Drone (2)
The silver spheres launched from the drone shot forward rapidly, smashing into the ground before bouncing up to about waist height and detonating right there.
There was no explosion sound, but as the silver orbs shattered in every direction, an enormous volume of liquid sprayed out wildly.
Tsssssssss!
“Gahhhhh! What the hell is this?! Fuck! Aaaagh!”
“Everyone, run! Run…! Don’t come near! Anyone who got hit, strip your clothes off now!”
It was hell unfolding before my eyes. The liquid eroded skin or clothing on contact, smoking furiously as it melted flesh and fabric at terrifying speed.
“This is a bit brutal.”
“Do-hyun-ssi! What’s happening?!”
“Don’t look up… It’s too gruesome.”
It was utter pandemonium. One soldier had stripped late, but the dissolving liquid already touching his skin had eaten through it fast, exposing bone as he flailed his arm, collapsing to his knees in agony.
Tsssssssss!
“Please…! Somebody help! Guh…!”
The man thrashed and screamed, then his eyes rolled back as foam bubbled from his mouth, and he collapsed.
Shifting my view briefly, I saw Han Seol peeking out like a meerkat, watching the chaos outside.
“Han Seol-ssi.”
“I-I didn’t see!”
“I know you did. Did that guy pass out from an Awakener’s survival instinct or something?”
“No… That looked like shock death.”
Shock death. My first time killing a person. But since I hadn’t done it with my own hands—using the drone instead—there was no guilt or unease. Strangely none at all.
Maybe I’d already adapted to this world’s morals, where murder no longer felt like a sin.
“Do-hyun-ssi! A drop hit Gwak Major too!”
I’d been distracted by the screaming soldiers and hadn’t checked on Gwak Dae-hoon.
“Hm…”
A single drop of dissolving liquid had splattered on Gwak Dae-hoon’s right arm. It smoked as it began melting his skin, but he just grimaced slightly—no more reaction.
Matching his arrogant demeanor, he seemed to have real skill. The other soldiers’ skin and bones melted away from one drop, but his arm eroded slowly. Even that stopped after about thirty seconds as the liquid’s effect wore off.
Five soldiers hit total, including Gwak Dae-hoon. One died from shock, he had minor skin and muscle damage but was fine otherwise, and the other three were down—without immediate treatment, they’d die.
One unlucky bastard took it in the back; his spine was exposed as he twitched unconscious.
The four unhit soldiers stared blankly at the drone for seconds before instinctively backing away from each other.
“This is problematic…”
Gwak Dae-hoon, arms crossed, shouted.
“Is that all?!”
I asked Han Seol, “On a scale of 1 to 10 in the Reconstruction Government’s Awakeners, where does Gwak Dae-hoon rank? 1 being weak, 10 the strongest.”
“Yes…”
“About a 6?”
Screeech.
“Point five.”
“Huh?”
“Byeol-ah! Why’d you come up?!”
Turning, Han Byeol staggered in, draped in a blanket.
“No, Han Byeol-ssi, you’re supposed to stay lying down.”
“Not a 6, more like 5.5… I was worried, so I came up.”
“You don’t seem in any state to worry about others… Han Seol-ssi, take her back down.”
“Yes!”
Han Byeol still seemed half-asleep. As I switched back to the drone’s view, ear-splitting gunfire erupted in bursts.
The soldiers had rifles trained on the drone.
“Major! It’s no use!”
They’d fired rifles at it, but the drone took zero damage.
Gwak Dae-hoon smirked, still arms crossed. “Doesn’t matter. Neat trick, but no way it’s unlimited. Can’t reuse it, so probably single-use.”
Wrong. Three shots left, and it recharges in 24 hours.
“I know it’s your last resort! Surrender now, and I’ll spare your life!”
Gwak Dae-hoon yelled with victory assured on his face.
“I’d like to say something too.”
Voice function activated.
“Huh?”
The drone could now broadcast my voice. This ability was sneakily fun—doling out info naturally while hiding gems like this until experienced firsthand.
“Can you hear me, Gwak Captain-nim?”
“It’s Gwak Dae-hoon Major…”
“Gwak Dae-hoon Major rolls off the tongue worse than Gwak Dae-hoon Captain—why go with Major?”
I cracked a lame joke, chuckling. Gwak Dae-hoon’s face hardened like our first meeting.
While bantering, I launched another drone, circling to approach from behind.
“Not rattled after your last attack failed? Still acting cocky. Surrender now—it’s not too late.”
“You’d kill me if I did. And let’s use polite speech. Orphan or not, you’re an adult; sorry for the casual talk yesterday.”
Gwak Dae-hoon clenched his jaw, biting his lower lip hard. His balled fists trembled, blood trickling from his lip—he was pissed.
Glarem-eyed, he snarled at the drone. “Fine… Let’s see who wins. Don’t regret passing up your last chance. When I catch you, I’ll beat you until you beg for death…”
“Major, behind you!”
The first drone held his attention for a backstab, but a soldier spotted the approaching second and pointed, yelling.
“Ah, busted.”
No matter. Still in range. Bang bang bang!
Sporadic shots might miss Gwak Dae-hoon. I fired all three remaining dissolving shots straight at him simultaneously.
His eyes bulged. He’d never dreamed it could fire three more times.
And he’d die never knowing it recharges tomorrow.
“Die here.”
Tsssssssss!
“Gahhhhh! Aaaagh! Guuaaaagh!”
“Major! Major! You fucking idiot Kim! Don’t just stare—get water! Water!”
“Y-yes…!”
One hit his forehead, one his chest, the last his thigh. It didn’t pierce his skin, but the silver beads exploded on contact, unleashing the liquid.
Gwak Dae-hoon dropped to his knees, screaming. Damage too severe to assess—his body shrouded in smoke, horrific melting sounds and shrieks leaking out.
Soldiers frantically dumped bucket after bucket of water from the tent over him.
Tsssssssss!
But the water made the smoke worse.
“Spraying water doesn’t help…”
“Major! Major!”
“Guhhh…”
Even the screams faded. After thirty seconds, the sizzling stopped, smoke cleared, revealing Gwak Dae-hoon.
“Ugh…”
His body half-melted, bones fully exposed. The head shot was fatal—skull half-gone. Too gruesome to keep watching. Like dunking a normal human in lava for thirty seconds.
The charred meat lump that was no longer Gwak Dae-hoon slumped lifelessly.
The remaining four soldiers stared at the corpse in silence for ten seconds. Then one broke.
“R-run!”
They scattered in different directions.
“Dissolving ammo spent for today anyway. But soldiers fleeing instead of retreating? Fleeing…”
“Do-hyun-ssi! I heard screams outside—did you…?!”
Descending from the roof, Han Seol rushed over, face full of worry.
“He’s dead.”
“Pardon?”
“Gwak Dae-hoon Captain—no, Major—is dead.”
“Oh.”
Han Seol wordlessly hugged me. Her trembling meant she was crying again.
“Thank you…”
“I’ll limit ‘thank you’ to once a day from now on.”
“Sorry.”
“‘Sorry’ too…”
I silently patted her back. Han Byeol, sprawled on the sofa, gave a shaky thumbs-up. She wasn’t normal either.
After ten minutes of hugging, I redeployed the drone to recover their left-behind gear. Even hauled the corpses far away with its claws—surprisingly easy, though the mangled bodies nearly tore apart from their own weight, so I went slow before dumping them.
While out, I scouted farther. Twenty minutes out, I spotted people clearing roads—not military in civvies, not slaves as they laughed, drank water, worked orderly. Over fifty, efficiently shoving wrecked cars and boulders aside.
Reopening roads for vehicles? Didn’t get close lest the drone be spotted, and returned home.
The abandoned tent held weapons and ammo. Wooden crates full of grenades. Only snagged two rifles from inside—the soldiers’ had melted from the liquid.
“So many weapons…”
Han Seol beamed at the drone-delivered crates.
“You like guns that much?”
“Not really, but now if enemies invade like today, I can fight too…”
With the barrier and dissolving drone, were rifles even useful?
“Oh!”
Browsing boxes of military gear like greatswords and canteens indifferently, the last one made me cheer.
“Do-hyun-ssi? What’s in there?”
“Yeah, one of the things I’ve been hunting.”
“What is it?”
Han Seol approached, curious at my reaction.
“This… this is it.”
“Yes, exactly what I wanted. Reconstruction Government’s got it—stockpiling crates of this. I’d half-given up since it’s been scarce lately.”
I picked one up from the box.
“That good, huh?”
“Yep.”
The Fruit Cocktail can gleamed under the light. My life’s joy: evening bowl of ice-chilled fruit cocktail while reading. Three months dry since running out. Crossroads faction tried subbing pineapple cans, claiming MREs better—but I ignored tasteless high-calorie junk. Basement overflowed with MREs already. Beef and BBQ sauce ones were edible.
“Han Seol-ssi, Fruit Cocktail party tonight.”
“Pardon? Ah, yes…”
She tilted her head at my glee over cans versus weapons, then smiled and headed to the kitchen for bowls.