Chapter 75 – Chaos (1)

Coming down from the rooftop of the high-rise building we had climbed with difficulty was quick.

I carried the dazed Yerim on my back again and ran towards the safe zone.

The undead pigeons that had been flying towards us tried to keep following after we reached the ground,

But they lost us due to Zahina’s interference.

“The chickeons are turning back.”

The pigeons that had been floundering in the whirlwind Zahina created started heading back south as they got farther from us.

However, watching the undead pigeons desperately flapping their skeletal wings to fly forcibly, they didn’t look like the chubby ‘chickeons’ that have trouble flying.

Yerim felt better soon after we got to the ground, but I kept carrying her as I ran.

There were hardly any undead on the way back, and we needed to return to the safe zone as quickly as possible now.

Yerim seemed to understand the situation and didn’t ask to be put down.

“Wow, is it this fast when running freely? You’re so fast even in this thick armor that Mr. Hoffman and sister Zahina have trouble keeping up. This feels like riding in a convertible!”

Rather, she seemed to be enjoying being carried on my back.

Actually, I wasn’t even running at top speed now.

If I ran properly, Yerim wouldn’t be able to chatter like this.

Yerim feeling like she was in a convertible on my back was because I was running so carefully.

When the pigeons stopped following and the surroundings quieted, Yerim asked in my ear from my back.

“By the way, that sound we heard earlier was gunfire, right?”

“That’s right.”

I nodded while running.

“That was really dangerous. Luckily it hit your sword, you could have been hurt.”

My sword deflecting the bullet wasn’t luck.

On the day I crossed over to this world, I had deflected bullets north of the DMZ too.

Of course, then the distance was only about 100 meters so I could block it seeing the killing intent and muzzle flash.

Back then, it was a skill any knight could do if they knew what guns were.

‘This time it was a bullet fired from over a kilometer away though…’

I could predict when and where the bullet would fly just from the killing intent and flash of light, even before hearing the gunshot.

‘This might be a skill ordinary knights can’t do…’

It might have been hard to block before my mana detection and senses expanded.

However, even if I hadn’t blocked it, I wouldn’t have been injured.

Though my armor is getting damaged here and there in this world, my armor that I poured money into making should be able to stop one or two ordinary bullets like that… It should definitely be able to block them.

‘Can it really block them? Should I test it separately…’

As I was erasing the faint anxiety that arose, Yerim asked me in a puzzled voice.

“But are there human soldiers in the undead army too? Did they recruit North Korean soldiers while occupying North Korean territory?”

This time I tilted my head at Yerim’s question.

“Haven’t you seen shooting before?”

“No. Zombies and skeletons wouldn’t shoot guns, and there were no humans on the zombie side.”

“No, zombies shoot guns too. The one who shot this time was probably a zombie.”

“What? That can’t be. Even skeletons only carried abandoned spears and such, they couldn’t use tools.”

It seemed Yerim had only seen ordinary skeletons.

Contrary to her words, even elite skeletons could use basic swordsmanship.

Moreover, death knights made from knights corrupted by death energy could use all their swordsmanship from when they were alive.

The lich floating in the southern sky retained all its memories from life.

But Yerim seemed unable to believe zombies could shoot guns.

“But I’ve never seen a zombie shooting a gun before.”

Come to think of it, I hadn’t been shot at much since coming to this world either.

This was my first time since being sniped at the DMZ early on.

While following the hero’s group, there were traces of undead not only shooting guns but even firing artillery shells, but I hadn’t seen it directly.

“Maybe gun-wielding undead are rarer than expected.”

Had the Demon King’s army gathered all undead who could use this world’s weapons to face the hero’s group?

If so, the Demon King’s army that headed south earlier might not have had gun-wielding undead.

Then the undead who just shot at me must be a newly acquired soldier undead during their southward march.

“In the end, did this country’s military get completely pushed back by an undead legion that didn’t even have guns?”

Of course, this world’s weapons were terribly ineffective against undead, and the country was already in chaos from the zombie outbreak,

Still, this world’s military seemed too powerless.

“If zombies can shoot guns too… Will the sanctuary be okay?”

“Well… We’ll be able to check that this time.”

I answered calmly to Yerim’s worried question.

We needed to verify if the safe zone could withstand gun-wielding undead, for the main force coming through the gate too.

Abandoning reconnaissance and running as fast as possible, we could quickly return to the safe zone.

Unlike the southern city area, zombies were still wandering around the safe zone, but those zombies couldn’t block our way.

I swept away blocking zombies with the sword in one hand and entered the safe zone directly.

After putting down Yerim I was carrying, we headed straight for the Personnel Management Department building.

Passing the outskirts of the safe zone and entering the streets where people were, the atmosphere was different from yesterday.

The expressions of people outside were very sharp, and elderly and children hiding behind tents and building windows were scared, unlike before.

Though no one picked fights with us walking the streets in full armor, some emitted small amounts of killing intent.

“Why are they like this? Everyone seems strange.”

Yerim asked us, surprised by the hostile atmosphere, but unfortunately we didn’t find the changed atmosphere that strange.

“Now it feels like a normal survivor village.”

Though the atmosphere had worsened considerably compared to yesterday, Hoffman and I found this more familiar.

Zahina also seemed unconcerned, having experienced such atmospheres several times before.

Actually, for us who experienced the battlefields of the other world, the peaceful atmosphere until yesterday was stranger.

Living comfortably trusting just one safe zone in a ruined world.

It was an incomprehensible safety ignorance to me.

No, was I like that too in my previous life?

After briefly reflecting, I ignored the surrounding atmosphere and crossed the street.

The Personnel Management Department had the same bad atmosphere.

Moreover, the department itself had split into factions and couldn’t even work.

Opening the closed door and entering, only Seo Eun and her husband remained in the empty office.

“Yerim! Sir Yeager!”

TL Note- MC’s name has been changed from Egger to Yeager, because Egger sounds awful for  a name.

Seo Eun, who had been sitting blankly at her desk, was very glad to see us.

“Welcome back! You returned early. Thank goodness!”

She jumped up from her seat and ran toward us.

“Did you return early knowing the situation here? Good timing. I’ve been waiting wondering when you’d return.”

Until yesterday, no, even this morning, Seo Eun had wanted us to stay outside for Yerim’s safety.

For that Seo Eun to change like this…

Just what had happened in this safe zone while we were out.

Though very curious, there was something more important right now.

“Let’s hear the reconnaissance report first.”

“What? But this situation is urgent…”

Seo Eun who had been flustering at my words closed her mouth with wide eyes when I looked at her steadily.

“Let’s hear it first.”

“Yes… But that expression now…”

Though I didn’t know why Seo Eun was surprised, I gave the reconnaissance report first.

“The Demon King’s army has set up camp 3 kilometers south of this safe zone.

The Demon King’s army is about 20,000 strong, mostly zombies and skeletons.

Their leader is a skeleton that uses magic, a lich, and we were shot at after being discovered during reconnaissance.

We were pursued by undead pigeons while retreating immediately, but shook them off midway and returned to this safe zone.”

Did I summarize too briefly?

Seo Eun didn’t immediately understand my words.

“Demon King’s army? 20,000? Who shot? And pigeons?”

Instead of understanding, she mumbled my words with a blank face.

When Seo Eun didn’t understand, Yerim jumped in and fired words like bullets.

“It’s true! A zombie shot at us. The knight blocked the bullet with his sword, but it was really surprising.

Plus, hundreds of zombie pigeons flew after us while we were escaping. Sister Zahina scattered them by moving the wind, that’s how we shook them off.”

Strangely, Seo Eun came to her senses at Yerim’s waterfall of words.

“Wait, you’re saying all of that is true?”

Yerim nodded vigorously at Seo Eun’s question.

“Yes. It’s true. I saw it clearly with my own eyes. A skeleton wrapped in rags floating in the sky, and when the skeleton gestured, there was a gunshot and a flock of bloody pigeons rose up. Plus…”

As Yerim rattled on about what she saw, Seo Eun turned to me.

I calmly added the missing details.

“Though I couldn’t directly confirm the entire Demon King’s army’s forces, I could roughly estimate through death energy. Based on past experience, the difference shouldn’t be more than a thousand.”

Seo Eun shook her head at my words.

“Such nonsense… Why are so many zombies there?”

“They haven’t been there all along, they must have gathered recently. The undead in the city kept decreasing while we were scouting.”

I had thought the reason for decreasing undead was related to the Demon King’s army all along.

Though I hadn’t expected that army to be this close.

And the reason the Demon King’s army was there was probably because of the octopus monster coming down from the north.

However, this was just my thought so it wasn’t something to report to Seo Eun.

At my words, Seo Eun looked over all of us.

Then she confirmed with me again.

“It’s really hard to believe. Are you sure it’s true? You’re certain?”

After checking with me several times, she stood up.

“I was going to ask you to go to the Apostle with me, but we’ll have to go together anyway.”

I could only tilt my head at Seo Eun’s words.

What’s so difficult about Seo Eun going to the Apostle? Surely she had been meeting the Apostle fine without me until now.

Seeing my expression, Seo Eun smiled bitterly.

“The Apostle no longer accepts my reports. Though I’m the Personnel Management Department head, even team members don’t follow my orders. They say they take orders from the Apostle’s new disciple.”

Her husband beside her told us who the disciple was.

“The person who entered this sanctuary yesterday.”

I could guess who it was without hearing the name.

“Originally I was planning to meet the Apostle with you all to make requests and threats.”

Though she said threats, even she seemed to feel it didn’t suit her.

Seo Eun continued with a sigh.

“We need to make threats right now. The Apostle is rampaging like mad now.”