Surviving as a Low-Ranking Soldier in a Trash Game

Chapter 92 : Chapter 92

Chapter 92

I thrust my blade into the exposed brain.

Considering the tenacity the zombies had shown so far, I made sure to shatter it to pieces, but the zombie continued to swing its arms trying to grab me, striking its own head.

But that, too, was brief.

Soon, the creature’s life expired, and its body collapsed.

I quickly clung to the outer wall of a building.

Then, with a sense of desperation, I prayed to a god I did not even believe in to make the zombies stop moving, and I checked on them.

“…Damn it.”

My desperate hope shattered into fragments and crumbled away.

The zombies were still moving vigorously, swarming in droves and climbing up the building’s outer wall where I clung.

That was not all.

Far in the distance, a creature identical to the one I had just defeated stretched and made its presence known.

In the end, it meant that this huge creature was nothing more than a common mob.

Furthermore, aside from the large ones, individuals with unique appearances different from the existing zombies began to appear one by one.

At this point, it was difficult to distinguish which one was special and which was ordinary.

‘Let’s just try to hold on for now.’

The plan to neutralize the creatures by taking out their leader was out the window, but the plan to hold out until sunrise still remained.

To evade the zombies’ pursuit, I ran across the tops of buildings, searching for the safest possible location.

As a result, I found an old religious building situated in a secluded area.

I squeezed out my remaining stamina to increase my speed, shook off the zombies, and entered the religious building.

“Graaaah!”

There were zombies inside the religious building as well.

Two zombies in tattered and worn-out priest robes turned their heads at the sound of my footsteps, and as soon as they confirmed I was a living human, they charged at me without a moment’s hesitation.

Exactly twice.

With just two swings of my sword, the zombies’ heads were separated from their bodies.

‘They’re too weak…?’

Perhaps because their flesh was rotten, the durability of the zombies’ skin was quite low.

It was common for their flesh to be crushed just by bumping into each other, even if I did not touch them, and in severe cases, it was not uncommon for chunks of flesh to fall off just from running vigorously.

However, the bones that made up the zombies were extremely strong.

Because of this, it was true that excessive force was required to sever the sturdy neck bones when beheading a zombie.

But the two zombies I had just cut down did not give me that feeling.

Should I say it felt like cutting soft tofu?

The fact that they were so weak felt so strange that it made me turn around.

What I saw were the abnormally swollen torsos of the zombies.

‘An explosion?’

I used Svalinn to protect myself.

I closed my eyes and held my breath so I could withstand a fierce blaze, no matter when it might erupt.

Immediately after.

POP!

“……?”

The sound of the explosion was smaller than I thought.

Could this even be called an explosion?

Should I say it was closer to the sound of a water balloon popping than a bomb exploding?

Furthermore, there was no impact on Svalinn, nor did I feel the heat that would rip my lungs apart.

Wondering what it was, I cautiously opened my eyes to see a green powder filling the interior of the building.

My eyes stung.

When I inhaled, I felt nauseous.

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‘So it’s not completely resisted.’

I was not sure if it was because my poison resistance level was insufficient, or if my resistance had weakened because my stamina was too low.

But it was not threatening enough to make me think I would die immediately.

It seemed the poison that had seeped in would also naturally heal over time.

I moved to a corner as far away from the green powder as possible.

It did not seem like there was a more comfortable place to rest than here anyway, and the green powder did not seem to be that much of a threat.

With the thought of preserving even a little bit of my stamina, I closed my eyes.

WHOOSH.

The sound of the wind rushing through the broken window.

The cries of zombies could be heard from time to time, but they were distant.

It seemed I could have at least an hour’s reprieve.

RATTLE.

I hear the sound of bones.

I suppose it might be the bones of the zombies I just defeated, clattering against various things due to the wind.

It was bothersome, but I thought there would be no harm in checking, so I slightly opened my eyes.

“…Ha, what is that now.”

I had witnessed a headache-inducing sight.

The green powder that had filled the surroundings.

It was swirling with the wind, gathering toward a single point.

And from there, a corpse slowly rose, breaking through the ground.

Was it a knight in its past life?

The creature was clad in what looked to be quite expensive red armor and had a rusty greatsword as large as its own body slung across its back.

There was almost no flesh left on its bones, but for that very reason, it felt even more threatening.

Before it could fully rise from the ground, I got up and assumed a fighting stance.

Running away was also an option, but I had finally found a place to rest, and I did not want to just run around aimlessly again.

“Uwooooh!”

At the same moment I took my fighting stance, the fully risen zombie drew its greatsword and charged.

My plan was to evade the attack and then counter with a clean slice to the neck, but the enemy’s attack was faster than I thought.

For now, I would use the standard method of blocking the blow with Svalinn and then countering…

THUD!

“……?!”

The moment the zombie’s greatsword struck Svalinn, I felt it.

Ah, this is not an opponent to be taken lightly.

This creature is on a completely different level from the zombies I have faced so far.

Deal with it quickly and get some rest?

That was a naive thought.

If I made one wrong move here, I would be the one getting taken out.

Could I safely face that creature with my remaining stamina?

The calculation was swift.

I ran.

Not toward the zombie with the sword in front of me, but toward the window on the side.

“Graaaaaaah!”

I heard a shout that sounded as if it were cursing me for being a coward, but I ignored it and ran.

I would rather fight a hundred zombies lined up in a row than fight a creature like that.

I left the quiet religious building and came out onto the main street again.

I cut down the regular zombies that charged at me as if they had been waiting and searched for a new sanctuary.

Occasionally, special zombies appeared, either exploding or trying to crush me with their massive bodies, but I also thought that those times were actually better.

The zombies, who lacked not only camaraderie but also the ability to distinguish friend from foe, showed off their abilities regardless of whether allies were nearby, and each time, dozens of regular zombies were killed.

Of course, damage was steadily accumulating on me as well.

Wondering if it would be safe in the water, I even threw myself into a large, stagnant puddle of rainwater.

But I had to scramble out in horror when I felt a rough hand grab my leg from underwater.

“Pant… Pant…”

How much time had passed like that?

My stamina finally hit bottom.

Sweat poured down like rain, and it reached a point where even breathing was difficult.

I looked around for a long time, but there was nowhere for me to rest.

To at least hold back the zombies’ attacks, I climbed to the roof of a relatively intact building and locked the door.

As I sat with my back against the door, it was not long before they began to pound on it like mad.

I did not know how long the rusty hinges and old door, neglected for so long, would hold.

Even if the door transcended its limits and withstood all the zombies’ attacks, the creatures had a knack for climbing walls.

Their skill was not so great that they did not slip and fall, crushing each other below, but they were relentless creatures that would eventually build a tower by piling up other corpses and climb to the roof.

I was so exhausted that thinking was difficult.

Just as I was staring blankly at my feet.

Light came in.

“……!”

I quickly raised my head.

A single ray of sunlight was pouring through the thick clouds.

Only then did I check the time.

I had been in such a panic running from the zombies that I had not checked, but the time for sunrise had long passed.

It was just that the dark clouds were so thick they had been blocking the sunlight.

Those dark clouds were now scattering, and the amount of sunlight pouring in was gradually increasing.

The dark city grew bright and was filled with light.

If my hypothesis was correct, this light would drive away the damn zombies…

BANG!

A zombie struck the door hard.

The impact sent me stumbling back several steps.

I looked back.

The old door was still being attacked by the zombies, screaming as if it would break at any moment.

I approached the railing.

The zombies I could see below were still scratching at the walls with their fingernails or trampling fallen zombies to try and climb up.

In the distance, a new giant zombie rose and approached this way.

Not a single one was affected by the sunlight.

“…This is insane.”

Another hope was shattered.

I had no stamina left.

I could not judge what to do.

It was then, as I was blankly feeling the warm sunlight pouring down.

[Rian!]

“……?”

I heard a voice.

Celina’s voice, as if it were being inserted directly into my head.

For a moment, I wondered what was happening.

[Rian! Can you hear my voice?]

The moment the second voice came, I unconsciously looked up at the sky.

High in the sky, at the same altitude as the clouds, an airship was descending at high speed.

On the fluttering flag was the emblem of a wolf, symbolizing Unit 917.

Was it because of the relief?

All the strength drained from my body.

The moment I sank down helplessly, the door that had been desperately holding on was blown away, and zombies swarmed onto the roof.

But before the zombies could take even a few steps, they were stuck to the floor as if pressed down by an invisible hand.

Unable to lift even a finger, they could barely open their mouths to scream.

New creatures continuously pushed through the rooftop door, but as soon as they reached the entrance, they were flattened like frogs run over by a car wheel, and after this repeated, the entrance was soon completely blocked.

I could feel the clamorous engine noise that had been audible from a distance getting closer.

And then, Celina landed lightly in front of my eyes.

Celina’s frame is not very large.

In fact, she is slightly smaller than the average woman.

Despite that, for some reason, Celina’s presence felt unusually large today.

She gave a wry smile, bent her waist slightly, and held out her hand to me.

“You said it wasn’t anything dangerous, that you’d be back soon. My goodness, what is this state you’re in?”

“…I know.”

I squeezed out my last bit of strength and took the hand Celina offered.

That small, white hand was filled with a warmth I had not felt for the past few days.