33. Reconstruction. (1)

I picked up my lifting belt and backpack and stood up.

Then I said to Special Forces Leader Sung Gyu-hyuk,

“Gather the team. Let’s empty the duffel bags and head to the supermarket.”

“Sure.”

Sung Gyu-hyuk smiled and stood up.

Secretary-General Ahn Jun-gyu asked in surprise,

“Y-You’re going now? Right after we arrived?”

“What’s the point of waiting? I’ll be back soon.”

I went to the bathroom and then stood in front of the motel’s main entrance, putting on my lifting belt and backpack. Meanwhile, Special Forces Leader Sung Gyu-hyuk gathered Teams 2, 3, 4, and 5.

When they all gathered, there were 15 of them.

Fifteen burly men with large bags slung over their shoulders…

They were all armed with rifles, and the way they wore their gear in the same direction looked quite impressive.

They seemed happy to have weapons in their hands.

Their faces were full of confidence.

I stroked my chin and smiled.

“Let’s go.”

We left the motel and followed the path Sung Gyu-hyuk guided us on.

The sound of 15 strong men following me was quite reassuring.

“You have a lot of teams. Five of them?”

Sung Gyu-hyuk nodded and answered,

“Teams 3 and 4 are responsible for refueling. Team 5 assists them. Team 1 handles weapon acquisition, and Team 2 handles communication and reconnaissance.”

…Oh.

Quite organized.

“Not everyone was in the motel, right? How many are there in total?”

“35, no, 32. Three members from Team 1 were lost, and we rescued 9 civilians.”

I looked at him in slight surprise.

“You’ve been on rescue missions?”

“Yes.”

Special Forces Leader Sung Gyu-hyuk nodded and smiled wryly.

“We can’t do rescue operations anymore since we secured the helicopter and light aircraft. This is it.”

Sung Gyu-hyuk knew the streets’ rules almost as well as I did.

He walked in the middle of the road, speaking in a low voice so that it wouldn’t be heard by the shops and buildings along the way, and he didn’t forget to keep an eye on the surroundings.

Aaaah-

A faint echo came from a distant, indeterminate place.

No one paid attention to it.

With highly trained armed forces walking in front, behind, and on the sides, I felt quite at ease.

This is what it feels like to have allies with you.

Still…

Thirty-two people.

They could easily finish a box of ramen in one meal.

It must have been difficult to survive in this situation.

These men must have risked their lives to farm the area, literally dragging survivors to safety.

They are excellent team members.

Next to a truck.

Sung Gyu-hyuk raised his fist.

We all stopped in our tracks.

I went to Sung Gyu-hyuk’s side and looked at the target he pointed to.

A convenience store with completely shattered glass.

…There are a lot.

At least twenty human beasts are swarming in that small convenience store.

This is unusual.

A small zombie wave caused by the helicopter. The ones that scattered and crawled in here.

Sung Gyu-hyuk was right about what he said on the bridge.

However…

“…It’s a convenience store. What about the large supermarket?”

Sung Gyu-hyuk said,

“There are quite a few medium-sized markets like EveryDay or Express. To raid a large supermarket, we need to go to Seocho. It’s about an hour’s walk from here.”

I slowly nodded.

Looking back, I saw the team members lined up and sitting.

Their eyes were alive.

But their faces were not.

One meal a day?

I doubted they even managed to eat properly.

I nodded again and said to Sung Gyu-hyuk and the team members,

“Let’s move quickly tonight. We’ll have to stay up all night, but are you okay with that?”

The team members smiled.

Sung Gyu-hyuk said,

“Not sleeping is not a problem.”

They are all from special forces, after all.

I nodded and said,

“The method is the same as before. I’ll go in alone.”

I drew my swords.

When I checked in the bathroom, my stats were almost fully recharged.

Recovering 12 points per hour is definitely a huge help.

Swoosh-

Holding a sword in each hand, I walked out of the truck, confidently and without hesitation.

Look at me.

With that attitude, I walked toward the convenience store.

The half-destroyed wall glass.

The team members stood up and watched me.

“Kraaaauk?!”

One of them noticed me.

Soon, all the human beasts turned to look at me.

And they growled.

“Kraaaahk!”

I took a large step forward.

I bent my body.

“Kyaahh!”

The beasts roared and rushed out.

Crash!

The glass shattered.

Acceleration.

[Automatic Cast: Acceleration]

I charged forward.

Blood spurted in all directions.

Decapitated heads flew like popcorn.

Splat.

The blood splattered on my eyes, making them slightly close.

“Keh!”

Thud, crash!

The rushing beasts stumbled forward, unable to control their momentum.

“Phew…”

[Level Up]

Oh. I leveled up.

Inside the convenience store.

Under the bright lights, I took a deep breath and bowed my head.

I listened carefully.

…This convenience store is empty.

I stepped over the bodies and walked out of the convenience store.

I swung my swords to remove the blood.

Swoosh!

Then, I sheathed them.

Swoosh- Click.

Looking up, I saw the faces of the special forces team members.

Their eyes were wide open, not blinking once.

Even Sung Gyu-hyuk, who had seen me do this a few times, looked both amused and surprised, exhaling, “Phew.”

I smiled and gestured.

Come in.

The team members stood up.

Sung Gyu-hyuk approached and looked at me.

I was already covered in blood, and now even more blood dripped from my hair.

He tapped my shoulder and walked in.

The other team members passed by me, giving me a nod and tapping my shoulder as they entered.

One of them looked quite moved.

I chuckled and nodded back.

With 15 strong men raiding, the convenience store, including the storage room, was emptied in just two round trips.

But that’s not all.

While they were raiding the convenience store, I asked Sung Gyu-hyuk about the locations of nearby pharmacies and hardware stores and cleared them one by one.

During this process, I leveled up again.

Current Level 15.

Strength 60.

By the time we finished raiding the pharmacies and hardware stores, it was well past three in the morning.

My stats needed to recover as well.

I said to the team members, who were carrying heavy bags filled with hardware,

“Put these down and rest a bit. We’ll rest for a few hours and go out again when the sun comes up.”

One of the team members asked me,

“What time should we be ready?”

He was smiling.

I smiled back and said,

“Five hours should be enough. Let’s meet in front of the motel at nine in the morning.”

The team members nodded.

As we walked back to the motel, Sung Gyu-hyuk said,

“You’re making quick progress. Did you gather supplies like this at your original location?”

Hmm.

It’s similar, but not exactly the same.

I couldn’t completely clear a store in one or two round trips. Having a lot of strong men definitely makes things easier.

I glanced back and chuckled.

“Let’s say that.”

After being out until the early morning, we finally returned to the motel.

I removed the chain and opened the door.

I saw people inside.

The reception area was filled with snacks, drinks, and all sorts of food, and people were gathered around, even on the stairs.

They clapped softly as they looked at us.

Grandma, young women, ajummas, ajusshis, the Secretary-General, the two captains, the mechanic, and even the President.

Everyone was clapping.

They couldn’t contain their joy, even though they had to keep it quiet.

Everyone had enough sense not to clap loudly.

I chuckled and walked in with the team members.

President Min Jeong-woo came up to me and grabbed my blood-drenched hand.

“There wasn’t a single gunshot. And yet, you managed to do this much. Truly remarkable.”

I smiled and nodded.

“Thank you. But this isn’t all. Make sure to have enough space to store the items.”

Secretary-General Ahn Jun-gyu came up and said,

“We’ve already decided to use five or six rooms as storage. I didn’t expect such a performance on the first day. You’re amazing, Seong-hun.”

Um…

I received a compliment.

I chuckled and nodded.

“Thank you.”

Next to me, on the sofa in the reception area, there was a box of energy bars. I took two and said,

“I’ll be going out again in the morning. We’ll get some rest.”

President Min Jeong-woo smiled and said,

“Of course. You need to rest. You’ve really worked hard today. Thank you.”

Secretary-General Ahn Jun-gyu gestured and said,

“We’ve prepared a room for you on the first floor, next to here. Come this way, Seong-hun.”

The President finally released my hand.

I walked past the President and followed the Secretary-General through the crowd.

Next to me, in front of me, and behind me.

Soft applause echoed again.

A grandma, her eyes glistening, watched me from the stairs.

“Thank you, young man.”

The grandma and the young woman next to her, and the ajusshi.

They must be a family.

Even with blood dripping from my chin, I didn’t seem scary to them.

Their eyes…

I smiled and nodded, then followed the Secretary-General to my room.

“Get some good rest, and I’ll prepare some clothes for you.”

“Do you have clothes?”

The Secretary-General’s smile faded slightly.

“Yes. We conducted some rescue operations in the early days, and there were a few empty houses. We considered the ownerless clothes…”

I nodded.

In these times, an empty house is an ownerless house, and ownerless items are fair game.

“Thank you.”

The Secretary-General bowed and left.

“Phew…”

An ordinary motel room.

I immediately took off my blood-soaked clothes and took a refreshing shower.

The clothes the Secretary-General brought were thankfully joggers.

They were a bit loose on me, but nothing is as comfortable as training pants.

I loaded each magazine with 45ACP rounds, filling them all, and then I went to sleep.