Marauder of the Apocalypse-Chapter 84: Urban Warfare

Three hundred soldiers. All armed with rifles, equipped with protective gear including bulletproof helmets, and carrying support weapons.

In a direct confrontation, no one could defeat them. Even the alliance lacked sufficient firepower.

That's why the alliance had planned a meticulous urban warfare strategy. And it was brutally effective.

I realized this painfully as I sat in the general hospital's conference room, having followed the evangelist elder there.

***

The interior of the general hospital was like a maze. Fence-like barriers similar to those surrounding construction sites were installed throughout the lobby and corridors, with Hope Community people busily welding them securely in place.

Loud noise filled the air as sparks flew like fireworks.

The evangelist elder repeatedly bowed his head to them.

"Thank you for your hard work."

"It's nothing, Elder."

They were in the process of securing electricity and converting the general hospital into a fortress. Since this place would clearly become their base, they were making thorough preparations.

Occasionally, police officers wandered around carrying shotguns. People who looked like firefighters in casual clothes moved about checking fire extinguishers.

I narrowed my eyes, trying to imagine attacking this place from a military perspective.

'In a conventional fight, there's no way to win.'

Pushing troops in would be excessively dangerous. The only options would be to surround and starve them out or use bombardment to collapse the entire building.

The alliance's capabilities were impressive, even before they'd fully synergized.

I could feel that capability even more strongly when we reached the conference room.

In the spacious area with tables and chairs, numerous familiar faces were gathered.

The police raiding squad leader with a sawed-off shotgun on the table, RiderZero hugging a helmet like a doll, Gi Jeona focused on her phone, Ho with his face completely covered, a firefighter in protective gear, a one-eyed archer fiddling with arrows, and an elderly person in a doctor's coat...

The evangelist elder greeted them and pulled out a chair to sit down.

"I apologize for being late."

"Not at all, you're quite early... But who's that beside you?"

The elderly person, who appeared to be the hospital director, cautiously looked at me. There was clear wariness toward the unfamiliar person attending this important meeting.

But the hospital director wasn't the only one present.

Before I could open my mouth, as the evangelist elder gestured to introduce me, others recognized me first.

Ho stood up abruptly and pointed accusingly at me.

"What the hell! You! How dare you come here!"

"Oh, Mr. Ho, you're here too. It's been a while. How's your leg? I heard you were shot."

"What, what."

I responded with complete nonchalance, giving him a concerned look as if I was genuinely worried about his leg.

Ho seemed too shocked to speak, making strange choking noises. As if speaking for Ho, the police raiding squad leader waved his hand while RiderZero tilted their head.

"Hey friend. Have you been well? What brings you here?"

"How did you get here? Aren't you just a small-scale survivor?"

Friendliness mixed with doubt. I kept my mouth shut. There was no need for me to directly address their suspicions and concerns. It would be more convincing if someone else introduced and explained for me.

The evangelist elder calmly spoke up.

"This person handled security management for our community and is a disaster response expert. Our indoor farm and defense measures were all created with his guidance."

"That's right. We got a bunch of planters last time. He's the one who sold them."

With the police squad leader adding his support, the wariness of the unfamiliar people seemed to ease slightly.

At that point, I looked up at the lights in the ceiling and contributed:

"I see you've restored electricity. This opens up many possibilities. Are you interested in factory-style agriculture? I have plant growth lights."

"A smart farm, I see."

The hospital director's eyes sparkled with recognition. The middle-aged archer with an eye patch also showed interest.

"Is the yield decent?"

"Not bad. If you stack shelves layer upon layer, provide light with growth lamps, and control temperature with air conditioning, it's enough to fill stomachs."

"But why did you sell the planters? If they're so good, couldn't you have used them yourself?"

A voice probing as if searching for a scammer. Questioning why I would share something so profitable. The archer's single eye glared at me intently.

I met the archer's gaze with a look of incredulity, as if staring at someone completely ignorant of the world.

"How could a smart farm function with no electricity? A handgun is more useful."

"...That's true."

I wasn't Sa Gi-hyeok, and being treated like a con artist was somewhat offensive. When I showed my displeasure, the hospital director laughed and tried to smooth things over.

"Every expert is valuable. Anyway, if you've come to join us, you're welcome."

As the atmosphere relaxed and I was about to sit down in a chair, Gi Jeona suddenly put down her phone and looked me up and down.

"Hey. Haven't we met before?"

The leader of the electricity nomads. Electricity expert Gi Jeona. Had she remembered my appearance from when I stole the masks? But the doubt in her eyes wasn't firm. Just a vague suspicion.

"We've seen each other. I sold some electronic devices, and I've been to charge my phone too."

I discreetly glanced around. The firefighter who had helped me kill the hiking club members was slightly frowning, and Ho was still standing with his finger pointed at me.

Three people who had glimpsed my true nature and were suspicious. Three people who had friendly relations with me. The hospital director and archer seemed closer to neutral.

'It would be perfect if I killed one of the suspicious ones.'

I struggled to suppress my murderous intent. To blend in among productive people, I needed to disguise myself as a productive person too.

Rather than showing that, it would be better to display my ambition to gather mercenaries and form a cohesive group.

'That's actually my purpose anyway.'

Ho, who had been silently pointing at me, finally curled his finger and slumped back into his seat.

"This is just ridiculous."

That grumble was all he said. He seemed to understand that continuing to argue with me would only harm him too. If the argument continued, it might reveal that Ho had advised me about the military news and suggested I attach myself to them.

Ho exaggeratedly groaned while massaging his leg.

"Ow, my leg. My leg hurts."

"Tsk. Don't touch it. The wound hasn't healed yet. Leave it alone."

The hospital director warned him. Having received an unnecessary scolding, Ho sighed deeply and placed one hand firmly on the table.

"Let's talk about the military. Those bastards seem to be trying to enter the city soon."

But no one spoke up. Instead, they kept glancing at me.

Beyond their wariness, they seemed curious about my qualification to participate in this meeting. The evangelist elder spoke slowly.

"He knows about the military situation and is willing to participate as a mercenary."

"Yes. It seems that simply surviving passively has its limits."

I explained with sincerity.

Disaster response knowledge had almost become meaningless. The I-virus and collapsed society. I couldn't see any more ways to apply my abilities.

I wanted to take this opportunity, despite the risks, to gather mercenaries and form a decent survivor organization. And of course, I disliked the military too. The idea of 300 looters was absurd.

I revealed my desires openly, making eye contact with each person one by one.

"So if you're all agreeable, I'd like you to appoint me as the mercenary coordinator. Of course, I'll offer my growth lights in exchange. Combined, they're enough to fill an entire villa building."

Everyone showed ambiguous expressions at first, but soon nodded positively.

"Well, sure. This guy seems capable. I saw how he handled that apartment situation last time. He has connections with us too."

The police squad leader agreed first.

"...He's a bit mentally unstable, but acceptable as a mercenary."

Surprisingly, even Ho nodded. Others seemed to think briefly before generally agreeing without objection.

After all, mercenaries were essentially meat shields. It didn't matter who managed disposable personnel.

Moreover, they likely considered my substantial connections with various people.

I leaned forward, placing both arms on the table.

"I'll do my best now that you've entrusted me with this."

"How? How do you plan to do your best?"

It was the archer. The archer just seemed to have a picky personality. I smiled faintly and replied calmly.

"Killing. Killing mercenaries suspected of being spies, killing soldiers, killing those who cooperate with the military, killing raiders who threaten the alliance, killing them all."

Of course, any resources looted from the dead would be mine. This was something even the alliance couldn't touch.

There was a brief silence, then the archer burst out laughing. The archer gripped the arrow he had been fiddling with in reverse and forcefully stabbed it into the table.

"Excellent. Shooting arrows at those ignorant fools is exactly right."

"Yeah, people need to be ruthless. Spies should be killed."

The police squad leader laughed along, and I joined in.

But others seemed uncomfortable with the humor, turning their heads away or staring blankly as if uninterested.

And then, the meeting properly began.

*** ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

There wasn't much for a mercenary to do yet. I hadn't even gathered people. But the work I would be responsible for seemed to have been decided already.

Setting traps, ambushes, and engaging in sporadic combat. Moving diligently as the alliance's hands.

I rubbed my goosebump-covered arms as I listened to their conversation.

"We have plenty of poisons. Many drugs that could be used as narcotics too. Even just feeding them these would cause considerable damage."

The hospital director, who had been concerned about Ho's wound, was now discussing killing soldiers with poison.

"I can make proper explosives. We've secured some gas canisters, and obtained gunpowder by dismantling bullets provided by the police."

"I procured sulfur and delivered it. Lots of electronic watches and wires too."

Electricity expert Gi Jeona discussed explosives with her eyes gleaming blue.

"We're properly armed too. We won't be pushed back in urban warfare."

The police squad leader aimed his sawed-off shotgun at the ceiling and made a "bang" sound mimicking a gunshot.

Others were similar. The firefighter talked about arson and gas pipe explosions based on his experience, and the archer discussed night sniping with arrows coated in zombie saliva.

Even more impressive was how all these weapons created synergy.

Attacks using the electricity nomads' drones, gas explosions triggered by timed bombs, arrows coated with poison, arson using oil and fire arrows...

The intersection of different resources created countless applications.

'Are these people truly insane? Have they prepared this many ways to kill people?'

I clasped my hands together, listening intently. There was so much to learn. This was all valuable knowledge and repurposing methods.