Hiding a Logistics Center in the Apocalypse - Episode 18
(Door-to-Door Service (2))
Ding!
Pax brought up the list.
----[Enhancement Available Items]----
[Cost 5]
◈ Shipping Time Required [1 second]
◈ Shipping Range [50m]
◈ Shipping Speed [Max 100km/h] [+]
-------------------------
Shipping time and range had reached their maximum values at Level 2.
However, I had not yet raised the shipping speed.
100 kilometers per hour.
It wasn't slow, but it didn't feel sufficient.
"How much did you say I can raise it to at maximum?"
[At Subspace Level 2, it can be raised to a maximum of 150km/h.]
[Shall I proceed?]
"Yeah, max it out. And unlock
[For every 5km/h of shipping speed, 5 magic stones are consumed. 50 magic stones are consumed to unlock
[A total of 100 magic stones have been received.]
[Remaining magic stones: 517.]
150 kilometers.
A velocity that would let a pitcher scrape by with the name "fireballer."
Of course, I wasn't a simple fireballer.
If I utilized Tracked Shipping, I would become a monstrous pitcher with control as well.
Perhaps thanks to the ongoing mop-up operations, we were able to pass through the area around JCS Headquarters without any significant threats.
But the moment we passed near Namyeong Station, swarms of gray skeletons came into view.
Ahead of them, the military and police defense forces had established a defensive line with thick barricades reinforced with sandbags.
When I stopped the car, the person in charge approached and saluted with a stiff motion.
I returned a sloppy salute.
"I heard the situation over the radio. We will provide covering fire while the gate opens. I wish you the best of luck."
Skeletons were immune to guns.
The military wouldn't have wasted ammunition on them unnecessarily either.
However, they were making an exception to provide covering fire while the gate opened, and there was no reason to refuse.
Screeeech...
Along with the sound of the gate opening,
Ratatat-!
Thud-du!
The soldiers' gunfire erupted.
Thousands of bullets quickly blanketed the skeletons, but
Thwack!
Whoosh!
They passed right through their hollow bodies.
In the end, they failed to inflict damage on even half—no, even a quarter—of them.
Still, bullets were bullets, so the creatures did stagger slightly, but...
Since the magic stones attached to their ribs remained intact, they gradually recovered even as they broke and shattered.
Around the time the skeletons were dancing with bullets,
I finished all preparations as well.
No, there wasn't even anything to prepare.
I just had to wait for the barricade to fully open.
Weeeng-
Weeeng-
While seated in the vehicle, I formed four shipping portals around me.
After some thought, short swords or axes didn't seem very effective against skeletons.
So, I had prepared a special product.
"[STORM ULTIMATE PHAZE bowling ball, 16 pounds, price is 239,000 won.]"
It was a smooth, polished bowling ball.
A black sphere with red marbling drawn across it like waves.
The JCS Operations Chief had suggested trying to clear the skeletons with a two-and-a-half-ton truck, but at least for skeletons, I couldn't think of a more suitable weapon than this bowling ball.
Because it was important to strike the right rib efficiently and with focus.
But the problem was that I couldn't manually set each target as the skeletons continued to die one after another...
There was a solution to this as well.
"Hit the lower right ribs of the skeletons."
[Understood.]
[After each strike, I will automatically set the destination to the next target in position.]
Pax was an AI that understood things instantly.
It would easily handle something like finding and aiming at the next target.
Moreover, our next-generation AI had a computation speed tens of thousands of times faster than stupid me.
After all preparations were complete, the game finally began.
"Okay, ship."
Shuuung!
The four bowling balls flew toward the skeletons in an instant.
The skeletons, struck in the solar plexus by the sudden attack...
Clatter-rattle-rattle!
Collapsed like bowling pins, spewing out bones.
A 16-pound bowling ball flying at 150 kilometers per hour.
Truly, its power was considerable, and
Clack!
Clatter-rattle!
Not only the skeletons in front but also those behind and further back were scattered into handfuls of bone fragments.
Thwack!
Tang!
A professional bowler might have complained to the judges.
—This is rigged!
That's right.
It was nothing short of automatic guided artillery.
The synergy between the
Moreover, that wasn't all.
Shuuuuuk!
The fired bowling balls returned to my portals through
And commendably, they didn't come back empty-handed.
Bwack!
The skeletons grabbed their stinging heads and collapsed.
There was no better ability for smacking them from behind.
Now, the shipping time required was a mere 1 second.
For more effective strikes, I had adjusted the interval to about 3-4 seconds, but even that was enough to create a majestic sight.
The silver Korando drove over heaps of piled-up bones.
Feeling the strange rattling ride, Yi Yongsu exclaimed in amazement.
"...I feel like I've come to an amusement park or something."
Thwack!
Clatter!
Dozens of bowling balls continuously flew toward the skeletons from all around.
The bowling balls returning through retrieval portals.
The magic stones scattered across the battlefield were also sucked in with a whoosh.
Three transport trucks followed behind us to carry the isolated Awakened.
"Ah..."
Their reactions weren't much different from Yi Yongsu's.
And for good reason—an operation they had steeled themselves for death had become less dangerous than a safari experience.
The walkie-talkie gripped in my hand spat out sound after a very long time.
—We've... arrived at the destination.
It was the voice of the officer in charge of transport.
***
And so we arrived at Seoul Station.
Thwack!
Tang!
Clatter!
Accompanied by cheerful striking sounds, we once again swept away the skeletons wandering Seoul Station Plaza.
The place where the Awakened were gathered was the old Seoul Station building, now a cultural space called 'Culture Station Seoul 284.'
It was an old Gothic-style building, but it seemed relatively safer than the Seoul Station building, which was open on all sides.
Swoosh.
After retrieving all the bowling balls and magic stones soaring through the air, I entered the interior of the old Seoul Station building.
Around me, soldiers armed with rifles or blunt weapons exchanged hand signals and provided cover for me.
Perhaps because the radio had reached inside, the thick door slowly opened.
The people inside who opened the door brightened.
"...!"
"...Th...they're alive!"
Those who had been huddled together with haggard expressions cheered the moment they saw the rescue team.
Although they were all Awakened, they had not yet acquired sufficient combat power to protect themselves.
But they were people who would now grow into solid military forces with magic stones supplied by the government.
Urrah!
Dozens of people hurriedly climbed onto the military transport trucks.
"Return!"
"Returning-!"
The squad leaders shouted as if urging each other on, and I too returned to the car.
Vroom.
Yi Yongsu took the lead again, and transport trucks loaded full of rescue personnel followed behind us.
The transport operation was a success.
If only we could arrive at JCS Headquarters like this.
But things didn't work out so easily.
Screech-!
Yi Yongsu hurriedly slammed the brakes.
With a clunking sound, the transport trucks following us also stopped all at once.
A single skeleton stood in front of the car window.
But it was no ordinary skeleton.
"...Armor?"
Full-body armor seen only in medieval movies.
Moreover, the creature was riding a skeletal horse made of bone and armor.
There was no doubt about it.
It was the 'Skeleton Knight' that the Operations Chief had urged us to retreat from immediately upon sighting.
Thanks to it, a snag had occurred in our operation as well.
But there was something even more surprising.
The creature looked at the piles of bones stacked densely on the road and...
"...Absurdum est, cur omnes?"
It spoke.
A talking monster—such a thing had never been heard of or seen before.
"Ship."
I immediately picked up and threw a bowling ball.
Shuuuuuk!
The bowling ball rushed quickly toward the creature, but...
Shluck!
It was cut in two by the blade the creature lashed out with.
Surprisingly, a faint ember smoldered on the cut surface of the bowling ball the creature had sliced.
Shwiiiiick!
Even when several more flew in,
Swish!
The result was the same.
Dudududu-!
The soldiers got out of the vehicles and fired at the creature.
Ting! Ting! Tang!
Sparks flew off its armor.
But as if it didn't even feel ticklish, the creature slowly raised its empty eye sockets.
To look at me.
"Dicemus salve..."
What the creature pulled from its bosom was... surprisingly, a magic stone.
It clenched the magic stone tightly with its bony fist.
Crack!
The magic stone shattered...
"...Greetings, otherworlder. I am a skeleton knight who serves the Knight King, called Gwein."
This crazy skeleton bastard started speaking Korean.
Between its clattering open jaws, red flames flickered in and out of view.
No matter how you looked at it, this was no ordinary skeleton.
Ting! Thwack! Ting ting!
Even as bullets poured all over its body, the creature firmly continued its speech.
"Long life brings many sights. To think I would meet a manipulator mage in such a backwater."
Then it started mumbling words that were hard to understand.
'...What the hell is this bastard saying now?'
"But no matter how much you handle telekinesis... to think you would fight by throwing magic orbs of all things? In all my life, I have never seen such a foolish mage."
'Magic orbs...? Ah.'
It was looking at the bowling balls rolling on the ground.
Black bodies with red marbling.
It seemed to be misunderstanding something.
The creature continued speaking.
"The Knight King is very angry. I understand the impatience given that this is the early stage of conquest... but you should know to observe professional courtesy. Do you have any idea how much I've lost because of you?"
Thwack!
The creature cut down the newly flying bowling ball.
Even as it rattled on, it steadily exuded a strange killing intent.
It seemed as though it would charge at me at any moment.
Tang!
Thwack!
I fired bowling balls in rapid succession, and the creature chuckled as it swung its sword.
"It's no use."
Tang!
Tang tang!
Kaaang!
"Goodness, it's no use...?"
The creature flinched and swung its sword.
Because the number of bowling balls was gradually increasing.
Bowling balls pouring out from the four portals numbered in the dozens, no, over a hundred.
The creature exclaimed in shock alongside a burst of flames.
"What in the..."
Kang!
Thwack!
Tong!
No matter how skilled the creature was, it couldn't cut down every bowling ball flying at it simultaneously.
The bowling balls it failed to cut struck its armor and the skeletal horse...
Thud!
"Ugh!"
Finally, the creature fell.
It immediately got up and flew into a rage.
"...Does money rot away where you come from? To waste magic orbs in such a manner?"
But those words didn't last long.
Tong!
A flying bowling ball struck the creature's face with a cheerful sound.
Thud!
At the same time, one bowling ball that had been knocked far back returned via
The sound it made was even clearer and more cheerful than when struck from the front—truly profound.
And... I had no intention of stopping the performance.
Tong!
Thud!
It was truly a sturdy creature.
Not only did it deflect bullets, but even after being hit by a 16-pound bowling ball at 150 kilometers per hour, it only ended up with a small scratch.
First, I tried to prevent it from approaching.
A monster that cut bowling balls in half with a flaming sword.
If such a thing closed in and swung its sword, it was obvious what would happen to me.
This was exactly the moment where I could guess why the Operations Chief had advised retreat.
But I was thinking of at least trying as much as I could.
Even if money didn't rot away... my supplies certainly were.
Tong!
Tiiing!
Thud!
Activating
Striking left, right, front, and back in good balance so it couldn't budge from its spot.
No matter how little damage it took, it seemed unable to do anything about the physical shock itself.
The creature was fixed in place among the bowling balls, ringing out clear bell-like sounds.
Now turned into an instrument in an instant, the creature trembled and spoke:
Tong! Ting! Tang!
"...You... bastard... how...!"
Sorry, but I couldn't really hear what it was saying.
But since this was only enough to maintain the status quo, I occasionally mixed in a new item.
It was the K413 fragmentation grenade.
Ting! Tang!
Along with the clear sounds...
Kwa-boom!
The grenade's low bass joined the beat.
The creature was shocked.
"You... weren't a... manipulator?"
"What are you going on about..."
Actually, I was the more surprised one.
Just how tough was this crazy skeleton?
I had already detonated dozens of grenades by now.
The creature, surrounded by bowling balls, was taking all that impact with its entire body.
By now, I roughly understood.
Why soldiers armed with rifles had no choice but to die in such numbers.
Fortunately... the creature's durability was not infinite.
Unlike my logistics center.
Crack.
Like a chick breaking through an egg,
finally, a crack formed in the creature's armor.
And so...
after dropping several dozen more grenades.
Craaack!
Shatter!
The armor split into several pieces, and the creature slumped down with a thud.
Engulfed in the flames from the fire marbling drawn on the bowling balls and the real flames bursting from the grenades, the creature muttered.
Under the dark night sky.
With its shattered armor, it looked like Ghost Rider.
"Mage... do not think this is the end."
Strangely, those words came through clearly.
The creature collapsed with a thud.
After the flames died down...
Among the charred black bones, two unusually large magic stones and one red magic stone lay scattered.