The Slaughterhouse (2)
The air was biting, likely because the apartment complex was built not far from the Han River. That cold air calmly cooled his lungs, which had been heated to a perfect temperature from running up and down the stairs of the 20-story building. If anyone else heard this, they might tell him to stop spouting nonsense, asking how running up and down a 20-story apartment could be "just right." But it was neither a joke nor nonsense; Jun-ho felt his current state was exactly where it needed to be. It was even more so because he had quickly consumed a 1,200-kilocalorie energy bar while coming down the stairs.
"Brother, there are a lot of people nearby! Twenty yards ahead? No, 20 meters ahead! Left side! 9 o'clock! Someone's coming out! Four guys, they're holding something!"
Park Deok-cheol’s radio transmission was a chaotic mix of English, sounding far more tense and excited than when he had sniped the gangsters before. Back then, the numbers were relatively low, Jun-ho had already handled a good portion of them, and it was daytime where the entire situation was as clear as the palm of his hand. Now, it seemed the nighttime chaos, with hundreds of people moving aimlessly here and there, was getting to him. Even worse, having to view everything through the drone’s thermal imaging camera likely made it look even more congested and less intuitive.
"Deok-cheol, raise the drone altitude to 300 meters and send it toward Manager Park Cheol-woo’s side."
Jun-ho gave the order because the drone feed was becoming more of a hindrance than a help.
"What? Brother, that's..."
"Do as I say. Report surveillance centered on Manager Park Cheol-woo. They need it more than I do. Got it?"
"...Yes sir."
"Good. The gangsters will probably launch their own drones, so you shoot them down."
"Understood!"
With that spirited, albeit slightly disappointed, reply from Park Deok-cheol, Jun-ho sharpened his senses—his sight, hearing, and every instinct—and sprinted. He could see people emerging and running about everywhere. Those living here like slaves would be confined to their residences, and most were likely collaborators working for the gangsters or the other bastards.
"Where is it!? Where do we go? Is it the back gate!? It's us! Us! Damn it!"
"Then which building is it in!?"
Although a few streetlights were on, the area was generally very dark. Jun-ho could see the others, but they could not see him.
"Here!"
"Damn it, turn on the flashlight! It's too dark to see!"
As Jun-ho moved through the darkness, a few men suddenly popped up about 10 meters in front of him. In a flash, Jun-ho pulled out his throwing knives and hurled them.
Thwack! Thwack-thwack!
The daggers, imbued with superhuman strength, flew silently and embedded themselves into their foreheads, throats, and lower abdomens.
"Argh!"
Unlike the others who died instantly or were slowly expiring, one gangster had a knife stuck in his gut and had fallen onto his backside. Jun-ho rushed over and grabbed him by the collar.
"Kuh-ack!"
"Where is Director Jeon?"
"Kuhk!?"
Jun-ho covered the man’s mouth and shoved the throwing knife deeper into his stomach.
"Hngh...!!!"
Overwhelmed by excruciating pain, the man’s eyes rolled back as he tried to struggle, but he couldn't overcome Jun-ho’s grip, his body only twitching a few times.
"Which building are Jeon Yo-han and the other higher-ups in?"
"Hngh! Kuh-hngh!"
The man, tears streaming down his face, kept glancing in one direction. Only then did Jun-ho loosen his grip on the man’s mouth.
"Building 501... there, in the penthouse...."
Pow!
Jun-ho smashed the man’s jaw to ensure he wouldn't be chewing on anything properly for a while, then moved toward Building 501. Having already perfectly mapped the interior of 'Golden Heights' through drone reconnaissance, Jun-ho sprinted along the walking paths designed like a park within the complex, not hesitating for a second, as if he were a resident who had lived there for years.
That was when it happened.
"Hurry, hurry! Run to the armory!"
"Wasn't that place cleaned out already?"
"You idiot, there are so many guns there, how could they take them all? Just go!"
A group of men came running through the walking path and soon ran into Jun-ho.
"Oh, damn, you scared me!"
"Wh-what?"
Armed with knives, baseball bats, and steel pipes, the men were startled to see Jun-ho. But seeing his attire, which was completely alien to their own, they realized he was an enemy who had attacked 'Golden Heights'.
"It's a soldier!"
"You damn soldier bastard!"
The gangster in the lead, holding a steel pipe, took two steps before collapsing sideways.
"Br-brother...?"
The men behind him didn't even have time to realize why he had suddenly fallen.
Thwack-thwack-thwack!
Throwing knives, imbued with the strength of a large feline predator or a gorilla, flew at speeds barely visible to the eye, striking the heads or hearts of the gangsters. They didn't just embed themselves; they shattered and destroyed.
"......!!!"
The gangsters in the back were horrified as those in the lead fell dead without even being able to scream. And they didn't realize that those few short moments were the last chance they had to flee.
Jun-ho, who had been sprinting at terrifying speed while throwing the knives in succession, closed the distance of over 10 meters in just one second.
Swish!
His machete and commando knife drew invisible lines. He had never formally learned swordsmanship, but his strength and speed, which surpassed human limits, overwhelmed everything.
Thud-thud!
Human limbs and heads were sliced off like soft tofu and fell to the ground.
"Argh! Ugh!"
"Kyaa! Kuhk!"
Jun-ho split the head of a gangster who had been screaming like a woman.
"R-run away!"
"Damn it!"
Only then did he rush toward the men who had turned to flee, finally grasping the situation.
Bang!
Park Cheol-woo, having shot the last gangster guarding the main gate with his K2C1, turned around and shouted.
"Take your positions! Oh and Yeong-sik, follow me!"
"Yes!"
The combat team quickly jumped up onto the guard post they had set up at the main entrance of the apartment complex. Some followed Park Cheol-woo into the management office. Like most complexes, 'Golden Heights' had a management office near the main gate, and as it was a luxury apartment, the facilities were state-of-the-art and large in scale.
However, Park Cheol-woo, who had already obtained internal information about the management office from Kim Sun-woo and the former/current police officers and memorized it, headed straight to the central control center without hesitation. Those inside were not gangsters but the original apartment security guards, so they greeted Park Cheol-woo with their hands held high.
"D-don't shoot! We're just security guards!"
"Pl-please spare us!"
"Subdue them."
At Park Cheol-woo’s signal, two of his men quickly bound the arms and legs of the guards with cable ties. Park Cheol-woo brought over the one who looked the oldest and said,
"Do you manage the apartment complex's power here too?"
"Yes? Oh, th-the power room is separate, but..."
"I heard you can turn the lights on and off, so stop spouting nonsense."
"We can, we can!"
The security chief, dressed in a uniform like a police officer with green epaulets and a rank insignia similar to the Mugunghwa, nodded hurriedly.
"Cut the power to the buildings where the gangster boss-level guys and the 'Chairman' live. If you try anything else, you die."
"Ye-yes, yes."
Terrified by Park Cheol-woo’s fierce expression, his aura, and above all, the fear instilled by the live-ammunition rifle, the security chief operated the panel with trembling hands.
"It's, it's done. I've cut all the power to Building 501."
"Well done. Go over there and rest."
After sending the security chief to where the other guards were, Park Cheol-woo examined the dozens of CCTV screens. Over 30 monitors were showing the situation in real-time all over the 'Golden Heights' complex. However, Park Cheol-woo’s gaze was fixed on the four monitors showing the front gate and the area near the management office.
The gangsters, who didn't even know what tactical action was and only knew how to threaten and shoot weak civilians or villagers, were no match for them. All the men they had encountered on the way here were like that. Even though they had been caught by surprise, the gangsters' response was pathetic.
The reason Yoon Seol-hee and her staff had struggled somewhat in the mountains before was because they were using unfamiliar firearms and lacked firepower. But now, the combat team was armed with more powerful weapons, and a full-fledged ROK military combat unit with overwhelming firepower was operating under complete operational control by a field-grade officer.
Above all, they had a 'monster' with them, someone Park Cheol-woo himself could no longer consider just a human. And that monster was not a zombie that ate people, but a reliable ally who was actively cooperating with them while retaining his reason.
"Now... show us your skills once more, Mr. Lee Jun-ho."
The nearest other apartment complex was over 800 meters away, but thinking that zombies might swarm if they heard the gunfire, Park Cheol-woo focused on the front gate CCTV while his gaze kept glancing at the Building 501 monitor.
"Hoo, hoo..."
Jun-ho, who had sprinted up the emergency stairs to the 20th floor of Building 501, took a moment to catch his breath. For a normal person, even an athlete, it would take several minutes for their breathing to stabilize after running for over 10 minutes, but it only took Jun-ho about a minute.
Whirrr.
Jun-ho opened the emergency exit door slightly and flew his mini-drone to check the hallway. The 20th floor was a duplex penthouse, with just two units occupying the entire wide building. With nothing amiss in the hallway, Jun-ho pulled out his Glock 17, which he hadn't used once today, aimed at the hallway, and pulled the trigger.
Tak! Tak!
Two bullets silenced the two CCTVs monitoring the hallway. Finally, Jun-ho stepped out of the emergency exit and pressed his ear against the front doors of the two homes to listen. However, the soundproofing must have been excellent, as he couldn't hear a thing.
'Will it work?'
Jun-ho thought that with his current strength, he could probably break down the apartment door. But shaking his head, he decided to try the door lock and entered the passcode just in case.
Beep-beep-beep. Beep-beep... Click!
"Simple bastards."
He had a hunch, and the penthouse passcode started with '69', the same as the armory code he had obtained from Lee Woo-jung. Jun-ho flew his mini-drone into the pitch-black interior, keeping it almost touching the ceiling. As expected of a penthouse, the ceiling height was quite high, so there was no risk of the drone being spotted.
"...Found you. Hiding like rats."
From the entrance, Jun-ho could spot the men hiding in the bathroom, the living room, and under the kitchen island of the 'L'-shaped penthouse. Three of them were holding pistols or rifles, and Jun-ho carefully observed them—they were the few young ones among a group of old men, mostly in their 60s and unarmed. Jun-ho muttered quietly as he saw a man with a very smooth face, a good physique, and a bulletproof vest over his white shirt.
"Is that you? The guy called Director Jeon..."
Killing intent swirled in Jun-ho’s eyes as he looked at Jeon Yo-han, the Vice Chairman and the real boss of the syndicate. Jun-ho landed the mini-drone on the ceiling fan in the living room, which had stopped moving, so he could see the living room and kitchen at once. Then, without delay, he opened the front door and quickly passed through the hallway. Jun-ho walked straight ahead, not caring about the sound of his footsteps, and as his footsteps grew louder, the men holding pistols and rifles in the living room and kitchen poked their muzzles and faces out to aim at the hallway.
At that moment, Jun-ho checked the controller screen and stopped just before he came into their line of fire. He tossed the flashbangs he held in both hands toward the kitchen and living room, then covered his ears with his headset and whipped his head away.
KWA-KONG!
A sharp, ear-splitting impact sound and the resulting pressure wave turned the penthouse into a mess in an instant.
"Argh!"
"Kuhk! Ugh-ugh!"
Jun-ho, holding a machete stained with blood and flesh and a Glock 17 with a still-hot muzzle, leaped into the midst of the men who had lost both their sight and hearing to the shock of the powerful flash, which exceeded 6 million candela, and the 170-decibel roar.