Dinosaur (1)
Im Hae-jun looked around the village. There were many civilians bustling about, and even children. Perhaps because of that, the place felt cozy, a stark contrast to the grim reality of the war zone.
"...What are those?"
Strange scarecrows were hanging from the ceilings of almost every building. In the workshop, elderly villagers gathered to carve well-dried wood into arrows, while the breathless shouts of soldiers training echoed from the parade ground.
Taking in the sights as he walked, he soon arrived at the town hall.
Im Hae-jun and the three mercenaries stepped inside. Seol Ha-woon was standing beside a large tactical map board.
"You're here."
The map on the board caught Hae-jun's eye. He quickly fumbled inside his inner pocket.
"Huh? Hyung, isn't that mine?"
"Yeah, it is. Come over here. We need to draw up a plan first."
Ha-woon gestured for them to join him. Everyone gathered around the tactical board.
Kim Yong-tae made the first suggestion.
"How about we deal with the crystals closest to our base first?"
"No. Rather than crystals we can handle at any time..."
Ha-woon pointed to a different location.
"...we strike the crystals that pose the greatest threat to our base."
The enemy's crystals spawned monsters. Therefore, it was only logical to remove the blade pointed at their backs first.
"These nine crystals located behind us."
Looking at the map, there were indeed nine crystals positioned behind the village.
"Yes, that makes sense," Kim Yong-tae agreed.
Kim Yong-tae nodded in agreement.
"Our immediate priority is scouting. Is anyone here experienced with riding horses?"
"I can manage," said Iroquois, an A-rank mercenary.
"In that case..."
Ha-woon pulled out a telescope—the village chief's most prized possession.
"I'll leave the scouting to you. We need to pinpoint the exact locations of the crystals and map out the most efficient route."
"Understood."
Im Hae-jun stood a step back, watching them discuss the strategy without a single hitch—or rather, watching Seol Ha-woon hand down orders.
"Considering not just the entry points, but the escape routes as well..."
It was incredibly natural. The way the mercenaries hung on his every word.
These were the same people who had harbored no shortage of suspicion toward Hae-jun and had even complained openly at times. Now, there wasn't a trace of that attitude left. Talk about a complete cleanup.
"Yes. Yes. Understood."
They were perfect yes-men, nodding along as if they didn't have a single opinion of their own. That guy Kim Yong-tae, in particular, looked like a rabbit with its ears perked up, terrified of missing even a single syllable.
"..."
Standing in a place like this, Hae-jun was suddenly forced to admit something.
There are things in this world that people are simply born with. Talents that cannot be replicated, no matter how hard one tries to copy them.
Just as a crowtit could never stride like a stork without tearing its legs...
"Hey."
Ha-woon suddenly pointed in his direction.
"M-Me?"
"Who else? What are you doing over there? Get over here. You're the one in charge."
"...Ah, right! I'm the leader!"
Hae-jun rushed over in a hurry.
"Listen carefully. For now, this is the scouting route on the map. It might change depending on the situation on the ground, though."
"Should I go scout?"
Ha-woon tilted his head at Hae-jun's question.
"Can you ride a horse?"
"It's been my hobby since I was four."
"Oh... good. Then Iroquois and Im Hae-jun, you two go. They're thoroughbreds, so they'll run fast, and there's no time to break them in."
With that, he handed over some tickets. One to Iroquois, and the other to Hae-jun.
"Tear it if you feel you're in extreme danger. It'll teleport you back to this base."
"Whoa. Master, is this a gacha item?"
"Yeah. Return it when the scouting is done."
"Yes, sir... Oh, right. Master. Look at this—two beads and some weird fragments. They dropped when we smashed the crystal."
Hae-jun pulled his contribution out of his pocket: mana stone fragments and two beads.
"The fragments are your loot, so keep them. We'll take the beads."
"Sure. What are you going to use the beads for? Food?"
"No. We used them to build weapons."
"...Toilets?"
"Yeah."
"Ah~ like flush toilets? Well, sanitation is important."
"No, you idiot. Weapons. We have ballistas."
Thanks to the Snack Box, we were able to utilize nearly seventy to eighty percent of the calories from beast bones, which would normally be impossible for humans to digest.
But in exchange, almost all the monsters from the east were swarming toward us, forcing us to invest our beads into defensive fortifications.
"Follow me out."
"Yes, sir."
Everyone stepped outside.
"Oh, right. What are those scarecrows, Master? I'm curious."
"They're teleportation scarecrows."
"Teleportation...? Is that a brand name or something?"
"Too lazy to explain. Just follow me."
Ha-woon added a new spell formula to the scarecrows.
Since the scarecrow blueprint was literally just a 'blueprint,' he had added his Cognitive Image to it, much like editing a line of code.
The programmed function was teleportation.
As long as an object fell under the category of a 'scarecrow,' Kesu-abi and Yun-suabi could transfer their consciousness to it at any time.
In other words, if anything happened inside the village, the Kesu-abi and Yun-suabi stationed on the walls could instantly shift their minds to the scarecrows hanging from the ceilings.
"Alright. Mount up."
In the meantime, they had arrived at the stables. Ha-woon brought out two of the sturdiest horses for Hae-jun and Iroquois.
Both of them mounted up with practiced ease.
"You really know how to ride."
"Did you think I was lying to you?"
Hae-jun chuckled, gripping the reins tight.
Kieeeeeek...
Suddenly, a dismal sound drifted in on the wind. A creepy, unpleasant resonance that felt like a dark fog creeping over them.
It was the precursor to a wave.
"Looks like the third wave is coming soon."
"Should we help you defend?"
"No. That would defeat the purpose. The strike team needs to move while the wave is starting. Smashed crystals mean less pressure on the base. That means your role is crucial."
Ha-woon looked at Hae-jun and the mercenaries.
"Yes. Understood."
"Got it."
Everyone nodded solemnly, but Hae-jun couldn't help but feel a little annoyed at how Kim Yong-tae was looking at Ha-woon like he was the most reliable savior in the world.
I wish he'd treat me with half that respect.
The western base.
Kate received the beads from Kang Hyun's party.
"Good work."
However, there wasn't much she could do for them. She could only offer a warm meal, a bed, and a steaming cup of hot black tea.
"Thank you."
It was a three-person party consisting of Kang Hyun, Ryu Yeon-hwa, and Lee Shin-hye.
They had only hired three porter mercenaries, investing the rest of their resources into food packages and high-grade gacha draws.
"By the way, is the food supply here holding up?"
Ryu Yeon-hwa asked with concern.
"It's tight, but our food supply team is doing an excellent job."
"It must be tough. The civilians..."
Everyone looked out the window. It seemed as though all the civilians from the west had gathered here. Originally numbering over a hundred, more had kept pouring in until there were nearly two hundred of them.
"Actually, they've been a help. The civilians have organized themselves into a system."
They played significant roles, from gathering wild greens and herbs to hunting and scouting.
"And the location itself is highly advantageous."
Kate had chosen this village deliberately. Its geography was naturally suited for defense, and she had managed to fortify it into a desperate stronghold.
Yeon-hwa took a sip of her tea.
"This is delicious. Thank you. Ah, right. Did you manage to get through to the S-rank mercenaries?"
Kate smiled bitterly as she replied.
"Yes."
"That's a relief. Ryu Wei was eliminated, apparently. The S-rank mercenary he went to such trouble to hire refused to listen to him..."
Yeon-hwa fiddled with her phone.
"How did you manage yours, Kate?"
"..."
Kate fell silent, lost in thought for a moment.
She had hired three S-ranks: Alice, Kellinic, and Min Seok-jae.
Alice had been cooperative from the start, but Min Seok-jae and Kellinic were the problems.
"How should I put it..."
Kate quietly recalled the past.
"It ended well," Kate replied, taking a sip of her tea as she finished her recollection.
"More importantly, the issue is food."
In truth, the civilians were the problem. Even if they used their beads to buy rice, one bead only yielded half a sack of rice. That wasn't even enough for a single day. On the other hand, hunting wild beasts yielded at most two or three animals a day.
Even if they rationed their stored food to the absolute limit... three days was their maximum.
"I see. Is there really no other way?"
Ryu Yeon-hwa's expression grew serious as well. Kang Hyun thought silently.
We just need to reduce the number of mouths to feed.
The easiest way is to kill the civilians. If we cling to them, this base is unsustainable.
But he must not say it out loud.
That was the 'code' of the education he had received.
Gooooo...
The air shifted. A chilling sound echoed in the distance.
"The third wave is about to begin."
Kate rose from her seat.
"Get ready to head out, everyone."
The timing for offense and defense was split. While the monsters swarmed the base, the offenders had to strike and destroy the crystals.
If they failed to do so, they would be stuck defending forever until they eventually collapsed.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The ballistas—automatic crossbows built using the beads—fired dozens of arrows in rapid succession.
Weapons enhanced with my destruction-reinforcement spell formula. Their performance was undeniable. The four ballistas in total were showing incredible cost-efficiency.
"...More enemies incoming!"
However, the number of arrows was limited, so they couldn't afford to waste them.
I preheated my mana. Hundreds of bullets materialized in the empty air behind my back. I fired them all at once.
Shwaaaaa—!
The battle raged on amidst the barrage.
It was tedious yet brutal. The number of monsters grew by the day. More today than yesterday, and even more tomorrow.
Slowly, my mana recovery speed was struggling to keep up.
If I hadn't trained the civilians as Akiman suggested, or if I had hastily converted the beads into food, I would have been in a real bind.
"...Looks like it's over for today."
How many hours had passed?
By the time everyone was exhausted, and dark circles hung heavy under my eyes, the morning sun finally rose.
Time to sleep.
For the record, I slept in the same quarters as the soldiers. This was to maximize the effect of the Dream Bubble.
"Lord Inspector!!!"
Sergeant Hyeon Dan appeared from outside the walls. Having filled her basket to the brim today as well, she hopped over and said:
"A person! I went out to gather herbs and found a person, I tell ya! Someone carrying a massive sword on their back! It was too heavy, so I hid 'em away for now!"
"Right. Mobile unit."
I stopped the elites who were about to change their clothes.
"I'm counting on you."
"Yes, sir!"
Despite their exhaustion, they answered energetically and set off with Hyeon Dan.
Judging by the description, it was likely an offender.
Im Hae-jun had been found by Sergeant Hyeon Dan in a similar manner.
For now, keeping the offenders alive was crucial. They were still combat assets.
No matter how pathetic or foolish they were, I had to help them.
Saving even one more person made things easier for everyone. It was just like a group project. If you kicked someone out or let them fail just because they were annoying, it would ultimately end up hurting everyone.
"...Inspector!"
Before long, the mobile unit returned, running with a man slung over one of their backs. I recognized his face immediately.
"Do you know him?"
"Yes."
The guy who had been with me during the early stages of the unexplored cargo labyrinth.
"He's a warrior. Bring him inside."
The A-Tier warrior, Lee Jong-su.