Fenrir Translations
It might seem obvious, but being good at urban warfare and liking it are two entirely different things.
To begin with, there might be people who miss the battlefield, but there’s no one who actually likes it. Considering that, there was no way I could enjoy urban warfare. If Dark Zone wasn’t a game based on cities of the past, I probably wouldn’t have even touched an FPS in my life.
Anyway, in that context, there was a joke that circulated among my teammates, including myself, in the past.
The most hated battlefield in the world is, first, urban warfare, second, urban warfare, and the worst of all is urban warfare when the enemies are positioned higher than you.
I mumbled it so quietly that even the viewers couldn’t hear it, almost as if I was talking to myself.
“This hellhole hasn’t changed, not then, not now….”
At the entrance leading into the research facility.
The moment we stepped inside, what greeted us was an interior that was nothing short of a modern art museum, with a unique, streamlined structure... How should I describe it? The interior was built by stacking curved buildings on top of one another.
Though I had somewhat expected it, the place was filled with balconies that provided cover from all directions, with plenty of spots to hide, and the structure allowed one to look down on the entire first floor. In other words, it was a death trap for attackers.
It was fortunate that this was a research facility. If it had been a well-fortified stronghold built with crossfire in mind, we would have needed at least fifteen rocket launchers to get through.
“We’re not just going to rush in, right?”
“Considering the AI’s level, it seems best to draw their attention first and then take them down one by one as they approach. Let’s wait near the entrance.”
Although the term “baiting” and “maintaining distance” might not be well-suited for modern combat, these tactics were essential in the context of urban warfare.
Especially when a small group had to break through a difficult point, it was crucial to pull back from enemy-favored positions and lure them into places where we held the advantage.
And sure enough, after a short while.
With a loud noise, the enemies began to appear, leading gun drones and UGVs.
“If things get rough, we can always retreat to the front yard, so don’t worry about conserving ammo. Just shoot.”
Ratatatatat!
As high-penetration rounds cut through the air, tearing through the body armor and piercing the fragile flesh underneath, the enemies, who had been charging mindlessly without taking cover, fell flat on their faces.
Since the difficulty wasn’t that high, their return fire was slow, and their attempts at taking cover were sluggish. Moreover, Harmony was performing better than I had expected, so eliminating the enemies wasn’t difficult.
After repeating the process several times, we crossed over the pile of bodies and checked the route that would expose us the least to enemy fire.
It seemed like the best choice was to head up the stairs to the second floor.
“Stay close behind me.”
“Okay!”
The intense gunfire mingled with the sound of sirens attached to the ceiling and walls.
A dozen bullets narrowly missed my body or were blocked by the nanomachine-provided shield from my Icarus Gear, creating a fierce, ripping sound as they tore through the air.
Amidst the chaos of bullets and shards of broken stone flying in all directions, I barely managed to take cover and naturally chose the next route. The protective shield was estimated to break after roughly eight more hits.
Since the enemy’s firepower was superior to ours, staying in one spot wasn’t a good option, so I gave the squeeze signal and started running again.
As I ran up the gently spiraling stairs to the second floor, just as I reached about halfway, an enemy armed with a shotgun appeared directly in front of me.
My climbing speed was too fast to respond with a shot.
Almost reflexively, I dodged to the right, just as the shotgun’s muzzle flared slightly later, unleashing a barrage of twelve lead pellets.
I shoved the shotgun-wielding enemy’s chest with my left arm while grabbing his face with my right hand and slamming him hard against the wall.
—Bang!
“Gah, ugh…!”
When the back of the enemy’s head collided with the concrete wall of the office, there was a sinister sound of something breaking, and the enemy died instantly.
If this game had more realistic corpse physics, the wall would probably be smeared with a sticky mixture of blood and whitish fluid.
Anyway, since he was dead, that was the end of it.
And naturally, once Harmony and I had broken through and started wreaking havoc inside, we didn’t retreat but instead fully committed to turning the enemies into what used to be enemies.
It didn’t take long to clear them all out.
Once we had dealt with them, the script began to progress.
-[ISO: I’m glad to see you’re still alive.]
-[ISO: I have some good news for you. Well, it’s ironic, but good news nonetheless. After scanning the area through your Icarus Gear, I’ve identified what seems to be a control room and three satellite antennas on the rooftop.]
-[ISO: If you manage to gain control over the antennas and establish connection rights, not only will you be able to assess the current situation of Artemis, but you’ll also be able to access more satellites. In other words, the operator’s support will become much easier.]
-[ISO: Good luck.]
“How do these guys survive without field agents?”
“Haha.”
That’s how it is with field agents.
Anyway, I had already told Harmony that we wouldn’t be able to see each other for a while once we entered the building, but it felt a bit awkward that things had turned out this way. Fortunately, Harmony didn’t seem to mind much.
Turning every enemy blocking our path into immovable sculptures, we climbed the stairs and finally reached the snow-covered rooftop.
The antennas were already operating haphazardly, and the area around the control room managing them was filled with enemies. Judging by the alerts displayed on the UI, one of them was likely inside the control room managing the equipment, while another was outside, possibly directly interacting with the antennas.
Naturally, the dirty work fell to me.
“Please handle the equipment inside. Leave the cleanup outside to me.”
“Uh… okay. Sure.”
No further conversation was necessary.
The muzzle flared to life.
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
<[Official] Xi IMPRESSIVE has donated 50,000 KRW.>
“Thank you, Xi IMPRESSIVE, for the 50,000 KRW donation… Yes, I’ll check it out.”
…What in the world is this?