Chapter 10

10. Expansion (3)

Kwang Hwi didn’t panic at the newly discovered information. He prioritized checking on the status of the containers.
“How many containers are left?”
— “10 left, but we have to wait for the trucks to return before proceeding.”
The civilian that Kwang Hwi brought from base spoke with a cracked voice. From his position, he could clearly see the onslaught of monsters coming to tear them limb from limb. Kwang Hwi sneered. To an untrained individual, 500 Keku was enough to wipe out their defenses.
“I guess we’ll have to deal with them.”
There was no reason to avoid the monsters—they would have to be killed eventually. With their ample firepower, these monsters would have little to no effect on his forces. Kwang Hwi issued his orders in a calm and collected voice. The commander cannot panic, for his actions affect the morale of the entire troop.
“Carry on working. Teams 1 and 3 will hold their positions and defend the perimeter. As for the rest, rendezvous at the entrance of the container yard.”
Kwang Hwi waved down the vehicle and reconvened with the other teams at the front of the container yard. They had parked the Medium Tactical Vehicle so that it was blockading the entrance as a suitable way to provide suppression fire and cover. For Kwang Hwi’s subordinates, who had followed him through thick and thin, they showed no signs of fatigue. The same could not be said for the new recruits, who were panting in exhaustion. Kwang Hwi quietly clicked his tongue. He made a mental note to double down on physical training when they got back to the camp. This level of fitness was unacceptable.
“Dispatch the troops to that office.”
“Yes, sir!”
As a deep rumbling grew ever closer, each commander drove the recruits waiting inside the containers,. A horde of Keku reared their ugly heads and the dispatched troops drew their guns in response. Kwang Hwi held onto the handle of the grenade launcher in preparation for the upcoming melee. He applauded his foresight in unlocking [Support/Crew Weaponry] beforehand.
『Mk 47 Striker ALGL』
『A 40mm automatic grenade launcher with a built-in laser rangefinder and ballistic computer technology for calculating trajectory. Compared to the Mk 19 GMG, it has a lower peak recoil and is easier to carry around. It can fire up to 225 – 300 rounds a minute.』
Kwang Hwi’s love of the weapon was two-fold. It demonstrated all of the conveniences of a high-speed automatic grenade launcher in a streamlined design meant for accessibility. The intuitive nature of the Mk 47 was put on full display as he used its sights to calculate the perfect trajectory for maximum impact on the incoming horde.
He braced his knees for the recoil. The fixed grenade launcher shook the vehicle violently as he let loose a few preliminary shots at the Keku. The most aggressive monsters were turned into mincemeat and the battlefield rapidly degenerated into a meat grinder. Black blood and entrails pockmarked the ground and saggy bits of flesh left the new recruits retching at the sight. No matter how durable a Keku claimed to be, it couldn’t survive a direct hit from a grenade launcher. Kwang Hwi lowered his grenade launcher and surveyed the sight in front of him.
A trail of white smoke bellowed out of the barrel of the Mk 47 and a slew of explosions erupted from the center of the horde. The packed army of monsters was torn to pieces in the aftermath of the explosion. The damage was done—after 3-4 rounds of fire, the Keku were finished. Before the soldiers had a chance to fire a single shot, only a handful of Keku remained. At this point, he put away the Mk 47 and left the soldiers to clean up the scraps.
Some of the Keku that managed to get close threw their weapons to no avail. The gunshots echoed in the container as Kwang Hwi noticed a familiar text box flashing in front of his peripheral.
『You have defeated 300 Keku faster than anybody else in the world.』
『You have obtained 2500 MP.』
『You have defeated 400 Keku faster than anybody else in the world.』
『You have obtained 3000 MP.』
『You have defeated 500 Keku faster than anybody else in the world.』
『You have obtained 3500 MP.』
『You have defeated 600 Keku faster than anybody else in the world.』
『You have obtained 4000 MP.』
“Don’t tell me,” someone said sarcastically. “Are the new recruits still scared?”
Kwang Hwi could hear his subordinates snickering on the other side of the walkie-talkie. Even the new recruits could hear it. All of the soldiers had gear surpassing that of the average Korean soldier. He made sure that all of his men had state of the art gear to preserve his allies.
— “Did you hear the boss? Report!”
— “Yes, sir! We heard him!”
Kwang Hwi asked for a status report from the team leaders. Sporadic gunshots sprouted from all over the container yard as the last vestiges of the Keku were eliminated.
— Kill confirmed.
***
“Boss. It’s all done.”
The last fully loaded truck left the container yard. What was originally filled with dozens of shipping containers was now an urban wasteland. Kwang Hwi and his soldiers were the last to leave.
In the few hours that they were away, their base had a complete makeover. The base expanded and, with the container walls, a defensible perimeter was formed to keep a lookout. Patrol points were designated across the territory and weapons were mounted at intervals to stop monsters from advancing. Seeing Kwang Hwi return, Soo Min and Jackson rendezvoused with him at the entrance.
“How’s the expansion?” asked Kwang Hwi.
“As you can see, we have finished dispatching containers to create the outer wall. Afterwards, we’re going to fill them with as much sand and garbage as possible to secure their foundations.”
When they were done, it would be strong enough to withstand a truck hurtling into it at full speed.
“Thankfully, we have a few containers left, which we can use to decorate the interior and provide living quarters.”
The containers were repurposed as dormitories for the civilians—suitable for living, if only just. Another set of containers were converted into barracks for the militia right beside Kwang Hwi’s house. The raw materials that were brought from nearby factories were piled up beside Kwang Hwi’s house.
“For now, the boss’ house will be our temporary base. It shouldn’t take too much time to assemble the prefab house. In the meantime, they’ll be living in tents. It shouldn’t be all that bad in this weather.”
It was currently springtime, which proved to be ideal for their current situation. Were it the Summer or Winter, the weather wouldn’t have been suitable for their soldiers to live in a tent. Kwang Hwi knew he needed to treat them with respect and build the loyalty of his militia. Giving them the ideal living environment was just the first step towards that. As the men who were on the front lines, fighting to protect their haven from imminent threats, Kwang Hwi gave them preferential treatment as thanks for their service.
Kwang Hwi reviewed the defensible locations and designated patrol points across the camp, travelling to each location personally and ensuring that everything met his standards. He made some minor adjustments to the blueprints and proceeded to purchase machine guns and ammo from the Merit Shop.
As he entered the Merit Shop, he found himself overwhelmed by the sheer number of options available to him. Models from all over the world were offered to Kwang Hwi and he took a few painstaking moments before he decided on his purchase.
『STK Ultimax 100』
『Weighing 4.9kg without the magazine, it is one of the lightest machine guns in production. Due to its unique design, its recoil is dampened.』
Whilst it was unfortunate that it used an exclusive drum magazine, modifications to the gun would allow them to use the NATO magazine, which Kwang Hwi preferred. Most importantly, the weapon was portable and very newbie-friendly. The plan was to install the machine guns in place and use the monsters for shooting practice. With this, they had taken the first step towards setting up the foundations of their military base. Kwang Hwi glanced back at the Merit Shop.
『Armored Vehicle』
『This category is currently locked. It can be unlocked after completing a mission.』
Now all he would need is an armored vehicle in order to safely transport his soldiers. Right now, they were stuck with regular vehicles and a single bulletproof transport truck he purchased on the Merit Shop, but its limitations were becoming more and more apparent. None of their current vehicles could take a direct hit from a Keku and hope to remain in one piece.
Kwang Hwi knew that his most valuable resource was manpower. With limited human resources available, he could not afford to waste them. He needed armored vehicles to protect his assets. The ability to run over monsters was an added bonus. Up until now, he postponed the mission to ensure that they laid the foundation for their base of operations. But now, it couldn’t be delayed any further.
『This category can be unlocked after completing a mission.』
『Would you like to accept the mission?』
— Ω —