Chapter 37. Scouting a Place to Settle.
Chapter 37. Scouting a Place to Settle.
"So where exactly in Gimpo should we land?"
We debated where to touch down and begin reconnaissance.
"Mr. Sihu, the simplest place to land is Gimpo Airport. The name says 'Gimpo,' but technically it's not actually in Gimpo..."
"Ordinary buildings won't support the weight of a transport helicopter, and..."
Opinions varied—landing on suitable farmland, setting down at a major intersection.
"Alternatively, it might be best to simply rappel down from the helicopter. Have it drop us at the target point and then wait at the airport. Provided we confirm the airport's safety first, of course."
"Will that be all right? You'd have to make two trips."
"It's not as if we're clearing out all of Gimpo—we only need to secure the area where we'll be staying. Adding one airport to the list won't be much extra work."
"Yes, then we'll use two helicopters to distribute personnel and..."
"No, this time only Awakened and co-pilots will go. If a special entity appears, conventional firearms are useless against it. And since you said this is a model Mr. Chu Seong-geun can operate, that will suffice."
"Understood. Then we only need to request a co-pilot. I'll radio Lieutenant General Go Seong-hyeon."
About thirty minutes after we radioed, Lieutenant General Go Seong-hyeon arrived with a warrant officer.
"Good day. I am Warrant Officer Lee Geun-cheol, and I will be serving as co-pilot of the Chinook."
"Ho-ho, good to meet you. I was a soldier myself once. I'll be in your care."
"If you've been discharged, then you are my senior. I look forward to working with you."
Lieutenant General Go Seong-hyeon, being an air force man himself, offered us a few pieces of advice.
"The helicopter's robust design allows it to withstand a wide range of altitudes. And despite being a large helicopter, it has good maneuverability and can fly effectively even at low altitude—use that to assess the situation from low altitude and then land. Since you don't have many personnel, take plenty of fuel with you and refuel after landing."
"Will do. While we're away, please check for anyone who has farming experience or has done it before. We haven't checked thoroughly on our side either, so please look into it together with the people who newly arrived."
"Of course, don't worry. We'll have them properly sorted."
"Also, we plan to stop by Gimpo Airport—would your pilots be able to handle civilian aircraft?"
"Hmm... Even veteran pilots need a commercial license, and civilian aircraft systems vary so widely that type-conversion training is required, so I don't know the specifics..."
"That's a shame... In any case, we'll depart as soon as the helicopter inspection is complete."
* * * * * * * *
ㅡ Thwup-thwup-thwup-thwup-thwup!
In front of the helicopter, our group saw us off. The departure party consisted of six people total: me, Chaeyeon, Jia, Mr. Chu, Min-cheol, Seok-hyeon, and the co-pilot, Warrant Officer Lee Geun-cheol. And aside from the warrant officer, the only person armed with a gun was Mr. Chu.
"Oh... Mr. Chu, fully armed like that, you're practically giving off special forces vibes..."
"Ha ha ha! My marksmanship hasn't rusted yet."
He had magazines and a pistol tucked into his tactical vest, a rifle in his hands, and a shield slung across his back.
"Our daughter, be careful! If it gets dangerous, stick close to Sihu."
"Dad!!!"
"Ma'am, I'll be going too~"
"Ho-ho, yes, our second daughter, have a safe trip too~"
She was so sociable that she always called Jia "our second daughter." And looking at the scene now, they seemed just like parents worrying about kids heading off on an outing.
'If all life is is hardship, there's no fun in it at all.'
"Then we're off."
With that, the helicopter's rear door closed and we began to lift off. Naturally, Mr. Chu and Warrant Officer Lee Geun-cheol were in the cockpit. While flying toward Gimpo, I spoke to Mr. Chu through the microphone mounted on my helmet.
"Don't head straight for Gimpo. Let's stop by Gimpo Airport on the way. And lower our altitude as we enter Gyeonggi-do."
'Come to think of it, I haven't seen a single special entity lately... If that's a good thing, I suppose it's a good thing, but...'
"Acknowledged. We will soon enter Gyeonggi-do airspace. Weather conditions are decent, so low-altitude flight should be manageable."
Maybe because we were riding a transport helicopter, we reached the airport in under an hour.
"Hold! Unidentified aircraft spotted dead ahead! It appears an unidentified craft and a helicopter are currently engaged in combat."
The creatures clung to the helicopter and attacked viciously until the helicopter, unable to bear the weight, crashed toward the airport. Then, seemingly having spotted us, they began flying our way.
"Those... are flying zombies! Turn the helicopter around right now and open the door for a moment."
The helicopter rotated swiftly, turning its fuselage so we could see the creatures. It really was American-made—the evasion systems and navigation equipment were exceptional.
"Chaeyeon, Jia, aim for their wings. The wings are fragile enough to be torn apart even by gunfire."
At my words, Chaeyeon finished casting in an instant and launched a Wind Cutter, and Jia was firing arrows at high speed as well. They clearly weren't durable creatures, because we brought them down quickly.
"We needed to clear the airport anyway, so I suppose we'll have to go down now."
So before landing, we cleared out from the air the ones that had swarmed at the sound, then touched down. We approached the crashed helicopter while keeping watch in all directions. Warrant Officer Lee Geun-cheol, after examining the helicopter, spoke up.
"This is an unmanned helicopter. Fortunately, there are no casualties."
"An unmanned helicopter? Is there anywhere still capable of operating something like this?"
"Hmm... The government was still functional before communications went down, so it seems they are still surviving."
"Hmph... Let's set that aside for now. We'll make this our landing point, refuel briefly, and then take another look around Gimpo. Then drop us off there and wait here. The waiting party will be Mr. Chu, Warrant Officer Lee Geun-cheol, and Min-cheol."
Having said that, we took off again and began flying over Gimpo at low altitude, inspecting the area slowly. Naturally, we flew with the helicopter's rear door open so we could see as well. That was when we heard the sound of wind rushing past beside us.
ㅡ Fwoooosh!
The helicopter fuselage shuddered slightly, as if something of tremendous mass had passed by. When I turned my head to look outside, a giant was hurling a car at us.
"Gain altitude!"
Chaeyeon blocked another car that came flying our way. I prepared to kill the thing, but Jia stopped me. And before we knew it, we had climbed to an altitude where the cars couldn't reach us.
"Sihu, wait a moment. Let me try."
Jia nocked an arrow on the string and concentrated. As she did, mana enveloped the arrow, and a subtle aura of wind gathered at its tip. Then she loosed it.
ㅡ Fwing!
The arrow, having left her hand, kicked up a tremendous wind as it flew and shattered the creature's skull.
And Jia, seemingly utterly exhausted, slumped down, her forehead beaded with sweat.
'Wind aura... Faint, but it's spirit energy. Is it a power dwelling in the bow?'
"Hah, hah... I did pretty well, didn't I?"
I grinned and stroked Jia's hair, praising her. We kept flying, searching for a suitable spot.
'Somewhere with houses that are reasonably livable and farmland...'
We found an appropriate location and landed.
"Hmm, just as you said. The paddies, fields, and greenhouses here are intact, and the houses are comparatively intact as well."
"Yes, and while flying over I caught a glimpse of some cattle, pigs, and chickens that escaped from a farm. With this much, isn't it perfectly suited?"
"True. The harvest will take a bit, but where else can we be fully self-sufficient in meat and vegetables? Though we'll have to procure food until then, of course."
"Yes, then we'll check this place out, so please wait at the airport."
"Hm? Wouldn't it be fine if we stayed here?"
"That unmanned helicopter from earlier is bothering me a bit. They've already confirmed our presence, so it's possible they might come back to assess the situation."
"All right. Understood. Once things are settled, radio us and we'll come right here."
With that, they returned to the airport.
"Sihu, but what exactly are we trying to check here?"
"There aren't that many houses to begin with, but zombies might still be inside, so we need to clear them out. And if we're lucky, we might find livestock."
"Tee-hee, how long has it been since our last date? We haven't been able to because of all the people around..."
And so we checked the houses one by one. It really was the countryside—most of the zombies were elderly people. Regrettably, they were alone, not in family units, and because the number of people wasn't that large, it was over sooner than expected. We gathered all the bodies and burned them.
'Go to a better place...'
"Sihu..."
"..."
The girls, seemingly thinking something similar, held my hands and watched the bodies burn with slightly furrowed brows. Once everything related to the zombies was dealt with, we walked around the area a bit.
"Oh! Sihu, look at that!!!"
Where Jia pointed in surprise, astonishingly enough, we saw several pigs and cows. A shame they'd grown a little gaunt after coming out into the wild on what used to be quality feed, though.
"Chaeyeon, catch them!"
Chaeyeon hastily used Bind magic to keep the creatures from fleeing. Then, as a makeshift measure, she put them in a nearby greenhouse and cast protective magic on it in case they tried to escape.
"Whoa, did we just hit the jackpot...?"
"First, the situation is handled, so let's call the helicopter."
Not long after we called, they flew straight over, and without any special preparations, we boarded the helicopter and returned to the base.
Back at the base, we informed everyone that we had secured a good place to live, and also told them that we had captured live pigs and cattle.
And for the first time, I heard cheers from people overflowing with joy.