Chapter 106
Thirty minutes later, over a hundred buses carrying refugees began to leave Ulsan Airport.
On either side of the buses were allied soldiers escorting the convoy, but the journey from Ulsan Airport to Gyeongju was not particularly challenging.
The Industrial Road was already under the control of the Balhut Cult, with observation posts set up along the route, making it difficult for anyone to find a detour to ambush the convoy.
Additionally, if the Immortal Cult were to attack the refugees, it would effectively mean abandoning the public support they had worked to build, a move no rational leader would make.
More importantly, such an attack would not only jeopardize their public image but also come at a significant cost to the Immortal Cult.
“It’s truly a simple matter. They’d have to be insane to attack the refugees.”
“There’s a saying: ‘Know your enemy and yourself, and you will be invincible.’ Let’s proceed cautiously.”
With nothing blocking the Industrial Road, the buses smoothly made their way toward Gyeongju.
To maintain formation, the convoy moved at a limited speed of 40 km/h, which was still remarkably fast considering the sheer number of refugees involved.
With the escort in place and the pace adequately swift, there was little reason for anyone to risk an attack and face retaliation.
“They’ve arrived.”
“Yes. From now on, join the escort.”
“Understood, Vice Commander Son Sang-hui.”
The growing number of escort soldiers, along with reinforcements joining along the route, made the convoy an increasingly formidable target for any potential attackers.
At one observation post stationed to monitor security on the Industrial Road, several soldiers met the convoy.
As the buses approached, the soldiers exited their posts and joined the escort.
“Were there any suspicious sightings during surveillance today?”
“No, neither monster activity nor undead movements were detected.”
The soldiers stationed at the observation post provided real-time updates on the area, allowing the convoy to prepare for potential threats in advance.
Son Sang-hui inquired about the situation, and the soldiers reported no signs of the cult’s main adversaries, such as monsters or undead.
“No monsters or undead, huh? Were there any other movements?”
“No, no sightings of survivors or awakened individuals either. However, given the stealth skills some awakened possess, we can’t completely rule out the possibility that someone evaded our surveillance.”
While there were no direct reports of suspicious activity, Son Sang-hui acknowledged that the abilities of awakened individuals were highly diverse, leaving room for uncertainty.
Given that the Immortal Cult had demonstrated the ability to command undead, it wasn’t an unreasonable assumption.
“Understood. Then please guard the rear of the convoy.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Unable to rely solely on reports, Son Sang-hui instructed the soldiers to secure the rear and proceeded with the journey.
As the convoy absorbed soldiers from the observation posts along the route, reinforcing its strength, Jina Ahn, observing the smooth operation, grinned with satisfaction.
“A walk in the park. A complete victory.”
“This wasn’t a difficult task. Whew, what a relief.”
Jina Ahn, exuding confidence, expressed her satisfaction at the ease of the operation, while Son Sang-hui sighed in relief, reassured by the uneventful progress.
It was indeed a straightforward mission.
With reinforcements steadily joining and updated surveillance information at their disposal, they were minimizing variables and ensuring the convoy’s safe arrival in the cult’s territory.
“Let’s head to the next observation post…”
However, just as they were preparing to move forward with updated reports and additional reinforcements—
“Report! Unknown entities detected 100 meters ahead!”
“What!?”
“Huh!?”
The sudden appearance of enemies caught both Son Sang-hui and Jina Ahn off guard.
The earlier reports had indicated no threats, so the unexpected emergence of unidentified forces was both shocking and perplexing.
“Report! Unknown forces have also been spotted to the left and right of the convoy! This can’t be true! The right side has buildings that could provide cover for a detour, but the left side is open farmland with no concealment! How could they flank us there?”
The reports coming in were hard to believe.
Unidentified forces were surrounding the convoy on both sides.
While the right side’s terrain, with its roads and villages, made it plausible for an ambush, the sudden appearance of forces on the left, an open farmland devoid of cover, was inexplicable.
“So, they’ve finally gone mad.”
“Where could they have come from?”
“Who knows? But it doesn’t matter where—they’re enemies, and we need to take them down, right?”
The farmland to the convoy’s left had no hiding places or obstacles to obscure movement.
Despite this, the unknown enemy forces had seemingly evaded the observation post’s surveillance and positioned themselves there.
Blaming the surveillance for negligence wouldn’t have been unreasonable, but—
“Lookouts! Are they monsters or zombies?”
“Well… they resemble zombies, at least on the surface.”
The bigger issue was that these weren’t the typical zombies familiar to the Balhut Cult.
The sentries hesitated as they reported to Son Sang-hui, describing the enemy vaguely, leaving her to infer.
“Zombies are zombies. But if they only resemble zombies… could they be variants, like the spider mutant zombies?”
“That seems plausible. From our perspective, these are creatures we’ve never encountered before.”
Based on the description, Son Sang-hui speculated that the attackers were a new type of zombie variant, similar to the spider mutant zombies previously encountered.
The sentries confirmed the possibility, admitting that they had no concrete information about these entities.
Clarifying their doubts, Jina Ahn, observing the situation through binoculars, calmly spoke up.
“It doesn’t look like a variant. It’s a beautiful woman.”
“Do you know them?”
“Yes. I know them well.”
Jina Ahn, confident that the entity spotted by the sentry was not a mutant, smiled assuredly.
She appeared to be well-acquainted with the approaching entity heading toward the buses carrying refugees and readied her weapon for combat.
“It’s an army.”
“An army?”
“Yes, the army of the Immortal Cult.”
Indeed, they were the Immortal Cult’s proud army.
Hearing Jina Ahn’s confirmation that the approaching unknown forces belonged to the Immortal Cult’s army, Son Sang-hui swallowed nervously.
“An army… but…”
Based on Jina Ahn’s words, the unknown forces advancing toward them were the Immortal Cult’s soldiers.
“But they’re just skeletons.”
“Yes, those shabby creatures are the Immortal Cult’s main weapons. We call them Skeletons.”
“No, those aren’t just skeleton-like—they’re actual Skeletons.”
What they were facing was nothing but a battalion of skeleton soldiers.
Not the zombies typically seen in this apocalyptic world, but skeletal warriors stripped of flesh.
The sight alone was enough to astonish anyone, and Son Sang-hui could now understand why the sentries were so alarmed.
If they had been zombies, they could have followed the standard procedures without hesitation. But this? It was hard to even process what they were looking at.
“Crude as they are, they’re carrying weapons.”
“Exactly. Normal zombies or even most variants don’t have the intelligence to use weapons. But these skeletons seem capable of wielding at least their crude weaponry.”
“That makes it trickier. Those weapons look like they could cause tetanus if they hit.”
Even standard zombies wouldn’t normally carry weapons.
However, the skeleton soldiers wielded crude, decayed weapons—rusty swords and shields made from rotting bone rather than carefully forged by any skilled artisan.
Yet, everyone who had faced them knew they were still threatening.
The danger lay in the fact that their weapons could carry infections, making any wound a serious risk.
“Still, an average awakened individual can handle them as long as they’re cautious about the weapons. They may look shabby, but they’re tougher than ordinary zombies.”
“Which means ordinary people won’t stand a chance.”
“That’s right. For ordinary people, these skeletons are nearly impossible to fight. Many have died because of them.”
Fortunately, the visible skeletons appeared to be equivalent to regular zombies in strength.
According to Jina Ahn, as long as one avoided their weapons, they could be defeated relatively quickly. However, Son Sang-hui, sensing there was more to the story, inquired further.
“Are there any stronger individuals among them?”
“Of course. Among them, there will surely be officers or commanding units leading the skeletons. We call those Named.”
Though they hoped otherwise, it was inevitable that these skeletons had officers and commanding units hidden among them.
For the undead army, officers were essentially equivalent to mutant zombies.
Now surrounded on three sides by these skeleton forces, Son Sang-hui realized they would likely have to face these mutated, Named skeletons as well.
“A proper army of the undead, huh? This… will be tough.”
“Indeed. It’s tough. Unless you completely destroy their heads, they’ll keep getting back up.”
The fight was going to be incredibly challenging.
They weren’t attacking first but were caught in an ambush and now had to protect the refugees while engaging the enemy.
“Then let’s get ready for battle.”
“Yes, understood.”
Despite the grim situation, neither Jina Ahn nor Son Sang-hui gave in to despair, calmly preparing for the fight.
After all, both were seasoned awakened individuals who had endured countless battles.
The soldiers under their command were also courageous warriors who had been tempered through many struggles.
“Soldiers, focus on escorting the refugee convoy! Form a phalanx as we’ve practiced!”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Son Sang-hui quickly instructed the escort troops to form a phalanx to shield the buses from the skeleton forces.
The riot shields they had prepared for such situations became a formidable wall, effectively blocking the skeletons’ advance and creating a defensive line between the buses and the enemy forces.
Watching the soldiers skillfully erect this defensive wall, Jina Ahn grinned confidently and called out to Son Sang-hui.
“Then, may I go wild? I’ll take care of the officers and commanding units hidden among them.”
“Can you handle it without our help?”
With a sharp smile, Jina Ahn declared her intention to eliminate the officers and commanders among the skeletons. Son Sang-hui looked at her skeptically.
Jina Ahn’s bold declaration meant she would enter the fray without the Balhut Cult’s support and take on the commanding units herself.
The number of skeletons in front of them was estimated to be over a thousand.
Finding and eliminating the officers among such a large force was no simple task, but Jina Ahn didn’t seem fazed.
“Of course, I can handle it. For me, this is nothing.”
‘It feels like I’m watching Baek Seol-hwa.’
With her spear spinning deftly in her hands and a feral smile on her face, Jina Ahn took a stance. Her warrior-like demeanor reminded Son Sang-hui of Baek Seol-hwa from the past.
While she admired Jina Ahn’s courage and reliability, Son Sang-hui also lamented her own inadequacy for relying solely on that strength.
“I will assist you by being your guide. Keep your communicator on.”
“Huh? Do you know where the commanding units are?”
“Yes.”
Even so, Son Sang-hui resolved to contribute as much as she could, volunteering to act as Jina Ahn’s guide.
She declared her intent to locate the officers and commanding units hidden among the undead army.
“I’m a sensory type. Detecting powerful enemies is easy for me.”
“That’s a handy skill. I think we’ll make an unbeatable team!”
Using her sensory abilities, Son Sang-hui could track the strong magical signatures among the enemies and relay the locations to Jina Ahn through her communicator.
“And I’ll also request reinforcements from the cult. This mission to escort the refugees seems to involve more combat than we anticipated.”
Additionally, Son Sang-hui ensured backup was on the way, preparing for the possibility that the situation could worsen.
Even if Jina Ahn failed, her priority was to ensure the refugees’ safety at all costs.
“Will this be enough?”
“To ensure everyone returns safely, we’ll need twice as much. It’s for the refugees’ safety.”
When Jina Ahn asked if the current troops were sufficient, Son Sang-hui replied that more resources were necessary to guarantee the refugees’ safe passage.
Seemingly reassured by Son Sang-hui’s determination, Jina Ahn turned her gaze toward the undead army ahead.
“Then, until reinforcements arrive… let’s start holding the line!”
“Yes, let’s hold out. Everyone, I am lifting the restrictions on the Bahamut Rounds! Let’s give it our all and fight brilliantly!”
“Wooohhh!”
In response, Son Sang-hui lifted the restriction on the Balhut Cult’s trump card, the Bahamut Rounds.
The cult’s soldiers, ready and waiting, quickly swapped their current magazines for fresh ones and aimed their weapons at the approaching skeleton army.
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