The Firefighters Join the Raid
While I sent the raid members out to finish wiping out the remaining red dots, the firefighters came looking for us. It had been quite a while since I last saw Lee Jungwoo.
"What brings you here?"
"We've seen people gathering at this apartment lately."
The firefighters had no intention of touching us even if they didn't join. No red dots had appeared either. Yet here they were, coming to us on their own.
"Would you be willing to take us in as well?"
"Of course. But you'll have to join as combatants."
Normally, I would have accepted them as second-class residents. But these guys need to come in as raid members.
People with as much guts as firefighters were rare. It would be a waste not to take them in as combatants. Even if their skills weren't outstanding, their mental fortitude would be on another level.
"We're prepared for that."
"Welcome aboard. Come on in."
Five firefighters joined us. I assigned them housing and checked their levels and skills. Lee Jungwoo was Level 5, and the rest were Level 3. So they hadn't just been hiding all this time.
"You have the Cleave skill?"
"Yes."
Cleave was a good skill too. It performed on par with Bash and Pierce. Among weapons, it pairs especially well with axes.
In some ways, it was more efficient than a mace. It could deliver sufficient destructive power with one hand, and its simplicity made it easy to manage safety with a shield. It would also work well with the multi-purpose axe-crowbar I was currently using, so there was no need to rush production at the forge.
"In that case, I'll have Jungwoo take charge as squad leader and organize the firefighters into one team."
"Thank you for the consideration."
External recruits like this were helpful in many ways. Lee Jungwoo's skills were powerful, and it was obvious the firefighters would work well together as a unit.
The Lee Geonwu party, Park Kanghyuk's squad, and now the firefighters—all of them had joined from outside. They would instill a sense of competition in the existing raid members. It would serve as motivation for growth.
"I believe you'll do well, but don't take this lightly."
"Of course."
"I'll bring in a zombie cluster before sunset. We'll check then."
"Understood."
Still, facing a cluster for the first time wouldn't be easy.
The solar power, electrical, water piping, and pump technicians had also returned. I assigned some raid members to escort them so they could gather the equipment needed for their work.
"Did you find a way to handle sewage treatment?"
"W-well, as you said, if the electricity is cut off, there's essentially no method."
"Even with generators?"
"The entire sewage treatment system needs to operate, so..."
I had thought of it too simply, and now it had become a headache. I'd have to find a solution. Of course, it wasn't completely impossible. The problem was that it would have to hold out until the second wave.
A short while later, the raid members who had gone out to clear the remaining red dots returned with new residents. Out of thirty-one people total, seven had joined the raid. There weren't many empty units left now.
Maybe it's time to raid the department store soon?
The raid's forces were nearly complete. Hana would hit Level 10 soon, and weapons for the squad leaders were in production. Supplies weren't an issue either—though the distance made it difficult. But before that...
"Hana, let's go hunt some mutants."
"Ugh, hunting mutants every single day."
I needed to start farming items.
"We're going pretty far, huh?"
"We've cleared out most of the area around the apartment."
Looking at the map, there were shops below the apartment complex, and further down was the Jeonil Apartments. To the right of the apartment was the police station, with Isan-dong above it and the direction to DC Mart on the right. We had come down below the police station.
"If we keep killing zombies like this, won't the whole area become a safe zone?"
"The whole area is pushing it, but parts of it are possible. At least until the second wave begins."
In truth, if I had been determined to expand the safe zone, I could have made it endlessly larger. But once the second wave started, it would all become meaningless.
Telling the newbies that would probably crush their spirits.
In WAW, they might think, It's just a game, so who cares if I die? But this was reality.
"This should be far enough. Ready?"
"Yeah, I'm ready."
Even though we hunted mutants every day, there were no traces of other hunts near our area besides the ones we had done. It wasn't just about levels—the conditions themselves were demanding.
Aggravating a mutant automatically dragged in a zombie cluster. That's why you had to chip away at the cluster first and take down the mutant in a short time. Plus, at first-wave levels, tanking wasn't viable, so you needed someone who could evasion-tank using mobility skills.
This tactic was only possible thanks to the zombies' obsession. Once you pulled enough aggro, they wouldn't attack anyone except the evasion tanker, allowing for a burst of damage to finish it off. If the evasion tanker got scared and made a mistake—or died—the entire raid could be wiped out.
That was why most people delayed mutant hunting as much as possible. The standard approach was to endure until Level 9, where zombie kills stopped giving experience, then hit Level 10 as a raid. That's why people usually only reached Level 10 at the very end of the first wave.
A newbie I used to bring along had once asked me: Then how do you avoid the zombie mutants?
It was surprisingly easy. You just had to leave the area where the cluster had settled. It was a cheap price to pay—simply getting driven out of your living zone. Without stimulation, mutants didn't move from where they spawned. The same went for the clusters that had created them.
Why they stood in place, I didn't know. During WAW, I had thought it was the developers' mercy, but that wasn't it either. In any case, it was a blessing for humans.
"Krrrugh!"
The humanoid mutant that had reached the building quickly climbed up its side. But a Wooden Watch Tower had been installed on the roof.
Swing Log Trap
Thud.
Whoooosh—
Bam!
The mutant was hurled into the air as if it had been hit by a car. Summon.
And at the spot where it would fall...
Creak, creak, creak.
It looked like a giant crossbow.
Click.
Shunk!!—
The iron skewer that shot out from the Warspear Tower pierced straight through its leg.
Riiip—
Thump.
Its body, unable to withstand the weight, tore apart as it fell. Summon dismissed.
"Krrraaagh!"
The mutant's irritated swing cut through nothing but empty air. As expected, the Warspear Tower was powerful too. Maybe because it used a sharp steel tip instead of wood, its penetration power had increased tremendously. Plus, compared to the Wooden Longspear, its attack direction was much more flexible, making it easier to use. It was even sturdier. A Wooden Longspear would have snapped instantly from the impact.
Shunk, shunk, shunk, shunk, shunk!—
With the towers' coordinated assault, its right arm was turned into a ragged mess.
"Hana, take a sip."
"Okay."
She drank a mouthful of coffee with the serious expression of someone taking medicine. Then, toward the mutant that was hopping toward us on one leg...
Swish—
Stab!—
She deliberately aimed for the joint. It looked like it should bounce off the hard bone, but it sank in smoothly like stabbing tofu.
"Krrraaaagh!"
On the surface, it looked fine. But the mutant didn't counterattack. No—it couldn't. She had struck its weak point, the bundle of muscles and nerves. The mutant belatedly lunged to bite, but...
Tap—
Swish—
Stab!—
She dodged back as if toying with it, then charged in again and finished it by piercing its forehead.
"Well done. As expected of you, Hana."
There wasn't a single flaw. At this point, no one could beat her in close combat.
"Haa..."
She let out a deep breath, still not fully over the lingering tension of battle.
"Next time, want to try fighting it one-on-one?"
Of course, I was joking.
"No way, no way. You only won this time because Suhyuk disabled its arms and legs."
Hana laughed as she played along with the joke. It was a joke for now, but it wouldn't be long before it became reality.
"Did you pick up a new skill? You were stabbing like you could see its weak points."
"No? I just stabbed where it felt right. Guess I got lucky?"
She had pierced the weak point of a wildly thrashing mutant purely by luck? No way. Maybe her natural senses let her spot the weak points. But that precision in striking the momentary gap—that was only possible because of a 'technique' forged through thousands, tens of thousands of repetitions of practice.
"Whoa! Hey, looks like she's a talent monster. She's totally showing off, right? What? You think so too?"
That made me want to tease her even more, so I pretended to whisper to the short-haired girl beside me.
"Y-you! What are you—?!"
Hana's face turned bright red. She was so flustered she started stuttering.
"I-I never said anything like that?! And look, something fell over there!"
I followed where her finger was pointing.
◈ Cures special mutant zombie infection
◈ Restores the subject to their original state
"The cure! Finally!"
It had finally dropped. Reflexively, the soft, chewy texture came to mind.
"Y-you, y-y-you—!"
Why couldn't she speak properly? Seeing Hana's flushed face and stuttering made me burst out laughing.
"What are you waiting for? Get in the car. They're swarming over here."
"Just wait till we get back."
"Hahaha, it was just a joke."
Hana climbed into the car, still fuming and puffing. Her reactions were always so satisfying.
Wooooooong— Wooooooong—
The raid members were waiting at the apartment entrance.
"Jungwoo, don't push yourself too hard. Think of it as gaining experience."
Since I happened to see Lee Jungwoo, I gave him some encouragement.
"Understood."
His expression was quite solemn. Not just him—the faces of all the newly joined raid members looked grim.
"Wait, why do the attraction staff look like that?"
"Suhyuk, people are sensitive right now. Can you please stay quiet?"
Hana gently pinched both my cheeks and pulled.
"What could possibly be so hard? My towers neutralize them, I provide sniper cover, and if it gets dangerous, this talent monster fencing goddess over here comes to the rescue. What exactly is difficult?!"
Streeeeetch—
Moved by my passionate speech, Hana pulled my mouth wide open on both sides.
"Will you please shut up!"
Even her ears had turned bright red now.
"Wae mol? Jijja da haejajana."
Laughter from the female raid members came from behind us.
"They say the same thing."
"Hmph!"
Hana pretended to be upset and walked toward the entrance. She was at Level 9 now, so it wouldn't be long.
I left the battle to the towers and raid members and headed to the shelter.
"Kuuup!"
Squeeze.
I kneaded the buttocks of Han Chaei as she hugged me. The thought that I might not be able to grope this ass anymore brought tears to my eyes. Maybe because of that, it felt even more plump and chewy today.
I'll use the cure tomorrow.
At least for today, I wanted to knead it to my heart's content.