Hiding a House in the Apocalypse-Chapter 168.3: Possibility (3)
At our core, we Hunters were still just ordinary humans—but we were treated a tier above regular soldiers for one reason: we were elite.
We were the refined end-product, shaped through repeated trial and error, to fight humanity’s ultimate enemy—monsters.
Before the war, encountering monsters was something only a select few ever experienced. After the war began, they became a direct threat to almost everyone.
People fought them in their own ways—on the battlefield, in their homes, in whatever corner of life they had left. Each developed and refined their own countermeasures.
Some of those survivors were trained at the Academy. Others weren’t—but still became skilled Hunters or soldiers.
Every group has its exceptional members. And those exceptional ones tend to share their know-how freely with others.
“Looks like M9’s news was accurate. Why are there so many mid-class types?”
“Shit mortars are ready. Where should we start?”
“Lot of bugs and zombies. We’ll need flamethrowers.”
“Where should we set the AM gun?”
The elites from both allied forces knew how to fight the enemies of humanity.
“Follow my lead. I’ll explain slowly.”
Together, we stood against the advancing monsters.
The sound of artillery fire returned, and although crude, the armored vehicles were retrofitted to be effective against monsters. Trenches filled with warriors capable of standing their ground.
“Oh! Skelton!”
I reunited with King.
Today, he wore a tiger mask.
He was limping badly on one leg, but even with a General Type in front of him, King didn’t show the slightest sign of intimidation.
“Damn, the air here is rotten. My head’s pounding and my heart’s thumping. I’m way past the age for first love, y’know?”
I offered him an NP device.
“This will help with the monsters’ resonant waves. It’ll help you hold on.”
King scoffed at my concern.
“If I can’t handle this much, I don’t deserve the throne.”
He didn’t even glance at the device.
Instead, he turned toward a group of men radiating quiet determination and shouted:
“Everyone! From now on, follow this man’s orders. This man, Professor, knows how to kill monsters better than anyone on Earth.”
King really was a strong man.
Even as his body rotted and he stood on the verge of becoming a zombie himself, he carried himself with the dignity of a ruler, facing a crumbling reality with indomitable will.
Park Penguin, leader of the Incheon Alliance who arrived alongside King, was a surprise—though I’d suspected who he was.
He hadn’t directly told me his nickname.
Today, that changed.
“I’m Anonymous458. Not that it matters anymore.”
As expected.
It wasn’t just pride—I could feel the quiet confidence that came from more than seven years of participating in Viva! Apocalypse!.
You know how the saying goes—if a dog sits in a school for three months, it'll start reciting poetry.
If you’ve been active on a forum for over four years, you can understand someone without even meeting them.
“When you messaged me out of the blue, I was honestly confused. How did this guy know who I was? To be honest, the only one who knows my identity is probably KyleDos. Remember him? I never told Anonymous848, even though we’re close. He’s the kind of guy you only hang out with when there are more than three people around.”
Just as I had figured out who he was, Park Penguin had figured me out.
“We met in person, didn’t we? Honestly, you and Skelton don’t really match up, but when you messaged me, I had a hunch. You’ve got multiple accounts, right? I figured this one was just a stress-relief burner.”
“It’s my main account.”
“Oh... really?”
Regardless, a powerful allied force had arrived.
Now we had a counterpoint to those demanding U.S. military support.
“Can untrained civilians really stand against this?”
Colonel Gwak Sang-hoon, one of the loudest voices for calling in American backup, looked uneasy. But the tide had turned.
“Colonel, as you know, these people have been running communities with tens of thousands for years. I’m sure they have strengths we don’t.”
Woo Min-hee, smiling now, threw her support behind them—and Gwak Sang-hoon, along with the rest of the pro-airstrike faction, fell silent.
After all, their whole argument had been that we couldn’t hold out alone anymore. But now we weren’t alone.
And part of their logic had always been wishful thinking—that if the U.S. helped once, they’d help again.
That was obvious, especially with how they’d been talking about sunk costs in the back rooms.
As the weather warmed, many civilians left the city—but there were upsides.
If we shattered the frozen river now, it wouldn’t refreeze as quickly.
Just yesterday, the part of the river we destroyed still hadn’t frozen over again.
A monster lingered by the riverbank, then turned toward the bridge.
Back when we’d run out of shells, we could only watch as they crossed.
Now things were different.
Boom! Boom!
The so-called “shit cannons”—King’s 105mm self-propelled artillery—opened fire.
Compared to our military’s 155mm howitzers, they were a step down, but that only mattered when fighting human armies. Against monsters, they tore through just the same.
Park Penguin’s troops brought some interesting weapons too.
They called them “anti-monster batteries.”
Inspired by WWII-era anti-tank guns, these were artillery pieces mounted with armor plates, fixed in position for bombardment.
Unlike expensive tanks, they didn’t require fuel or complex machinery, yet delivered comparable firepower. They’d been used frequently in the eroded south for years.
True, they lacked their own mobility and took time to deploy and fire—but in a situation like this, where enemy paths were predictable, they were just as effective as tanks.
Apparently, every region had its own version.
“This is the Damyang pattern. Over there’s the Ulsan pattern.”
“What’s the difference?”
“Not much, but Damyang’s has thicker armor. The plates and guns are welded together, so they’re sturdier—more popular. Ulsan’s is lighter and unwelded, so they can break if a shell ricochets, but they’re easier to maintain.”
“Why do you think those differences exist?”
“Well, Gyeongsang-do has more people. More monsters show ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ up there, maybe that’s why.”
Weapons with history and technique, deployed across the line.
While parts of the river were broken, there were still sections that monsters could cross. So we dug pits and concentrated our forces there.
I entered one of those pits myself, intending to fight with the Monster Punch, but Woo Min-hee firmly stopped me. I had no choice but to stay in the trench with the others.
Boom! Boom!
The battle began with a barrage.
Monster after monster surged across the front.
The bridge sector held steady.
King’s artillery had bolstered it, and Park Penguin’s anti-monster batteries provided enough firepower to keep them at bay.
The problem was the western sector—still frozen.
We could blast it with heavy artillery, but we didn’t have that luxury.
Even if we destroyed the ice there, monsters could just move farther west and cross anyway.
To make it worse, that area was already swarming with zombies and Caterpillar types.
A brutal fight was coming.
All eyes turned to the western bank.
King and Park Penguin’s elite were undoubtedly skilled—but even I knew this would push them to the limit.
But it seemed the flame of possibility hadn’t gone out just yet.
“We will fight too.”
Fanatics.
No—former fanatics, Ham Chun-ok and her lover, stood before me.
They winced as the General Type’s resonant wave caused piercing headaches, but still stared across the river at our enemies with determined eyes.
“We know what’s at stake. If this place falls, we all die. I was in Hamheung. I saw what happened when it fell. People died like insects. It was so horrific, I started thinking of the monsters as gods. But not anymore!”
She held her lover’s hand. They looked at each other with soft smiles and exchanged a wordless vow.
It was heartwarming.
Even knowing the tragedy that likely awaited them, I silently wished them happiness.
“You might die.”
“We’re prepared.”
Regular Awakened joined the battle.
A gift from the heavens.
And they weren’t the only ones.
Hearing that the city was truly in crisis, familiar faces I’d missed—and worried for—rushed to find me.
Led by Kim Hanna, other Regular Awakened volunteered to fight, despite their fear and anxiety.
“Captain! Let us fight too.”
“Captain, we know how bad things are.”
“If we’re struggling here, that means people everywhere are.”
Under normal circumstances, I would have refused.
These were kids to me—little brothers, little sisters, maybe even nieces and nephews.
Sending them into hell, no matter how resolved I was, wasn’t something I could do lightly.
But now, I had to use everything we had.
Professor’s way wasn’t always right. But in one area, it had never faltered.
And that was the unshakable will to kill monsters—humanity’s enemy.
To fight them, I became more like them.
But in doing so, I’d built the experience and reputation I had now.
Yes.
That past version of me was still part of who I am.
“Good.”
Sacrifice was inevitable.
But I wouldn’t waste it.
Many people had fled this city—but others, ordinary people, still remained.
Looking them in the eyes, I said:
“Let’s hold just one more time.”
The door to possibility had opened.
It was right in front of us.
Boom!
Ratatatatat!
The bloodbath had begun.
The bridge held, thanks to reinforcements.
But the problem—once again—was the western bank.
Countless zombies and Caterpillar types crossed the frozen river. Beyond them, Necromancer Types and mid-class monsters loomed in the mist, pulsing waves of energy.
Bang!
“Target down.”
Kim Daram’s sniper fire rang out.
Her anti-material rifle pierced the cores of Caterpillar types, disintegrating them instantly.
Bang!
“Target down.”
She didn’t show it, but she had to be desperate too.
If the city fell, she’d lose something more precious than herself—her family.
Boom!
On the flank, King’s Sejong elites clashed with zombies and mid-class monsters.
Machetes, chainsaws, and blunt weapons whirled through the air. Using King’s force field as a barrier, they advanced and opened fire on the mid-class monsters launching biological artillery.
But the monsters weren’t backing down.
“Macrophage type spotted!”
“Shit!”
As soon as the Awakened moved, the enemy sent in anti-Awakened monsters.
“Awakened! Fall back!”
I left the rear to Bang Jae-hyuk and Kim Daram and charged forward with Ha Tae-hoon.
A horde of zombies spotted us and turned to attack.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Ha Tae-hoon calmly burst their skulls, one shot at a time.
He’d always played the jaded senior—but he was an Academy-trained Hunter too. His skills were proven.
“Nice shot, senior.”
He smirked and moved on to the next wave, dropping them with bone-chilling precision.
Ahead, the Macrophage Type came into view.
It scattered glowing projectiles that looked like flaming skulls.
These homing bioweapons targeted Awakened only. Not even force fields could deflect them.
To Awakened, it was a nightmare. To us Old School Hunters—it was a big, fat target.
I raised my gun, tracking one of the flying projectiles.
It wasn’t aimed at us—but I wouldn’t let a single Awakened fall.
They were under my protection.
Click.
I held my breath.
Bang! Ratatatatat!
One clean shot dropped it.
“Nice shot.”
This time, Ha Tae-hoon gave me a thumbs up.
I smirked and we advanced toward the hulking monster ahead.
“Inside force field range.”
I already knew—but it was always helpful to have a spotter confirm it.
Bang! Bang!
Sniper fire from Kim Daram and Bang Jae-hyuk felt like divine protection.
I pulled out the Monster Punch.
Ha Tae-hoon chuckled.
“Couldn’t bring anything else? Looks like a damn toilet plunger.”
Shuk-shuk-shuk-shuk—
Honestly, it didn’t look great for someone like Professor to be using something so crude.
But top-tier Hunter weapons had to be saved for the real fight ahead.
Besides, I’d grown used to it.
I quickly converted the dull charge into a live one, aimed at the writhing gray monster in front of us, and fired.
Chiiiiiik—
The fuse lit, and the rocket-shaped Punch flew straight into the monster.
A brilliant explosion scattered light particles.
I fell back quickly.
As I returned to the trench, the battlefield unfolded before me like a painting.
The entire city was at war.
Smoke rose, fire blazed, shrapnel flew, screams and battle cries echoed—it was the perfect picture of war.
Five years since the war began.
Humanity still fights.
We’re not winning.
Defeat, in some ways, is already written.
But we won’t just sit and take it.
We’ve fought, sacrificed, and built this sliver of hope one thread at a time.
A massive kite rode the wind, scouting the mist across the river.
“ from the glider unit. Confirmed significant decrease in monster presence within the mist zone.”
The time was ripe.
“Summon all Hunter teams.”
.
!
Chapter 168.3: Possibility (3)
Comments