Concentrating the Aggro
In South Korea, it was nearly impossible for a civilian to possess military-grade firearms. You either had to be crazy enough to ignore the police and military, who were obsessed with gun control, or you had to be under the protection of that very authority. Only those who fit both criteria could hope to hold such weapons. The Gukje-pa, a nationwide organized crime syndicate, was exactly that kind of group. They were a gang protected by the highest powers in the country—the very people who commanded the police and military. That was how they had the audacity to smuggle firearms used by the Chinese military and public security forces into the country.
'I can't believe they've already reached this point and absorbed the Gukje-pa.'
I knew even before the regression that the Mok-u-ri Gukje-pa was a subordinate organization of the main syndicate, but I hadn't known exactly when the two groups had met in Namyangju after the apocalypse. I had guessed it was around 2026, but today I found out it was actually a year earlier than that.
“Do you keep watch from the rooftop here?” I asked, and Lee Won-o nodded.
“Ah, yes. We take turns standing guard and keeping watch at night.”
“Even the women?”
“Oh, obviously, Oppa. Look at the state of the world—what difference does it make if you’re a man or a woman? The girls here and I have killed our fair share of zombies, too.”
At Jeong Se-young’s words, another young woman stepped in, looking exasperated. “Ugh, this fox is trying to act like she’s the oldest again. But Oppa, why are you asking that?”
The woman in her mid-twenties, who clearly had mixed white heritage, asked the question, but I directed my answer to Lee Won-o instead. “Are you aware that the Gukje-pa has set up base in the Cheongsan Building?”
“Huh? We know. But how did you… ah, right, you have a drone.”
“So, do you keep the Cheongsan Building under surveillance as well?”
“Yes. When it gets freezing cold, all the zombies crawl inside the buildings, right? That’s when those gangster bastards started crawling out frequently. Usually around sunset or an hour before sunrise.”
As expected, they were bastards who knew the ecology of the zombies well. Well, they wouldn't have been able to slowly expand their territory toward Gahyeon-ri if they didn't know at least that much.
“Oppa, those gangsters… they only loot buildings at night where there aren't many zombies. They even snatch people up.”
“Have they targeted this place yet?”
“No. Our building and the commercial area around here are large, so there are many entrances. Most of them have underground parking lots, too. A lot of zombies got into the first floor of our building because of that, and because of them, the gangsters haven't come around here yet.”
“I see.”
At this stage, it was impossible for survivors to occupy such large commercial buildings. It was because hundreds or thousands of zombies would huddle inside to maintain their body temperature. So, no matter how well-armed with guns the gangsters were, it would be a huge burden to enter while dealing with that many zombies.
“Then they must have mainly targeted small buildings or studio apartments near the Cheongsan Building.”
“Wow… how did you know? The Cheongsan Building is the tallest one around there, and the rest are all about the same size. Most of them have businesses on the first and second floors and people living above that, and those gangsters only targeted places like that.”
Small buildings with only three or four floors usually had fewer zombies and fewer survivors. Unlike these large buildings that usually had underground parking and many passages and entrances, small buildings typically had only one or two entrances, and many were locked or blocked on holiday mornings. In other words, while it was easy to get out from the inside, it was quite difficult to pick the lock and enter from the outside without making a sound. However, it wasn't impossible if you had professional equipment, and since most of them had pathetic security systems, it was surprisingly easy to enter if you climbed up the walls or gas pipes.
Since the Gukje-pa, who were criminals to begin with, couldn't have been unaware of that fact, it seemed they had been looting small commercial buildings like that every night.
'They must have judged whether there were zombies by looking at the state of the building.'
Combining the surveillance reports from Akina and the information obtained from the survivors of the Jaeseong Building, including Lee Won-o, I chose one of the simulations I had prepared in advance.
“Lee Won-o, and everyone.”
“Yes?”
“What is it, Oppa?”
Looking around at the three men and six women who had survived for over half a year, starting with the best conditions among those who had faced the apocalypse without any preparation, I continued.
“As I said before, I came here to wipe out the Gukje-pa gangsters. So, how about you make a deal with me?”
Everyone except Lee Won-o and Jeong Se-young went down to the karaoke room on the 10th floor.
“Boss, Boss. But… will it really work?”
“I don't know either. But you saw him, didn't you? That man… he’s not an ordinary person.”
The two, still wearing expressions of half-doubt and anxiety, glanced at me as I stood on the other side of the rooftop, staring at the tablet screen and muttering something to myself.
“You saw him throw the knife and hit my window earlier, right? I really thought my wrist was going to snap. It’s still throbbing.”
“Ah, that was seriously cool and insane. It was like a movie. Is he from some special forces unit or something?”
“Hey, even special forces can't do that. Usually, they measure the distance a few times before throwing at a stationary target. Throwing it that fast and hitting it in one go is something nobody can just do.”
“Really? Wow…”
To Jeong Se-young, who was looking at me with eyes sparkling with admiration, awe, and some unknown emotion, Lee Won-o continued.
“He said he runs 100 meters in 11 seconds himself, so we have to believe him. Usually, even among track athletes or professional soccer players, only the extremely fast ones run like that, but well.”
“But, Boss. I don't know why, but I feel like he’ll succeed. And actually, we don't have anything to lose, right? That Oppa is the one risking his life. Right?”
“Yeah. That’s why I said let’s do it. And you know, if he really sends what he promised earlier, I’m going to genuinely trust that man.”
“Right? I really hope it’s true. If it is, I think I’d like to have a real go with that Oppa.”
“Ugh, you crazy bitch. I can hear Young-jae crying from here.”
“So what? We both just suddenly hit it off and did it once. In a world like this, what does that matter? And Boss, you sleep with Chani and Yeon-jin, too.”
“Hey, that’s… ugh, let’s not talk about it.”
The two, who bickered like it was an everyday occurrence, soon smacked their lips and stared intently at a spot in the sky. A little way away from them, I was communicating with the AI Akina while looking at the tablet.
“…I’ve confirmed the route. This is the one with the highest probability of success, right?”
That is correct. Based on the simulation of the information confirmed so far, the success probability rises to 72 percent.
It wasn't perfect, but a probability of over 70 percent was huge. Then there was nothing to worry about.
“Good. Executing. Are the drones coming well?”
In approximately 1 minute and 30 seconds. They are scheduled to arrive over Point B.
“Good.”
I turned my face toward the direction of Gahyeon-ri. They were flying at a cruising speed of 48 kilometers per hour, but the distance was still too far for the drones to be visible. A moment later, four black dots appeared in my eyes.
“Huh? Aren't those drones?”
“Where? Ah, you're right! It’s drones!”
Shortly after Lee Won-o and Jeong Se-young’s excited voices were heard, four drones that had departed from the shelter lowered cables from the sky above the Jaeseong Building rooftop.
Whirrr….
Descending to the rooftop of the Jaeseong Building, supported by the four cables, were reinforced plastic cargo containers. It was the very same cargo transport drones that had resupplied me with ammunition during the battle at Gahyeon Elementary School, and four of them had come here.
“Ri, rice! It’s rice!”
“There’s a portable stove and butane gas here too! And red pepper paste, kimchi, and braised beef! Yes! There’s even mackerel!”
They had raided the karaoke room, the fitness center, and even the refrigerator in the restaurant on the second floor where I had entered, but with nine adult men and women living there for over half a year, the food situation for the 'Welcome Norae Bar' survivors was in a slightly dangerous state. Moreover, most of what was in the karaoke refrigerator was snack food, and the restaurant on the second floor was a noodle specialty shop, so there were plenty of noodles, but there wasn't much 'rice'. In the end, even though they only cooked one meal a day, the rice had run out in a couple of months. Since last autumn, they hadn't even seen white rice and had been getting by on the remaining ramen, noodles, side dishes, and snack ingredients.
“Transport completion confirmed.”
After emptying the two containers filled with the equipment I had requested and tapping them, I turned my head. I approached the two people who were rejoicing while rummaging through the containers packed with 20 kilograms each of various groceries, including rice and gas burners.
“It’s all there, right? As you can see, I kept my promise. Now it’s your turn to keep yours.”
“Ah, of course! Thank you so much, Oppa!”
Jeong Se-young, who was hugging the 10-kilogram vacuum-packed rice like a treasure and giggling, bowed her head. Then Lee Won-o, who was shivering while tasting the red pepper paste with his pinky finger, hurriedly covered the container lid and bowed his head as well.
“Now I really, really trust you… i, is that really an M16?”
“It’s called an AR15. It’s a real gun.”
After finishing the assembly of the AR15, which had been delivered in a disassembled state, and attaching the silencer, I checked the chamber and pulled the bolt back and released it.
Clack!
“Ugh!”
“So cool….”
Unlike Lee Won-o, who was startled like a veteran, Jeong Se-young, who was seeing an actual assault rifle for the first time, just watched me with eyes full of curiosity. Right now, I was in the same state as I was before the cargo transport drones arrived, with only an AR15 and a few magazines added. But that alone was enough to bring great pressure to Lee Won-o and feelings of awe to Jeong Se-young, making it impossible for them to take their eyes off me.
Because of that, the two failed to notice something else that had been lowered from the cargo container of another transport drone that had been delivered to me—something so heavy that it left only a few hundred grams of the drone's maximum takeoff weight.
It was the Level 4 Dragon Scale full-body bulletproof armor, which was impossible for anyone in the shelter except me to even walk in, let alone run for more than 10 minutes while wearing it.
“First, let’s move the delivered items. Let’s start in about 20 minutes.”
“Yes!”
The two excitedly moved the groceries to the karaoke room. In the meantime, I checked my attire, equipment, and the Dragon Scale once more, waiting for the 'Welcome Norae Bar' people to come up to the rooftop. A little over 20 minutes later, the people who had finished their work according to my instructions gathered on the rooftop. Looking at them, who seemed slightly excited after checking the groceries that Lee Won-o and Jeong Se-young had moved to the karaoke room, I spoke.
“Once again, you just have to be in the right place at the right time. That is the most important thing. Lee Won-o.”
“Yes.”
“Never take off the radio and headset, and just do exactly as my colleague instructs. It will take at most 5 minutes, so I believe you can do it.”
“Leave it to me.”
“Good.”
Nodding to Lee Won-o, who clenched his fist, I shifted my gaze to the two male employees.
“Was the installation done properly?”
“Yes, Boss! There’s no problem at all. It held up to 120 kilograms during the fire inspection last year.”
“Understood. Then, let’s begin.”
Loaded with all sorts of equipment, including the Dragon Scale, I took a firm step forward.
“Whoa….”
“Hey, hurry up.”
Surprised by my terrifying strength, the survivors hurriedly followed behind me.
- No threat targets observed from the current location.
- No threat targets observed on the road within the route.
- Multiple B-class targets positioned inside buildings 1-1 to 1-4 on Route 1. Threat level B.
- Route 2….
Listening to Akina’s cold voice, I returned to the second floor and checked my attire one last time. Having taken off the helmet and the top of the bike suit and wearing only a long-sleeved top and pants, I had removed all weapons and equipment, except for a Glock 17 and about ten throwing knives on my tactical belt.
“Hoo….”
Thud.
Catching my breath lightly, I jumped over the second-floor railing with extremely fast but almost silent, stealthy movements, and hung there, stretching my body out.
“…Starting.”
- Confirmed.
Immediately after Akina’s voice was heard, I released the strength in my hands gripping the railing and landed on the ground with a thud.
Papatapatapatapatak…!
I ran toward the center of Mok-u-ri at the fastest speed I could muster.
- Multiple B-class targets protruding from buildings 1-1, 2, 3, and 4 on Route 1.
- Exact number of entities cannot be determined.
The moment Akina’s report was heard, I, who was already running in front of building 6, threw the throwing knife I had been holding in my hand with all my might.
Swoosh! Crash!
The solid glass storefront of a famous franchise bakery shattered, causing cracks in the silence that had enveloped the street. At that moment, countless zombies that had hidden inside nearby buildings to avoid the freezing cold heard the sound and raised their heads at the same time.
It was a crazy act that directly violated one of the 'essential laws' of the apocalypse: you must move without making as much sound as possible. But I had a reason why I had to do that crazy thing.
- Distance to final destination: 480 meters.
Although it was only 220 meters away in a straight line, the plan was to run the distance of nearly 500 meters along the set route, lead all the zombies in every building along the route, and concentrate the aggro on the final destination, the 'Cheongsan Building'.