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I grinned and aimed the handgun at the back of the moth’s head.

“See that up ahead? Charge forward.”

“At least loosen the rope around my neck. So I can run properly.”

The moth stared straight ahead and made the request. It seemed to have realized what was going on, as it was frantically racking its brain to find a way out.

I tapped the back of its head with the gun barrel.

“Ask the person living there to untie you. Or should I really set you free? If I light you on fire and send you charging, the knot might just come undone on its own.”

I wouldn’t actually do it. If this moth turned around and charged at us, it’d be dangerous. If the fire spread to the magazine attached to the gun or the cartridges in the cart, it’d be a disaster.

But what mattered wasn’t their thoughts, right?

“Damn it.”

The moth, as if it thought I might actually do it, gritted its teeth and took a step forward. The moth tied to the knot around its neck had no choice but to follow.

The rifles of my companions were all aimed at the backs of the moths. I smirked and said, “When I count to three, start moving. If you run, you’ll be shot, so keep that in mind.”

The moth, which had been asking for the rope around its neck to be loosened, suddenly interjected, “Walk calmly in step, and let’s at least ask those people for help. That’s the only way to survive right now.”

The moths, who might have been competing with each other while living in the same area, had become one. They all wore similar expressions—the look of someone racking their brain to survive.

I didn’t stop them.

“There’s no third party here.”

Only enemies and allies. The townhouse and us, the outsiders. No matter how much these moths schemed, to the survivors of the townhouse, they were just unfamiliar outsiders, and in this world, outsiders were enemies.

Like the sound of a gunshot at a track meet, I aimed the handgun at the watchtower-like house and pulled the trigger.

“Three! Go!”

I shouted the signal without bothering to count down. The moths hesitated, then slowly began to walk.

“Left foot, left foot, keep in step! Don’t fall! If you fall, you won’t be the only one dying!”

The moths walked, shouting “left foot” like they were in a military march.

I turned my gaze to the watchtower of the townhouse. While we were drawing their attention, the townhouse survivors had prepared.

People had gathered on the rooftop of the watchtower, holding something, and beyond the car and wooden fence, people armed with spears were waiting.

The person who seemed to be the representative of the townhouse shouted at the top of his lungs, “If you come any closer, we’ll kill you! Stop! I said stop!”

“If you stop, you’ll get a hole in the back of your head! Keep walking!”

I shouted back without backing down and fired another shot from the handgun. The bullet scraped the ground as it passed, likely due to the distance.

The moths’ steps quickened, and all sorts of voices erupted.

“Help! Those guys are insane!”

“Those lunatics are after this area! We can give you information! Don’t kill us!”

“Look at us! They’re torturing people and using them as slaves!”

The moths were expressing their intent to surrender in their own way, but it was meaningless.

I gestured to my companions.

“Don’t waste bullets. Fire carefully, one shot at a time. Uncle Park Yang, check their weapons.”

“Got it.”

Bang, bang. Gunshots rang out sporadically. One of the people standing on the watchtower rooftop fell and tumbled down. That marked the beginning of the real battle.

“Defend!”

Immediately, the townhouse people crouched down. At the same time, they extended sticks and swung them in a curve from back to front, throwing something.

Something heavy cut through the air and rolled down the slope. It rolled like marbles scattered on stairs.

“Bricks? Stones?”

“Not a slingshot. What do you call that?”

After quickly racking my brain, I barely managed to guess the weapon’s identity. A sling. A staff sling.

A weapon you can make by just attaching leather to a rope. A weapon that holds a stone in leather, spins it around, and throws the stone. This one had a staff attached to it, making it a staff sling. A weapon that can throw stones like a catapult.

“That thing’s power….”

It didn’t seem insignificant. It felt like a mass weapon, using accelerated stones to cause fractures or serious bruises. If it hits the head, of course, it’s fatal.

Already, the moths were dropping dead.

“Ah!”

“No! Don’t fall, ugh!”

Moths hit by stones fell, and the knots tied to them pulled, strangling other moths. …Somehow, it seemed like more people were dying from the knots than the stones, but that’s probably just my imagination. In the end, the stones were the cause.

The moths who barely made it to the barricade raised their tied hands and shouted.

“Surrender! We surrender! We’re victims too! Let’s join hands and deal with them together!”

“Get lost!”

Along with the curse, a refrigerator fell from the second-floor window of the watchtower. Thanks to the carefully designed barricade position, the refrigerator fell right in front of the barricade, crushing a moth.

“They’re definitely well-prepared.”

I rolled my eyes hard, trying to assess the situation. Uphill. The position was advantageous for them. Their weapons were ranged and quite deadly. They had a defensive posture to make use of their positional advantage.

Just then, Park Yang belatedly exclaimed.

“Ah! David! That’s the weapon David used against Goliath.”

“We can’t afford to be careless.”

We can’t lose like Goliath. If it’s good, we’ll learn from it. I found Jeondohyeong.

“Jeondohyeong. Can you make that?”

“Just a second.”

Jeondohyeong took out a telescope and observed the townhouse, tilting his head ambiguously.

“It looks easy to make. We can probably make it with just some tree branches, rope, and cut-up cloth. But since it’s my first time making one, I’m not sure if it’ll turn out right.”

“That’s fine. As long as it can reach over there when thrown.”

If we light a Molotov cocktail and throw it, it’ll make for excellent suppression.

By then, all the moths had fallen. Uphill, people with broken bones or head injuries were sprawled out, and near the barricade, they were crushed under thrown furniture.

Surprisingly, there wasn’t much blood. Fitting for the season of famine, the lack of blood was pleasing to see.

“Then, for now….”

And then, the attention of the townhouse survivors turned to us. The survivors, who had taken cover to avoid the bullets, held up hand mirrors or something, and the sunlight reflecting off them sparkled like stars.

Then, bricks were thrown. The bricks, thrown from the high ground using staff slings, landed close enough to threaten us.

Unlike gunfire, the sound was heavy and dull.

I quickly pulled back.

“Let’s retreat.”

***

This is a battle close to a siege. It means we need to attack steadily with patience. We need to suppress them so they can’t come out, raid them to wear down their morale, and wage an information war.

We waited leisurely at the bottom of the uphill slope, where the townhouse’s watchtower was visible.

“Uncle Park Yang. Did you see anything?”

“I checked their weapons. There are people of various ages. Mostly middle-aged. The water facilities are definitely intact.”

Park Yang pointed to his face. He hadn’t been able to wash, so compared to before, he looked grimy.

“They’re all clean.”

“That’s good news. …How’s their food situation?”

“Doesn’t look plentiful. No one’s fat. In fact, they’re thin.”

I heard from the real estate uncle that the townhouse people were farming a little in their yard. It seems they can’t fully sustain themselves.

That means if we just keep them from leaving, we can starve them out.

I suddenly scratched my head.

“Dragging this out is annoying.”

“If we don’t drag it out, we’ll get hurt or die a lot.”

We were at a disadvantage in terms of terrain for a frontal assault. It seemed the barricade at the main gate was positioned well for dropping furniture out of windows, and the inside of the townhouse was probably designed similarly.

No matter how many guns we have, if a refrigerator falls from the sky, we’re dead.

Just then, the companions I had sent out returned.

“We’ve scouted the area. Everything’s blocked except the front entrance. Cars, construction site sound barriers, fences—they’ve blocked everything meticulously.”

“No back gate? Somewhere we can attack from the side?”

“The back gate….”

The companion, with mud all over his combat boots, shook his head.

“The upper part seems to have been hit by a landslide, and the road there is just steep. They’ve set up traps with banner ropes too.”

This townhouse is a natural fortress.

A long-term battle is the best option. It’s just not to my taste.

Then Jeondohyeong came over, carrying something. It was a long wooden stick with a rope hanging from it, and at the end of the rope was a black leather pouch. A staff sling.

Jeondohyeong spun the rope around as he spoke.

“I’ve made it look roughly similar. But I don’t know how to use it.”

“Good job. We’ll learn how to use it by watching those guys.”

There’s a skilled instructor right in front of us, so there’s no need to worry. In fact, they’ve been demonstrating how to use it for free just by us getting close.

“Everyone, let’s attack lightly again. Bullets are precious, so make sure to aim carefully.”

“Yes!”

The companions, who had been resting, got up. Since it was a light raid, I took only a few good shooters and went up the slope again.

The townhouse people, who had been on guard, immediately reacted. Not with physical attacks, but with psychological ones.

“Betray them and join us! We have electricity and water! If you betray them, you can enjoy the same as us! No, if you bring ammunition, we’ll treat you even better!”

Divide and conquer? Surrender plea? I couldn’t help but laugh. Did they really think this would work? My laughter spread like a cold, flowing from the throats of my companions.

“Hahaha. What’s that guy saying? If we kill them and take it, it’s ours anyway.”

“Or should we join them? Pretend to surrender, go in, and shoot them—it’d be easy to kill them.”

I chuckled and waved my hand.

“Just leave them be. No need to pretend to surrender and risk getting killed.”

Perhaps because we were openly laughing, the townhouse survivor paused, seemingly flustered, then started shouting again.

“Didn’t you feel anything watching us use innocent survivors as meat shields? You could end up the same way! We’re living like proper people!”

One of my companions spat out a curse.

“What are they talking about? Our leader takes such good care of us.”

That level of rhetoric wasn’t enough to shake the fences I’d planted in their minds. Over the time we’ve spent together, I’ve planted so many fences.

Fair distribution, a life without hunger, using force to threaten others instead of being threatened, acting like a family.

Conversely, a ruthless attitude toward enemies and an unbroken record of victories.

I’ve planted both loss and gain in their minds.

I reached out my hand.

“Jeondohyeong. The staff sling.”

“Ah, that’s what it’s called?”

I grabbed the long stick and waved it in the air, getting a feel for it. There were plenty of test projectiles too. The bricks they had thrown were scattered all over the road.

I spun the stone in the leather pouch and threw it, then swung it from back to front like a catapult.

After mimicking their movements as much as possible, I said briefly, “Give me a Molotov cocktail.”

 

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