Hiding a Logistics Center in the Apocalypse - Episode 10
(The Young Lady's Dream (2))
[Target designated. Would you like to save?]
'Yeah.'
[Initiating save.]
Once again, my stomach churned.
Perhaps because the area was so much larger, the pain was incomparable to when I had absorbed the fulfillment center.
"...Urk!"
The gangster commander looked a bit surprised.
After all, I had been fine one moment, then suddenly retching and collapsing the next.
"...?"
But there was something else he ought to be surprised about.
When I came to my senses and raised my head, he too looked around.
"...What the fuck...?"
The place where we stood was a massive parade ground.
Nothing more, nothing less.
As if the entire area of this military base had been cleanly carved out, we could see the cross-section of the mountain cut away like a piece of cake.
Rumble rumble...
Unable to bear the weight, dirt, rocks, and trees poured down like a landslide.
A message appeared.
[Save complete.]
I had swallowed this military base whole.
In other words, the commander's territory.
The moment the bastard realized I was the cause of the situation, he trembled with rage, his face turning red and blue.
"You bastard, what did you do to my land!"
His land, he says.
He truly was a man of incredible possessiveness.
Of course, it never came to that, but... had I been caught by him, I would have had to hand over every resource I obtained, and even magic stones, as soon as I got them.
Like a serf offering their harvest to the lord.
But he was not the master of this land.
Not legally, nor by the logic of power he himself boasted of.
Whir-
Without a word, I opened a portal leading to the subspace.
The flock of wyverns was already dyeing the sky black.
"Well then."
I promptly stepped through the portal.
Only the commander, his regiment commanders, battalion commanders, and minions remained abandoned in the now-empty clearing.
They scampered toward the commander.
"Boss! What the hell is going on!?"
"Shit... Hey, grab your guns and gather here! We're evacuating to the forest!"
He displayed leadership.
He recalled the behavior of the wyverns they had encountered in the logistics complex tunnel.
If they reached a shaded place like a forest, they could avoid the creatures' attacks.
But that was only possible if one had the capability to do so.
The curly-haired battalion commander stammered a reply.
"Well... all the guns are gone. The military vehicles too..."
"Why the fuck are they gone, you piece of shit!"
The commander chewed out the innocent battalion commander.
The guns and vehicles had originally belonged to this unit.
It seemed the subspace had recognized them as belonging to the area and absorbed them together.
Perhaps feeling his chances of survival had grown dim, the commander lunged straight for the portal.
However,
[An external entity is attempting entry.]
[Would you like to permit Jo Gwang-sik's entry?]
"...No?"
Thud!
He was blocked by a transparent wall.
He pounded on the door again.
"Open the door, you bastard! Before I kill you!"
Thud thud!
Until the very end, he invoked the logic of power.
Perhaps precisely because it was the logic of power, it was self-contradictory.
And behind him...
Flap.
A possessor of even greater power descended, kicking up wind.
A black-haired dragon.
It was a being so strong that Commander Jo Gwang-sik couldn't even compare.
Grrr...
Dust whipped up from the ground with its breath, and it peered toward the subspace where I was hidden with what seemed like interest.
We locked eyes.
The atmosphere was quite different from when I had encountered other monsters.
'...Is it sentient?'
I found myself thinking so inwardly.
The dragon soon lost interest in me.
Because fresh prey was laid out on the plain before its eyes.
In the moment thousands of wyverns flapped their wings, diving toward them.
"Pax, close the door."
[Understood.]
I closed the portal.
It wasn't a sight I particularly wanted to see.
"What was all that...?"
Turning around, I saw Lee Yong-su standing there with his family, his mouth hanging wide open.
They were terrified.
The number of wyverns visible beyond the portal could only be described as overwhelming.
Moreover, it was Lee Yong-su, who knew better than anyone how fearsome wyverns were.
I replied.
"We'll have to stay here for now. Until they move elsewhere."
The 'time' the thugs had spoken of.
I guessed it likely referred to the movement schedule of that dragon and wyvern flock.
I didn't know the purpose of their patrol, but at least they wouldn't stay in the same place forever.
Lee Yong-su nodded with a tense expression.
Come to think of it, several items were strewn about nearby.
Mattresses, chairs, dining tables, and other furniture.
Right.
This damned fulfillment center even had furniture prepared.
Lee Yong-su's wife, Oh Ji-su, spoke hesitantly.
"I was decorating a break room. I thought having a bed and such would make it more comfortable for you to rest, and well... one thing led to another, and it grew bigger."
It seemed she had been worrying about finding something she could do here.
After all, she must have felt like she was imposing in someone else's house.
It was understandable that the task had grown.
A free shopping mall with infinite inventory.
Being able to pick and choose whatever she wanted to decorate a room must have been exciting.
"There are quite a lot of things...? Haha..."
Lee Yong-su laughed awkwardly.
Since the furniture was quite heavy, it seemed he had lent a hand as well.
It wasn't a bad thing for me either.
I would be spending a lot of time here going forward.
Having them fix up and decorate the space on their own was something I could only be grateful for.
Lee Yong-su continued.
"You must be tired. Would you like to get some sleep? I've just finished setting up a bed in the break room."
He was right; I was definitely short on sleep.
Moreover, I was in a situation where I had no choice but to remain in this subspace for now.
But...
"You rest first. I have something I need to check."
I quietly looked out the logistics center window.
The landscape remained a blank white void, but something new had been added to it.
The military base I had just saved.
The sight of the Command, Control, and Communications Command headquarters was visible outside the window.
Lee Yong-su said.
"But what is that? A military facility suddenly popped up out of nowhere..."
"It's a newly absorbed space. As you said, it's a real military base."
"What do you mean, an entire military base...?"
His expression was one of utter absurdity beyond mere surprise.
First the logistics center, now a military base.
Even to me, it was an incredible ability.
"Let's think about how to utilize it gradually."
...
With that, I went outside.
Thud, thud.
Exiting through the logistics center's side door, the yard was connected to the main gate of the base guard post.
I walked up the incline toward the inner barracks.
Perhaps because I had brought in the entire terrain of the military base?
I could hardly tell whether this was inside or outside.
Looking up at the blank white paper-like sky, I could only vaguely guess that this was inside the subspace.
"Definitely... it's quite vast."
[That is correct.]
Pax chimed in.
The ways to utilize the military base were endless.
Firearms, ammunition, explosives, military vehicles, and even strategic supplies like gas masks for emergencies.
As that bastard Jo Gwang-sik had wisely seized, there were few places as good as this for preparing for the apocalypse.
However...
"It'll be a bit troublesome to actually use."
In the existing fulfillment center, I could receive desired items as if they were at my fingertips.
Even using the 'Shipping' skill, items could be delivered outside.
That itself was one of my strengths.
But the military base was not a logistics center.
Guns had to be retrieved from the armory, ammunition and explosives from the ammunition depot, and vehicles directly from the subordinate transport battalion.
None of them were particularly close to the guard post.
In short...
"I can't just say 'Ship one rifle' and receive it like that."
That was my conclusion.
But Pax's opinion differed.
[That is not the case.]
[This subspace has been programmed with a logistics system format by me, the AI Pax.]
[Therefore, this newly integrated Sector 2 is also treated as a type of logistics warehouse.]
What kind of nonsense was this now?
No way...
[Currently, data processing is underway. As soon as the item code classification for all entities existing in Sector 2 is complete, you will be able to receive them via the Shipping skill, just like the previously registered products.]
"Wait, so you're saying rifles are duplicated too...? Like the products in the fulfillment center? And I can send them out using the Shipping skill?"
[That is correct.]
"Isn't that completely broken?"
[That is correct.]
[However, as stated, it is currently unavailable as the data processing is underway.]
[Current progress is 0.81%.]
"How long do you think it'll take to finish?"
[Accurate prediction is difficult as the time required varies by item.]
[However, if you tell me the items you want, I can prioritize assigning product codes to them.]
[Are there any items you wish to prioritize?]
"Register firearms, ammunition, and explosives first. Ah, and vehicles and fuel too."
[The items you mentioned will be prioritized and assigned product codes within 6 minutes.]
[Firearms, ammunition, and explosives can also be retrieved at the Picking Station.]
"Ah, right. Block it so other people can't order them."
[Understood.]
[I will restrict ordering permissions for those items.]
It was a necessary measure.
Because I wasn't the only one in this subspace now.
Lee Yong-su and his family probably wouldn't do such a thing, but if someone started firing a gun inside the subspace later, it would be quite problematic.
"Better to be careful with these things in advance."
[That is correct.]
The high-performance AI that could eat AlphaGo for lunch expressed agreement with my opinion.
In any case, thanks to Pax handling things smoothly, there was no need to rummage through the military base unnecessarily.
Whether it was guns, body armor, or bullets, I could just receive them comfortably via delivery.
I immediately turned around and headed toward the logistics center building.
Upon returning, I saw Lee Yong-su and his wife repeatedly wiping sweat from their foreheads.
Wondering what they had been doing, it seemed they had been sweating bullets trying to make the break room more habitable in the meantime.
Lee Yong-su and his wife, Oh Ji-su, guided me to the break room.
"Take a look. You'll like it."
"What the..."
A hotel-style mattress reaching several dozen centimeters in height.
Around it were placed luxurious solid wood tables and stands.
Hell, there were even clean glass bottles and cups arranged on top!
If not for the floor and panel walls, one might believe it was a hotel room.
Oh Ji-su said.
"I decorated this men's break room as a private space for you, Mr. Jeong-gyeom. There really isn't anything this logistics center doesn't have."
She must have gone through a lot of trouble, yet strangely, she looked excited.
Lee Yong-su, who had become haggard in the meantime, didn't look quite as enthused.
I replied to Oh Ji-su.
"My, thank you. It became a new home in the blink of an eye..."
Her sense of interior decorating was no joke.
Lee Yong-su cautiously added.
"If it's alright, could my family and I stay in the large room in the women's break room? If it's inconvenient, you can give us a different space."
I hurriedly answered.
"I forgot about that. Rather than that, you could just use the entire women's break room..."
"Would that be alright...? You'll need to bring your family in later too."
"It's fine. There's the barracks over at the military base... and it looks like there are even officer quarters. So don't feel burdened. Besides, Mr. Yong-su, you'll be moving around with me a lot, so it'll be more convenient if you're nearby."
There was plenty of space anyway.
If need be, I could bring in an entire five-star hotel later.
Lee Yong-su answered.
"Thank you regardless. If you need anything, please let me know anytime. I'll help with all my strength."
"I'd be the one grateful for that. For now..."
Whir-
I opened a portal leading outside.
Flap.
Flap.
The wyverns were still sweeping outside like a typhoon.
Meanwhile, the commander, Jo Gwang-sik, and his subordinates were nowhere to be seen.
I couldn't go out yet.
"Shall we get some sleep before we leave?"
This subspace was the peaceful eye of a storm.
A completely safe place, but unfortunately, one couldn't leave.
I planned to move back to Seoul after the wyverns disappeared.
I hadn't known getting to Gangnam would be this arduous.
But now, I would be able to get through much more smoothly than before.
Because I now had rifles obtained from the military base.
Furthermore...
My ammunition was unlimited.