Chapter 148 – Heading to New York (2)

The C17 transport plane that departed from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa flew directly to New York without stopping.

Of course, flying nonstop from Okinawa to New York without refueling was a risky endeavor.

Although we were the only cargo on board and the plane was a long-range transport, the distance from Okinawa to New York was too great.

However, there were no places to land along the way, and it was difficult to arrange for mid-air refueling.

“Guam Air Base and Hawaii’s airports have been destroyed. Major airports on the mainland, as well as in Japan, have also been destroyed. The fuel storage tanks at the airports are gone, so landing wouldn’t help anyway.

It’s hard to understand how they managed to destroy only the key facilities so precisely.”

Inside the transport plane crossing the Pacific, David briefed us on the flight path and progress.

Listening to David’s grim report, I couldn’t help but sigh.

No airports for the transport plane to land…

It made me realize just how well-prepared the Demon King had been.

The Demon King’s preparations weren’t just about setting traps to capture the hero.

Just as he had done when he appeared in the other world, the Demon King had thoroughly prepared to occupy North Korea and destroy and conquer this world over several years.

Not only did he plan to kill the heroes, but after causing the zombie outbreak, he also prepared satellite meteors to destroy the remaining facilities along with any new heroes.

Even if the U.S. hadn’t used its nuclear weapons this time, the Demon King might have used North Korea’s nuclear arsenal to drop the satellites.

So far, most of the Demon King’s plans had gone according to his design.

Fortunately, we managed to extract the new hero and saintess, but that alone wasn’t enough to significantly disrupt the Demon King’s plans.

Moreover, the new hero was still untrained.

I shouldn’t say this, but for now, the hero was just bait to keep the Demon King’s attention away from the U.S.

While we were in the U.S., the hero would serve as a distraction to keep the Demon King from focusing on America.

If he had returned to Ea, he wouldn’t have had to play this role, but since he chose to stay here, as a hero, he had to endure it.

* * *

After escaping Kadena Air Base, we spent a rare moment of leisure inside the transport plane.

The C17 transport plane, which I was on for the first time, was more comfortable than I expected.

The empty interior and the chairs lined up along the walls.

The cabin was pleasant and cozy.

“So this is a giant carriage that flies without using magic. Can I take a closer look?”

Yelena, true to her mage nature, followed the crew around, asking questions about the unfamiliar aircraft.

Hoffmann, adhering to the mountaineer soldiers’ motto of resting whenever possible, fell asleep as soon as the plane took off.

Zahina seemed to be feeling the high-altitude winds, her eyes closed and fingers moving slightly.

Yerim was scribbling something in a small notebook, likely writing a diary.

As for me, I headed to the cockpit around the time we were supposed to reach Hawaii.

I wanted to see the U.S. military base that had been attacked by the satellites.

The cockpit was quiet.

It wasn’t that the pilots weren’t talking because we were in flight.

They were too shocked by the sight before them to speak.

Even the usually composed David tried to hand me a telescope.

“Do you need this?”

“No, I’m fine.”

I didn’t take the telescope.

By channeling mana into my eyes, I could see farther than any telescope.

Besides, the scene before us didn’t require a telescope.

Pearl Harbor, spread out below the transport plane, was in complete ruins.

Ships were sunk everywhere, and the harbor was filled with black smoke rising from various spots.

And then there was the massive crater on one side of the harbor—a clear sign of a satellite impact.

The Pearl Harbor before my eyes was more devastated than anything I had seen in World War II movies.

Unlike the calm David, the pilots were biting their lips, trying to suppress their anger.

“This is the home port of the Pacific Fleet. This plane is also part of the Pacific Fleet, so the pilots probably have homes or quarters here.”

At David’s quiet explanation, I understood why the pilots were trembling.

It wasn’t just the military base that had been destroyed. The city attached to the base was also in ruins.

Houses, apartments, and the military quarters.

I silently gazed at the destroyed harbor city.

Despite their anger and worry, the pilots remained focused on their duties.

The transport plane passed Pearl Harbor and continued eastward toward the U.S. mainland.

Even as we flew over the U.S. West Coast, the devastation was evident.

Unlike Korea, which had already been reduced to ruins, America was crumbling before my eyes.

As we flew over San Francisco, we could see black smoke rising from various parts of the city and buildings spewing flames with people pouring out.

Over Denver, we saw hordes of zombies chasing fleeing buses and trucks.

Even without direct attacks from the Demon King’s forces, the satellite meteors alone were rapidly destroying America.

After crossing the Pacific and the U.S. mainland, we reached the skies above Philadelphia, southwest of New York. The pilots then asked us to parachute out.

The reason was that the Atlantic Fleet was in the southern seas, making it difficult to reach New York.

But both David and I knew the real reason—the transport plane was running out of fuel.

Three engines had already stopped, and the remaining one was on the verge of failing.

“I’ve never parachuted before.”

“Don’t worry. The parachute will deploy automatically the moment you jump. Just hold onto the straps and wait, and you’ll land safely.”

At Yerim’s worried words, the co-pilot, who had come to the back, reassured her while helping her put on the parachute.

It sounded ridiculous, but for an Awakened, it wasn’t wrong.

As long as we didn’t land in the sea or a lake, an Awakened wouldn’t get hurt from parachuting.

After that, Hoffmann, Zahina, and Yelena also put on their parachutes, and I, for the first time, strapped one on as well.

Jumping out with a parachute without any training was honestly terrifying, but I couldn’t show fear in front of my team.

“I’ll go down first and fire a signal. See you on the ground.”

The cargo bay opened, and David was the first to jump.

As a CIA agent, he was good at parachuting.

The parachute deployed immediately after jumping from the plane.

Next was me.

I took a deep breath and ran toward the open cargo bay.

The vast sky stretched below my feet. I launched myself into the void.

The parachute opened without issue.

Following me, Zahina, Yerim, Hoffmann, and Yelena all safely exited the plane.

After we jumped, the transport plane turned its nose southeast.

With only one engine, the plane headed toward the sea.

Though it gradually lost altitude, the transport plane struggled on until it finally disappeared over the ocean.

Watching the plane depart, I checked the parachutes following behind.

As expected, the parachutes didn’t scatter but descended in an orderly line toward the ground.

Among those parachuting down, only David had received proper training, but we had someone who could control the wind.

Under Zahina’s guidance, the parachutes stayed close and landed one by one.

We touched down in the parking lot of a Walmart in eastern Philadelphia.

The vast, empty space had no cars, and aside from the Walmart, there were no buildings or zombies in sight.

Even to me, this seemed like the only suitable place for parachutes to land.

From the sky, we couldn’t see the situation on the ground.

I didn’t know, and Zahina couldn’t have known, that this Walmart was occupied by a group of survivors.

As a result, the moment we landed, we were greeted with a hail of bullets.

*Ratatat!*

“Shield!”

A mana barrier unfolded in front of us as bullets rained down.

Yelena’s mana barrier blocked all the incoming bullets.

While Yelena’s magic held off the bullets, we each freed ourselves from our parachute straps and took cover behind a bus parked in the lot.

*Bang! Bang!*

The bus we hid behind was also riddled with bullets.

“Typical Americans. Their first greeting is always so warm.”

At Yerim’s words, David frowned.

He shouted toward the Walmart where the gunfire was coming from.

“Goddammit! Stop shooting! We’re not zombies!”

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

Even though they must have heard his voice, the bullets kept coming.

“Did they think zombies would parachute down? They clearly knew we were humans.”

At my words, David frowned, and a response soon came from the Walmart.

“This Walmart is ours! We fought off the zombies to keep it! You think we’re just gonna let the government take it now?”

The gruff voice of a middle-aged man came from the Walmart.

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

The gunfire that followed made it clear who was inside.

My party members and I looked at David.

If this were Korea or Ea, I would have handled it my way, but this was America.

I couldn’t just do as I pleased, especially since we were accompanied by a State Department official from the CIA.

“What should we do?”

At my question, David sighed.

Honestly, it didn’t matter who was in the Walmart.

Our destination wasn’t Philadelphia—it was New York.

Since we had to land here, we needed to get to New York as quickly as possible.

However, New York was 100 kilometers away—not a distance we could walk.

That meant we needed a car, but there were only two vehicles in sight.

One was the bus we were hiding behind, but it had taken too many bullets to be drivable.

The other was a Walmart trailer parked right in front of the Walmart where the gunfire was coming from.

Beyond the parking lot, in the distance, there were cars parked in the residential area.

But while parachuting down, we had seen zombies wandering through the ruined neighborhood.

Finding a working car there wouldn’t be easy.

Between crossing the parking lot and searching the zombie-infested residential area for a car, or taking the trailer right in front of us, the choice was obvious.

David thought the same.

With a tired expression, he said to me, “Please don’t kill them.”

“I’ll try.”

I lowered my helmet and wrapped my armor in mana.

Then I looked at my party members.

“I’ll support you.”

Yelena gathered mana in her staff.

Zahina summoned the wind and gripped her sniper rifle.

Hoffmann drew his bow, and Yerim waved her hand.

I nodded and leaped out from behind the bus.

*Bang! Bang!*

Bullets rained down.

The bullets bounced off the mana-infused armor without penetrating.

A fireball flew over me as I sprinted across the empty parking lot.

Then came the sound of Zahina’s rifle.

“Argh! I got shot!”

A scream echoed, and the gunfire hitting my armor stopped.

*Crash!*

Yelena’s fireball shattered a second-floor window.

With the gunfire halted, I rushed past the main entrance and into the Walmart.