Raid Rewards
The glowing items lay scattered among the ashes left behind by the salamander. Ignite Essence. Flame Skill Spellbook. Ignite.
◈ Pure crystallized flame energy
◈ Unlocks fire-type tower branches
◈ Contains advanced fire magic
◈ Extremely rare drop
◈ Transformed Akenite infused with salamander flame
◈ Releases intense fire upon impact
“Whoa!”
I hadn’t expected anything like this. Jackpot. The essence alone was incredible. “Damn, this actually dropped.”
Skill books themselves almost never appeared, so I never imagined getting a spellbook. Even back on Server 1, I’d only seen one once. Still, it wasn’t better than my Random Tower Summon skill. I didn’t have enough skill points to use it properly anyway.
Should I just hold onto it? No rush.
I could sell it for a good price or give it to someone useful later. The moment I picked up the spellbook and the essence, a message appeared.
Skill Tree unlock condition has been met.
“What just got unlocked?”
I opened the skill tree. It was the Flame-Type Tower Summon in the summoning tab. The slot that had been completely blacked out before. The requirement listed was acquiring the Ignite Essence.
Flame-Type Tower Summon
Adds flame-type towers to Random Tower Summon.
First-time bonus: Guaranteed 1 flame-type tower every 10 consecutive summons.
I learned it without hesitation. The Ignite Essence was consumed instead of skill points.
“It needs ten stacks, huh. I’ll summon once the stacks build up. And what the hell is this?”
Ignite was a chunk of metal I’d never seen before. The moment I picked it up, its description appeared.
Normal Tier — Material
Akenite swallowed by an intermediate fire spirit salamander, transformed by intense flame energy. Delivers a burst of fire when struck.
“Looks like the admins really went all out on the update.”
There were so many new things it felt like a joke. If I made a weapon out of this Ignite, it would probably have insane power. This field boss raid had given me ridiculous gains.
My level was completely stagnant before this. Now it’s climbing.
I was starting to think I’d rather just hunt bosses from now on.
“Everyone gather up.”
“Y-yes…”
“Understood!”
“You. We’ll talk later.”
“The hell…”
I called over the B-group members who had been brawling earlier.
“You guys, return the equipment to the fire station and come back.”
“Yes.”
The B-group picked up the gear and trudged away.
“Jungwoo, you worked hard too.”
“I’m not sure if I was any help. It wasn’t the kind of fight I expected…”
“It was more than enough. By the way, did you level up?”
“Yes. I reached level 3.”
“Congratulations. And let me give you one piece of advice.”
Lee Jungwoo would need some kind of reward too. This might even change the fate of the firefighters.
“Go ahead.”
“Don’t trust other people.”
“What do you mean?”
“Any survivors you meet from now on will definitely try to raid the fire station.”
Lee Jungwoo’s expression turned deadly serious.
“I understand what you’re saying. Thank you.”
“Before you go, I have one favor to ask.”
“Of course. What is it?”
“There’s somewhere I need to go.”
We took the fire truck back to where the fire spirit had been. It was for Han Chaei.
This should be close enough.
I summoned a Longbow Tower on a nearby building.
Creak… Rumble…
I ordered the Longbow Tower to clear out the zombies around Han Chaei. I also instructed it to snipe any survivors who approached. I should be able to retrieve her safely next time.
“You can head back now.”
“Yes. I’ll be going. Take care.”
Lee Jungwoo drove the fire truck away.
When I got home, the auntie looked shocked.
“Oh my! Suhyuk, what happened? Did something go wrong?”
“Just had to put out a fire. No big deal.”
A delicious smell filled the entire house. Perfect timing—I was starving. I took off the soot-blackened firefighter helmet. Seeing her made me smile.
This is heaven.
Coming home to a beautiful woman with an amazing body greeting me. After a hot shower, she serves a delicious meal. To me, the apocalypse was paradise.
I stripped off the firefighter uniform and headed straight for the shower.
“Wow, this is seriously delicious.”
“Really? Try this too.”
“Hehehe. Ah, this one is way too good.”
Everything the auntie cooked was unbelievably tasty. It wasn’t just because I’d been living alone and eating poorly. It was genuinely better than hotel food.
“This braised short ribs are the best.”
“Hehe, eat as much as you want.”
“I definitely will, hahaha.”
After the meal, I loaded the cart with a mountain of food and headed down to the center of the apartment complex. The B-group was already waiting.
“Whoa, fuck, that smells amazing!”
“What is that? Is it for us?”
“No way he’d give us any!”
“Please! Please!”
They were chatting like they hadn’t just been punching each other earlier.
“This is your reward for today’s hunt. Come up one by one and take it.”
“Wow!”
“For real?!”
“I said I’d give it, didn’t I!”
I planned to pay those who participated in the hunt. Giving out food as a reward was good for appearances. Of course, it cost me nothing. The ingredients had come from them in the first place. Plus, I’d leveled up the auntie too. Three birds with one stone.
“What levels are you guys at?”
“Level 3!”
“Level 4!”
Most were level 3 or 4. Thanks to the massive experience, their levels had shot up. At this rate, they were already at the level of WAW veterans.
“As promised, the tanker squad survivors will be treated as regular residents.”
“Thank you!”
“But what exactly changes?”
A skinny guy asked.
“You won’t be forcibly drafted into combat.”
“Hell yes!”
“Nice! Glad I joined the tanker squad.”
“Um, can we keep getting food too?”
A guy scooping food from a plastic container asked.
“No. Why are you asking something so obvious?”
“We can’t get food?!”
“Then what are we supposed to do?!”
“Food will only be given to those who hunt monsters under my orders. You can go find your own food.”
The tanker squad members hung their heads.
“If you want food, either volunteer for monster hunts or go get it yourselves.”
“We’ll… think about it.”
“We’ll try to find some food.”
The tanker squad couldn’t decide easily. After all, some of them had died today. In the end, whether they volunteered to fight monsters or fought to gather food themselves, it was the same thing. There was no way to avoid fighting monsters.
I stopped by rooms 503 and 504 to check the supplies. The homes of those who had stolen supplies had red marks on them. I told the cart guy to gather them in the apartment courtyard.
“The B-group earned food by fighting the fire spirit. But you guys just stole it, right?”
The summoned men wore expressions of despair.
“I-I had nothing to do with it!”
“I didn’t steal anything!”
“Who said that? This is a setup!”
I shouted loud enough for the entire apartment to hear.
“Everyone, come out to the hallway!”
One by one, front doors opened. Residents looked down from the hallways on each floor. Those who hadn’t come out yet were fetched by their neighbors. The residents sensed the heavy atmosphere and stayed deathly silent.
“These bastards stole food and supplies. Anyone who saw it, raise your hand.”
Two people raised their hands.
“Who did you see stealing?”
“I saw that fat old man stealing! He took canned food!”
The man who was pointed out exploded in anger.
“Fuck, when did I?! I’ve never even seen you before!”
“Shut up. And you, who did you see?”
“The middle-aged woman next to that old man.”
It was the middle-aged woman standing beside the fat man.
“I-I didn’t steal anything! I swear!”
“They said you did. Lying now too?”
“O-okay, I did steal… I’ll put it back. Please, just spare me!”
I looked around the apartment and issued a warning.
“Take a good look. This is what happens when you touch what’s mine.”
I summoned a Wooden Spear Tower.
Creak… Rumble…
“This one gets execution.”
The man who denied everything until the end was impaled through the stomach. He let out agonized groans as he died.
Screams of horror came from above.
“You are exiled. Leave the apartment immediately.”
“P-please! If I go out like this, I’ll die!”
“You’ll die if you stay too.”
The middle-aged woman’s hands trembled violently as she staggered out of the apartment.
“W-we didn’t do anything wrong!”
“That’s right! There must be some mistake!”
The ones who hadn’t been pointed out shamelessly denied everything.
“These guys are denying it even with clear evidence. What do you all think?”
I asked the residents standing in the hallway. Their faces filled with terror.
“Fuck!”
One of them ran. The others followed. Arrows rained down from the apartment rooftop.
Thud! Thump! Stab!
“Aaaargh!”
“Khaaaak! You son of a bitch! Over some fucking canned food!”
“Uaaagh!”
I didn’t aim for vital points. I just pinned their legs with arrows so they couldn’t escape. If it ended too easily, it wouldn’t serve as a proper example.
“Throw these guys outside the apartment.”
“Like this?”
The cart guy was completely tense. Since the task I gave him had gone wrong, he was probably worried about my reaction.
“Yes.”
The cart guy called more residents over and dragged them away.
“What should we do with you?”
“Please just spare us! We’ll do anything!”
One man dropped to his knees and begged. At that moment, the guy next to him lunged at me with a kitchen knife.
“Die, you crazy bastard!”
Fear filled the eyes of the man holding the knife.
You should’ve at least prepared yourself if you were going to ambush me.
It was too straightforward. I twisted slightly to dodge and slammed my fist into his jaw.
Thud!
Clang. Clatter.
He dropped the knife as easily as his sloppy mindset suggested.
“If you were going to fight, you should’ve at least leveled up first.”
My stats were still buffed, after all.
“Smash his ankle.”
Whoosh— Crack!
“Aaaaaaaaagh!!”
The man who had briefly passed out screamed in agony.
“Take this one out too.”
“...Yes.”
“Ughhh… No…”
Killing bastards like this outright would be too merciful. The wandering zombies would take care of them instead.
“I’ll spare you. From now on, you’ll be hunting monsters with the B-group.”
“Understood! Thank you!”
The man who had been kneeling and begging kept his life.
“Did you all see that? Anyone who covets what’s mine will end up like this.”
I didn’t know what the residents were thinking, but none of them left the hallway.
“If you want food, either go get it yourself outside the apartment or volunteer for monster hunts—including zombies. Then I’ll share food with you. Understood?”
“Yes!”
The answer echoed through the entire apartment.
When I returned home, the auntie was standing there with a worried expression. She must have heard the commotion outside.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. Like I told you before, you have to stay strong.”
“But Suhyuk, are you really okay…”
“I really am. And even if you’re disappointed in me, this can’t be helped.”
“I’m not disappointed.”
The auntie’s gaze met mine directly. Then she smiled faintly and said,
“You’ve always been the one to reach out first, Suhyuk. No matter what happens, I’m on your side.”
I’ve only ever heard words like that in WAW.
That short sentence put my mind at ease. I didn’t want to be hated by the auntie, if no one else.
“Thank you, Yeonhee.”
Whether in WAW or in apocalypse movies, survivor groups never collapsed because of external factors like zombies, monsters, or disasters. They almost always fell apart due to internal conflict. To prevent that, absolute dictatorship was necessary.
If you clumsily listen to everyone’s opinions and show mercy, they’ll keep crawling up your back, claiming it as their rightful right. They’ll demand equal treatment with the fighters without participating in combat. They’ll ask for equal food distribution.
I had zero intention of tolerating any of that nonsense. I would treat those who were helpful accordingly, and cast out those who weren’t.
I went up to the rooftop and opened my status window. It was time to check today’s results.
As expected, no need to spend stat points right away. I still have the food buff.
I should start with the skill tree first. I could finally unlock 4-Tier Tower Access. I thought I wouldn’t be able to until after the second wave because of the boss kill requirement.
What should I pick with the last one?
There was something useful in the utility tab.