Chapter 48

Ammunition Battalion (2)

“Too quiet, isn’t it?”

Contrary to the expectation that monsters would have taken over. The atmosphere of the ammunition battalion was far too quiet.

“According to what the deserters said, the ammunition battalion definitely exchanged fire with the monsters.”

“Couldn’t it be that the monsters wiped out the soldiers and then left the battalion?”

If you think about it, a military base isn’t exactly a comfortable place to live.

‘It’s only a strategically important point. There’s no way monsters would care about something like that.’

All the supplies needed for soldiers to live had to be brought in from outside. It wasn’t a particularly livable environment for monsters either. So there was a decent chance they had left…

“No, I don’t think that’s it.”

“Yes? Why not?”

“Half of it is just a hunch.”

The lizard pack that had attacked our 423rd Air Defense Battalion.

After we brought down the chieftain, the offensive had eased up to some extent.

‘But even then, more than ten lizards attacked the base every single day.’

Thinking about the fight with the chieftain, lizards aren’t a stupid species. They’re smart enough to gather forces and launch attacks when the enemy is weakened. They would have realized that throwing a few at a time against a fortified base with awakened fighters was meaningless.

And yet, they continued those suicide-like assaults. An obsession so bizarre it was unsettling.

Why was that?

“They said especially powerful monsters showed up around military bases, right?”

“That’s right.”

“If monsters don’t actually need to occupy bases, then from the perspective of those so-called powerful monsters, there’s no reason they’d have to attack the military in the first place, is there?”

No matter how powerful those monsters might be. There’s no particular reason they would have to deliberately choose dangerous military bases to attack, but they did.

“For some reason, they did.”

A thought I had felt before resurfaced. A nameless malice intent on attacking humanity. If such a thing truly existed…

“Then it would try to suppress humanity’s armed forces.”

“…”

“Even if the soldiers die, if the bases full of weapons are left empty, the surviving humans can eventually reclaim those weapons and try to rebuild. If there really is some will out there trying to suppress humanity’s military power, it wouldn’t leave military bases easy to retake.”

We couldn’t afford to let our guard down. Who knew what kind of monster might be lurking inside that eerily quiet base.

‘That doesn’t mean we’re going to avoid it.’

I glanced around.

The soldiers who had heard my reasoning were wearing uneasy expressions. It was basically me saying there was definitely a strong enemy waiting for us.

“It’s fine, you idiots. We handled the lizards just fine, didn’t we?”

“Still, this is different from fighting defensively inside our own base, isn’t it?”

This time, at the very least, we would be launching an assault against a force comparable to the lizards, it definitely wouldn’t be easy. But…

“There’s one advantage for the attacking side.”

“…? What is it?”

“We get to choose the timing of the attack.”

That was exactly what the lizards had done when they attacked the moment the power went out at our base.

I glanced up at the sky.

The sun was hanging high overhead.

“We go in after lunch.”

I opened the trailer of one of the spike-covered vehicles.

‘The cooking trailer.’

A mobile kitchen the engineers had built for us.

Since we were about to raid a military base. We couldn’t just make do with combat rations like before.

“Guess I’ll show off my skills for the first time in a while.”

* * *

A little past noon.

“Burp…”

“Ugh, that’s nasty, seriously.”

“Hehe. Sorry, sir.”

Having eaten our fill, we now stood near the main gate of the ammunition battalion.

The ammunition battalion boasted a wide area. The surroundings were all rice paddies and fields, and the base itself was enclosed by fences. Not as remote as our base, but still far from where people usually went.

I glanced toward the main gate of the ammunition battalion. Normally, it should have been sealed with bars and barricades.

“It’s completely wrecked.”

“Looks like it.”

After the monsters’ assault, the barricades at the entrance had been smashed to pieces. Looking closer, there were large holes in various parts of the fence, and in some places it had been torn clean off.

But there were plenty of traces of battle.

Yet for some reason, no monsters were in sight.

“We’ll have to go in to find out. Lieutenant Kim!”

“Yeah.”

“You said you’ve been here a few times, right? Do you know the way to the ammo depot?”

Our number one objective was securing ammunition. That meant ignoring the other buildings and heading straight for the depot. But Lieutenant Kim frowned slightly as he answered.

“I do, but… the ammo depot our unit used was pretty deep inside. I do know a closer one, though.”

“Then guide us to the closer one first.”

After clearing away the debris at the main gate, we followed Lieutenant Kim into the ammunition battalion.

However, not everyone went in on foot.

Vrrrm…!

Combat vehicles covered in sharp blades and spikes all over their bodies. Despite their ferocious appearance, the vehicles advanced slowly and quietly, matching the soldiers’ pace.

‘A mobile barricade.’

The method we had planned to use when coming down from the mountain range.

Back then, the plan had failed when monsters smashed the vehicles to pieces. But now that the vehicles had been reinforced, they could finally fulfill that role properly.

“Look over there.”

“Hm?”

“There are marks, like something sharp slashed through it…”

As we pushed further in under Lieutenant Kim’s guidance, a soldier pointed something out.

When I looked to where he was pointing. It was a building where military police would have been stationed and carved into its surface were huge slash marks.

“What on earth is that?”

“How big would a blade have to be to leave marks like that…?”

The slash marks weren’t the only traces. Bullet holes riddled the walls of the buildings here and there. Traces of the battalion’s soldiers resisting, no doubt, it felt like looking at a city after a war.

‘And yet, there isn’t a single monster in sight.’

With that question lingering in my mind, we continued deeper into the wide grounds of the ammunition battalion.

Deeper inside the base. Strange structures embedded into the mountainside began to come into view.

“There.”

From the outside, they looked like tunnels bored straight into the mountain, they were the ammo depots.

“So we came all this way without a single skirmish.”

“Haha. Maybe we were worrying for nothing?”

Seeing the ammo depot, some of the soldiers spoke lightly.

“Was I wrong?”

At this point, I started to wonder that myself. All that talk about some will bent on exterminating all military bases, and so on.

Maybe there was nothing like that. Maybe the monsters had just happened to attack military bases by coincidence. And then left this land that wasn’t even comfortable to live in.

“Look. The depot door doesn’t even seem to be locked.”

“Shouldn’t we hurry and grab the ammo?”

The soldiers headed toward the massive steel door of the ammo depot with light steps.

The moment they reached out to open it.

A sudden doubt crossed my mind.

‘The ammo depot door isn’t locked?’

Normally, it should be secured with thick locking mechanisms. But here, only the door was closed, with the locks undone.

If they had left it open to access ammo during the battle with the monsters, that would make sense. But then the door should have been left open.

Why would it be closed, yet unlocked…?

“Then… opening it.”

“Wait—”

“One, two!”

By the time I reached out, feeling something was off, it was already too late.

The soldiers at the thick steel door opened it.

Ruuuumble…!

The heavy steel door creaked open, dust falling from it. What was revealed inside the ammo depot was not the ammunition and shells we had expected.

“Uh. This is…”

“Spiderwebs?”

A space completely covered in spiderwebs. Not the kind that form simply from long neglect. So thick that it was hard to even tell what the original layout of the depot had been.

In every corner of that space, large white spheres could be seen.

‘Eggs?’

The moment I realized they looked like giant eggs.

Cracks began to spread across the surfaces of the white eggs.

Crrk…!

Crack!

Crunch!

The sound of something breaking.

Splintering!

Moving!

Thud!

From the shattered eggs…Something leapt out.

“Kyaaaaaah—!”

“What, what the hell!?”

“Damn it!”

Monsters with eerily white bodies, they looked like giant spiders.

‘There’s no way these are normal spiders!’

From the eggs spread all throughout the ammo depot, spider-like monsters burst out and rushed at the soldiers who had opened the door.

“Lieutenant Kim! Do your job!”

“C-Combat formation!”

When I called out Lieutenant Kim’s name as he froze in confusion at the sudden situation.

He shouted almost reflexively.

『Command Order — Combat Formation resounds!』

『Allied combat capability increases by 10%.』

『Temporarily, all allies are granted the trait — Combat Formation.』

『Trait — Combat Formation』

『When engaging in battle while maintaining a formation with a certain number of allies, combat efficiency increases and confusion caused by battle is negated.』

There’s a reason the class is called commander. His own combat ability was rock bottom, but the wide-area buff was significant.

“Enemies.”

“So they were hiding in here.”

Though the soldiers had been startled by the sudden ambush. Thanks to Lieutenant Kim’s buff, the chaos subsided in an instant. They drew their weapons and responded to the attack.

“Ugh!”

“There are a lot of them!”

“…This is going to be a tough fight.”

A soldier said as he deflected a monster’s attack. The monsters pouring out from the countless eggs inside the ammo depot, there were at least dozens of them.

Possibly close to a hundred.

‘If my guess is right, they’re at least on the level of the lizards.’

That many of monsters on that level. No wonder the soldiers blocking them couldn’t help but tense up.

And then…I stood quietly behind the soldiers.

The spider-like creatures rushing toward us.

I stared at them intently.

If we were going to fight them, identifying their weaknesses came first.

‘They look like spiders, but they’re completely different.’

Unlike spiders, their bodies were smooth, like armor plating, without a single hair. They were about the size of a large dog, reaching up to a human’s waist, they didn’t even have eight legs, they had ten.

‘No… are those two front limbs not legs?’

Unlike the others, the two limbs at the very front were as sharp as finely crafted blades.

After finishing my brief observation.

『Chef’s Eye has activated.』

『You have realized the low-grade cooking secret, the method for preparing ‘Incomplete Arachron White Spiders.’』

The method for preparing them flooded into my mind. But there was one phrase that bothered me.

‘Incomplete?’

『An Arachron White Spider that was born incomplete, without undergoing a full metamorphosis process.』

『Once it reaches adulthood, the meat becomes tough and difficult to cook, but specimens in the larval stage are prized by many gourmets for their unique tenderness.』

『However, unlike the adults, the flesh of the larvae is very soft, so great care must be taken during preparation.』

『The key is to handle it carefully so the flesh does not collapse. First, remove the front limbs, which are not useful for consumption.』

The rest of the ‘preparation method’ followed.

‘Ha.’

These guys. They aren’t even in their complete form, are they?

A swarm of spiders filling the ammo depot. Monsters comparable to lizards at the very least, in sheer numbers like this.

At first, just looking at them was overwhelming. But…

“Sergeant Shin!”

“Don’t they have any weaknesses!?”

The soldiers shouted, asking about weaknesses. There was only one thing I could say to them.

“We don’t need any.”

“Whaaat?”

A hundred monsters, but we had 125 awakened fighters.

On top of Lieutenant Kim’s buff and that wasn’t all.

‘Our unit’s own combat formation.’

I casually opened my status window.

At the very bottom, glowing lines of text could be seen.

『Active Buffs』

『Cooking: Low-grade Chef’s Carefully Prepared Monster Bulgogi Set Meal』

『All stats are greatly increased.』

『All trait effects are slightly increased.』

『‘Low-grade Physical Resistance’ effect is applied.』

『‘Low-grade Attack Power Increase’ effect is applied.』

『‘Low-grade Mana Increase’ effect is applied.』

『Satiety is at maximum.』

『The duration of the effects is extended.』

After coming down from the mountain range. We had used up all the decent ingredients we had, so the dishes I could make were limited.

At best, dried meat for jerky, essentially combat rations or simple stir-fried meat. But now that we had secured plenty of ingredients. The effects of properly putting effort into cooking were on a completely different level compared to mere combat rations.

‘Enough to make these defective products not even worth worrying about.’

The effect was immediately tangible. The soldiers, who had been busy blocking the monsters’ attacks.

“What is it with these guys?”

“They’re easier than I thought!”

The moment they realized we were stronger.

The counterattack began.

“Warrior team! To the front!”

“Shooter team, open fire!”

“Shooters and mages, be careful! This is an ammo depot inside!”

“Fire and lightning types, stay back!”

The soldiers, their bodies flooded with powerful buffs.

Versus the spider monsters pouring out of the ammo depot.

The result of that battle, could be summed up in a single phrase.

『You have gained experience.』

『You have gained experience.』

.

.

.

It was basically a massacre.

Seeing that, it became clear.

After coming down from the mountain range. Through various battles, our unit’s levels had steadily risen. On top of that, the synergy from newly awakened members joining in. Our unit…

‘Might be way stronger than I thought.’