Chapter 79
Chapter 79
After the war between the Karambit faction and the Pig faction, and after the raiders who had been staying there were cleared out by the military, Mapo Police Station had become a ruin.
At its center, four men and women sat with their heads together, using the dented hood of a half-destroyed patrol car as a table.
They were Yoon Imsu and the engineering team leaders who had defected from Guro Foundry.
Team Leader Lee Mira dragged a sharp stone across the hood, drawing lines without hesitation.
Screech—scratch.
The grating sound was unpleasant, but the eyes watching her were serious.
“The original police station building is reinforced concrete, so the frame itself is sturdy. But the exterior walls are the problem. Once it becomes a battlefield with bullets flying everywhere, the concrete will crumble quickly.”
Lee Mira tapped the hood and looked toward Han Daeman.
“Director Han. If we compress about two hundred scrapped cars, can you produce 30-millimeter mild steel plates?”
Han Daeman, whose thick forearms were smeared with grease, clasped his hands and nodded.
“That’s possible. With my Metal Compression trait, even scrap mixed with impurities can be pressed into ballistic-grade strength. With that thickness we can create a sandwich armor structure for the outer walls. Ordinary rifle rounds won’t even scratch it.”
“Good. Let’s handle the outer wall like that.”
This time Kim Jihoon, a young man with a boyish face but sharp eyes, spoke up.
“Team leader, what’s the point if we only build the outer wall? That creates blind spots. The key to defensive warfare is overlapping fields of fire. We should cut firing ports at a 15-degree downward angle at every window on each floor. It’ll also help with reconnaissance.”
He gestured in the air as if carving something.
“With my Milling Hands trait, I can carve the concrete walls like cheese.”
“Then we can seal the original window frames with steel plates.”
Yoon Imsu nodded in satisfaction.
“Jihoon will refine the interior, and Director Han will handle the outer wall. That should solve the defense issue.”
Life returned to their eyes.
At Guro Foundry, they had been treated as expendable tools, forced to replace parts whenever Choi Manseok demanded it.
But the Bomber had entrusted them with the critical mission of building a shelter.
And he said he wouldn’t interfere at all.
If they needed support, they only had to ask.
In the ruined world, everyone lived with a constant sense of helplessness.
Ten years had passed since the Descent, yet people still survived merely by hiding from mutants.
So when meaningful work appeared, motivation naturally surged.
As the meeting was ending, Han Daeman spoke hesitantly.
“By the way… Team Leader Lee.”
“Yes?”
“About that kid Jinwoo in the Machine Society. What are we going to do about him? Shouldn’t we bring him here?”
For a moment Lee Mira’s hand froze over the hood.
Lee Jinwoo.
Her only son.
And one of the front-line platoon leaders of the Machine Society.
After losing her husband during the Descent, he had become a warrior driven by hatred, charging recklessly whenever he saw mutants.
Hearing her son’s name, which she had tried not to think about, made her eyes waver.
Sensing the tension, Yoon Imsu spoke.
“Platoon Leader Lee Jinwoo is a C-rank Awakened, one of the Machine Society’s top combat soldiers. With that level of strength, our lord would not refuse him. He might even welcome him.”
The atmosphere subtly brightened.
Most of the engineers here had left families behind in Guro Foundry or the Yeongdeungpo area.
They desperately wanted to bring them here.
They couldn’t bear to enjoy such luxury alone.
But—
“Don’t misunderstand.”
Lee Mira’s voice cut through the room like cold water.
“Does the Bomber look like a charity worker to you?”
Silence fell.
They remembered why they had been spared.
And what the hot water and white T-shirts symbolized.
“We’re here because we’re useful. Did you forget that?”
Her words struck the same guilt and fear one might feel thinking about family left behind in a hostile land.
She bit her lower lip and continued.
“Jinwoo… that kid loses control whenever he sees mutants. Even ignores orders. The Sergeant or Jibgae might tolerate that out of pity…”
She shook her head.
“But do you think the Bomber would tolerate such an unpredictable variable? If Jinwoo causes trouble and ruins his plans, it won’t end with him alone. All of us might be… dis—”
She stopped herself and changed the word.
“…expelled.”
But everyone had heard it.
Disposed of.
Lee Mira glared at the others.
“Fortunately, most of your families have skills or can take care of themselves. After we prove our value here, we can cautiously make a request. But for now—do not even mention it.”
A ruthless line drawn for survival.
But no one could criticize her.
This was the ruined world.
And their master was not a benevolent saint.
He was the Bomber.
Elsewhere
Watching the training ground displayed on one of the hundred monitors, I gave a bitter smile.
Through the Honeybee drones, their conversation had been transmitted word for word.
Team Leader Lee Mira has good judgment.
She was right.
For ten years I had experienced situations like that countless times.
The relatives of officers.
The families of Awakened.
Parasites who contributed nothing but complained about their meals.
While people like me—who actually kept the shelter running—had our rations reduced to feed them.
I would never allow that inside my domain.
“Boss! Did you hear that?”
Picker pointed at Lee Mira on the screen.
“Those freeloaders aren’t worth even 0.1% battery power! Parasites should be fried! Zap them with electricity until they work!”
“I agree.”
Porter, charging quietly in the corner, spoke with a deep mechanical hum.
“Those who cannot carry their own weight… are lighter than garbage. Those who bear no burden have no place in Atlas.”
Even Shadow, hanging from the ceiling, flashed its red sensors.
“Inefficiency detected. Immediate removal recommended.”
The AI drones sounded terrifying.
But they were echoing my true thoughts.
I leaned back in my chair.
“Don’t worry.”
Looking at Lee Mira and the engineers returning to their drawings, I felt certain.
They understood my standards perfectly.
“There will be no freeloaders within my territory. The situation she fears will never happen.”
Family or not—
Anyone who cannot earn their keep will be removed.
He who does not work shall not eat.
That would be the first law of Atlas.
Nightfall
Clang! Crash!
Bzzzz—
The ruins of Mapo Police Station were filled with construction noise late into the night.
Han Daeman used Metal Compression to squeeze scrap cars into armor plates.
Kim Jihoon used Milling Hands to carve firing ports into the concrete walls.
The blueprint Lee Mira had drawn on the ground was becoming reality.
“This side is finished.”
“Then let’s move to the next section.”
The engineers worked tirelessly.
But when the sun set and darkness fell, their enthusiasm cooled.
“…It’s getting dark.”
Someone muttered.
All the engineers looked up.
Their faces turned pale.
Mapo Police Station was still a ruin with open sides.
They had three Awakened—including Yoon Imsu—and basic weapons provided by the Bomber.
But if mutants or raiders attacked at night, a group of production-type Awakened would struggle to defend themselves.
Hmm… what should we do?
Yoon Imsu was pondering the same question.
Then—
Footsteps.
Heavy ones.
From the darkness.
It was the Bomber.
“Stop work for today. Follow me.”
His distorted mechanical voice gave no explanation.
He turned and walked toward the waste hill south of Ahyeon Station, beside Mapo Police Station.
Yoon Imsu quickly gestured.
The engineers hurriedly gathered their tools and followed.
They arrived at a slope on the waste hill.
At first glance, it looked like nothing but piles of trash.
But the Bomber lifted a refrigerator aside.
Beneath it was a familiar steel door.
A container-style bunker like the one they had once been imprisoned in.
Creeeak—
The door opened.
Warm air and bright lights spilled out.
“Temporary lodging. Go inside and rest. I’ll come for you after sunrise tomorrow.”
He spoke indifferently and closed the door once everyone had entered.
Thud.
The sound of the refrigerator being moved back to block the entrance was faint.
The engineers stepped inside cautiously.
Then they froze.
“Wh—what is this…?”
Doors lined both sides of a long corridor.
Like a pre-apocalypse dormitory or business hotel.
Han Daeman opened one with trembling hands.
“…!”
The room was small—about ten square meters.
But inside—
Soft mattresses with dazzling white sheets and thick blankets.
Gentle LED lights.
And even a shower booth with steam rising.
“H—hot water!”
One engineer screamed after turning the shower.
Guro Foundry had water.
But it was industrial water.
Not heated water burning precious fuel.
Fuel was scarce even for machines.
Yet here hot water poured instantly.
That wasn’t all.
On a small table in each room sat foil-wrapped food and a bottle of yellow liquid.
[Smoked Beak-Chicken Barbecue]
[High-Concentration Vitamin Drink]
The smell of meat filled the air.
The engineers’ stomachs growled.
One engineer grabbed a drumstick and bit.
“…sob…”
Before he even chewed, tears rolled down his face.
At Guro Foundry they were treated as technicians.
But they slept wherever space allowed.
Meals were usually bland mutant-meat soup.
One whole Beak-Chicken with barbecue sauce?
That was luxury.
Mattresses and blankets were also luxuries.
Only VIPs used such things.
Yet they were given this treatment before even proving themselves.
The room fell silent.
Warm water.
Clean clothes.
Full stomachs.
The human life they had longed for was here.
Yoon Imsu.
Lee Mira.
Han Daeman.
Kim Jihoon.
All four leaders felt the same shock.
They had already been stunned by the shower room earlier.
But seeing it again was overwhelming.
“…Amazing.”
Lee Mira murmured.
“Private rooms, hot water, meat… for dozens of people.”
This wasn’t simply a matter of money.
The bunker had clearly been installed while they worked.
“The Bomber… the force behind him must be far greater than we imagined.”
Later
After settling the engineers in the bunker, I returned to the Mapo Police Station training ground.
“Let’s see.”
I examined the steel plates Han Daeman had compressed.
[Compressed High-Strength Mild Steel Plate]
[Grade: E+]
[Armor plate created by compressing scrap from 200 vehicles.]
It was denser and stronger than plates I had produced with Manufacture.
Next I inspected the firing ports carved by Kim Jihoon.
Just as he promised—
perfect 15-degree downward firing angles, with less than 0.01 mm error.
“Hah.”
I laughed quietly.
Honestly, they were more precise than anything I could make with the system.
This was the power of skilled production-type Awakened.
Curious, I placed my hand on the steel plate.
“Disassemble.”
With a blue glow, the plate vanished.
Information flooded my mind.
[Blueprint acquired: Compressed High-Strength Mild Steel Plate]
“Just as expected.”
I activated Manufacture again.
Using the blueprint, I recreated the steel plate exactly where it had been.
Perfect restoration.
Or rather—
duplication.
My ability was universal.
With materials, I could recreate anything whose blueprint I possessed.
But obtaining those blueprints was the real challenge.
Even with system assistance, creative design and specialized craftsmanship had limits.
But these engineers were different.
Han Daeman’s Metal Compression.
Kim Jihoon’s Milling Hands.
They poured ten years of experience into their work.
And when I disassembled their creations?
I obtained the blueprint containing their expertise—for free.
“Interesting.”
If they developed better technologies—
I would gain higher-grade blueprints.
Meaning the more talented production-type Awakened I recruited, the more my technology library expanded.
“I could do everything alone…”
But efficiency would be far lower.
Gather talented engineers.
Absorb their ideas.
Mass-produce them with my overwhelming production capability.
That was clearly the path forward.
“Hmm.”
For now, their abilities were proven.
“Definitely worth nurturing.”
“Yeah. Let them work comfortably for now.”