Chapter 111
The refugees were safely able to settle into their temporary residence, and the settlement support program prepared by the Balhut Cult began operating for them.
Now, the refugees would be provided with guidance on how to live within the Balhut Cult’s territory and given jobs at designated locations, allowing them to regain peace in a safe place.
“Since we’ve confirmed that the refugees are all safe and receiving the settlement support program, let’s return to Ulsan.”
“Yes. I will accompany you as well.”
After ensuring that the settlement support for the refugees was underway, Jina Ahn, along with Son Sang-hui, returned to Ulsan.
Initially, they stayed in Gyeongju for the safety of the refugees who had fled there, postponing their immediate return to Ulsan, which was on the front line.
However, seeing that the Balhut Cult was genuinely working to settle the refugees in a safe place, they were reassured and prepared to return to Ulsan Airport, which was on the front lines.
Accordingly, Son Sang-hui, the deputy officer, accompanied Jina Ahn back to Ulsan to fight alongside Jung Dong-gun, the commander.
They headed straight to Ulsan in a vehicle driven by Son Sang-hui.
“Looks like construction is ongoing around here.”
“Yes. There’s a risk of sabotage from the Immortal Cult, who might have buried corpses in fields or forests. So, we are digging up the ground in all critical crossroads to check thoroughly.”
On the way back to Ulsan, numerous soldiers were seen digging up farmland using shovels or tractors, excavating buried corpses in the fields.
Watching the soldiers digging through the frozen, solid ground with shovels amidst a blizzard in freezing temperatures was truly heartbreaking.
For the soldiers, it was the worst possible situation.
However, if they didn’t do this, the corpses buried in the fields could turn into undead and threaten nearby villages or outposts.
Thus, despite the bitter cold, the soldiers ventured outside, clearing snow or inspecting the frozen ground.
Because of this, the soldiers lamented, “The heavens sure are generous with the trash falling from the sky!” as they bitterly complained about the continuous snowfall, but the sky remained unyielding.
“Isn’t Turn Undead ineffective for this?”
“If they’re just corpses buried in the ground and not zombies, Turn Undead doesn’t work. However, if they’re in an undead state while buried, the magic works. Before excavation, Yuna herself cast Turn Undead magic.”
Jina Ahn, pitying the soldiers, mentioned the Turn Undead spell, but the unfortunate answer returned was that it wouldn’t work in such cases.
Since Turn Undead magic was useless on ordinary corpses, its application was limited.
Nevertheless, it helped in ensuring that no undead would appear during excavation.
Before the soldiers began their work, Choi Yuna swept through areas prone to undead outbreaks with Turn Undead magic.
“So… does that mean the cult leader personally intervened? I’m not familiar with military operations, but this sounds like the soldiers couldn’t delay this work, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“The cult leader really doesn’t understand the plight of people.”
Perhaps that made the situation even more hellish.
The leader of the Balhut Cult personally intervened in this freezing weather, using Turn Undead magic to ensure maximum safety. With that, how could the soldiers at the bottom ranks simply stay idle in their warm outposts?
Even after Choi Yuna had left, the soldiers of the Balhut Cult shed tears of blood as they began excavation with shovels, tractors, and snowplows.
By the time Jina Ahn arrived in Ulsan, about half of the work would likely be completed.
However, whether it was done sooner or later, the second group of refugees was set to depart for Gyeongju.
If the soldiers completed their excavation work quickly, it would undoubtedly ease the upcoming tasks.
“Hang in there, soldiers!”
“I’m still in my blooming 20s!”
“Trash keeps falling from the sky! Hahaha! We’re doomed! The world is ending… Wait, it’s already ended!”
Jina Ahn rolled down the window and shouted words of encouragement to the soldiers digging in the fields.
However, the replies she received were laments about still being in their twenties and despair about the unending snowfall.
Well, considering the arduous task of digging in the snow under such harsh conditions, it was understandable that even an awakened being would be driven to tears.
“What a hassle.”
“Still, since they’re using heavy equipment, the work should be finished in a day or two. Once they finish the critical crossroads, it will make future work much easier.”
The only solace for the soldiers was the use of heavy equipment like tractors and snowplows, which significantly expedited the excavation and snow-clearing tasks, allowing them to return to their outposts to rest.
“Isn’t it a waste of fuel?”
“Yes, it is. But it seems they value the health and lives of the awakened more.”
“Hmm. That makes sense. Fuel is precious in this era, though….”
Of course, using heavy equipment came at a cost—fuel.
In this apocalyptic era, obtaining fuel for machinery was no simple task, and naturally, the fuel reserves in the Korean Peninsula were dwindling over time.
Therefore, from a resource-saving perspective, relying on manpower over machinery would be more beneficial.
However, the Balhut Cult seemed determined to prioritize the well-being of the awakened over fuel conservation.
“Ah. We’re able to maintain exchanges with the U.S., so we receive supplies of Texas oil.”
“What? There’s a route to supply fuel?”
“Yes.”
“Impressive. Really impressive.”
The reason this was possible was due to their exchanges with the U.S., which provided a steady supply of Texas oil, ensuring sufficient fuel for tractors and snowplows.
Had it not been for this connection with the U.S., regardless of their policies prioritizing the awakened, countless soldiers would have been endlessly repeating snow-clearing and digging tasks, shedding tears of frustration.
Hearing this, Jina Ahn looked at Son Sang-hui with genuine amazement.
Due to the fuel shortage, Jina Ahn, who had been living a lifestyle far removed from civilization, realized that the Balhut Cult was able to enjoy a fairly civilized way of life.
“You’re back. I heard about the attack on the refugee convoy.”
“How’s the situation on your end? Doesn’t seem good, does it?”
After some casual conversation, they were able to arrive at Ulsan Airport.
Upon arrival, they saw Han Seong-geun leading the refugees, and Jina Ahn asked him what had happened.
In response to Jina Ahn’s question, Han Seong-geun replied in a somber voice.
“It’s not good. When they saw signs of us evacuating to Ulsan, the Immortal Cult revealed their true colors.”
“I know. They infiltrated among the refugees and ambushed us with undead.”
It seemed this side had also been attacked, as traces of battles were visible all over the roads.
Particularly, it appeared there were casualties among the refugees, as wails echoed from temporary outposts.
Although the cult had dispatched medics and priests capable of Healing Spells to treat the wounded, it seemed the number of injured refugees was too great, and there was a shortage of manpower to treat them all.
“Did a battle really take place around here?”
“Yes. Until just a while ago, skeletons had swarmed this area. Normally, we’re engaged in skirmishes with the Immortal Cult near the Ulsan Bridge. While our allied forces have set up barricades at key points in Ulsan, they only serve to delay the skeleton troops.”
“Can’t we deploy more allied soldiers near the barricades?”
It had been an intense battle.
Hearing Han Seong-geun mention that the attack reached as far as Ulsan Airport, Son Sang-hui asked if more allied soldiers couldn’t have been deployed to key locations.
“In order to ensure the safety and evacuation preparations of the refugees gathered here, the main forces of the alliance have been stationed at Ulsan Airport. While it is possible to redeploy them to key points….”
“That would be too much, wouldn’t it?”
Such a move would risk breaking the alliance between the Balhut Cult and Ulsan.
From the perspective of Ulsan Airport, based in Ulsan, the safety of the refugees, who were their colleagues and families, was their top priority.
Similarly, the Balhut Cult needed the refugees to grow their governance and national stature.
The moment one side proposed abandoning the refugees, the meaning of the alliance would vanish.
Therefore, the only option for both parties was to station significant allied forces at Ulsan Airport for the refugees’ safety.
In effect, the allied forces were forced into a singular course of action.
“Our enemies must have realized that the refugees are our weakness. Judging by how blatantly they’ve attacked Ulsan Airport, where the refugees are, they don’t seem to care anymore about the survival of the refugees.”
“So, they’ve revealed their true intentions? What is this? It’s all so sudden. They were pretending to be regular folks, and now this?”
“I don’t know either. The moment they learned of our collaboration with the Balhut Cult, they attacked without even declaring war. Thanks to that, other neutral camps that were staying out of it decided to cooperate with the allied forces.”
The enemy exploited this to launch fierce attacks on key locations leading to Ulsan Airport while simultaneously threatening Ulsan Airport to prevent reinforcements from being sent.
Targeting weaknesses was natural, but the problem was that there were many civilians at Ulsan Airport who couldn’t fight.
“Doesn’t this render all their previous efforts meaningless? Don’t they regret it?”
“I wouldn’t know. Thanks to their attack, we were able to quickly gain the support of other camps.”
It was a sudden shift for the Immortal Cult, which had previously pretended to be an ordinary organization before the Balhut Cult arrived.
Even though zombies and undead hadn’t appeared under the Immortal Cult’s control, some neutral camps, despite their dissatisfaction, had tolerated them.
But this attack sparked intense backlash, leading all neutral camps to align with Ulsan Airport—a significant event.
“Where is Commander Jung Dong-gun…?”
“The commander is currently leading elite forces to rescue isolated camps and refugees. Most of the wounded here are either refugees or people from the neutral camps he rescued.”
As neutral camps based in Ulsan began to side with the allied forces, they welcomed the neutral camps’ support with open arms.
The enemy was a necromancer group capable of using zombies as soldiers, making the allied forces severely outnumbered.
The issue was that only a few of these neutral camps could make it to Ulsan Airport on their own.
“Some neutral camps that aren’t isolated can make it here safely, but those that are cut off are struggling in battles. We need to help them and gain the support of other neutral camps.”
“Han Seong-geun, are you acting as the commander’s deputy here?”
“Yes. The commander entrusted Ulsan Airport to me. I firmly believe in the commander’s capabilities, and I’ve been managing and overseeing this place.”
While some neutral camps that weren’t isolated could make it to Ulsan Airport on their own, others were trapped due to key points being under attack.
The allied forces considered it their best option to rescue these camps and secure the support of more neutral camps, dispatching their most elite unit—the advance team led by Jung Dong-gun.
This left the allied forces without a central leader, but thanks to Han Seong-geun, who could substitute for Jung Dong-gun, this operation was made possible.
“Of course, it was only possible because the commander officially appointed me as his deputy.”
“He must have thought it was necessary.”
Han Seong-geun, leading the resistance at Ulsan Airport, was a leader who had the support of many Ulsan citizens and was fully capable of replacing Jung Dong-gun.
Balhut Cult soldiers, under Jung Dong-gun’s command, trusted him so deeply that they followed orders without question.
With his support, Han Seong-geun could also control the soldiers of the cult.
“Then the rest is simple. While Jung Dong-gun is rescuing the neutral camps, we hold this place. That’s all we need to do, right?”
“Exactly. And now that Ulsan’s strongest awakened being, Ahn, is here, we’re in good hands.”
“Of course. I’ll defend this place to the end.”
The rest of the task was straightforward.
For Jina Ahn, who was more confident than anyone in fighting, the task of holding Ulsan Airport against the Immortal Cult until Jung Dong-gun returned with survivors was an easy one.
With her weapon, a spear, and a sharp smile, she prepared to fight.
“Then I’ll go encourage the soldiers as well. Give me your orders, Acting Commander Han Seong-geun.”
“Yes. Let’s defend this place with our lives.”
Son Sang-hui also acknowledged Han Seong-geun as the acting commander and expressed her willingness to fight under his leadership to protect the location where Jung Dong-gun would return.
Seeing the two awakened individuals, Han Seong-geun, feeling reassured, swore to defend Ulsan Airport with his life.
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