The Regressor Only Protects Me Chapter 98

#Episode 98. Fight in the Flames (1)

“They’re going to use fire now. We have to respond.”

I called together the leaders of each ward and gave them a word.

This is the apartment rooftop, where all 36 unit leaders are gathered.

The Eastern captains have so far successfully repelled the enemy’s merciless attacks.

But the full-scale battle has not yet begun.

The real battle will be at Anyang Station. I wanted to get results here before that.

It’s almost here.

There was no way they wouldn’t use fire.

Originally, I thought they would use fire as soon as the war started, but the commander during that time has not used fire yet.

I wonder if there’s something else on his mind.

Surely you haven’t thought of using fire until now?

Is there a trick? Or did they bring so much power that they don’t even need to use fire?

While I was dispatched to Bisan, I could hardly read the commander’s thoughts.

Because up until now he’s only used extremely ‘simple’ tactics.

‘It’s about the level an elementary school student would think of… … but it’s not like it’s just that much.’

Surely there must be another trick.

“If they start using fire, we probably won’t be free from damage either.”

The captain of Building 201 spoke with concern.

The 105th Division commander also agreed with his opinion.

“No, not really… … We’ll all die. The fire spreads upward. The smoke is also dangerous. It’s hard to breathe it in for even an hour. Even if you have a fire suit.”

As the two ward leaders began to speak, the other ward leaders added their words one by one.

“Is the building okay? It’s collapsing… … .”

“At least this is a new apartment complex in the Anyang area, so it should be able to hold out.”

“That’s the difficult part. We shouldn’t think only about what’s good for us.”

“What if we use water?”

“Nonsense. We don’t have anything to drink. It would take a huge amount of water to put out the fire.”

“Can’t we block it with the firewall we installed? We also have a fire extinguisher.”

“A firewall can only prevent the spread of a fire, but it will be difficult to completely extinguish it.”

A chaotic atmosphere.

I raised my hand to calm them down.

Then everyone shut their mouths and looked at me again.

“The firewall has already been installed. Is that correct?”

The Dong leaders nodded at my words.

We removed the firewalls from Anyang underground shopping mall and several other buildings and installed them in units of five floors starting from the sixth floor.

Not only that, we brought here all the equipment needed to put out the fire.

Fire extinguishers, sand, fire suits, etc.

So even if they set fire to it, it will be blocked for a while.

But you can’t block it indefinitely.

The fire they started will eventually reach the rooftop here.

One thing that was fortunate was that since winter had passed, rain had been falling in short bursts in Anyang.

Even now, the sky was full of dark clouds.

It looked like it was going to rain tonight.

“Listen to me.”

All 36 of the squad leaders were looking at me.

Their expressions as they sit around me are full of determination.

First I comforted them.

“The training we have been doing for the past month has been more brutal than the fighting we have been doing for the past three days. We have been training for a month, shedding blood and sweat, expecting the enemy to attack with fire.”

If the enemy uses fire, there’s nothing we can do.

My men have been training for the past month in preparation for firepower warfare.

But the maximum duration for holding out is a week.

That was the basis for my prediction that I would lose the Battle of Bisandong.

I couldn’t come up with a better defense plan than the one we have now.

But there is only one purpose.

The goal is to delay them here for as long as possible, with minimal sacrifice required.

If we tie up at least 20,000 warriors here in Bisan-dong Apartment.

If we can stop 20,000 people with only 3,600 people, we can also lead the battle at Anyang Station in our favor.

I called a boy who was one of the leaders of the group.

“Hyunsoo.”

“……yes!”

A short-haired boy with a particularly small stature among the Dong Daejangs.

The boy was carrying a long bow on his back.

The boy jumped up, looked at me, and answered again in a trembling voice.

“Yes, go ahead, Your Majesty.”

“… … Can we win tonight?”

The boy shouted at my serious question.

“Yes… … Yes!!! I will definitely… … win. For the King! For Man-gyeong!”

“Yeah. You shouldn’t pee like last time.”

“Ah… … Ah. That’s… … .”

The small laughter of the other guild leaders could be heard here and there.

Hyunsoo glanced around and checked the moods of the other team leaders.

Just cracking a joke seems to ease the tension in my subordinates.

I softened the mood again through the boy’s determination.

With this, the anxiety the leaders had felt earlier disappeared and their morale was boosted.

“Anyway, everyone. Just do as you’ve been trained. We can stop them.”

It gave them confidence in victory.

Of course, victory here in Bisan-dong cannot be guaranteed.

No, I would say it’s almost a failure.

I expected that Bisan-dong would eventually fall during that time.

But they will have to pay a huge price.

And that night, the fire attack began.

* * *

The front line defensive position on the 6th floor of building 206.

Inside the dark staircase, the pungent smell of corpses wafted from all directions.

Meanwhile, soldiers armed with spears and crossbows stood guard inside the barricade.

A steady sound of footsteps echoed down the stairs.

15-year-old Dong-dae-jang, Jeong Hyeon-su.

He was in the sixth grade of elementary school when the destruction began.

He is Kang Si-on’s younger brother, the same age as Kang Jun-su.

But now he was over 170cm tall and had the appearance of a fine young man.

He was the commander of the 206th division under the monarch of Man-gyeong.

He was appointed by Kang Shi-on in recognition of his outstanding archery skills.

At that moment, a middle-aged man standing guard at the barricade noticed the boy and smiled.

He was Jeong Hyeon-su’s only remaining family member.

“Hyun-su, are you here? Aren’t you hungry? Here, eat this. Dad prepared it for you… … .”

“… … It’s noisy.”

Hot.

Hyunsoo approached the barricade, holding his arrows that were propped up against the wall.

Naturally, he stood guard by his father’s side.

Hyun-soo’s father said to Hyun-soo like that.

“Hyunsoo, if anything happens, stay by your father’s side. Okay? Don’t ever act like you did last time.”

“… … .”

“Hyunsoo, no matter how much you are the leader of the Dong clan, you are still this father’s son. Don’t be too pushy. Keep a proper line.”

“……a little.”

“If there’s a battle, stay by your father’s side. Don’t say anything. Last time, you left without saying anything, and your father was so surprised… … .”

“Oh, I get it! Stop nagging me!”

Hyunsoo shouted at the man and then looked forward again.

It’s not that I don’t understand my father’s feelings.

Because after the destruction, I lost my mother and two daughters.

After losing his youngest daughter, the father was determined to take care of Hyun-soo.

Because he was the only blood relative left.

But Hyunsoo didn’t like that kind of father.

It was puberty.

Hyunsoo tried hard to ignore his father’s words and looked at the stairs beyond the barricade.

‘… … .’

The length of the barricade is approximately 1 meter.

On the middle level of the stairs, countless corpses of warriors were already piled up.

Rats were running among the corpses.

Hyunsoo held his bow and aimed ahead.

It’s already been three days since we fought here.

It was three days that felt like three years.

At that moment, a woman came down the stairs in a hurry.

He was Jeong Hyeon-su’s subordinate.

She said urgently.

“Captain Do, Dong… …! The enemy is coming.”

Unlike her, who was anxious, Hyunsoo asked calmly.

“… … How long have you been here?”

“They’re crossing Anyangcheon. I think you should come to the observation deck.”

“All right.”

Hyunsoo got up from his seat again and tried to follow her.

But the father grabbed Hyun-soo’s wrist and said.

“Hyunsoo, you have to be careful. If something happens, come to your father right away. You have to come right away… … ?”

“Ah-! I’ll do it on my own. How old am I… …!”

Tamar-!

Hyunsoo shook off his father’s hand violently and went up the stairs with the woman.

Despite his father’s worries, Hyun-soo climbed the stairs again with a determined resolve.

Hyunsoo is the leader of Building 206.

He had a sense of responsibility as a captain.

If father had his own thoughts, Hyun-soo also had his own thoughts.

Jeong Hyeon-su had to guard this place.

That was the order that King Kang Shion had given him.

Jeong Hyeon-su and his subordinates passed the 6th floor of the defensive position and headed to the 13th floor.

Building 206, 13th floor, room 1301.

Originally a family home, it is now a crossbow range and observatory.

There were already many soldiers waiting there, holding crossbow arrows.

Hyunsoo ran quickly and watched the movements of the warriors through the window.

I accepted the telescope the woman handed me and looked across Anyangcheon.

The guys who crossed the river were moving towards this place.

Most of them carried shields against crossbow and bow attacks, while others, protected by them, held buckets in both hands.

It’s probably oil.

It was as the monarch said.

Hyunsoo said, lowering the telescope.

“Sergeant 1. Just aim at the guys with the oil cans.”

“Please leave it to me.”

“The same goes for the second shooter.”

“yes.”

13th floor, 14th floor, 15th floor.

Six crossbows, two each.

And three crossbows in the defensive position.

Unit 206 was currently operating nine crossbows.

They started getting closer.

Soon the archer began shooting arrows at the warrior holding the oil can.

Swish-! Swish-!

As the shooters from Building 206 began to fire arrows, the shooters from the opposite apartments, Buildings 209 and 210, also fired arrows at the warriors holding the oil cans.

There are six crossbows per dong, three in each dong, for a total of 18 crossbows.

They fired ten rounds per minute, and their firepower was more than enough to stop them.

Some of those carrying shields also began to die from crossbow bolts, and most of those carrying oil dropped their barrels and dropped them on the ground.

Hyun-soo, who was watching the situation, gave an order to the ammunition supply man.

“Fire arrow! Hurry up!”

“Yes… …! Here it is.”

Hyunsoo was handed a fire arrow with a fire lit arrowhead.

The order given to Zion was to block their route of entry by blowing up their oil in advance.

The core of this was the shooters of Hyun-soo’s 206th, 209th, and 210th wings.

Hyunsoo put the fire arrow he was handed onto his bowstring and pulled it straight away.

Choooooooooooo.

Hyunsoo’s right arm was pulled back tightly.

The boy’s eyes were focused solely on the oil spilled by the enemy.

Hyunsoo was a natural marksman recognized by Kang Shion.

And that ability had to be put to use now.

When the target came into the aiming point, Hyun-soo released the bow.

ping-!

A fire arrow was shot through the wind.

The fire arrow is made by weaving together the stem of the Nepenthes plant and oil.

There was no way it would go out while flying.

Amidst the battlefield filled with shouts, groans, and a hail of crossbow bolts, a single fire arrow flew straight down the arc.

And then the flaming arrow struck the oil spilled on the floor.

Sigh.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh-!!!!

The fire began to spread haphazardly.

The warriors around them were instantly engulfed in flames, writhing and dying in agony.

“Kuaaaaaaaaaah… …!!!!”

“AAAAAHHHH!!!!”

“Ahhhh… …! Aaaahhhhh!!!!”

They screamed, but no one came to their aid. Instead, the warriors carrying oil cans rushed towards the apartment building.

Some people have even succeeded in pouring oil on the walls of their apartments.

Hyun-soo screamed as they continued to pour oil into the apartment.

“Shoot! We have to kill them all now!”

At Hyun-soo’s command, the archers began shooting nonstop at the warriors in the area.

Zion’s strategy was to ‘subdue the enemy by using the enemy’s weapons.’

Thus began the fifth siege between Man-gyeong and Dong-an.

They continued to advance into the apartment complex, taking advantage of their overwhelming numerical superiority.

Man-gyeong’s bow continued to shoot at them without stopping.

* * *

I watched the battle.

Hiding in a secret place that they cannot know about.

A large fire broke out near buildings 206, 209, and 210.

At the same time, flames erupted from the opposite complex.

The men were planning a double operation, attacking two defensive positions in the apartment complex.

Looking out the window of Building 206, I saw that the friendly forces’ long-range strike force was constantly firing arrows at the enemy.

As expected, the apartment complex became a sea of fire in an instant.

Just as they entered the interior, the warriors were running around frantically, avoiding the arrows.

Their only interest was entering the apartment and pouring oil on it.

Aim for the rear of an enemy who has let his guard down.

The key to this siege was me and my 300-man surprise attack team.

I became stronger through training with Jin Jae-hee, and proved my strength when I conquered the Manan 2nd Force.

Since there is a severe shortage of players in Man-gyeong, I chose to fight alone with the soldiers of Man-gyeong.

And now, at this moment.

Now that the enemies have clearly let their guard down, thinking, ‘Man-Gyeong’s soldiers are holed up in their apartments and not coming out.’

Right now was the perfect time to target the mastermind.

At this timing, I will catch them off guard and cut off their supply route.

“let’s go.”

Thump-.

I took a step forward.

Then hundreds of soldiers followed me.

They were all wearing fire-fighting suits, gas masks on their heads, and weapons in their hands.

The warriors hesitated and retreated while looking at us.

They were the supply soldiers who held oil and shields.

“Uh… … .”

“Those… those kids… …!”

You must be surprised.

I never dreamed that a close combat would start here like this.

The result of carelessness is destruction.

And today I will be your destruction.

“Commence the assault.”

(Continued in the next episode)