Chapter. 17. Travel preparation (10)
****
“Oh, look at the smell of alcohol! Ian, did you come here to drink and buy a gun again? The person in charge of the BDSM department asked me not to sell things to people who come after drinking anymore…”
“Stop talking nonsense, and raise the shutter, Gail. Do you know what happens if word gets out that you were planning to use uranium to create a small nuclear reaction? Nuclear trauma is said to be a basic skill in the wasteland. “Wouldn’t the countless martyrs of the wasteland come to you to prevent a second tragedy?”
“Are you still talking about your mistakes? It was just curiosity! Still, even though he’s a guy who makes a living selling gunpowder, he can at least be curious! “It’s like the final boss that ended a world!”
“Okay, okay. Out of curiosity, people commit crimes, cause accidents, and ruin their lives. Oh, I need to pick up my gun case that I left behind. “Are the repairs finished?”
“I’ll tell you this repeatedly, but if you carry something like that around, your joints will give out as you get older.”
The owner of the gun shop I saw as I came in grumbled, as if he was used to Ian coming in late at night, and lifted the closed shutter of the store again.
The first thing I took out was Ian’s steel gun case, which was quite familiar. Perhaps because it has just been serviced, the shiny appearance is quite nice.
Ian skillfully fastened it to his shoulder and waist and then grinned as he looked at the inside, which was filled with shiny metal, just like a refurbished gun case.
“good. “No problem.”
“We had to reinforce the inner cushioning material because we were constantly swinging around bombs, gunpowder, and other things. “The things I kept inside were things I always use.”
“Hehehehe. Thank you every time. “Leave your calculations in BDSM.”
“I already sent that too yesterday. so. Judging by the fact that you asked to open a store, it doesn’t seem like you came here just to look for gun cases… What are you going to do this time? “I don’t have anything new to show you because I took in all the new releases last time.”
The merchant handed him a gun case with its contents replenished in a familiar manner, as if this was the first time Ian had placed an order with the store in this way.
“Rather than something new, try using properly proven ones. “Because there is one unarmed ‘muppet’, I have to be very well armed from head to toe.”
“A ‘muppet’ at the bottom of Zeus Valley? You brought in a very brainless bastard. Why are you using a guy like that? “Is there such a lack of talent in BDSM?”
“Hehehe! That’s right.”
Ian looked back with a look in his eyes that seemed to say hello, but he didn’t have anything to say so he just walked out with a grumpy face.
“Uh… is this the person I know?”
“Yes~ ‘Master’ Professor Park, let’s come. “I am the idiot who just walked in here empty-handed and without any knowledge of the topic.”
“Oh no! If the person who needs something is the professor, you should have said so! Oh my, I’m sorry about this! “I thought I had brought in a real master who had no sense of responsibility…!”
Rumble-clack!
When the shutter door opened and the light came into the dark store, all kinds of guns that I had seen during the day were lined up before my eyes once again.
“How are we supposed to choose a gun for our ‘master’? “Do you know how to pull the trigger?”
“Stop teasing me. Let’s see… Wear body armor that covers up to the shoulders. Since it is an urban battle, I think it would be better to have the advantage of projecting close-range firepower… Can I get a recommendation from the owner?”
“yes! of course! Since you’ve lived in the area for a long time, it’s inevitable that you’ll be a little behind the latest trends! First of all, if you look at bulletproof vests, these days, rather than ordinary bulletproof materials, they use bulletproof composite materials that can resist a variety of warheads…”
Knock. Crash.
Good! Chagak!
Slurp!
When I picked up a familiar firearm, the owner pushed it away with an embarrassed expression and offered me new-generation firearms with all kinds of strange attachments.
“Do you know Cell Tech? Variant by-product engineering has made innovative developments not only in weapons and household goods, but also in the field of medical devices. Oh, you already have one! “It looks like there’s quite a bit of space inside… Can I take a look?”
While looking for body armor that fits my body, I was impressed when I saw the steel plate covering my chest.
“ha ha ha! There were significant cultural and social changes while you were inside! In the past, a ‘muppet’ who walked around unarmed was considered a clueless idiot, but now he is an object of hatred! “While running away from the mutant wave, there has been a trend of considering those who did not help in battle and survived by moving together as ‘unresponsible’!”
We also talk a bit about what’s going on in the world these days.
“Now, two Galleon automatic pistols are for your service! If you do this and leave, no one in the wasteland will be able to call you ‘young master’ anymore!”
A person who was clearly a bit of a business expert was giving expert explanations and recommending various things, so while he was wondering what he was doing, he was in a state where he was armed to the point of saying, “Go away Rambo.”
“Hehehe. “How is it fun?”
“It’s fascinating.”
Wearing body armor that resembles leather armor over elastic underwear that clings tightly to the body. He had five pistols stuffed inside his vest, which had a lot of storage space, and three different rifles were strapped to his back. There’s even a multi-purpose belt on the waist that looks like a potion belt, and a guard that protects from the shins of the surprisingly comfortable military boots to the area around the knees.
“If you add all the bullets together, it would be 780kg, right? “Is everyone walking around like this these days and fighting?”
“Well, the means of attack have diversified. Even if it’s not that much, I tend to carry around whatever I need. Something like snail cream with miraculously low thermal conductivity, or a poison or acid neutralizer. “It’s not like in the old days where you just had to deal with bleeding and shock chemical reactions on the battlefield.”
“[Enemy/small and medium-sized armed group/good training/returned recruit]”
“Yes, yes, I understand. A hillbilly who can’t keep up with today’s combat trends has to do as he’s told. Let’s go and use all of this and then come back.”
While the two people were pointing out where to put this and where to put that with a happy face as they looked at me, who had become much heavier, the merchant, who had suddenly emptied half of his stall, approached me with a brighter face, rubbing his hands.
“As expected of a Dome hero, your hands are big! All in all, it comes to about 13,947,500 shillings… I guess BDSM will make the payment, right? “Can I pack the items to your house?”
While saying that, I naturally reached out my hand to stop him from taking out the items to pack, and then ran a little.
Thump-
“…Is it worth moving?”
“You’ve seen me break some chains in the administration. Of course it’s worth moving. “I also carry around 70kg.”
“The rice has changed….! “If I adapt to it…!”
“I know. It’s definitely useful to have high strength. Seeing as there is no clanking noise even though it is hung like this and running, it seems that the clothes themselves remain firmly in place even with this much external armament attached. “It’s a problem that the body becomes heavier and the noise increases while moving, but you’re going to be the lead scout anyway, right?”
“Of course… hehe!”
“The role remains the same. Vex goes around the corners that don’t have a good shooting angle. “I’ll take care of breaking through and projecting firepower, and you’ll do damage control and lead individual battles.”
“Well then, it doesn’t matter if I move a little heavier. “It doesn’t seem like the scope of operation is very wide.”
When we said we would take everything with us, the gun shop owner looked at us closely.
I wrapped my entire body in bulletproof bullets and ammunition, and because there was not enough space, I even stuffed a bunch of grenades into my chest.
Likewise, Ian wears bulletproof material around his body and his trademark gun case leather straps are fastened to his shoulders and waist.
With a clear ting sound, Bex held up the knife he took out of his pocket and held it up to the store lights.
“…Where are you going to war?”
“Oh, not until war.”
I waved my hand as I saw the merchant tensing up in an instant like a wasteland person.
“I’m going to catch a rat. Rat.”
“mouse?”
“yes. There are all kinds of monsters going around these days. I heard there is a large rat that eats people. “I thought I’d catch some.”
“…Then, please be careful. These days, rats are prone to biting people.”
The gun store, which was contemplating for a moment, said that and saw us off.
“People are fine.”
“Right? The skills are also good. “He has a sense of humor.”
“…and has the ability to survive.”
As soon as we left, I burst out laughing at the sound of luggage being packed inside the gun shop.
This could lead to an all-out war with the Let Human camp, so I’m going to get out of the way in advance.
“It certainly seems like HIV’s reputation has been tarnished. “People have no faith.”
“I know yeah. “Let’s make a difference starting from tonight.”
“You know it would be embarrassing to get hurt in an operation like this, right? “I’ll roughly command you, so you can handle it roughly and clean it up yourself.”
“Kihi hihi!”
“Let’s not enjoy it too much. If you get used to it, it becomes a disease. “Just enjoy it as an expert in what you’re good at.”
From fire armament to mental armament.
It’s been a while since I went over my memories of when I was a platoon leader, and I walked out of Moby Dick, looking at the guys’ faces as if they were asking me what they were saying.
“It’s perfect weather for catching and killing rats.”
In the night sky at dawn, as always in the wasteland, the hazy moonlight vaguely illuminated the path.
****
Crackling-
[Ah. This is EZ-07. Is the reception of Gundam No. 1 good?]
[Don’t talk nonsense and recite the order. There was one, right?]
[Oh, there was one… but I was looking for it and got caught by the president.]
“What?”
“Hey why? “I couldn’t find it?”
“No, that’s not true….”
It’s been about 10 minutes since I left the management area of Moby-Dick, an underground medical-military-home appliance sales group.
As we entered into the operation in earnest, we began digging around to find the information we needed right away.
Even if the opponent is not a poor scavenger and their level is low, we cannot just charge in and start a shooting spree because we are the same as those who die if we are shot.
In the first place, we needed to verify the hypothesis that human hunters = let humans, so we decided to infiltrate, so we had to know the rough internal structure.
So – I told Ezel, who was sent by the administration to waste time, to look for something similar to the Zeus Valley underground structure.
At 1:30
in the morning, a person who had not taken high-purity alcohol out of his mouth all day grabbed the back of a trained former inspector general.
[President Young: Does that person not even sleep? Later on, I found out that you’re saying something like ‘Beep – I’m Android Zero, created to maintain a democratic government even after nuclear war – ah, Democracy – Democracy -‘ aren’t you? Even after drinking so much, you still can’t sleep?]
[I don’t know. Anyway, since we were caught, I told you not to worry too much because we were going to catch some rats.]
[So?]
[….Zeus Valley is close to the economic hub of the Dome, so I asked you to avoid it until it burns down. If possible, finish it before sunrise.]
[Oh. Permission has been given?]
[He knew that even if I tried to stop him, he wouldn’t listen, so he asked me to send him some of the combat data that I moved with my body.] As expected,
it’s President Young. This is the boldness of a leader of a large group called Dom. A private military operation is taking place in one’s own city, but they only allow it to be done to reduce the extent of damage. If my boss had been like this during the war, I would have licked his feet!
[Oh, and I also found what I was originally aiming for. As expected, the inspection department had investigated something in advance. But how do I convey this? I can’t call every street one by one.]
[Snap a picture using the terminal and send it. Since the one I’m currently using is the latest model, they say it has a simple display built in.]
[It’s ‘built in’. It’s a bit uncomfortable to listen to.]
[Hey.]
[I sent it anyway.]
Shiny!
Along with Ezel’s communication, a faint light streamed from the border that opened and closed the iron plate on his chest.
“Oh, that’s it. “Image files really come over.”
“That’s convenient. So how do you see it now? Professor, is it being projected directly onto your retina? huh?”
“I don’t think there’s any such function, right? Let’s see…”
Clap!
We were sitting around in a dark corner of the market, going through the thick manual I had taken out of my chest, flipping through the pages one by one.
“How to use the D-389 communicator mechanized infantry built-in version… You can also download image files… The transmitted file appears on the side display of the communicator…?”
“What? So you’re saying that the image Ezel sent is in there?”
Rattling. Squeak-
“It’s over there…!”
“My stomach feels so warm and lukewarm that I wish I could put something like coffee or engine oil in it during the winter. “It’s convenient, Professor Park.”
“개새끼야.”
Snap Tidi Dick-
“Let’s see… Oh, is that a mirror in there? “I guess it’s illuminated by that so you can see?”
“Ugh, it feels like a rib is being pulled out…”
“Oh, sorry. “I wondered where it was stuck, and it turned out that he had pulled it up and pulled it.”
“Holy $&@ dog*@#!!!!!”
Only after many twists and turns, I was finally able to see the structure reflected inside through the small mirror protruding from the open hole in my chest.
“Hmm…. It’s a bit different from Moby Dick, isn’t it?”
“Aren’t you really a rat? “It turns out that they are actually intelligent reproductive mutants?”
“[Operation/Danger/Difficult Terrain]”
“Narrow passage. A structure in which as many rooms as small as 1 pyeong are connected as much as possible. On that subject, the connection between rooms is not linear and is a mess. “It’s very complicated.”
For me, who thought of a large cavity like Moby Dick and an active black market, their management area was quite difficult.
“The entrance is narrow. “It’s not just narrow, you have to go through dozens of entrances that can barely fit a single person through.”
“It creates a huge bottleneck in getting in and out, so it’s a bit difficult to get through it quickly.”
“I know these bastards, but if they had left the entrance like that, they would have created a back road that only they would know about. If you touch it, it will stick out like a tail and block the front, while all its heads will fall out behind it. You know that if these guys survive, they’ll get into trouble from then on, right? “Kidnapping, suicide, terrorism, arson of family members or acquaintances… This is going to be more troublesome than I thought.”
The map Ezel sent was quite poor.
Dom was aware of this illegal existence and infiltrated its own agents, but it did not have the manpower to begin a full-scale investigation.
What has been revealed is that there are hundreds of small rooms near the entrance, and each customer using Let Human tells them what they want in that room and makes a transaction through one-on-one consultation with a merchant handling the item. And beyond those rooms, there is an additional underground space that the agent has not been able to identify.
“I think you dug deeper than Moby Dick?”
“….yes?”
An underground building is not created by just selling land. The deeper the depth, the more it requires architectural engineering knowledge beyond imagination. Along with high-rise buildings, this underground structure is not even at the level of Moby Dick, but is it even deeper than that? A group of criminals made up of all types of criminals, including scavengers and raiders? In a short amount of time?
.
.
.
.
“I guess someone helped me?”
“Amiral. Really, Dom?”
“Let’s even put Dom in the list of candidates. “Someone who can use that much capital or talent.”
“Hey sir. “It was a bit intense for one night of work.”
“[Allies/Mobile Strike Force/Request]”
“Oh, I guess I should do that. This isn’t the size to leave it alone while it’s sleeping. “If I count even one of them, it’s going to be really painful.”
Just looking at the structure of the building, it was not a place where ordinary capital and technology were used.
Even if the capital was earned through illegal business, it is difficult to understand from common sense that a building of this size was built in a short period of time.
[I managed to contact the person who was the manager of the Dome… but he said that what people like us are going through is an environmental disaster and that the Dome can’t do anything about it.]
According to Camilla, they at least cut out the situation that should have been reported and rejected it. Someone high up in the dome did it.
Illegal hunters who kidnap people in such situations.
“I don’t know what it is, but there is collusion with someone in Yangji. “It’s not just a weed, it’s a weed that someone planted seeds and grew.”
Is it possible that this was something President Young did? It cannot be ignored. He is a man who will do anything for the good of Dom.
Corruption at the top of the dome? It is highly likely. Dom has recently expanded too much and has been working hard for several months, and the reward given is the same salary, some allowances, and a piece of fame. History guarantees that public officials will become corrupt if they are not sufficiently compensated.
Or, a ganja from the enemy force may be active. The raptors that were walking around leaving behind traces were already suspicious, but unlike their usual tendency to engage in all-out warfare, they may have thought that they should plant people and screw them over. The dome has been receiving a lot of people recently, making it vulnerable to such infiltration. The assumption that such an outside spy was brought in while recruiting insufficient manpower was by no means exaggerated.
I think we need to look into it a little more properly.
“Because of the structure, secret infiltration is completely impossible. “All three of us sold our faces, right?”
“We sold so many that it was difficult to sell more.”
“Then it must be a bit difficult to disguise yourself.”
Infiltration is also difficult. All-out war is difficult. Speedy resolution is difficult due to structural problems and lack of information.
Then there was only one way left.
“Are there any BDSM guys that look a bit grumpy?”
“There is no one who isn’t.”
“Then, name the most dangerous and illegal-looking one among them. “The rest will wait outside with you and Vex to rush in.”
“….no way?”
Clunk, clank, clank!
Instead of answering, I put down the weapon that was hanging from my body.
“uh. I’m planning to go as a guest. “Not just a guest, but a very big guest.”
“Hey Professor Park. You know that if you get shot, you’ll die, right? When I was in monster form, I was like playing catch with a tank. Now that I’m back, I’m just a human with strong bones and tough skin. Are you? “They say there’s no regenerative power anymore.”
“know. “I almost returned to human form, with only some strength and bones remaining.”
Before coming out after the physical examination, my doctor, Cheisha, said something encouraging.
=========
‘You literally came back from the dead. What this means is that the mutant virus inside your body is in a very chaotic situation. [Is this host dead? Is he alive?] I’m confused. In fact, parts that are similar in shape to the previous body, such as bones, leather joints, and some muscles, still maintain their previous state. That means if you get close to death, these chaotic mutant viruses can completely turn around. [You’re dead as expected!], and this time, I’ll completely turn you into a Type 3 mutant.’
‘oh. That’s useful.’
‘No, not at all. That means even if you don’t die, if you get close to death, this virus can force your body to die. There are no second chances this time. The virus will kill you and mimic your memories based on its behavior, only this time turning you into a complete monster. There is no chance of you coming back or becoming a monster with your consciousness remaining. It’s not about Adapter or Wasteland’s Type 2.5, but it’s turning into a pure Type 3 variant like Walking Kane or Old Picture.’
‘….I ended up liking it.’
‘Keep this in mind. That your body is more unstable than anyone else in the wasteland. It’s not just that he dies, but even in a situation where he almost dies, Professor Park can disappear from the world and a type 3 variant, Professor Park, who has lost human reason, can appear in the middle of the city.’
=========
I said something long-winded, but that’s it in the end.
‘He’s almost like a human, but he doesn’t die when he gets shot, but he’s like a bomb that explodes when he gets shot.’
I understand what Ian and Bex are worried about, but…
“Since when did I start living as a super human?” “If you get shot, you die. It’s the same now as it was before.”
In the first place, before the mutant Professor Park, this body was the one who conquered the wasteland with a pistol and a few old weapons.
“I’m not going to die, so just wait outside for the signal. When the time comes, I’ll have to come down and destroy everyone.”
“What are you doing in the meantime?”
Good luck!
Finally, I unfastened the belt containing the grenades and ammunition and spoke as I looked at the black protrusions on my bare skin in the dim moonlight.
“I’m good at it.”
An underground organization that made a deal with someone high up.
A guy who hunts mutated humans.
Just like Camilla, I appear to have the same symptoms as them.
“A dog can only see poop, right?”
If you add a little action to it, it won’t be that difficult to get them to think of me as a person.
As always, I was a person more accustomed to deception and digging than to full-on warfare.
****
