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The Player Who Eats Steel - Episode 43

43fury. 

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A convoy of trucks was passing down the military road in Buk-myeon, Namsan..

It was a steel company..

Wooooow----

The leading K-153 armored reconnaissance vehicle was a scout, advancing alone by about a hundred meters..

After that, there were four trucks loaded with weapons, a command vehicle, three trucks loaded with troops, and a rear guard vehicle, and they were moving at a speed of 40 km/h, keeping the surrounding area strictly guarded..

Hyunwook Lee was in the passenger seat of the command vehicle..

"……Oh, Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, it looks like that big bird over there has been following you since a while ago..”

Park Jun-mo, who was looking out the window in the backseat, said,,

Lee Hyun-wook turned his head to follow his finger..

Beep---

A clear cry echoed through the sky, a bird of prey with wings spread wide was in flight..

"It looks like an ordinary bird, but I told you just in case..”

"No, it's not normal.”

"yes?"

"That's not any bird on earth.”

"ah! No way, battalion commander……."

Park Jun-mo said that as if he had noticed, and Lee Hyun-wook nodded..

That was the ‘Great Condor’, one of the ‘subordinates’ of Battalion Commander Kim Kang-seok..

The wingspan is a whopping 12m. When it spreads its wings, it is bigger than most trucks.,

If you saw it up close, you would believe it was a dinosaur and not a bird..

It was flying over the steel company, alerting the surroundings..

Of course, you can't be far away from your owner, so you won't be able to follow him all the time..

And two ‘magic drones’ were flying under the shadow of the Great Condor..

Weeee-ing-

The magic drone is a state-of-the-art item created through magical engineering technology. It is connected to the wizard player who infused it with mana, shares its field of vision, and can detect the mana emitted by monsters..

- Chic - This is Steel 3, no abnormalities have been identified so far and it will soon enter the city center. more.

It was Choi Taeyong’s voice. He was in the front armored reconnaissance vehicle, guarding the surroundings..

Watching the end of Namsan come into view, Lee Hyun-wook lifted up the radio..

This military radio, commonly called a walkie-talkie, normally communicates through radio waves, but was modified to enable 'mana communication' when radio waves are interrupted due to mana scattering situations..

Chic-

"This is Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, the leader of Operation Steel..”

His voice echoed throughout the Steel Company, ten vehicles.

- Chic - We are now entering downtown Seoul..

At those words, everyone couldn't help but feel a strange sense of heterogeneity..

I can't believe I'm so anxious about entering Seoul, the capital of Korea.…….

It was an unfamiliar feeling.

- ……To find the cause of erosion, you have no choice but to go to a place where there are a lot of monsters. In other words, many battles will occur. And as we all know, our enemies aren't just the monsters that come out of the gate..

Lee Hyun-wook did not mention it, but the company members thought of 'vampire'.

A terrorist who infiltrated the unit and massacred the 5th squad.…….

However, only Lee Hyun-wook knew that their true identity was villains..

‘It is better for the world not to know about the existence of the villain yet. It's probably a fact you can't handle…….'

Of the five butchers, Carol Choi and Yang Hee-ju were captured alive, but they suddenly died before they could be interrogated. The medical officer said that upon examination, the brain appeared to have been burned by some 'latent magic'..

Lee Hyun-wook knew that would happen. It was a kind of ‘safety device’ installed by Ki Baekjun. I was worried that my subordinates might be captured and the veil of the villain organization would be lifted, so I took extreme measures..

- ……It's a cliché, but finding 'erosion factors' in this vast city of Seoul will be a long, long journey. However, please be nervous but not panic and always focus on my command..

Long, long march… … It was supposed to be like that..

But Lee Hyun-wook knew the location of ‘those’..

In other words, it was going to be a lucky march..

- ……I hope we can meet in Seoul later, even after this operation is over. more.

Although Seoul must not disappear, it was a promise that could be kept..

"Um, I can see the city center..”

Just like that, the Steel Company left Namsan Mountain and faced the city of Seoul, which might soon disappear.,

I headed north along ‘Jangchungdan-ro’ between D University and S Hotel..

- Rule - Be sure to keep a strict lookout for the range and firing range ahead - That's it..

Soon the Jangchung Gymnasium intersection appeared..

Unlike usual, there was only silence in that wide intersection..

"Well, thank goodness. There are not as many cars blocking the road as you might think..”

A driver from Headquarters Company said:.

As he said, even though Seoul is a city of 10 million people, the roads were quite quiet..

"The incident may have occurred early in the morning, and citizens would have been walking..”

Thus, the march of the steel company was able to continue without frequent stops..

It was then.

- Identifying monsters in the proceeding lane - I will stop and check! more.

It was a leading emergency radio.

Lee Hyun-wook made a one-to-one communication with the leader, Private Choi Tae-yong..

"Taeyong Choi, this is a personal communication. Report the situation.”

- A zombie is lying on the road. however… … something is a little strange.

"Don't tell me what you felt, just report the facts concisely..”

- It's just one red-skinned zombie. Just spinning around in place..

As he reported, the sound of dry swallowing was heard from the back seat..

- how… … It's only one, should I just get rid of it??

Lee Hyun-wook was worried..

The ‘inhabitants of hell’, commonly called zombies, came in many different types..

Therefore, it was not a good idea to lump it in as a zombie without properly understanding its characteristics..

‘But I don't have time now... … They're just the inhabitants of hell, no matter how many people come, they can deal with them..’

While I was thinking about that, I heard Choi Taeyong's voice again..

- Uh, there's something else. That… … It's a person. They come towards us waving their hands, which seems to mean don't shoot. Judging from the fact that he is armed, he appears to be a player. this… … How do I do this?

It's a player…….

“......wait, i'm coming.”

Lee Hyun-wook took off his sergeant rank insignia and got out of the car. And he raised his K2C1 rifle.

Then Park Jun-mo, who was riding in the back seat, also got out and covered Lee Hyun-wook..

Hyun-Wook Lee walked forward and detected metal-moving metal nearby..

There were a total of 7 things actively approaching the friendly procession..

However, if you include the little uncertain movements, there were a lot more..

‘At least 16 people, it's not a small group..’

About 50 meters ahead, Taeyong Choi got out of the car and was talking to the taller man among them..

As Lee Hyun-wook approached, Choi Tae-yong and the man turned their heads..

Behind the man, six players were watching warily..

The rest seemed to be hiding somewhere..

“……Are you in charge of this unit??”

a man asked.

Judging from the fact that he was holding a long wooden staff, he seemed to be a wizard..

"yes, that's right.”

"You must never touch that zombie. You just almost got into big trouble..”

Without answering, Lee Hyun-wook took the binoculars from Choi Tae-yong and looked at the zombies about 200 meters away..

It had an unusual appearance. He was short, about 160cm, but his head was very big..

But strangely, there were no eyes on that head..

Instead, his mouth was unusually large and his neck was swollen like a frog..

“……It's a siren zombie..”

"Yes, if you touch just one, they will all flock. There's a lot of people gathered around the intersection over there..”

Siren zombies are entities that make strange cries to attract other zombies when they detect an external threat. If you are not confident enough to handle hundreds of zombies, it is best not to mess with them..

"Thanks for the advice. We are the AMT unit in Namsan. Where are you from??”

"Ah, we are just small guild members. It's a subcontract from the Cheonghwa Guild..”

Subcontracting guilds were those that signed contracts with large guilds to handle various chores..

Examples include 'porters', 'gunmen', or 'dungeon dismantling teams' during large guild attack operations..

However, they were not weak. At least I was treated better than the AMT soldiers..

The man took a step closer..

"I don't know what operation that unit is currently working on, but it seems to be heading north, but as I said, it's a zombie field, so we can't go there. Would you please go south with us instead??”

It was a somewhat unexpected suggestion..

When Lee Hyun-wook made an expression that he couldn't understand, the man continued speaking..

"Right next to this, the magic shield at the Jangchung-dong Community Center Shelter stopped working, and more than a thousand residents who had been evacuated were blown away. Since I can't stay there forever, I'm planning to move to Dongguk University Station or Yaksu Station... … Out of those thousand people, there are only 18 players..”

He said he was planning to lead a considerable number of residents and move to a large shelter, so he asked for support..

It was certainly a good cause, but it was not something that should be requested to block military forces in action..

"Sorry, we have to go north.”

At Lee Hyun-wook’s words, the man let out a long sigh..

"Ha, there. Didn’t I tell you… … There are at least five to six hundred zombies of all kinds gathered near DDP. I can never go there.”

"Yes, I understand. I plan to break through. That's our job..”

"......."

The man frowned and glanced at the AMT troops behind Lee Hyun-wook..

The attitude was to gauge your strength. Then he shook his head..

"Look, I'm sorry, but if you do that, you'll all die. It's not just siren zombies..”

"What else is there?”

“……Do you know what a zombie troll is? There are two of them in front of me..”

Lee Hyun-wook’s expression changed significantly at the man’s words..

"Are you sure you saw that zombie troll in person??"

"Haha, is the desire to move forward bravely gone now??”

"......."

"Yes, I saw them pounding on the DDP Line 2 shelter up there with my own eyes. You guys look like you have a lot of troops, but... you know, numbers aren't what's important, are they??”

They even subtly disparage the level of AMT..

Well, I could see it as reasonable..

In the case of AMT, unless it is an attack platoon, most of them are not at the level of catching zombie trolls.…….

But Lee Hyun-wook’s thoughts were elsewhere..

‘found. first food…….'

Lee Hyun-wook had a hunch that this zombie troll must have a special item. This was because elite monsters that appeared during waves unconditionally ‘dropped’ high-value items..

"If you evacuate to the north instead of the south, we will escort you..”

At Lee Hyun-wook’s words, the man and his companions looked blank..

"yes? Really, do you understand what I'm saying? Ha- Hey, what is your rank? You seem young, but you don't have a rank badge, are you in charge??”

But Lee Hyun-wook passed by him without responding..

And then he told a completely different story..

"Is it true that there is no one between here and DDP??”

"yes? Of course, everything is still in the community center shelter. why do you ask that?”

Lee Hyun-wook nodded and pressed the walkie-talkie on his shoulder..

"Powered, ready for battle-”

The man was startled by those words and came to me..

"What, what? Are you going to fight now? Are you crazy?”

"Sorry, but I don't need any more advice. we are not stupid."

"Are you trying to do that stupid thing now??”

At that moment, something shot out from Lee Hyun-wook’s waist and flew along the street..

Whoosh--

It was a pale note..

"Oh no, what now?……."

sudden-

It slashed the side of the siren zombie ahead..

However, no matter how you look at it, it was not very effective damage and was only enough to irritate people..

Then its huge mouth opened wide, its neck swelled, and…….

Kke-ae-ae-ang-

It let out a loud roar that was hard to believe coming from such a small body..

A sound box like a brass instrument, that was the siren..

When the roar stopped, there was a brief moment of silence..

and…….

Ke-e-e-e-e-

Far away, from the DDP intersection, disgusting screams began to echo like a chorus..

and… … It started to get closer..

Just as the man said, hundreds of zombies heard the siren and started to come..

Ke-e-e-e-e-

A voice devoid of reason that resonates in the quiet city center... … My body suddenly cringed..

The faces of the players, including the man, turned completely white..

"Fuck, are you crazy? Do you know what you just did? If you're going to attack me, you have to kill me right away. What are you doing?-”

"No, that was on purpose. stay back.”

"What on earth……."

Lee Hyun-wook lifted the walkie-talkie again..

“4The truck moves forward and opens..”

At Lee Hyun-wook's command, a truck came out of the procession and came right behind Lee Hyun-wook..

There, 4 soldiers got off, 2 guarded the surroundings, and 2 opened the cargo compartment door..

Hyunwook Lee still looked straight ahead and extended his left hand toward the truck behind his back..

Hung-

Two steel boxes flew out from inside the cargo hold and were placed on either side of Lee Hyun-wook..

When he moved his finger, the lid opened by itself with a clicking sound..

There was a lot of shiny things inside it..

The contents of the two boxes began to bubble and rise into the air..

that… … It was a huge number of iron beads, iron beads made of dungeon steel..

'550 pieces per box, 1,100 pieces in total..’

They rolled on the asphalt floor and made a loud noise..

Cho-la-la-la-la-

It looks like a flock of white rats moving en masse along the road.,

Or it almost looked like the tide was coming in..

‘auror-'

Lee Hyun-wook gave some of them the status of ‘Auror (Saint)’.

Not long ago, after digesting the 'mana tank' I obtained from Heo Young-tae, I was able to use mana boldly thanks to the significant increase in my total mana amount and recovery..

The moment the 1,100 iron balls endowed with divine power roll furiously, overlap with the hundreds of zombies rushing in this direction, and are placed under their legs.-

Lee Hyun-wook’s mouth moved..

"shredding-”

Je-that-that-that-that-jeong-!

With heavy drinking, a fog of blood rose up..

"ah……."

Hundreds of zombies collapsed in the blink of an eye..

This was because a huge number of iron balls exploded at once, blowing off their ankles..

Their flesh flew in all directions and fell off their heads..

Kk-kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk-

As a zombie, that alone won't kill me, but I will never be able to stand on my own two feet again..

In other words, since they had no choice but to crawl across the floor, they were no longer a threat..

then…….

“Ahn Min-tae, from now on, you will receive experience points..”

At those words, the soldiers who had been waiting behind Lee Hyun-wook came forward..

They advanced towards the hordes of neutralized zombies, with eight shields at the forefront..

"What, what? Now, experience... … I eat it.?”

The AMT troops advanced like that, wielding sacred weapons, and began to finish off the zombies one by one.

Yes, really, I was eating..

It was so easy to suck up experience points..

"......."

The players who were watching this felt dizzy..

To think that a horde of zombies of that size was just an experience point rather than a disaster to be avoided was something that only a B-level player could say with half-bluff..

No, no matter how B grade it was, it couldn't take out that many zombies at once..

'……What on earth are these people? AMT That's right?’

The man couldn't help but be honestly surprised..

To the point where I feel ashamed of myself for talking out loud just a moment ago.…….

But soon I came to my senses..

‘Anyway, this is not the time to be like this.!’

Zombies are zombies, but the biggest threat is different..

He swallowed his saliva and ran to Hyunwook Lee..

"Wow, that shot just now is truly amazing. Yes, I admit it! but……."

He looked left and right with an anxious expression..

"Yes, we need to run away, right now! It will come! zombie troll-”

But his warning did not end..

Coo-ung-

With an earth-shattering vibration, above the building in front... … It was because a huge head stood up..

Ugh……

5A green giant measuring 100 m tall slowly rolled its half-decomposed eyes and looked down at them..

That was a zombie troll.

"ah… … Joe, you're screwed.……."

The players hesitated and retreated, and the AMT troops that had advanced also quickly retreated..

Trolls were giant monsters with incredible resilience..

What's worse, would troll blood be used as a key ingredient in a top-quality healing potion??

But what if such a troll became a zombie?…….

It was better to give up the idea of ​​killing him in the first place..

thud-

It took a step towards this direction..

Every time I did that, maggots fell out from the dents in the flesh here and there..

“……What are you going to do now? Tell me to turn the car around quickly!”

The man trembled and shouted. It wouldn't be easy for him to escape..

However, Lee Hyun-wook instead smiled brightly..

‘Of course, there is.’

This was because some ‘high-quality metal’ was detected inside that giant zombie’s body..

Lee Hyun-wook pressed the walkie-talkie button..

Beep-

And gave only one command very briefly..

“……The rest of the trucks are all open..”