Chapter.7 Masquerade Ball (16)
***
Whisper Whisper-
“Hey. Hepburn.”
“Hmm…”
“Do something! “If I go through there, I can’t even die!”
“No, obviously the kids on the side have to run forward…”
By the time Ezel was desperately trying to move forward, the professor and his group were also in an awkward situation.
“Why are they retreating?”
The professor didn’t know much about Raptor’s strategy, but he was an expert enough to say that he didn’t know anything about Dom’s strategy. Because I lost my mother and studied like it was engraved in my bones in order to one day seek revenge.
And looking at Dom’s tactics against the Raptors, retreating like this now meant that the Raptors had no intention of winning. Because
wow
!
Perbeok!
The wide-area electromagnetic defense device called the Speed Bump, which was the core of Dome’s city defense strategy, was truly ridiculous.
‘No matter what you shoot, unless it’s a beam or plasma type, you’ll be caught in the air. If there is enough power, it is something that will not be able to put even a scratch on the dome in a firefight even if an entire Raptor Nest comes running at it.’
Of course, there are weaknesses. It consumes an enormous amount of electricity. It is said that if it is normally operated for 15 minutes, the entire dome will suffer a power outage for 3 days.
Since it consumes so much power, its range is limited to about 20m around the dome where power can be supplied smoothly, but it is possible to slightly extend the range during battle.
The Electric Pole, a large streetlight-like device with all kinds of thick wires hanging along the tail of the Exosuit unit Silver Guard, is playing that role. Although the name is grandiose, it was simply a type of transformer that smoothly transmitted electricity to the city. Big, powerful transformer.
‘Unbelievable performance that nullifies metal bullets over a wide range. As that electric baton moves forward, the range of the electromagnetic net gets closer to the raptor’s formation. The only way to stop them is to send a special force to somehow destroy the electric baton and block their advance, or retreat like they are doing now. If you retreat, the city’s main guns will be recharged, and even the T-7 will not be able to withstand in the face of an extremely ignorant high-tech weapon that emits a day’s worth of power generation for the city, so retreating is essentially the same as declaring defeat.’
The Old Picture plan failed in the first place, and defeat was confirmed the moment those devices were activated, but still, by blocking the electric fall and firing a volley of firepower before the main gun was charged, the voltage on the electromagnetic net was momentarily increased to prevent overload. If you wake up, there is a chance of victory on the other side, so I 100% thought that the guys on the side who were either Minutemen or Mini-Me would leave their seats to block the advance of the net…
Doesn’t even make a move. Without any intention of moving at all, they slowly pushed their formation back, accumulating damage to the exosuit unit.
“Hmm… how about taking a little closer approach?”
“It’s suicide. Even if you can’t use the radar because they’ve turned on the jamming device, the guys on the side have set it up to block the guys coming that way. “With just one piece of this raincoat, you’ll get caught in no time.”
“shit. Then there is no way.”
The professor scratched his head in his raincoat and erased the three people’s travel routes that he had roughly drawn in the sand.
“Breaking through the side is giving up. “If you try too hard, you can force your way in, but the risk of someone dying in return is too high.”
“Hey, wait a minute. So… let’s come all the way here and just stay put? “That’s a bit… difficult.”
“Capture is capture, but isn’t life the most important thing?”
Ian, who was sitting in the shadow of a narrow poncho, scratched his chin with a slightly ambiguous expression.
“It’s not about money, it’s because there’s a guy over there who needs to be killed.”
“what? What does that mean suddenly? “Have you seen anyone you know?”
“I saw the guy who needed to know. The pack leader who was yelling into the loudspeaker earlier. A guy named Sol Amar. “I have to kill him, so I can’t just leave him like this and then retreat.”
“Oh my gosh, it’s a disaster. Even the head over there?”
“Joe, I know there are some personal reasons, but can’t you hold on for a bit? No matter how talented I am at slaying dragons, passing through an open area with no cover and assassinating those big guys with their eyes open is a bit-”
“He killed my wife.”
“It’s hard….”
“My daughter too.”
“Uh…um….”
For something that was said lightly, it was not light at all. So, the person who killed your wife and children is right in front of you.
“Hehehe! Suddenly shrinking. There’s no need to worry, so don’t worry. I’m not a beginner and I’ve lost people more than once. It’s okay because it’s not like I just rolled my eyes. “It’s cool now.”
“Hmm… then I’m glad-” “
But it’s not like I’m just happy. It’s not right. There’s an enemy right in front of you, but you’re just watching. “Both as a father and as a man who has decided to take responsibility for a woman’s entire life.”
Jiik –
Ian’s finger crossed over the symbol representing the enemy on the sand board.
“If there is no hole, I will make it for you. “There are various toys I received from Dome, so I am confident that they will definitely attract attention.”
“Hey Joe. “You can’t believe it…”
“I’m sorry. The moment I heard that guy’s name, I started liking cars. But I have no intention of dying, so you two can dig into the mess while I shake it up-”
Bah!
“Ahh! Shit! what!”
“what? What are you talking about? Be more correct, you bastard. Hey Bex! “Get rid of this bastard.”
“Aya! Oh my! Ugh!”
“Dori is freezing to death! Go to the underworld! If you say it’s that damn thing! I’m sure you’ll say it’s great! Sister-in-law!”
“You idiot! You idiot! You fool! idiot!”
Because they were near the enemy lines, they couldn’t make any loud noises, and the three people were clapping under the shadow of their cramped camouflage ponchos.
“It’s so cool. It tasted really good. “You’re going to make a fuss among those idiots with gatling guns and come out alive?”
“Why not! First, if you give a big blow with an explosive, then dig in between them, and while I confront them with a combat vehicle or something, you and Vex attack the command vehicle from the inside-” “
That’s right. Meanwhile, how do you know whether your body will become a honeycomb or basalt? Look at this. The blood had completely filled to the top of my head, and my happiness circuitry was completely burned out. “It’s very annoying to be cool.”
The professor sighed as he watched Ian gradually fade away from the rapid-fire nagging. Even though he said this, he was in no position to talk to others. If the executive branch had not been involved, would they have intervened so deeply? It was something unknown at the moment.
What’s important is that after listening to the situation, there’s no way that guy, Ian, would kindly give up on the pack leader who has the guts to talk about Sol.
The professor spoke while comforting Ian, who had calmed down a bit but was still wide-eyed.
“Listen calmly. “I said I would give up on flank penetration, but I never said I would just sit back and watch.”
“You said you wouldn’t break through to the side?”
“Because ‘just’ doing that is unreasonable right now. “The situation has changed, so we have to move according to the situation.”
The professor said, dividing the entry route drawn on the planning board into three branches.
“Let’s raise the risk just a little bit. “Vex?”
“huh?”
“Do you know how to drive?”
“You know how to do it, but you know that if I get behind the wheel, an accident will almost always happen, Hepburn.”
“are you okay. “Because I’m trying to buy it.”
“Uh…huh?”
“Just know that for now. Ian?”
“okay.”
“I heard this only as a rumor, so I wanted to check it out, but the driver of the T-7 tank…”
The professor asked Ian a question and quickly started drawing something on the sand.
Bex felt an inexplicable sense of anxiety at the sight of him grinning with that boy-like smile on his lips. Especially after seeing a large skull shape drawn in the direction indicated by the V that represents him.
***
5 minutes later.
Green onions!
“Whoosh whoosh! Heo heo heo heo!”
The three people who received the brief briefing on the strategy immediately dispersed. Looking at the side of the Raptor, Ian went to the front, close to the side of the tank, the Professor went to the center, and Vex himself ran until he was out of breath to the rear.
The basic structure of the operation was the same. When the side is empty, the Vex, who are good at stealth, dig in. The only difference was that since there was no room to dig in, the two people dispersed and pulled the guys out slightly.
Vex covered himself with a sand-colored raincoat and lay flat on the floor, catching his breath and counting the minutes.
‘The professor in the middle said he would signal to Joe once he confirmed I was seated. Just cover it with a raincoat and you’re good to go. I said 3 minutes after it started, so 144 seconds to go.’
Tick Tick
Vex took a breath and quietly took off her raincoat. Dom’s military uniform is sturdy and useful, but it is also something that enemies on alert are looking for, and according to the professor’s strategy, it is a burden that will have to be taken off anyway, so it would be a good idea to take it off in advance.
Bex finished undressing in an instant and began rubbing dirt on her skinny body. The dust stuck to me, probably because I was sweating from the intense movement.
“23 22..”
There was no clock, but there would be no error. Because he has always been accurate in counting time. It seemed like it had been like this ever since he came to think that every moment of his life was a debt he owed to the ‘uncle’ who saved him.
“3 2 1”
Quaaaaang!
At the exact moment, an explosion was heard from up ahead.
A huge sound that varies in quality even amidst the endless sound of Raptor tank gunfire.
Bex took off his raincoat and crawled on the shaking ground as if there had been an earthquake.
‘The infantry is agitated. ‘That’s where my attention was drawn.’
The infantrymen closest to the leader ran to where the explosion started, while the rest boarded their combat vehicles and took aim in that direction.
——-
‘Let’s make a lot of noise and attract attention first. ‘You said you received a wireless land mine?’
‘Keuukhum! I don’t think there’s any need to use such a high-end product if it’s to attract attention… I received two, but I’m planning on keeping one as a keepsake…’ ‘
No, you have to use that one no matter what. They say it’s wireless. All the eyes of the Gatling idiots wondering what that mini is will be focused on you. Won’t it turn into a beehive the moment you explode it?’
‘My rifle is also equipped with a grenade launcher. How can I do that…’
‘Is there any way that a machine gun can’t reach within the range of a grenade launcher?’
——-
‘7 seconds after the first shot explodes. Three two one now!’
Kwaaaaang!
To the sound of the pre-set mine exploding, Vex crawled on all fours and hid in a place where the dust had accumulated.
“It’s an enemy attack!”
“Secure the 3rd Corps position! 5 The 6th Corps forms a fire net!”
“Stay in formation! Stay in formation!”
They bombarded the dome from the front and retreated in perfect order, but even though they were attacked unexpectedly, they looked undisturbed. Since Ian used a fragmentation mine, he detonated it from a distance to attract attention, but there were probably no injuries, and not a single soldier looked disheveled.
‘These guys are like moving machines… Their eyes are bright because they don’t let down their guard, but there’s a lot of room for those hardened guys to dig in. ‘Because I only move the way I learned.’
Tick, tick, tick,
the second hand in my head was constantly spinning. Ian’s role is over. Next –
Taaang –
A long way behind, on the extension of Raptor’s tank line and Ian, the professor was standing. I thought they were going to shoot me, but…
‘What is that?’
In the open area that Dome had completely pushed out around the city, he climbed on top of the iron bag that Ian had left behind, perhaps because the height wasn’t enough, and as if that wasn’t enough, he piled up some heavy stones that he had scavenged from somewhere, stood on top of them, and took aim.
Taang – Taang –
The sound of a futuristic bolt-action rifle resounding rather helplessly in a battlefield filled with all kinds of noise.
‘The penetration power is far from enough to deal with a thick tank or a mini-shooter with a bulletproof pad on the body, but…’
Vex changed its formation to form a fire net and saw sparks flying intensively on one of the exposed combat vehicles. I smiled while looking at it.
‘It’s enough power to ignite the supply fuel tank hanging on the back of the Raptor’s vehicle!’
Taang-
Grumble-!
“Uh oh oh!”
“fire! “It’s fire!”
“Ugh! my body! My body is burning-”
Taang!
dump.
“Don’t panic, they are just enemy guerrillas! We only lost one soldier to one vehicle! Firefighting team! To the left row of the fire department!”
“It’s a sniper! “Call our snipers!”
The fire that exploded from the fuel tank spread to the vehicle, causing one combat vehicle to catch fire, but that was all. The soldiers in the vehicle moved to the next vehicle, and five or six soldiers with sniper rifles rushed out from the inside of the line, mounted their guns on the pitch-black vehicle whose lights were turned off in an instant, and were aiming at the area where the gunshots originated.
Now that the sniper is there, the professor can’t move anymore. The movements of the two people, despite being noisy, had little effect.
—–
‘Professor Park. Isn’t this too much of a repudiation of Raptor? Are they crazy about battle? ‘They’re not the kind of people who would cause chaos by setting off a land mine and burning a car.’
‘Of course I know. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have been sitting there with my head rolling like this. It’s not our role to cause confusion.’
‘then?’
‘I told you that at the beginning. If the enemy is doing something, it is to our advantage to stop it. This means that if the enemy continues his actions even while incurring losses, he must be prevented at all costs. To put it simply -‘
—–
“Always move in the direction of destroying the enemy…”
Vex, who was slowly calculating the time, saw that the well-maintained formation was suddenly disorganized.
Unlike the back row, which was close to the Vex who formed a neat fire net and guarded the surroundings, the front row was a mess.
“3rd Corps! Back up! “Back up!”
“A car was burned down by enemy guerrillas!”
“Get the car out! Take it out right away!
“Movement has stopped on the 2nd Corps side too!”
“Pack leader! “The vehicle is not moving!”
“I mean, push it out! Unless you want to get run over by a friendly tank!”
What Ian used was not an old anti-tank mine, but the latest type of anti-tank mine, the magnetic claymore ‘Flambejour’, which was active in World War III.
Its explosive power and scattering of fragments are the same as a regular claymore, but the Flambéjour had one more special effect suited to its purpose as an anti-tank mine.
Giggig- Giggigig-
“There’s so much stuck on the axle… the car doesn’t listen!”
After the user triggers the Flambéjour, after a certain period of time, the strong magnetic fragments embedded in the target attract each other, damaging the vehicle’s electronic equipment and interfering with its operation.
Moving in a line is easy if you have some training. But what about keeping that line and moving backwards? It’s not even just a line, but dozens of tanks and more than twice that many combat vehicles moving in a line?
Paaang –
Even at this very moment, railgun bullets are periodically flying towards the Raptor’s tank from beyond the border of the dome. A 25 kg piece of metal flies at a speed close to 7 times the speed of sound. Even if you retreat, you can’t turn that huge shield back.
‘In a situation where they were moving backwards in a row like that, the combat vehicles that were supposed to make room first stopped and stopped.’
The massive shield of that misshapen tank is too heavy to stomp over a stationary vehicle on its tracks. In the end, the tank that was stuck behind could not retreat, and when it stopped retreating, it did not check anything, so the Raptor was approached by the Electric Pole, which advanced at a high speed, and the electromagnetic net that was pushed forward with the power of the power repeater. …
‘I’m going!’
In the end, we had no choice but to use the standard method the professor mentioned at the beginning, using infantry to check the exosuit and destroy the Electric Pole.
Sasasak!
Watching the infantry in front of him ebb and flow, Vex quickly took advantage of the gap and entered the Raptor formation. It was impossible to attack the Noisy Pack as initially planned. He has two swords and is bare body wearing only underwear. Although the infantry has escaped, there are numerous troops stationed inside the formation, and Ian and the professor are scattered far away and cannot join.
Squeak!
“Wow! Grumble! Ugh-”
Shake it off.
On the battlefield, the goal of an assassin who must penetrate into the middle of enemy lines must organically change depending on the situation. Vex, who stopped moving backwards due to the sudden commotion and grabbed the soldier who came out to check on the situation, closed his opponent’s eyes as he collapsed with blood foam in his mouth. He quickly changed into the soldier’s clothes and poured the canteen on his waist into his face to remove the dust. Washed away.
“The infiltration phase is over. Now all that’s left is…”
—–
‘Okay, okay. Say you went in. At that level, it is possible to infiltrate without any problems. But what happens next? Assassination of a factor? arson?’
‘That’s a good idea, but then you’ll die. I heard it from Metal Joe, and God has blessed us with a position that is perfect for our Bex.
‘A suitable… spot?’
—–
“hey! “You there!”
At the sharp voice coming from behind him, Bex almost took out the knife he had kept in his arms.
“What are you doing there! “Your name is your affiliation!”
“Oh, that’s… I…”
—–
‘Go and change your clothes, then don’t think about anything and act like you normally do.’
‘As usual?’
‘Act like you’re blind and stupid.’
‘Ugh! When did I!’
‘You just think it’s like that and act like it. The Triceratops tank has a lot of flaws, but there is one part that is especially troublesome…’
—–
“It’s short. Are you a tank driver?”
“Uh ah… Yes! That’s right!”
“Then don’t hesitate and stay calm in the armored vehicle! Don’t even think about running away!”
The man, who appeared to be an officer who was very glaring at Vex, violently grabbed Vex’s arm and started dragging her to the front of the formation.
—–
‘The cockpit is so narrow.’
‘Isn’t that what tanks are supposed to be like?’
‘It’s narrow to begin with, but the front part of the T-7 was further shortened because of the head. It’s so tall that anyone over 155cm won’t be able to fit inside, so regular soldiers can’t fit in. It’s so narrow that even though I removed the shock absorber and everything else, it’s still that way.’
‘Then they’re telling me to do something about the original driver and go in…’ ‘
I said there’s no need for that. It’s a tank where a piece of metal the size of your head is hit at Mach 7, and there’s a shock absorber in the driver’s seat at the very front of it. There is nothing. It’s like being inside a huge tuning fork. On the battlefield against the Dom, T-7 operators are expendable items. All they have to do is know how to go straight and backward, so they train short children on the Raptor and change them every time they faint. It’s a formality. All you have to do is walk around like a scared child.’
—–
‘Is this really happening?’
“Go in! Don’t ever think about coming out again. You are serving the great Raptor Society! Be proud!”
Inside the armored personnel carrier for transporting troops, which was located right behind the tank, close enough to hear the gunfire that shook the body, children about the same height as Bex, about 10 to 14 years old, were sitting first. Their faces were very frightened and had marks of being hit. From what I could see, I could roughly see how they treated the children.
‘…Asshole.’
With the guidance of a Raptor officer, Vex succeeded in infiltrating the T-7 tank, the enemy’s most important line of defense.
***