The enemy wasn’t a soldier, but a marauder.

    They had a number of vehicles, but no heavy artillery, and their combat capabilities seemed questionable.

    There weren’t that many of them either.

    There were over 50 of them, but on our side, we had 30 fully armed soldiers with armored vehicles. When it came to a real fight, they wouldn’t stand a chance.

    "They must have something they’re relying on," Captain Kim Min-ho said.

    I agreed with him.

    Even if they were marauders, by now, no one would be considered weak.

    They had drawn up a plan, brought people along, and even dared to threaten us to hand over Yang Sang-gil.

    "Artillery support seems to be the expected card," he continued.

    The difference in opinions between Ha Min-gi and Kim Min-ho didn’t seem to be just a matter of command structure.

    "Our reconnaissance resources are keeping an eye on them. If the Legion faction takes out artillery from the caves, we’ll be informed right away. Honestly, if we’re scared of a handful of civilians, then what are we? A bunch of unorganized rabble?"

    Ha Min-gi looked at me.

    After hesitating for a moment, he turned to Captain Kim Min-ho.

    "By the way, who is this? I’ve noticed he’s been in every meeting, as if he belongs there."

    "He’s a freelance hunter," Song Yu-jin answered in place of Kim Min-ho.

    She seemed a little unsure, but her tone was much more serious and professional than when she was speaking to me, making me think that my student had truly become a competent part of society.

    "He’s in charge of protecting and monitoring Yang Sang-gil."

    "Is that so?"

    Ha Min-gi looked at Song Yu-jin’s uniform and badge with a disapproving glance, pretending to accept her explanation.

    "But, now that the stakes are so high, shouldn''t the military take responsibility for Yang Sang-gil’s protection?"

    "I agree," I responded without hesitation.

    I didn’t want to get involved in this fight.

    And now, fighting right outside my front door.

    Half of this mess was of my own making, but it was undeniable that my front yard was now noisier than the one over at Keystone.

    "I’ll step out. This doesn’t seem like a fight I need to be a part of."

    "Sir, Sir!"

    Song Yu-jin followed me as I tried to leave.

    She must have called me "Sir" only when others were around.

    "Are you sure this is okay?" she asked, her face filled with concern.

    "What’s wrong?"

    "I mean, it doesn’t seem right for someone like you to be treated this way."

    "What’s that? Are you worried about me?"

    "Isn’t it obvious?"

    Song Yu-jin looked at me seriously.

    "I’m your student, Sir."

    "I haven’t even taught you much."

    "True, but I don’t have much else to show for myself... I’m only level 2."

    Song Yu-jin lowered her head with a downcast look.

    "I was treated like a nobody in school, and even after going out, I wasn’t anything special. I ended up being a level 2 after all. But once I said I was your student, people started seeing me differently. Like... even Sir Woo Min-hee started looking at me differently."

    "So that’s how it was."

    Now I understood a little of the over-the-top kindness.

    It seemed that my connection to her had been beneficial.

    Just as I was about to turn away with a familiar feeling of disappointment, her voice followed me like a shadow.

    "But still, I studied hard on your record! The more I learn, the more impressive you seem! You hunted medium and even large-sized monsters without an Awakened ability, just using conventional weapons! Isn’t it true that people over level 10 have to risk their lives just to hunt medium-sized monsters, but you did it without even disabling their reflective force fields?"

    "...I didn’t do it alone."

    It seemed that her studying wasn’t empty words after all.

    She knew a bit about my past.

    "I could do it because I had comrades who could take my place if I died."

    I thought about the faces of my comrades who had passed and mounted my motorcycle.@@@@

    "Sir!"

    Song Yu-jin called me again.

    "Are you going to make dinner for us?"

    "Maybe. We’ll see how things go."

    I didn’t think the battle would last long.

    In this desolate world of Park Gyu, there was no one but me who would want to stick around for long.

    But since I promised, I should get ready.

    Inside my empty bunker, I prepared a meal using boiled potatoes and started preparing for dinner.

    I was planning to make curry.

    "Skeleton. What’s going on?"

    Just as I was preparing the curry ingredients, I received a message from Defender and Rebecca.

    "Yang Sang-gil? Did you hear the radio too?"

    I avoided answering and quickly ended the transmission.

    Once I finished preparing the ingredients and took a short breath, gunshots rang out.

    Was the battle starting?

    I left the bunker and climbed up the hill to observe the golf course.

    The soldiers and the marauders were in a standoff.

    Boldly, the marauders, seemingly unfazed by bullets, sent a few men to stand right in front of the soldiers.

    Four, no, five of them.

    Though I couldn’t hear the sounds from this distance, it seemed the soldiers had warned them not to come any closer, and a single shot was fired as a warning.

    "Hm?"

    The marauders were advancing.

    Whether or not the soldiers aimed their guns, they slowly moved toward the soldiers'' position.

    The soldiers looked back at Ha Min-gi.

    Ha Min-gi raised his hand.

    The next moment.

    Boom!

    The sound came from the marauder’s side.

    I knew that eerie sound and the rhythm of it very well.

    Boom! Boom! Boom!

    Like the rhythm of a beating heart.

    And in the center of it all, there was something humanoid standing.

    "Awakened."

    It might be better to leave with just the essentials and return once things quiet down.

    As I started to leave, I was interrupted.

    "Park Hunter."

    It was Yang Sang-gil.

    "Where are you going?"

    "Where else? I’m disappearing."

    "You live around here, don’t you?"

    He smiled slyly, as if he knew exactly where I was headed.

    Without batting an eye, I responded.

    "Yes."

    "I’ll tell them where you live."

    "Go ahead."

    "I saw where you and Song Yu-jin went, too."

    "Say it."

    "Really? Are you sure that’s okay?"

    Yang Sang-gil grinned as he tried to probe me with his eyes.

    What should I do with this man?

    Boom!

    A sudden loud explosion came from the west.

    The direction the armored vehicle had gone.

    As expected, the armored vehicle had crashed into the bunker, sending black smoke into the sky.

    "..."

    Fatigue and a sense of indifference, like a long-standing illness, washed over me.

    "Suicide drone! Suicide drone!"

    A soldier shouted frantically as they reported the situation.

    Fortunately, the casualties were minimal.

    The hatch of the armored vehicle opened, and soldiers, coughing and scrambling, rushed out.

    "Cough! Cough! Damn!"

    One of my students was among them.

    As soon as I saw her, the drowsiness that had been slowly creeping over me disappeared.

    I looked around.

    The marauders, or rather the armed group disguised as marauders, had formed a slow encirclement, closing in on us.

    In the front, the main force, including the Awakened, advanced, while troops of lesser capability were scattered along the road. Above us, the drones had control of the airspace and visibility.

    "Bring Yang Sang-gil here! We leave now!"

    And Ha Min-gi continued to make the same mistakes.

    "Get him on the truck immediately!"

    The sharp sound of air being cut by the drone was heard again.

    Suicide drones.

    Three were left.

    "Jammer!"

    A soldier in charge of anti-air monitoring aimed a bazooka-like jammer at the incoming drones.

    When he pulled the heavy trigger, one of the drones fell helplessly to the ground, crashing into the dirt.

    But there was still one left.

    It was heading straight for the command table where Ha Min-gi had been shouting orders.

    Boom! Boom!

    Dirt, smoke, and a little blood splattered everywhere.

    "Colonel!"

    "Shit! The Colonel’s down!"

    The command post had been hit.

    At the same time, the enemies began their assault.

    Gunfire broke out all around as the Awakened, leisurely but with purpose, strolled toward us, admiring the view of the golf course as if taking a walk.

    The soldiers from the armored vehicle joined Ha Min-gi’s forces.

    "Damn it."

    Kim Min-ho, his head wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage, cursed under his breath, self-loathing evident in his eyes.

    "The jammer isn’t working. The active defense system isn’t responding. Why is it that electronics always fail when you need them the most?"

    Despite his loss of composure, he was still the highest-ranking officer here.

    I approached him.

    "Sir..."

    Song Yu-jin, who had been tending to the wounded soldiers, glanced at me but pretended not to notice.

    Kim Min-ho looked at me.

    "You''re that hunter from earlier?"

    "Should I kill the Awakened?"

    "What?"

    "I’m asking if killing the Awakened will let us deal with the rest of these bastards?"

    "Are you out of your mind? You saw it too, right? A monster that deflects bullets?"

    Kim Min-ho’s gaze shifted to Song Yu-jin, filled with disappointment.

    She avoided his eyes.

    "...I’ve fought monsters like that my whole life."

    Her eyes were now on me.

    "Give me two people. I’ll take the head of the Awakened and return."

    She pointed at Kim Min-ho.

    "One is this friend. The other can be anyone who’s not a coward."

    Kim Min-ho looked at me with suspicion.

    "Why would I give you troops to help you? You’re not even a soldier."

    Kim Min-ho sighed and surveyed the soldiers.

    "Well, let’s ask. Who wants to risk their life for this guy?"

    A heavy silence fell over the room.

    The soldiers were all too aware of the power the Awakened held.

    Who in their right mind would want to die?

    "I’ll do it! I’ll go!"

    And there was one who was ready to die.

    "I’ll do it."

    Yang Sang-gil.