“Are you the commander of the rcenary unit?”
“That’s right. Thanks to the disbandnt of my original unit.”
Nathan murmured bitterly.
Aiden was already aware that Nathan’s unit had suffered significant losses.
That might be the reason he wasn’t isolated in Lima at that ti.
However, Nathan spoke of the unit’s disbandnt casually, as if it wasn’t an unusual occurrence.
“I’ve heard about your achievents too. You’ve been handling quite a few tasks lately. I didn’t expect your skills to be that good.”
He said so, glancing at Arian beside him.
Although so ti had passed, Nathan still seed to view Arian with a sowhat uneasy look.
But Arian paid no attention to such scrutiny.
Instead, while continuously stroking Sadie’s head, Arian spoke.
“Well, you should be prepared. You know we’re coming late today, right?”
“Yes. Co back safely. Sir, you too.”
As always, Aiden silently nodded in response to Sadie’s farewell.
Afterward, Arian led Sadie to the northern gate of the barrier.
The area inside the barrier was divided into east, west, south, and north zones.
Since the facility assigned to Sadie was in the northern zone, they coincidentally ca together.
Nathan, watching their backs, spoke up.
“Is the girl doing well?”
“It seems so. I heard she made so friends recently.”
Though he didn’t show it, Aiden kept a close eye on Sadie’s changes every day.
Even though the 62nd Division was a reputable organization, it would be pointless if she couldn’t adapt.
Fortunately, from Sadie, who shared stories about the facility every evening, Aiden received many positive responses.
Even though the facility was too rigid to be considered a school, teaching only things like firearm shooting.
Sadie seed to be adapting well to it.
“That’s good to hear.”
Aiden nodded in agreent with Nathan’s words.
“But... is that girl participating today as well?”
Nathan pointed to Arian, who was waving her hand to Sadie and watching her enter the barrier.
“Of course. She has been participating in all the requests until now.”
Even though she was a vampire, Arian looked like an underage hirl, not even twenty.
Perhaps that’s why Nathan seed montarily puzzled by the fact that she was a rcenary.
“...I see.”
Soon, he acknowledged Arian’s presence with a short nod.
Whether he thought there was no need to doubt or simply gave up on the idea, Aiden couldn’t tell.
Since there was nothing to delve into deeply, Aiden changed the subject.
“Weren’t the operations supposed to start at night? Why did you gather the personnel in the morning?”
“Because there’s work to do in the morning.”
The contract period started today, lasting for three days.
So, even if they worked in the morning instead of at night, there was no reason to complain.
“Work?” Aiden asked.
Could it be that they were mobilized for building occupation?
“Don’t worry too much. It’s just a minor task. For example...”
Nathan explained the tasks that the rcenary unit would be handling.
Ultimately, rcenaries would assist in several chores and small-scale building occupations.
While the main force of the military occupied large buildings and structures in the city.
They would leave the small buildings between those large ones to the rcenaries.
It was indeed a modest task.
To relieve the main force from the burdenso tasks before they were deployed.
It wasn’t a bad strategy to employ a rcenary unit.
Moreover, even if the rcenary unit’s operation failed, the main force would remain unhard.
“Of course, the rcenaries’ work will be finished in the morning. They can take a break in the afternoon, and the main operations will comnce at night.”
Aiden nodded.
“It seems like everyone is here. Well then, I’ll leave it to you today.”
Saying that, Nathan left.
Soon, he stood in front of the rcenaries, introducing himself as their commander.
He then adeptly began organizing the unit.
After a while, the rcenary unit, numbering more than 50, was temporarily nad the 8th Battalion, and Nathan divided it into five squads.
Among them were the 2nd Squad, where Aiden and Arian belonged.
Then Nathan explained the operation for the day to each squad.
“Hmm...?”
A heavy sound ca from the direction of the North Gate.
When Aiden turned his head to look, the entire gate that had always remained closed was slowly opening.
A massive door, over five ters high, was gradually unfolding.
Eventually, from inside, erged nurous soldiers – the main force of the 62nd Division.
“It looks like the ti has co.”
Nathan muttered, observing this.
The first thing that ca into view was a long procession.
Hundreds of soldiers, clad in digital-patterned military uniforms and carrying rifles, poured out of the North Gate.
Following them were various vehicles and artillery carrying cannons and mortars, around ten in total.
There were also vehicles carrying anti-tank weapons, recoilless rifles.
And following them, Aiden finally exclaid in amazent at the sight of a massive chunk of tal.
It was... a tank.
A model that used to be the main battle tank of the U.S. Army.
It proudly adorned the end of the procession.
There were three such tanks.
Additionally, five armored vehicles and two self-propelled artillery guns were visible.
“Are there still operational armored vehicles?”
Aiden, like other rcenaries, was looking at the tank, marveling.
Arian, however, seed indifferent.
“That, we probably won’t be able to use it in the occupation battle.”
Arian muttered.
It was a valid point.
In dayti occupation battles where buildings needed to be occupied, such tanks wouldn’t play a significant role.
Yet, the military invested in these giants, undoubtedly for the upcoming night defense.
Tonight, the area they needed to defend, relying only on temporary barriers, was just a few blocks away.
Although not very wide in the context of the entire city, they had to be prepared to face the zombies of the entire Fort Wayne in that area.
And at that mont, the usefulness of such tanks was self-evident.
With powerful firepower and impenetrable armor against regular zombies, especially when guarding the defense line with infantry, there was no equal force.
“8th Battalion! Move!”
After the main force entered the city, Nathan ordered the rcenary unit to move.
Bang! Tatatang!
Boom!
Whether the operation had already started or not, there were loud sounds of gunfire and explosions inside the city.
Nathan, before entering the city, inford each squad about the buildings they needed to secure.
Among them, the 2nd Squad, which Aiden was a part of, was assigned to a parking building in the center of the city.
“Hmm...”
It was a noticeably low three-story building compared to other high-rises.
Being a parking building, it was open on all sides without glass windows.
Zombies inside the building had already heard the noise and rushed out.
However, the military entrusted this place for a reason.
“There’s an underground parking lot, up to the third floor. Be careful of that part.”
Nathan said, instructing the 2nd Squad to go down to the underground.
In that thick darkness, the other junk dealers showed a slight tension on their faces.
“Shall I lead the way?”
Arian murmured to Aiden.
But Aiden shook his head.
“There’s probably no need for that. If the military properly selected people, that is.”
Everyone here was carefully selected veterans from the military.
Moreover, a total of ten people were deployed to explore this small parking building.
Usually, for Aiden and Arian, who were used to exploring larger buildings in a pair, this seed like an excessive number of personnel.
So, even if they were just average junk dealers, the operation was by no ans difficult.
Aiden’s expectations were soon pleasantly t.
Two hours after being deployed in the building.
The 2nd Squad of the rcenary unit easily secured up to the third floor of the underground parking lot.
During that ti, they encountered a Bigfoot mutant, but it couldn’t withstand the concentrated gunfire of ten people and quickly fell.
They were skilled in fighting in the dark, illuminating the area with lights, and no one acted clumsily.
“Good. The next task is building the defense line.”
After reporting the completion of the mission to Nathan, the next mission was assigned imdiately.
Building the defense line, creating sandbag positions, and so on, to create a temporary barrier to block zombies.
Now it was just physical labor.
Moreover, the defense lines were thoroughly protected by other soldiers even in the chaotic city.
The rcenaries silently built sandbag positions.
After constructing the defense lines, it was already afternoon.
They were given a short break to rest for the night they were about to spend and the sun was quickly setting.
The ti had co for the sunset.
“Are you ready?”
“No problems.”
Nathan calmly replied to a man’s question, looking around the defense lines where Nathan and the rcenary unit were stationed.
Then the man, perhaps Nathan’s superior, after inspecting the defense lines and the rcenaries, handed Nathan a black radio.
“Well then, good luck.”
“Yes!”
The man who spoke quickly moved to another location.
Aiden was holding a rifle behind the barricade made of sandbags.
Next to him was a stationary machine gun, held by Arian.
Originally assigned to Aiden, Arian beca interested in the machine gun, so due to her indifference to other firearms Aiden yielded it.
Behind such barricades, there was also an armored vehicle with a mounted machine gun.
While sturdy, Aiden cast a slightly worried glance beyond the barricade.
Now was the mont when even the red light of the sunset was buried in darkness.
The scenery of the streets turned into ruins from the dayti battles was gradually being covered in black.
Aiden looked at the remnants of zombies hunted during the day scattered on those streets.
The numbers were quite substantial.
However, for so reason, there weren’t many mutants among them.
Did that an there were few mutants?
Or simply that they hadn’t hunted them yet?
At that mont when such questions crossed Aiden’s mind.
Pop!
Bright lights installed on the barricade above, behind, and all around brightly lit up.
Not ordinary light bulbs but special lights emitting intense brightness.
Instantly, darkness was pushed away from the occupied area, hiding in the corners of the field of view.
In nightti battles, light was an indispensable factor.
Especially with many mutants possessing night vision abilities, in cases like this, securing the maximum luminosity was preferable.
“Hoo...”
Soone took a deep breath in the bright light.
The bright light, once a symbol of prosperity in the evening, was now nothing more than a display of battle.
Because of that, junk dealers and soldiers felt more tension than relief, staring at it.
“...”
Finally, the sun set.
The red sun barely holding onto the western sky slipped away, disappearing below the horizon.
So the entire sky was dyed black, precisely ten minutes later.
“Kyuuk...!”
Sowhere, the sound of a zombie’s howling was heard.
Since everyone was holding their breath and staring into the darkness, the sound was distant but painfully clear.
And such cries gradually spread from outside the line of sight.
One soon beca a dozen, and that turned into dozens again.
To those standing on the defense line, a trendous pressure descended like a heavy boulder.
“If they co into sight, open fire.”
Nathan reassured the rcenaries in a low voice.
Even if it was certain that there were zombies in the darkness, shooting blindly at unseen enemies would only waste bullets.
While this frustrating standoff continued, Arian whispered to Aiden.
“They’re mutants. And there are three of them.”
Unlike others, Arian’s eyes were penetrating the darkness completely beyond the light.
Upon hearing this, Aiden quickly spoke up.
“Positions and types?”
“One is on the rooftop of the building to the right. It’s a Siren.”
At the ntion of a Siren, Aiden frowned.
In such a large-scale battle, the presence of a Siren, which could unleash uncontrollable wide-area sound attacks, was fatal.
It was fortunate that the lights were illuminating beyond its effective range.
Aiden kept an eye on the right and continued to listen to Arian.
“The other two are in the front. A Wielder and a Bigfoot. Looks like they’re coming straight at us.”
“You take the front. I’ll handle the Siren.”
“Got it.”
As they were discussing, a loud roar erupted from the front.
“Graaagh!”
Almost simultaneously-
Tatatatatatat!
Sounds of a machine gun and explosions were heard from the other side of the barricade.
The direction... north.
It ant that the wave of zombies coming from all directions was just beginning.
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