"To get to Seoul, we have to head out through Gwacheon Expressway. However, there are still likely Zerglings on the main road… Let's try taking a detour through a side road."
We had defeated over a hundred Zerglings, but that was only a fraction of them.
On Heungan Expressway near Indeokwon Station, there were still hundreds or even thousands of monsters swarming.
Fortunately, Lee Yong-su seemed to know the area well and drove the truck with ease.
Vroom.
It was fascinating to see the road gradually turn into a rural path, even though we were heading toward Seoul.
He glanced around the area and said.
"I heard this area is some kind of a Bronze Age archaeological site … That's why it hasn't been developed."
The road quickly turned into a rough gravel path, and the truck body continuously jolted.
Historical preservation of a past era.
It seemed like that no longer mattered.
Now, humanity's clock was set to turn backward.
After driving down the winding road for about ten minutes.
"…There's something up ahead."
A metal barricade blocked the road in the distance.
Yellow and black patterns.
It was a metal barricade used by the military.
In front of it, sharp spikes were raised on a steel plate, so they gradually slowed down.
Lee Yong-su asked.
"Could the military still be around? Now that I think about it, there is a military base nearby."
"I don't think that's the case."
I pointed to the men standing next to the barricade.
"They're not wearing military uniforms."
Ranging from sports windbreakers to short-sleeved shirts.
Their arms were adorned with colorful tattoos.
But the biggest problem was the items they were holding.
I said.
"…They have rifles."
"Oh no… Should we turn back and take another route?"
"I don't think that's an option."
Honk honk-
A Retona vehicle with high beams on approached from behind.
We were perfectly caught in a pincer movement.
I said.
"Yong-su ssi, I'll open a Portal for you, so please get inside for now."
"What are you planning to do?"
"I may only have a learner's permit, but I at least know how to step on the accelerator."
"No, that's not what I meant…"
"They won't shoot right off the bat. They haven't done so yet, either. As long as it's not a surprise attack, I'm confident I won't die."
Even in the worst-case scenario, it was better if he wasn't there.
If I set up a Subspace Portal like a wall, it could block the bullets, but Lee Yong-su didn't have that kind of defense.
"…Please be careful."
"Don't worry."
He seemed to understand my intentions and quickly squeezed his body into the Portal that formed between the passenger seats.
I, too, felt the vibration of the trembling truck body as I slowly moved into the driver's seat.
But as soon as I grabbed the steering wheel, my mind went blank.
Damn, how do you drive again?
I put my hands on the wheel awkwardly and slowly pressed the accelerator.
The truck, gaining speed again, reached the checkpoint set up by those guys,
Clunk!
and hit the brakes hard in front of the steel spikes.
As I rolled down the window, a man with a rifle slung over his neck spoke with a sneer.
"You drive like shit. I thought I was gonna get to see some tires pop."
"…What's going on here? You don't seem to be from the military."
The man shook his curly perm hair and grinned.
"Who says I'm not? I'm the first battalion commander here-!"
At his exaggerated gestures, the man on the opposite side responded.
"Hey, you idiot. If you're the battalion commander, what does that make me?"
"Ah, hyung-nim, you'd be the regimental commander, of course! Salute!"
"Fuck, the Regimental and Battalion Commanders stuck doing sentry duty at the guardpost, for fuck's sake."
The man, who was joking with his hyung-nim, turned back to me.
"As of today, we've decided to set up shop here. Got it?So, where do you think you're going with this big truck? To the afterlife?"
Before I could answer.
Clunk.
The back door of the truck opened with a thud.
The goons who had been following in the Retona seemed to have already opened the door.
They started making a fuss.
"Hyung-nim! This bastard is crazy!"
"Holy shit, this is fucking awesome!"
The cargo hold was packed with all sorts of supplies that Lee Yong-su had gathered from the logistics center.
From bottled water to canned food, to winter supplies.
There was hardly anything missing.
One of the goons circled around the trunk and came back, looking astonished.
"So you're a delivery guy? Is it okay to just skim off this much stuff like that?"
"You can take it all if you want. I can even get more for you."
"Really? You're being very cooperative, aren't you?"
Just then.
Another subordinate appeared from beyond the bushes and shouted at him.
"Hyung-nim! It's 1 o'clock now!"
"Ah, already?"
The man tilted his head slightly, then pointed the muzzle of his rifle at me.
"Get out of the truck for now. We need to wrap this up here."
I followed his instructions for the moment.
I could use my Shipping skill to take them down in an instant, but there were too many of them.
Since they all had rifles, I decided to wait for a more definite opportunity.
I had a trick up my sleeve.
The Subspace that had leveled up to Level 2.
Its advantage wasn't just in being able to accommodate people.
The guy called another subordinate over.
"Did you call for me, hyung-nim?"
"Drive this in. I'll take this guy in myself."
"You're taking him in?"
"Yeah. He said he could get more boxes for us, right? Won't the big boss be pleased?"
With that, the man led me to the Retona vehicle behind us.
He put me in the back seat, then sat down facing me.
The muzzle of the rifle was still pointed right at my chest.
"Around 2 o'clock, something fucking crazy comes out here. It's better to stay inside when that happens."
He gave me a sly grin with a sleepy look in his eyes.
The car rattled as it climbed the hill.
Surprisingly, the destination they headed for was an actual military base.
When the car arrived, the steel gate of the guard post slid open with a clatter.
The ones standing guard weren't soldiers either.
The man who had been aiming his gun at me spoke to the subordinates guarding the post.
"Make sure you get back in on time. It's already one o'clock."
"Understood, hyung-nim."
Inside the base, it was astonishingly quiet.
Occasionally, the corpses of dead soldiers were visible.
Perhaps these soldiers had been wiped out by the Zerglings, and this might have been their unit.
"Get out."
We got off at one end of the training ground.
Indeed, in front of it stood a building with a splendid base emblem.
That was the name of the place.
He led me into the building.
When we reached the third floor and arrived at the room where his 'big boss' was supposedly located, I couldn't help but let out a short laugh.
That's what the sign on the door said.
The man guiding me knocked on the door.
"Hyung-nim, it's me, Seok-jun."
"Ah, come in."
Inside, it was a neat office.
On the wall hung the national flag of South Korea and various emblems, with a desk set in front of them where a man sat smoking a cigarette.
The man wore a loose shirt and white pants, and a large scar ran diagonally across his face.
As there was no ashtray, he stubbed out the cigarette he was smoking on the desk.
No matter how you looked at him, he was far from a 'Commander'.
"Go take care of things."
"Yes, hyung-nim."
The man named Seok-jun closed the door and left.
The so-called commander casually placed something on the desk.
It was a jet-black pistol.
He asked me.
"Where did you get all that stuff?"
He seemed to have heard some details through the radio.
I answered truthfully.
"I got it from the Gunpo logistics center."
"Ah! The logistics center!"
He slapped his forehead as if he hadn't realized something.
"You're fucking smart. I should've taken over a place like that first."
"…What happened here?"
"Heh, didn't you see all the dead soldiers on your way in?"
He flashed a wicked smile.
"They were all running around with some operation or whatever and ended up dead. Only a handful of stragglers were left, so I took over in no time. I'm pretty damn quick when it comes to seizing opportunities."
He looked quite proud of himself.
He continued speaking.
"But there's a bit of a problem. We've got guns, grenades, all the good stuff… but there's hardly anything to eat. I don't know where all the combat rations went, and the PX was practically empty. So, it looks like I'm going to need you to lend a hand."
He got up and started pacing around, as if preparing to give a detailed mission briefing.
"Take the truck and head back to that logistics center of yours. I'll send some of my guys with you, so don't get any funny ideas and make sure you guide them properly. Hell… if you want, you're welcome to join our side. You'll have to rough it for a while, but it's still better than wandering around outside and getting torn apart by those monsters, don't you think?"
At that moment, an unfamiliar sound began to be heard from outside the window.
Screeeeeeeech—
Screeeeeech—!
A series of piercing cries echoed in the air.
And before long,
the sun was blotted out.
Flap.
Flap flap flap.
The sound of thousands of wings beating filled the air like thunder.
Looking at the creatures that filled the sky like a dark storm cloud, the 'commander' grumbled.
"They're early today. Usually, they come around two o'clock."
The creatures were Wyverns.
But they were somehow different from the ones I'd seen in the tunnel.
"That's…"
"Crazy, right? That one's the leader."
One particularly massive Wyvern stood out.
Its head and body were pitch black, and its tail and legs shimmered in rainbow colors as if covered in oil.
Its size was abnormally huge.
It seemed to be beyond what one would typically call a Wyvern…
"…A Dragon?"
It was a creature that could only be described as such.
It didn't seem like something that could be taken down even if I threw hundreds of axes at it.
It whipped through the sky, leading the thousands of Wyverns in its wake.
The 'commander' smirked.
"Listen carefully. Go to the logistics center with my boys. If you don't pull any tricks, we'll take you in as one of our own. Do you understand what that means?"
He showed me the black handgun.
Then, he clenched his fist.
Crunch…
The gun barrel gradually crumpled, and
Bang!
A shot fired into the ceiling as the pistol crumpled like a sheet of paper.
An immense show of strength.
"I am an Awakened. I gained the ability of the
He presented the final condition of his ultimatum.
"From now on, just do as I say. Find food, bring me some Mana Stones. If you do that, I'll protect you from the monsters. The world has changed. Now it's a time when power rules… and I…"
His long-winded speech dragged on.
No matter how I looked at him, he seemed intoxicated.
Perhaps intoxicated by the very notion of apocalypse itself.
In this fallen civilization, he was chasing the scent of a bygone era.
He declared his ambition.
"I will be king. And this place will be my kingdom."
A different kind of king, the Dragon soaring in the sky, briefly glanced in our direction.
But maybe because we were inside the building, it merely circled around with the Wyverns.
The presence of that leader was truly formidable.
But the family I was looking for wasn't these thug bastards engaging in petty tyranny.
And I'm sorry to say to the 'Commander'… but I had my own plans.
In my mind, I reached out to PAX.
Today was the day I had finally leveled up Subspace to Level 2.
The maintenance cost had increased, and I could now enhance my skills even further, but the biggest achievement was something else.
PAX asked me.
[Would you like to input a target for storage?]
[Available storage capacity: 1]
I responded.
'Store this entire Republic of Korea Defense Communication Headquarters.'
I intended to take over the commander's domain in its entirety.