we can deal with. If it's useful, we buy it even if expensive. Tanks cost over 100 billion these days. No reason not to. With our men dying, we gotta raise hell with the president, congress, and chief of staff to get 'em fast. ...But then what? You gonna pick up a sword and fight? Send conscripts who've done 18 months of basic training charging at ghost monsters that slaughter dozens or hundreds, armed with just some sword and shield? Buying magic swords doesn't equip everyone."
"I..., s-sorry...."
"Forget all the shooting drills and tactics we've trained our boys on so far and start over with swordsmanship for everyone? You gonna teach it? You know how to handle a sword and shield? You know it takes years to master them properly? Think that'll work with 18-month conscripts?"
"... ."
"And you'd have to learn cold weapon tactics from scratch yourself. Might as well leave it to civilian Hunters or the monster special forces. They've survived the Tower's trials or whatever, swinging swords and spears inside for decades. ...Haa, fuck. Contact the Defense Science Research Institute in my name. See what's going on, how far the research has come."
"Yes, sir. Understood, General."
Defense ministry generals worldwide were getting thoroughly toyed with by ghost-type monsters, spirit-types, shielded monsters, and the like, repeating nothing but retreats by their standards.
But was a sliver of light finally shining on them?
In their view, from tiny South Korea in East Asia, they'd 'discovered' a weapon usable by ordinary humans that worked on monsters immune to normal weapons—and it operated via the very familiar mechanism of 'explosion.'
Sniff sniff. This smells like gunpowder, familiar to modern military generals.
"...Th-this is. Masaka.... Sonna...."
"Ahh..., the Lord hasn't forsaken us."
The generals hadn't asked for much during this dire, chaotic time.
Just a 'weapon ordinary people could use after proper training (conventional force integration possible),' reasonably priced (Cost) for adequate deployment across the military with 'logistics supply' feasible, and above all, performance (ROC) satisfying operational needs.
In short, something that could be 'standardized' for modern armies.
"Ooh..., these.... These 'Explosion Potions' and 'Gas Potions'.... What if we repackage them separately, or use them as high-explosive or gas munitions instead?"
"Like diluting Healing Potions. What if these can be diluted too?"
"This..., could work...?" (Standardization)
"Strictly speaking, even as-is, they're like high-explosive grenades or poison gas shells, right? And they work on monsters normal weapons don't?"
"If it's weapons like bombs or poison gas..., no need for extra special training?"
"Exactly. Immediate force integration possible. Description says throwable as ranged projectiles, so low risk of friendly casualties too.... Buy a few for testing, run experiments, extract data, deploy in combat, and...."
The 'Explosion Potions' and 'Gas Potions' listed at the Hunter Auction—which had been generating national buzz lately—caught the eye of military generals.
And their reliability was backed by early adopter foreign Hunter YouTubers who'd pre-ordered, used them, and posted real-user reviews.
To generals schooled that superior weapon systems and smooth logistics were the lifeblood of modern militaries, this was utterly natural and familiar.
So defense ministry generals worldwide clapped each other on the back, feeling like the world was finally righting itself.
(They didn't actually hug—stinky dudes like that don't embrace. It's just a figure of speech.)
This was taken as proof that the philosophy of 'things will return to their proper course' held even in this monster-infested era.
How could they not rejoice?
And so, defense ministries worldwide hit the buy button on the Hunter Auction's 'Explosion Potions' and 'Gas Potions.'
All items sold out
Sorry. All items have just sold out.
Sorry. All items have just sold out.
"...Huh? ...Why? Sold out?"
"Hey, didn't they say we could buy? That's why I said order fast."
"...Who the hell bought them all at once? Who'd blow that much cash.... Wait, the guy who just bought them all posted a thumbs-up review before even receiving them? Is he mocking us now that we've been outbid? Buyer..., ...United States Army Materiel Command. Whoa...."
"......"