The Isan-dong Coalition Visit

I never show goodwill lightly. Once you give an inch, they demand another, asking why you won't yield again. They see you as nothing but a pushover. These people are thieves. They had the audacity to drool openly over everything we'd earned through blood and sweat.

They appealed to our sympathy while slipping in veiled threats about using force. They tried to coax us with promises that a little compromise would let everyone walk away peacefully. Their filthy intentions were crystal clear.

"You wanna die?"

Lee Jinseong, who had been running his mouth nonstop, fell completely silent. Cold sweat beaded on his wide, smooth forehead.

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

My eyes were sharp enough to devour him whole.

"What? Too scared to fight, but backing down would bruise your precious pride?"

It was already too late to turn back. The moment they blocked our path, conflict had become inevitable.

"Go on, then. Finish what you started."

What I do is simple: either crush them underfoot or let them crawl in on their bellies. Only two choices.

Honestly, I hated this kind of power struggle. But to avoid pointless fights later, I had to stomp them down now. We'd already made sacrifices today.

Of course, if they actually attacked, I wouldn't hesitate. I'd take the leader's head first and pin everything on his reckless decision.

"This is a misunderstanding. We truly didn't mean it that way."

The man in a suit standing behind Lee Jinseong stepped forward.

"Do I look like a fucking idiot to you?"

"It was a mistake. Our coalition is running low on food supplies..."

Lee Jinseong's face went slack. He lowered his head like a scared dog tucking its tail. Or at least, he was pretending to. I never expected him to confess so easily and bow his head. I'd thought he'd cling to his pride until the bitter end.

Guys like this are actually more dangerous. They're the type who swallow their anger, bide their time, and strike back when the opportunity comes.

"Once again, we sincerely apologize. We'll be taking our leave now."

The man in the suit spoke for Lee Jinseong. I hadn't expected them to retreat this pathetically. Even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠if this world resembled WAW, it wasn't a game. It was reality. Naturally, they wanted to avoid all-out war.

Just how badly had they underestimated us to think a simple show of force would make us compromise?

"Hold on."

"Do you have something to say?"

I waved the suited man aside and addressed Lee Jinseong directly.

"Last time, you tried to poach our residents, didn't you?"

"We weren't poaching! We simply gave them a chance to choose!"

Perfect. That works out nicely.

"Then I'll give the residents of your coalition a choice too. Guide me to them."

A justification wrapped in pretty words. Now it was my turn to use it.

"What the hell is that procession?"

"No way all that is food, right?"

"Does that even make sense? If food was that easy to get, they wouldn't have cut our rations."

"Didn't the leader take troops out earlier? Maybe they just brought it back?"

"Could be. But where the hell did they get that fire truck from?"

The residents Lee Jinseong had gathered stood in small clusters, chattering noisily. There was no order whatsoever. It was more chaotic than a marketplace.

I stepped down from the fire truck holding a megaphone.

"I am Kim Suhyuk, representative of the Suyeon-dong survivors."

"Huh? Isn't that the guy the leader mentioned meeting before?"

"Yeah. But what's he doing here?"

"Maybe he's here to share some food?"

"That's it! Look at all the stuff they're carrying!"

The atmosphere felt completely foreign. In my own group, no one would dare chatter openly while I was speaking.

Figures. Their discipline is completely shot.

I was honestly amazed the coalition had lasted this long.

"That's correct. Those vehicles aren't just carrying food. They're loaded with all kinds of supplies."

"Oh thank goodness! Our rations have been getting smaller and smaller. We were so worried."

"Don't be stupid. Those executives only cut rations so they could keep more for themselves."

"Exactly. All they care about is stuffing their own faces."

I didn't bother silencing their chatter. They weren't my people anyway. How they ran things and eventually collapsed was none of my concern.

"We cleared out a massive zombie horde and hauled these supplies from the DC Mart."

"Wait, what? Didn't they say the DC Mart was a living hell?"

"Yeah, Leader Jinseong definitely said that."

"They went there? No way that's true."

"But they brought back vehicles full of supplies. Can't be empty cans, right?"

"True. So maybe it is real?"

Not just the residents, but even the armed guards looked shocked. They clearly hadn't expected anyone to actually raid the DC Mart. They knew better than anyone how dangerous a large supermarket could be.

If this had been a strong, well-run survivor coalition, I wouldn't have revealed this information. But the Isan-dong Coalition I'd observed didn't warrant such caution. Their collapse was only a matter of time.

And when it did fall, they'd come crawling to me, carrying anything of value.

"Let's get to the main point. We've come to recruit anyone who wishes to migrate to our coalition."

The crowd fell deathly silent at my words.

"For those who choose to migrate, we will take full responsibility for your food, clothing, and shelter."

"Then we'll move!"

"I'll go too!"

"Please take our family as well!"

"Me too!"

People surged forward, hands raised. The scene turned into complete chaos in an instant. The sweet bait of protection and abundant food had them drooling as they rushed toward us.

My additional conditions brought another wave of silence.

"So you're saying you don't care if people starve to death here? You'll only take the ones you need?"

"What about the rest of us if you take all the useful people?"

"If you need them that badly, why don't you just move here instead?"

"If that's not an option, at least share some of that food before you leave."

"Didn't you say they brought a ton of supplies anyway?"

I ignored the useless complaints. After all, once they left, I'd never see them ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠again. Lee Jinseong could deal with the mess.

More importantly...

Jackpot.

I was lucky. The exact talents I needed were right here.

"Anyone who matches what I described, please raise your hand. Even if you decide not to join us, I'll still provide you with food."

Hands went up all around. While most were useless, the sheer size of the Isan-dong Coalition was impressive. They had plenty of skilled people too.

"What is your profession?"

"I'm a nurse from Yeonsu University St. Mark's Hospital."

So there were medical professionals after all. Though honestly, their numbers seemed low compared to the coalition's size. There were also solar panel installers, electricians, and water pipe and pump technicians.

"But I won't be going. If I leave, the Isan-dong Coalition will completely lose any chance of receiving medical treatment."

The nurse made her declaration with a look of firm resolve. I couldn't help but chuckle at her attitude. Did she think I was going to kidnap her?

"You'll still give us the food, right?"

"Of course."

I generously packed some of the auntie's homemade food and cookies for her.

"Thank you."

She looked dazed but happy when I handed over the food without another word. In truth, this was a trap.

The auntie's cooking was delicious. Not just good, but so good that every other meal would taste like dry, tasteless bread crumbs afterward.

But this nurse probably hadn't had more than one proper meal a day. The Isan-dong Coalition was short on food, after all.

If she tasted the auntie's cooking now, would she ever be satisfied with those bland, barely-edible survival rations again? And if she couldn't even get those anymore, she'd remember. She'd remember the auntie's food. And my offer.

"Would you accept me as well?"

This one was a combatant from the Isan-dong Coalition.

"Park Kang-hyuk! What the hell are you saying?!"

Lee Jinseong exploded. The man must have been a key fighter.

"Honestly, we risk our lives fighting, but we get the same rations as everyone else, don't we?"

"I'll go too. I heard Changsu and Jungwoo, who left earlier, are eating well and living comfortably. There's no reason to stay here anymore."

He must have been whispering with Lee Geonwu's party members and finally made up his mind. Starting with them, about twenty people stepped forward to migrate.

I didn't trust all of them. There could be spies among them trying to steal our information. But that didn't matter. The moment they showed any suspicious behavior, the towers would mark them.

"Those who chose to migrate, get in the vehicles."

There was nothing more to see here.

"Leader Lee Jinseong, take care."

I patted his shoulder with feigned sympathy. That feeling, at least, was genuine. Lee Jinseong could only grit his teeth in response.

The journey back was completely uneventful. The moment I stepped inside the apartment, I checked my status window.

I had finally reached level 10. Even in stagnant waters, hitting level 10 usually only happened in the latter half of the first wave. From level 8 onward, normal zombies barely gave any experience.

That's why you had to hunt zombie mutants to level up. And since raids split the experience, your share got even smaller.

But I had soloed a humanoid mutant and taken all the experience for myself. On top of that, I'd killed a dungeon boss.

Less than two weeks. Not bad.

It definitely wouldn't have been possible without the Random Tower Summon skill.

There were unexpected gains too. Both my skill points and stat points had increased.

Was it because I burned ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the boss on the altar?

It was about time to spend some points anyway. That must have been the trigger.

Now that I'd reached level 10, the previously dark skill tree lit up. After Command Enhancement, Rapid Summon, and Increased Summon Range came Territory Control.

I selected Territory Control, which glowed yellow as if marking its importance. A map appeared before my eyes like I'd switched to a different viewpoint.

This is how I designate it.

When I claimed the area around our apartment as my territory, a wide region turned orange. Soon, green dots began appearing one by one, and the entire area around the apartment changed color.

However, a few spots slightly farther from the apartment remained red.

They're resisting?

I could deal with that tomorrow.

I needed to clean house anyway.

Those were the survivors who had been freely roaming the safe zone I'd built, looting empty apartments.

When I closed the Territory Control window, it switched to the upgrade tab.

This is it.

The previously locked upgrade option had been released.

But it says I need a forge?

The moment I had that thought, the screen switched to the summon tab. There, Automated Forge Summon was glowing yellow.

"Holy shit, it produces weapons automatically?"

In the first wave, the only way to get weapons was through farming. And getting actual combat-ready cold weapons through farming was practically impossible.

Yet now I had a way to produce them myself, and it would even do it automatically. I could finally give my team members real weapons instead of pipes and baseball bats.

If I'd had to produce them manually, I would've been at a loss. But if it made weapons automatically, there was nothing better.

The requirements had already been met, too.

I guess it was supposed to become available from the second wave onward.

Fire-attribute objects couldn't be obtained until at least the second wave no matter how fast you progressed. Flame-type Tower Summon was an even harder condition.

The field boss that dropped the Essence of Fire hadn't even existed before. There was no telling when or how I'd get it.

Luckily, everything had lined up perfectly.

After learning all three skills, the previously stagnant Random Tower Summon skill also leveled up.

Now I could accomplish everything I'd planned much more easily.