The right alleyway was roughly 7~8 meters wide, an area one could consider spacious or narrow depending on the perspective. However, seeing the 998 Brigade on the opposite side made one wonder why it felt so wide, involuntarily bringing forth a sigh.
“Heheh. There’s really a disgusting number of them.”
If the right path is this organized in its width, the middle path must be even more so….
If one strayed from the guardrails on either side, they would find themselves facing a cliff. The Haeun battalion, already losing in momentum, would be forced to retreat if the 998 Brigade advanced any further.
“Ugh.”
“There are too many?”
Moreover, the situation was such that the hearts of most first-year students were about to burst, neglected in a state of extreme anxiety. Except for Sparrow Eyes, the fighting spirit was not notably high among them.
Park Jinsung noticed a red dot indicating filming from the helicams flying around.
“Alright… it’s almost time to sortie. You bastard corporal.”
“Huh?! Please call me Sparrow Eyes! Ah, also, the charge order hasn’t been issued yet!”
“Eh?”
“Perhaps Private Park Jinsung didn’t receive the earphones?!”
Sparrow Eyes pointed to the Bluetooth earphone attached to his left ear.
“Wow… is this also a stunt by that new face sergeant? Really petty…. Did they exclude only me from the command system?”
“Ha! That sergeant must have lost it back then!”
“Oh dear. Do you not remember siding with that new face sergeant back then? If you don’t, that seems unfortunate.”
“Ha… I’ll give you my earphone then…!”
“No need. New face sergeant, huh… I’m quite upset, but it doesn’t really matter.”
Park Jinsung stepped a few paces forward.
Step step step step step!
Thirty zombies impressively aligned themselves behind Park Jinsung. The pressure from thirty individuals was unbelievably strong.
“Heh heh. You bastard corporal, it seems like it’s time to start training.”
“…It’s 35 minutes. Time-wise, that is.”
Sparrow Eyes swallowed nervously at Park Jinsung’s suddenly changed demeanor.
“Still no orders?”
“Uh, none. It seems like the 998 side is just looking around as well.”
“Good. Then we’ll open the way first.”
“Ha…? Private Park Jinsung…?”
“Mad Zombie Squaddddddddddd!!”
Thump!
As Park Jinsung stomped his foot, the Zombie Squad took a unified assault stance.
“Everyone! Charge! Forwarrrrrrrrrrrrrd!!”
“Waaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”
Park Jinsung charged at the 998 brigade with terrifying speed. The Zombie Squad, not to be outdone, followed suit with dreadful screams.
“What are these?”
“Are they throwing away cards?”
Compared to the swarming 998, their number was pitifully small. The 998 soldiers, not expecting to be attacked first by merely 31 people, were visibly confused.
Bzzt Bzzt!
Regardless, the 998 right alleyway requested control from the central alleyway upon confirming Haeun battalion’s preemptive strike.
-Bzzt. 998 central alleyway, central alleyway. This is 998 right alleyway, over.
-Bzzt. Condition four four satisfied, over.
-Preemptive strike from the target confirmed from the right alleyway. Bzzt. Request battle stance, over.
-If annihilation is possible, proceed; otherwise, contain the forces, over.
-Bzzt, Bzzt. Battle stance confirmed. Will proceed as planned… assistance needed! Assistance needed! Over!
-Transmission unclear. Request proper transmission, over.
-Bzzt Bzzt. Assistance needed! Assistance needed! Completely overwhelmed by the initially confirmed 31…!
-Right alleyway? Right alleyway, come in, over!
-Ah, ah. This is the right alleyway. Do you copy?
The 998 right communication soldier was stationed exactly at the point dividing their forces in half.
Bzzt.
– This is… 998 central alleyway…. Who is calling, over.
– Heheh. Haeun High Special Education Battalion, 2nd Company 10th Platoon 3rd Squad Member, Private Park Jinsung, over.
Park Jinsung, who had rushed out first, did not slow down at all until he reached the location of the 998 communication soldier.
Though he hadn’t taken down all the troops on his way, there was no one within 2 meters of Park Jinsung who was still conscious.
“Ugh! What the hell is this guy!”
“Could it be, the Haeun Battalion F-killer…?”
To the 998 soldiers, all they could see were straight lines twisting in various angles. These lines moved faster than they could turn their heads, mercilessly demolishing their comrades.
“Damn it!”
Even now, the 998 soldiers could do nothing but shyly glare at the lone enemy.
– Aigo. Right now, I’m surrounded by your troops, but it seems like they have no intention of attacking. Please reinforce your troops before this side is annihilated, over.
“…….”
The 998 central communication continued in heavy silence, as if they had received a prank call, struggling to comprehend the current situation.
-Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!
Far in the distance, from behind, came the roaring of the Zombie Squad. The 998 Brigade were being pushed back towards Park Jinsung, indicating the Zombie Squad had succeeded in their frontal assault.
Thirty pushing from the front, and one penetrating halfway to shake the back.
Nonsensical.
Nothing makes sense.
“Ha…!”
Sparrow Eyes widened his eyes uncharacteristically. Like the other first-year students, he could hardly believe the scene unfolding before his eyes.
“Indeed, he’s the captain!!”
The Haeun Battalion’s 1st Company was roughly 330 strong.
In contrast, the 998, visibly twice as many by a rough estimate, numbered around 700 troops.
The Zombie Squad’s performance resembled watching the movie 300. They fully utilized the narrow passageway to demonstrate their superiority over the 998.
Moreover, the first to charge out, the Zombie Squad leader, even succeeded in penetrating deep into the enemy ranks. The Edeya occasionally soaring into the air announced that the Zombie Squad leader was still rampaging wildly.
“Ha…! I want to be there…!!”
Sparrow Eyes shivered with the thrill of the moment. The powerless 1st Company involuntarily started to get excited.
“I can handle 200 people, and our Zombie Squad can handle about 100. Hehehe. Both have high comprehensive combat abilities.”
Park Jinsung made a contented face watching the Zombie Squad running amok from the front.
“Kill themmmmmmm!”
“What’s a 998! Is it something to eat?!”
The Zombie Squad members, lined up and charging, resembled a zombie army with intelligence.
With physical prowess surpassing humans, ferocity greater than humans, and movements unafraid of wounds like zombies, they overwhelmingly subdued the enemy.
Their frantic attacks seemed chaotic at first glance. A radical, yet clearly vulnerable, indiscriminate assault. However,
“Csik.”
“Csik!”
“Csiiiikk…!”
The members, like the Zombie Squad leader with just their lips curled, were almost unscathed.
Whenever one member was exposed to an attack, others immediately joined in defense and counterattack. They completely filled in each other’s gaps.
A coordinated assault disguised as a rampage.
A massive charge disguised as a coordinated assault.
“Csik. That’s it, everyone.”
Park Jinsung quietly curled his lips up towards the Zombie Squad’s rampage.
[Mad Zombie Squad, Zombie Wave]
Comprehensive Combat Ability: A⁻
“Kill them allllllll!”
“Csik! You rotten bastards!!”
If Ju Ye had been here, she would have grabbed Park Jinsung by the collar.
The Zombie Squad had successfully upgraded the coordinated assault ability of Squad 3-1, Platoon 1.
A level of offensive power higher than Squad Leader Ahn Sungho’s A⁻⁻grade comprehensive combat ability.
An A⁻grade wave wielded with the lowest grade Edeyas.
“Ugh!”
“Ru-run away…!”
Despite having bracelets to prevent mishaps, the 998 soldiers felt a terrible fear from the Zombie Squad. They knew that being swept up in that wave would result in the same fate as falling off a cliff.
‘That’s right. If our forces don’t focus on the center, we just need to force the enemy to pull troops from the center.’
Even for Park Jinsung and the Zombie Squad, piercing through all 700 enemies was difficult.
Eventually, since the enemy was also confined to a narrow path like us, focusing solely on defense would likely lead to a prolonged battle for both sides.
Park Jinsung breaking through the 700 defenders would happen faster than the central path being breached by 998.
‘Ha-ha-ho-ho. That’s why we’re putting just enough pressure on 998’s center to make them reinforce the right. If a prolonged battle is inevitable, we might as well inflict some losses on 998’s center.’
Indeed, the 998 right, receiving reinforcements, took a firm defensive stance. They piled up their Edeyas to form a solid shield formation.
‘Wow. Look how sturdy that looks? Well… with Sparrow Eyes and the first years joining in, we might be able to break through… but, the situation is still too uncertain.’
Park Jinsung started to backtrack the way he had come to rejoin the Zombie Squad.
Screech, crunch, screech, crunch, screech, crunch!
“Aack! My nooose!”
“Qu-quickly join the rear shield formation!! The battalion F-killer is breaking noses!!”
The nose-breaking murderer that terrorized the trench combat arena was resurrected here.
Surrounded by the Zombie Squad and Park Jinsung, the 998 soldiers had to either remove their bracelets to surrender or have their noses crumple before doing so.
Park Jinsung briefly turned back to smile at the 998 shield formation.
“Heheh. Consider yourselves lucky.”
Chills…!
The 998 shield formation involuntarily checked the well-being of their noses.
* * *
The left path of the three-way road.
The left alleyway was manned by the strongest forces of the Haeun Battalion.
All 300 members were sergeant-level in the 3rd Company, including the 3rd Company’s representative rankers from the teachers’ meeting and Byun Kiyoung, selected as the representative of the 2nd Company.
Byun Kiyoung, who ended up among the sergeants, scuffed the ground with his combat boots, grumbling.
“Tch. Why am I stuck with these losers.”
“You’re not considering the value of my armor as trash too, are you?”
Clank.
Armor that seemed to belong in the medieval era made its appearance, boasting smooth curves. It was armor designed for a woman, giving off a gentle and swift impression overall.
[Armor That Does Not Lose Light]
World Spirit Unit Classification System: B
*It is the armor of hope that shines light wherever and whenever.
It can elevate the morale of those around the owner.
The owner will not take any damage from attacks they believe they can block. However, if the owner’s heart wavers even slightly, the effect disappears.
Comprehensive Combat Ability: B⁺
“Hehehe. I’ll specially exclude Senior Ju Ye and Sergeant Ahn Sungho’s squad from my trash list.”
“Oh my. That’s not too bad.”
Empowered by Ju Ye’s light, the 3rd Company’s morale ignited from deep within, a stark contrast to the 1st Company’s dismal spirit before the start.
Thanks to Ju Ye, Byun Kiyoung’s smile returned, only for his expression to slowly darken again.
“But Senior Ju Ye, why are you letting those trash sergeants do as they please? It’s annoying.”
“Are you referring to Newface and Musclehead as trash?”
Newface and Musclehead were at the very front, babbling something to their comrades.
“The radioactive waste guy is revolting, but his opinion wasn’t too bad, I think.”
“It was too reliant on intuition for deployment. It’s not that I don’t trust Park Jinsung’s value, but we can’t deploy forces based solely on speculation. Ah, simply put, I lacked a reason to object.”
“Hehehe. It’s fine. After all, I’ll be taking all the spotlight on the left path anyway.”
“You really switch around, using formal speech, then casual, and now even blunt speech? It’s a bit confusing; couldn’t you stick to one style?”
“The charm lies in the value I possess. Senior, you should focus on your own way of speaking, okay?”
Though Byun Kiyoung’s tone was quite unpleasant, he had a charm that made it hard to dislike him completely.
“Huhuhu. But here, your Edeya doesn’t have much value, does it? There’s not much to leverage in the first place.”
“Hehehe. That’s why Senior Ju Ye brought me to the left path, right?”
“Huhu? That’s correct.”
Behind where the 3rd Company was gathering, there were many pieces of debris embedded in the ground. These were the remains of the makeshift barracks that had been destroyed in a previous battle.
“Here they come, Senior. This time, let’s properly show the value of that thing.”
“Huhu. It feels like the lines we exchanged before have switched places. I’ll show you right now, so worry about yourself.”
Byun Kiyoung and Ju Ye laughed as they watched the 998 soldiers charging with vigor.
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