—Boss! About thirty meters from the lead zombies!

—The bastards in front are running at twenty-four kilometers per hour? No, some are hitting twenty-six? They’re fucking fast!

The leading zombies chasing the convoy were incredibly fast.

They were moving at a speed that could cover one hundred meters in thirteen to fourteen seconds, something fairly uncommon among ordinary men.

And Junho thought he knew why.

“This bastard... raised a royal guard.”

“A royal guard?”

Screeech!

Yoon Seolhee, who kept constantly checking the rearview and side mirrors so she could open the window and fire at any moment, asked the question. Junho turned the wheel and answered,

“They’re specially fed slaves among the Alpha’s zombies. The ones that already had excellent physical abilities even before they turned.”

Zombies also had to eat to move.

Classic zombies belonged to the occult, creatures revived through supernatural means rather than science, but real zombies were beings infected by an alien virus.

In other words, there was no such thing as entropy reversal violating the second law of thermodynamics.

According to the “report” from the biotech company CEO who had carried out horrific experiments in Deokso, ordinary zombies could remain active while consuming only around five hundred kilocalories a day through metabolic regulation.

However, the “royal guard” were individuals who had been young and physically exceptional from the start, then continuously fed more than double that amount by the Alpha to maintain their abilities.

“They can’t stay active for hours like humans, but moving violently for twenty or thirty minutes is no problem.”

Normally, a zombie horde’s hunt or battle ended within five to ten minutes, twenty at the absolute longest.

Moreover, their targets were usually humans, which meant they could continue consuming calories even during combat.

Just like athletes in certain sports eating high-calorie food in the middle of a match.

Whiiiiiing!

Meanwhile, the bulletproof vehicle continued weaving through the cars scattered across the road while following the electric trucks ahead.

Paang...! Paang...! Papapang...!

The G1 attack drones also kept firing at maximum speed as though escorting the bulletproof vehicle.

But although every shot landed, the sheer number of zombies made the effect seem minimal.

—Distance twenty-seven meters! We need more speed!

—These bastards barely slow down when they run!

Meanwhile, the gap narrowed even further.

'Damn it.'

Junho clicked his tongue inwardly.

No matter how enhanced these zombies were, the electric trucks were definitely faster.

But they were moving without headlights on, and unlike the trucks, which had to weave around abandoned vehicles and swing wide through curves, the zombies maintained more consistent speed and movement.

So although the convoy’s average speed was slightly higher, the distance was actually shrinking.

—Boss! Entering Sector 3 now!

“What about the Alpha there!?”

—No movement yet! Ah! They’re coming out now? Fucking hell!

Yoon Youngsu, who almost never cursed, exploded into profanity.

“They’re coming from both sides!”

Yoon Seolhee also raised her voice while watching the tablet displaying the drone camera feeds. Junho frowned as he looked at the dashboard monitor.

Zombies were pouring out from the buildings lining both sides of the eight-lane road.

At this rate, the road would be completely blocked within dozens of seconds.

And if those bastards started using abandoned vehicles the way the DGV-zone zombies chasing them did, they would be trapped with nowhere to go.

“Everyone turn on your headlights! Increase lead speed!”

—What? Ah, understood!

Kim Jimin in the lead vehicle sounded startled, but he immediately obeyed Junho’s order.

The other vehicles also turned on their headlights and accelerated at once.

Whiiiiiing!

Despite being massively overloaded, the trucks accelerated instantly like proper electric vehicles.

“Just ram through them!”

As if responding to Junho’s shout, the electric trucks, fitted with reinforced rams after removing their bumpers, smashed through dozens of zombies rushing into the middle of the road and sped forward.

Whiiiiiiiiing!

Kukung! Kukukukung!

The six trucks tore down the road.

And the moment the bulletproof vehicle driven by Junho and the G1 drones finally passed through at the rear—

the DGV-zone zombies chasing them from the mart merged with the Sector 3 zombies.

Gwooooooooar!!!

To make matters worse, ordinary zombies also began pouring out from roadside buildings and the alleys behind them after hearing the noise.

“Mr. Junho! There are too many!”

—What do we do!?

—Assistant Manager! There are fucking zombies everywhere! Are we gonna be okay!?

Warnings from Yoon Seolhee beside him and frantic shouting from the speakers erupted one after another.

“Nobody panic! Maintain current speed and drive safely! Getting everyone back alive is the most important thing!”

At Junho’s transmission, the trucks sped down the road at around forty kilometers per hour, slightly faster than on the way here.

Then Junho slammed the brakes and cranked the steering wheel all the way.

Screeeeeeech!

“W-what!?”

Whether Yoon Seolhee cried out in shock or not, Junho spun the bulletproof vehicle around so it faced the mart instead of the rear of the last truck.

“M-Mr. Junho!?”

“It’s okay! I’ve practiced this hundreds of times!”

Whiiiiiiiiing!

The bulletproof vehicle began reversing while facing the pursuing zombies rather than the retreating convoy.

Just as he had told Yoon Seolhee, he had practiced reverse driving countless times inside the shelter safe zone.

“And because this is the only way I can fire the K4!”

Gwooooooooough...!!!

To escape while facing thousands—possibly tens of thousands—of zombies, the only option was the K4 high-speed grenade machine gun.

“Fire!”

—Confirmed. Commencing fire.

Clack!

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

As the heavy low-frequency blasts sounded rhythmically, the recoil from the grenades shoving away the surrounding air shook the vehicle.

The vibrations traveled through the steering wheel and seat into their bodies.

Kwaaang...!!! Kwaang...!!!

The moment the grenades reached their targets, explosions and violent ruptures erupted instantly, flames and smoke bursting into the air.

Thunk! Thunk!

Kwaaang...!!! Kwang...!!!

The explosions were less like movie fireballs and more like shockwaves violently expanding outward.

Shockwaves mixed with metal fragments expanded instantly, blasting apart the flesh of nearby zombies or hurling them away.

Grenade fragments and asphalt debris sprayed everywhere.

And when the blood, meat, and severed body parts of the zombies caught in the blast mixed together, the scene looked almost spectacular at first glance.

“......!!!”

The power of grenades exploding at a distance of barely thirty meters was utterly overwhelming, and Yoon Seolhee could only stare with wide eyes.

Thunk! Thunk!

Kwang...!!! Kukung...!!!

The K4 fired two more rounds before stopping.

—Boss, you’re insane!

—Firing paused. Activating barrel cooling system.

Once Yoon Youngsu’s excited shout and the AI’s businesslike voice ended, the road revealed itself in full.

It was absolute devastation.

Hundreds of zombie corpses littered the street, and the grenades had blasted holes across the asphalt.

Moreover, the grenades had not only annihilated the leading pursuers, but affected the hordes behind them as well.

Countless zombies had been knocked down by shockwaves, fragments, and the bodies of their own kind flying through the air.

—Distance now over sixty meters! We finally got some breathing room!

That meant barely more than ten grenades had widened the gap and temporarily broken the pursuit.

But there was no time to relax.

—Entering Sector 2 now!

—Ordinary zombies are joining after hearing the explosions!

—Hundreds within a two-hundred-meter radius! No, thousands!

Kwooooar...!!! Kwoooough...!!!

The grenade explosions had drawn not only the Alpha-controlled slave zombies, but also ordinary zombies numbering just as many.

This was precisely why heavy weapons were taboo in urban areas.

But Junho had already anticipated this situation and calmly transmitted,

“Mr. Wonoh. Now.”

—Yes! Yes!

***

Lee Wonoh had not only heard the powerful explosions echoing across all of Moku-ri, but had even witnessed the detonations from the rooftop of Jaeseong Building.

“Hey! He says start!”

“...Huh? Ah, yes!”

The male employees, stunned by the sight straight out of a movie despite the considerable distance, hurled the objects in their hands toward the predetermined direction with all their strength.

After flying several seconds from the rooftop toward the ground— 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Puh-uhng...! Puh-uhng...!

—they exploded in midair, releasing intense flashes and thunderous blasts.

“Good! Keep throwing them!”

Puh-uhng...! Pung...! Pung...!

The flashbangs Junho had delivered by cargo drone detonated one after another at designated points.

And that was enough to attract the attention of the zombies that had rushed out in response to the K4 grenade machine gun’s firing and explosions.

Kwoooooooar...!!!

In the end, the ordinary zombies chose to run toward the side where continuous loud noise and flashes were erupting rather than continue chasing the electric trucks and bulletproof vehicle already speeding away.

Some small groups of zombies still blocked the convoy’s path, but the trucks simply smashed through them and kept driving.

And Junho’s bulletproof vehicle now no longer had to guard both flanks. It only needed to deal with the Alpha’s slave zombies chasing from directly behind.

***

—Barrel cooling complete. Resuming fire.

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

Kwaaang...!!!

The grenades, fired in controlled two-second intervals, landed exactly where the AI had calculated they would inflict maximum damage.

Moreover, this time it did not only target the leading zombies.

The K4 high-speed grenade machine gun had an effective range exceeding one kilometer, so the AI Akina formed impact groupings against the swarms continuing their pursuit from hundreds of meters behind.

“That’s it!”

Even the usually calm Yoon Seolhee could not hide her excitement as she watched the chain of explosions erupting in the distance.

But she soon spoke with a worried expression.

“But what about the people in that building helping us? Won’t they be in danger because of the zombies? They all got drawn over there.”

Junho continued driving the bulletproof vehicle backward with practiced ease as he answered,

“They’ll be fine. I gave them something special. Probably any moment now...”

Flash!

Kukukung...!!!

A brief, intense flash erupted in the distance, followed immediately by a powerful explosion.

—Wow! That blew perfectly!

“T-that was...?”

“Claymores.”

Originally, Junho had planned to give them a few grenades to set up as booby traps, but after hearing that one of the karaoke bar employees had been a combat engineer who knew how to use various mines and Claymores, he had generously handed over two.

And now they had detonated the Claymores they secretly installed the previous night.

Right at the point where the zombies had been lured in large numbers by the flashbangs.

“The detonation point is far from the building. So even if zombies gather there temporarily, they won’t know who triggered it or from where. Unless the Alpha itself went there, anyway. But those bastards are experts at protecting their own necks, so that won’t happen.”

Whiiiiiing!

The distance from the pursuing zombies had already widened to over one hundred meters.

And that meant catching the bulletproof vehicle was now absolutely impossible.

Screeeeech! Whiiiiiing!

Junho spun the bulletproof vehicle around another hundred and eighty degrees and resumed normal driving.

—G1-02, G1-03. Battery below five percent.

—Flight operations terminating within two minutes.

But there was no way they could come through this entirely unscathed either.

Hearing that two of the G1 attack drones that had loyally escorted and fired nonstop were about to shut down, Junho spoke regretfully.

“Gather them in one spot.”

—Confirmed.

Soon the G1 drones clustered together in the middle of an empty lot ahead of the bulletproof vehicle.

It was somewhat wasteful, but there were many completed G1 units back at the shelter, and enough materials to build more.

What mattered more was preventing the drones and modified air guns from falling into looters’ hands.

So Junho ordered the K4 to fire.

“You all worked hard.”

Kwaaang...!!!

The loyal and dependable friends of the shelter, who had fulfilled their duty to the very end, met a spectacular end standing side by side, almost as if seeing Junho off.