Chapter 711: Why a Cook, of All Things?

When they demanded a cook.

Many Legion members naturally thought of me, their Legion Commander.

But when you thought about it.

A cook was simply one of the many job groups among awakened.

It was just an extremely rare job, not something that existed only in me.

'At minimum, there are two in South Korea alone.'

It was a job far removed from individual combat power.

On top of that, in this world, even procuring the ingredients needed to produce an effect was difficult.

So there were probably quite a few people who had awakened as cooks, only to fail to survive this world and die.

What that thing wanted was not me, the Legion Commander.

It was those cooks.

“I understand what your demand is.”

Lieutenant General Kim, who had likewise realized that fact, also asked the creature,

“But...... it is still an extremely out-of-nowhere demand. Why are you demanding cooks?”

“Ca, cannot...... answer.”

The problem was.

Why, of all jobs, did they want cooks?

Since it was my job.

I also knew this job was quite excellent.

But I had absolutely no idea why those zombies would have reason to demand cooks.

'To begin with, are those things even living creatures that need to eat something?'

The zombies I had seen attacked every living creature indiscriminately.

But I had never seen them eat that creature after it died.

Eating was for maintaining life.

And for most living things, maintaining life was something like an instinct for preserving the species.

But the true bodies of those things were not their hosts, but parasites.

For the sake of preserving their species, they prioritized increasing the number of hosts.

Because of that.

They merely preserved dead bodies and used them as new hosts; there was no reason to damage them by deliberately eating them.

To begin with, they were monsters that handled mana, a power beyond human common sense.

Perhaps there was a high possibility that eating itself was unnecessary for those things.

“The humans you took hostage are also our kin. But the cooks you’re demanding are kin closer to us than they are. Are you telling us to hand over our kin for a reason you can’t answer?”

“Pro, promise...... I do. Hu, humans...... far more humans. Release.......”

“It isn’t a matter of numbers.”

“A, and.”

Even so, was that matter quite important to it?

Seeing that our reaction was not good, the creature hurriedly said,

“Co, cooks too, return.”

“......You’ll return them?”

“Cooks. Come alive. And...... go, alive.......”

It meant that though they were demanding cooks.

They would not kill them.

With those words, the creature raised its hand and pointed to the crosses laid on the ground.

“Ke, keep...... promise.”

“.......”

“Yo, you. No loss.......”

Just like how they had already released the humans.

It was saying they would keep that part of the promise as well.

And at the same time.

“If yo, you do not...... give co, cooks.......”

Turning that hand.

The creature pointed at the zombies beyond the barrier.

“Tho, those pillars.......”

“.......”

“Pillars...... spitting lightning...... children, cannot solve.......”

The zombies without intelligence.

They could not deal with the barrier we had built and were blocked before it.

But.

“An a, adult...... can.”

If they had sufficient intelligence.

And were creatures that could control the surrounding zombies.

“Can...... de, destroy.”

They might be able to break through that barrier.

At first, it had requested a peaceful trade.

But if that trade did not happen.

“Ch, children, will rush to you.......”

“.......”

“Yo, you. Cannot...... stop them.”

It meant they were willing to use coercive means as well.

“Hah. Are you saying you’ll even threaten us?”

“If you do not give co, cooks, that is....... If give, then. Peace, exists.”

“......I understand what you’re trying to say.”

At those words from the creature.

Lieutenant General Kim Hyeon-seok turned his head and said,

“I cannot unilaterally decide to send cooks.”

“Wh, what, mean?”

“The one who decides that part is not me.......”

Where his gaze turned.

Was none other than me.

“It should be something the person involved decides.”

The person those things were demanding—a cook.

In other words.

'He wants me to decide, huh.'

It meant this was something for me to decide.

***

“Ugh, aaaagh.......”

After the conversation with that zombie ended.

Before answering the creature’s proposal, I briefly stepped back and headed to the fortress infirmary.

“What is the condition of the people?”

“Not as bad as expected.”

The medic, Private Sa Euijun, said.

In front of Private Sa Euijun, roughly twenty humans were lying on beds.

“There are some signs of malnutrition and muscle weakening. But most of them seem to be awakened. It looks like they somehow endured with that vitality.”

They were currently receiving treatment from the medic, and their condition was improving.

I looked over them as a whole.

'Men and women, of course...... from the elderly to children.'

They were far too varied.

There was no common point in their appearance.

It felt like separate individuals who had not even belonged to one group in the first place had been dragged here at random.

“Could you take a look at this part?”

“Hmm?”

As I was doing that.

Private Sa Euijun pointed to one of the wounds on a collapsed man.

“The side, the outer thigh. The upper arm muscle...... Even if a mistake caused major damage, these are areas where they would not die. There is not a single wound on a vital point that would threaten life.”

“That means.”

“They were captured alive intentionally from the beginning.”

Private Sa Euijun touched that muscle and wore a serious expression.

“Judging from when this wound was inflicted, and from the weakened state of the muscles as well....... It is certain they were captured and held somewhere. But the important point is that they probably have only been captured for about one month.”

“......One month?”

“Yes. It would be good if they were simply discovered by those zombies by coincidence at that time, but.”

As though there was no way that was the case.

Private Sa Euijun opened a mouth with an expression full of suspicion.

“When we finished the Conquest War.”

“.......”

“They captured these people alive at the point when it was confirmed that the barrier would soon open.”

They had not taken people who happened to survive among enemies they encountered as hostages.

They had captured them alive intentionally from the beginning.

They had not taken humans they encountered long ago as hostages.

They had started capturing them alive from the moment it was confirmed that the barrier would open.

In other words.

“They were not people being held by coincidence, and they were not people being held for some other reason. From the beginning...... there is a high possibility these people were hunted in a hurry to use in negotiations with us.”

Those things.

Had been capturing humans alive for a month, preparing for contact with us.

'What they’re going to such lengths to obtain is why, of all things, cooks?'

They had put considerable effort and time into this negotiation.

I did not know what the purpose of those evolved zombies was.

But it would not be strange if some plot or scheme was hidden in it.

“Sergeant Shin.”

I looked at the zombies beyond the barrier.

The goblin zombie standing right in front of the barrier.

And the enormous black wave visible beyond that barrier.

They had that much numbers, and their strength was also no ordinary threat.

Even with that barrier there.

The faces of the Legion members looking at those monsters contained faint fear.

That was how threatening the zombies in the north were to the Legion members.

'They might bring those things down here, huh?'

If they really came at us like that.

The Legion could not help suffering great damage.

Every Legion member probably knew that negotiating with them was better than becoming enemies with them.

If there was a problem.

“Do not go.”

It was that the price of that negotiation was me.

“They are suspicious to an excessive degree.”

“It would be better if they had originally been holding humans and turned them into trade material after encountering us, but those things captured these people for this trade. Who knows what they are aiming for in this trade.”

“To begin with, this is a trade proposed by those zombies. We cannot trust anything those bastards say in the first place, and even if that thing keeps the condition it proposed, there is no reason to meet that demand.”

Because of that.

The Legion members said that to me while holding fear toward those monsters.

Would they fight an enemy they could not defeat?

Or would they take the risk and hand over their Legion Commander?

From the Legion members’ position, it did seem like their feelings would be quite complicated.

'Hmm.'

But.

'Those zombies are tricky, but.'

Unlike those Legion members.

From my position, the current situation was a little simpler.

Because.

Unlike the Legion members who felt fear toward those numbers.

Those zombies, to me right now.

'Wouldn’t be that difficult to eliminate, would they?'

They were not very frightening beings.

***

'A threat, huh.'

An enormous number of zombies.

That creature seemed to know that power as well, and it appeared to be trying to threaten us with it, but.

'A little arrogant. Should I just flip this whole thing over?'

Unfortunately.

That threat was not a great threat to the current me.

In the first battle, we had only been caught off guard and suffered because we had not expected them to be zombies.

Now that we knew their identity.

'If I try to eliminate all of them, I can eliminate them without much effort.'

If it had been me in the past, I might have worried quite a bit.

But not me now.

[Lv.61]

After going through the fight at the Church.

I had been given that much power and that many means.

That threat was not a problem.

'If there are problems, there are two.'

The first was.

“Ugh.......”

“......!”

The thing they had mentioned.

The greater number of hostages who might truly exist.

The people lying collapsed.

Among them, a child twisted in pain and said,

“Mo, mom.......”

At those words.

I looked around the hospital room.

Humans of various ages, regardless of gender, young or old.

But.

'There is no woman who looks old enough to be this child’s mother.'

Perhaps the child was simply having a nightmare of the past.

This child’s parents might already have died long ago.

But.

It was also possible that until recently, the child had been imprisoned together with a parent, and only this child had been dragged here first as a hostage for the trade.

And.

The second problem was.

'The purpose of those things, I guess.'

To be honest.

Normally, there would have been no reason to accept a proposal like that.

Bastards who were making threats.

I was not such a good-natured person that I would happily accept something like that.

Even out of anger, I would probably have shouted at them to get lost until I confirmed the existence of those hostages.

But.

'......The reason they want cooks, of all things.'

If they had demanded other Legion members, I would have told them to get lost immediately.

The big point was that what the creature demanded was, of all things, cooks.

To the other Legion members, the fact that it demanded cooks would be the reason to reject that proposal.

Of course, since the Legion Commander was included among those cooks.

'That is a bit,

But.......

For me, it was the opposite.

'It bothers me.'

I had a strange instinctive feeling.

That I needed to know the reason.

“They want as many cooks as possible...... huh?”

In the end.

I muttered while looking out that window.

“If that’s the case.”

Then.

As I left the hospital room, I shouted toward the nearby soldiers.

“Sergeant Lee Minjae!”

“......Loyalty! Sergeant Lee Minjae.”

“Contact the Gyeonggi Province front.”

“......!”

At those words from me.

The unit members widened their eyes in surprise.

“Se, Sergeant Shin!”

“Don’t tell me!”

Leaving their voices behind.

I gave an order to Sergeant Lee Minjae.

“Tell them to send the cook on that side here for support duty.”