Chapter 34
Chapter 34
A back road off Mapo-daero.
The place where a violent storm had just swept through was horrific.
For someone else it might have been a tragedy.
For me, it was an opportunity.
“Boss! One hundred meters ahead, three o’clock—four corpses! Firearms in good condition! Still warm!”
“Bring up the feed. Let’s check the condition first.”
“Yes. Honeybees deploying!”
Picker’s cheerful voice rang out.
Three Honeybee drones were spread high in the air in a fan formation, forming a surveillance net with no blind spots.
On the monitor in front of me, a perfect looting route was being drawn in real time, like watching a satellite map.
“Looks good. Move in.”
The moment my order dropped, a shadow waiting nearby began moving.
Our new companion—Porter.
Ziiing—
The heavy caterpillar tracks slid forward, suppressing the scraping noise against the ground.
It didn’t even need to stop.
Woooong—
The moment Porter approached the corpses, the space around the glowing red heart on its back shimmered.
The Spatial Tethering trait activated.
As if invisible hands had taken hold, the K-2 rifles, ammo rigs, and helmets scattered on the ground lifted into the air and vanished into Porter’s body.
Storage Received: K-2 Rifle
Storage Received: Ammo Harness
Storage Received: Ballistic Helmet
It was like a vacuum cleaner.
Before, I would have had to run over myself, pick things up, and haul them back while struggling with the weight.
But now?
Porter just passed by once, and the job was done.
“Skip the visual effects. Someone might notice.”
“…Understood, Master.”
Porter looked slightly dejected.
When items were pulled into Storage, the visual manifestation—objects floating or dissolving into light—could be skipped.
It consumed more energy, but staying unnoticed was far more important.
“Hey, bear! Where are you going? Open that corpse’s mouth! Gold tooth! You can sell that for a good price!”
Picker zoomed its camera into the corpse’s open mouth.
But Porter didn’t move.
“Declined. The gold tooth weighs less than five grams. It has no value.”
“What?! You idiot! Gold is expensive! Weight isn’t everything!”
“That collapsed wall’s H-beam… its heavy and beautiful mass is far more valuable.”
Porter’s sensor locked onto the building debris beside the body.
It seemed more interested in the concrete slabs and steel bars than the corpse itself.
“…Sigh.”
I rubbed my forehead.
One obsessed with shiny things.
One obsessed with weight.
What a perfect combination.
“Just collect weapons. We don’t have time. When the war ends, the winner will come to reclaim everything.”
This was a world where even spent shell casings were collected and recycled.
Storage Capacity: 305 kg / 1,000 kg
Barely ten minutes later, the once empty storage had already filled to thirty percent.
I reviewed the acquisition list with satisfaction.
K-2 Rifles ×12
Damaged K-3 Machine Gun
Damaged Grenade Launcher
Military Helmets
Tactical Vests
Flashbangs
Smoke Grenades
…
“…This is insane.”
Adding just one unit had completely changed the difficulty of scavenging.
Gear really did make all the difference.
“Time to dismantle some things.”
In the middle of a battlefield where hundreds had slaughtered one another, supplies were everywhere.
There was no reason to conserve materials.
Looking at the K-2 rifles taken from storage, I activated Disassembly without hesitation.
Previously, when I dismantled a single MP5 submachine gun, the lack of data had caused the attempt to fail.
But this time was different.
As I repeatedly dismantled dozens of K-2 rifles, the accumulated data began cross-verifying itself.
Knowledge poured into my mind.
The principle of bullets spinning through rifled barrels.
The gas piston mechanism that drove the bolt backward using propellant gas.
Ding!
Blueprint Acquired: 5.56mm Precision Rifled Barrel
Blueprint Acquired: Gas-Operated Rotating Bolt
Blueprint Acquired: K-2 Rifle
Now I could directly produce a proper service rifle with an effective range exceeding 600 meters.
But I wasn’t finished.
My gaze moved to the damaged K-3 machine gun beside it.
The barrel was warped and unusable scrap, but what I needed was its technology.
“With this, I can finally approach building an automatic turret.”
There was only one machine gun, but if I disassembled it after examining the structure, there was a good chance of obtaining the blueprint.
After all, I had already succeeded with the rifle.
I opened the machine gun’s cover and dismantled the belt-feeding system.
A complex arrangement of gears and linkages revealed itself.
Blueprint Acquired: Link Belt Feeding System
Blueprint Acquired: Quick-Swap Barrel
I clenched my fist.
A continuous stream of thousands of rounds without magazine changes.
The final puzzle piece for the automatic turret I had dreamed of.
After dismantling dozens of firearms, I felt it.
The disassembly experience was now sufficient.
All that remained was to use this knowledge to manufacture something new.
If that succeeded, my Work Protocol level would likely reach Level 3.
At that moment—
“Boss! Emergency! Multiple biological signals approaching from one hundred meters ahead!”
Picker’s voice turned urgent.
“They’re moving fast! Not passing raiders—mercenaries!”
I checked the screen.
A narrow alley.
Porter’s bulky frame had nowhere to hide.
If we tried to escape now, the noise from its tracks would give us away.
“Porter. Camouflage Mode.”
The moment the order was given, Porter dropped beside a pile of trash in the alley.
KRRRUM—
Its tracks folded into the chassis.
In an instant, Porter transformed into a collapsed chunk of concrete rubble.
Step. Step.
The sound of military boots approached.
Holding my breath, I stared at the monitor.
Six armed soldiers appeared at the alley entrance.
Gray digital camouflage uniforms.
Ponchos that blocked body heat.
Rifles fitted with suppressors.
My eyes narrowed.
I remembered them.
The same bastards who had shot at me earlier.
They walked past Porter—disguised as rubble—while exchanging short communications.
“Rear reconnaissance team—eliminated.”
“Roger. Flanking around to strike the Wolves from behind. We’ll move on Vulcan’s signal.”
Their movements had seemed too disciplined for ordinary fighters.
They looked more like a special operations unit specialized in assassination and disruption.
Those men were passing right beside Porter.
Then one of the mercenaries at the rear stopped.
My heart sank.
Had we been discovered?
He casually lifted one foot.
Then placed it right on top of the “rock”—Porter’s back.
“Damn.”
Startled.
He simply began tying his loosened bootlace.
I barely breathed.
If Porter even twitched or made a mechanical noise, combat would start immediately.
But—
Load detected: 85 kg. Light… but the weight sensation is acceptable. Please step harder.
“AH! That pervert! Boss! Is he enjoying this?!”
Picker shrieked.
I almost laughed despite the life-or-death tension.
Because of his Devotee of Weight persona, Porter was actually enjoying being stepped on and didn’t move at all.
Thanks to that, we weren’t discovered.
The mercenary finished tying his lace, stomped his foot twice, and rejoined the formation.
They left the alley without suspicion.
“Whew…”
Only then did I release my breath.
Cold sweat ran down my back.
“Picker.”
“Yes, Boss! We survived! Damn, that took ten years off my life.”
“Mark their positions in real time. Don’t lose them.”
My voice turned cold.
“Oh? Boss, you’re not letting them go?”
“I need to collect the debt from earlier.”
Thermal-Blocking Ponchos
Night Vision Goggles
“Their equipment isn’t ordinary.”
They felt different from normal mercenaries.
But I couldn’t just let equipment that might fill the gaps in my technology slip away.
“Picker. Predicted route?”
“At their current speed and direction, they’ll enter the alley behind Gongdeok Intersection, Sector F-7, in two minutes!”
I pictured the map in my head.
Sector F-7.
A narrow alley where collapsed commercial buildings overlapped like a sandwich.
Gunshots or explosions from the main road would be muffled by debris.
“Perfect.”
Even if a grenade exploded there, neither Pig nor Karambit’s main forces would notice.
And with only one exit, it was ideal for wiping them out.
“Porter. Move. Quietly as possible.”
“Understood. Concealing mass.”
Boom.
Porter adjusted the output of its tracks and slid into the darkness.
I issued the next order immediately.
“Honeybee units one through four. I’ll send coordinates—take positions in advance.”
The jamming device I used against Hammer before.
Back then it had been crude and bulky.
Now it was different.
I had successfully miniaturized the machine.
Miniature Broadband Jamming Module
It had already been installed into the Honeybee drones.
I now possessed a tool capable of turning any location into a communication blackout zone.
On the screen, the drones positioned themselves on a streetlamp, inside a rusted drainpipe, and behind a collapsed sign.
A perfect encirclement.
Now all that remained was for the rats to enter the trap.
“Boss! They’re entering!”
At Picker’s report, six mercenaries wearing gray ponchos appeared on screen.
Their movements were efficient.
Even their footsteps were silent.
Completely different from ordinary raider mobs.
Someone hired soldiers like that?
Something about it felt wrong.
With that level of discipline, they looked like the kind who operated under ideology or command rather than money.
They reached the middle of the alley—the kill zone I had prepared.
“Now. Start the jam—”
Just as I was about to give the order—
The mercenary at the front raised his fist and halted the formation.
Then he touched his ear.
He seemed to be communicating through an in-ear receiver.
“Wait, Boss! Signal interception! Let’s listen!”
Picker opened the audio channel.
Through static, a dry voice emerged.
“HQ. Current location: near Gongdeok Intersection. Target in sight.”
HQ?
Raiders usually called someone “Boss” or “Hyung.”
“Two hundred meters ahead. Karambit’s elite unit Wolves spotted at the rear. Standing by.”
The report was concise.
If they attacked now, they could ambush Karambit’s rear.
Pig would welcome that with open arms.
But—
“Negative. Hold position.”
The voice on the radio was firm.
“Repeat. Do not engage. The current battle situation must remain balanced.”
The mercenary frowned.
“Our objective is to prolong the chaos. Neither side must achieve decisive victory.”
I doubted my ears.
What did that mean?
Mercenaries hired by Pig… who didn’t want Pig to win?
“Karambit or Pig—it doesn’t matter. They’re both trash. Let them bleed each other dry. Over.”
“…Roger. Holding.”
The transmission ended.
The mercenaries lowered their rifles and melted into the alley shadows.
Like hunting dogs obeying their master.
A chill ran down my spine.
They weren’t ordinary mercenaries.
That tone.
That command structure.
And the arrogant word “targets.”
“…Could they be soldiers?”
Karambit’s coup.
Pig’s defense.
Perhaps the entire conflict was just a game played on the palm of the Korean military.
These people were far more dangerous than I thought.
But that only strengthened my resolve.
All the more reason not to let them live.
If they were military agents, their equipment would be top-tier.
And letting them roam near my workshop would be suicide.
I wiped my face and stared coldly at the monitor.
They had relaxed after receiving the hold order.
The perfect timing.
“Picker. Prepare the jamming.”
“Yes, Boss!”
“And Porter. Show them what you can do.”
“Leave it to me, Boss. I will educate them… heavily.”