The Military Chef of a Ruined World

Chapter 72.2

Squad Leader Lee Sang-ah asked Gwang-il.

“From your experience in fighting them, how were the vampires? With that many numbers, they must be weaker than average awakened ones, right?”

“Hmm. My memories of the fight are a bit hazy, so I can’t say for sure.”

After stroking his chin in thought, Gwang-il said.

“Compared to the awakened individuals we’ve met among the survivors those vampires are actually stronger.”

“What?”

“I mean, we’ve got guild skills, equipment item effects and all. But if what Sergeant Shin said is true, those guys are also buffing their abilities through blood-sucking. If we’re at similar levels, their individual vampire would probably be on par with one of our soldiers.”

“…With their numbers double ours, does that mean we can’t win?”

“Ah, is that how it is?”

I could try to somehow utilize my cooking to make up for the power difference.

“The problem is, they’re holed up in that fortified bunker. They said they’re weak to sunlight, but if they bunker down in the caves, that doesn’t mean anything. And the guy I interrogated said it’d be impossible to break their defenses without bringing a tank.”

“A tank, huh…”

That’s when the naive Gwang-il said,

“Wait, does that mean if we bring a tank, we can break through?”

“Huh?”

“But we can’t even operate a tank. What’s the point of that?”

The other soldiers’ reactions were rather lukewarm, but

Sergeant Lee Min-jae’s eyes widened as he said,

“No, it might actually mean something.”

“What do you mean?”

“Forgot that this is Gangwon-do, where the most military bases in Korea are concentrated?”

“…You don’t mean…”

“A tank. We can just get one, can’t we?”

We spread out the military map of the base.

There are so many military bases around Inje-gun, after all.

The closest ones are these three:

The 423rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion of the 12th Corps.

This was the military base where our soldiers were stationed.

The 73rd Ammunition Battalion of the 12th Logistics Support Group.

This is the stronghold we have taken over now.

And.

[The 22nd Tank Battalion of the 8th Armored Brigade, 12th Corps]

“Since our guild is called the Steel Corps, we should at least have some tanks, right?”

Though the manpower is only at the battalion level.

“Recapturing a military base, huh…”

“Until recently, we were in a constant state of panic, afraid of being spotted by the zombies.”

The newly recruited survivors expressed surprise after witnessing our living conditions.

But we’ve already successfully recaptured the ammunition depot before.

The monsters occupying the ammunition depot were in a wounded state, but.

Our soldiers have only grown stronger since then.

‘Especially, the success in conquering the dungeon was a big deal.’

In the operation, all the unit members gained explosive level-ups and the title of [The One Who Closes the Gates].

The effect of the title alone is a 10% increase in all stats.

Thanks to the newly acquired group skill [The Aura of the Legion], the more numbers we gather, the stronger we become.

The monsters occupying the military zone are generally stronger than the average monsters, but.

We have no intention of losing.

“Hmm. I still can’t see it.”

“The spiritual vision can’t penetrate inside?”

There is one disappointing aspect, though.

Jeong So-ah’s spiritual vision reconnaissance was not effective.

“Something is blocking Bangul’s approach.”

“What could it be…”

“This isn’t the first time. Bangul isn’t all-powerful either. There have been instances where specialized psychic monsters could detect and push Bangul away.”

A specialized psychic entity, huh?

‘Someone like Taejun, who awakened as an astrologer, might also be capable of similar feats.’

So, there are such beings even among the monsters.

It’s a bit unsettling, but.

“If the information from the one we interrogated is true, then even that Queen is aware of our unit.”

“Hmm.”

“In fact, even if that’s not the case, as we and they both grow our forces, a confrontation is inevitable someday.”

Catching up to the other side, where awakened individuals are increasing by 5 per day, is not an easy task.

Meaning,

The faster we can settle this, the better it is for us.

‘For that, we need to secure the tanks as quickly as possible.’

The next destination for the Steel Corps is the Tank Battalion.

The spirit vision couldn’t see inside the Tank Battalion, but it was fully utilized on the way to the Tank Battalion.

“There’s something like a mountain after passing that building.”

“That’s likely where the Tank Battalion is located.”

Upon reaching the vicinity of the Tank Battalion,

The nearby soldiers started a conversation.

“That’s the Tank Battalion.”

“Since this is also a military base, there must be some powerful monsters occupying it.”

“But still, with our current power, I don’t think we’ll lose to any ordinary monsters, unless there’s a huge swarm like those vampires.”

I somewhat agreed with that statement.

The unit members have gotten quite experienced in fighting monsters through numerous battles, so.

Complacency is not allowed, but.

After passing the building that had been blocking the view,

a large mountain came into sight in the distance.

‘So, the Tank Battalion is located there.’

We disembarked from the vehicles and took positions for a full-scale assault.

We were confident enough.

Whatever monsters might appear,

we should be able to…

As I was gazing at the mountain range, thinking such thoughts,

there was a glint.

‘…?’

Something.

Something glinting was flying towards us.

It didn’t take long to realize what it was.

“…Damn it!”

The shell came at an incredible speed.

To be more precise,

It was an aerial bombardment.

Booooom!!!