Season 3: Chapter 15: Walnut Battle (2)
No one was there when Class 3 arrived on the third floor. That wasn't really a problem.
"It seems they went up earlier."
"There's no one here? Let’s just go to the fourth floor."
They intended to simply proceed, but Tako stopped them.
"Bro, I've figured it out."
"What...?"
"We shouldn't go yet."
Bubblegum didn't understand. He even asked Almond, but Almond said they shouldn't go either.
"No. What if they went ahead of us?"
"They didn't go ahead."
"What?"
"I figured it out by the footprints."
Tako had found evidence of footprints on the railing of the second floor.
"They definitely used the gas pipes, but left no footprints on the second floor railing."
Was the absence of footprints the problem? It was complicated.
"What does that mean? Maybe if there were footprints, but why complain about there being none? That's just silly."
— No footprints haha
— Lol
— Did you think before speaking?
— Gum chewing haha
"The absence is stranger. Climbing the pipes from the first to the third floor isn't easy. The pipes are so narrow. If it were you bro, you would have died three times over."
"That makes sense."
"But the second floor railing is the only place to rest midway and none of the students stepped on it? Is it normal for not a single one to step on that large support!?"
"… Now that you mention it, it does seem odd."
"They deliberately avoided it."
Experts from Civil Empire were sensitive to footprints and traces. Knowing an enemy was on the second floor, they had ordered everyone not to leave any footprints and go directly to the third floor.
"Why would they deliberately avoid it? To train them to be strong?"
"They know we’re here."
"!"
Indeed, Class 2 had noticed Class 3's presence long ago and started erasing their tracks. That was why no one was on the third floor.
"So, here's the problem."
"Ah, don't say it."
"Where might they be now~?"
"…"
— Just don't say it, haha
— Bubblegum's inner thoughts: (Stop explaining and just hurry up)
— (Just beat them, you octopus)
Bubblegum pondered for a moment.
"… The fourth floor?"
"…"
A moment of silence passed.
"No, our destination is the rooftop. We'll obviously go to the fourth floor too. What will happen to them? Bro, you wiped out Class 5 with this tactic, didn't you?"
"Ah…! We're getting sandwiched!?"
"Yes. They know that too."
With everyone's destination being the rooftop, it was too easy of a conclusion.
"Moreover, it's almost certain that there are zombies on the fourth and fifth floors. They would want to avoid that even more."
"Then where?"
"I don't know. They must be hiding somewhere. There are no traces."
"…?"
Bubblegum's expression turned incredulous.
"So what are we supposed to do?"
"Bro, we need to use our heads too."
"You've used your head already, haven't you? What's on top of your head now is fake. Did you forget?"
"…"
— Lol
— ???: You're bald!
— Damn, that's annoying haha
— Ffs haha
"Phew. First, let me explain the plan."
"Wow. A plan. Good."
Almond had been pretending not to listen, but finally came closer to listen.
— Wtf haha what's he on about?
— Haha Almond was looking somewhere else entirely
— Where was Almond? Now he shows up haha
— Finisher master
"First, let's go up the stairs to the fourth floor."
***
"He's going up," Jessie murmured while peering through the third floor window. "We're going to the fourth floor. We need to go too."
She quickly climbed back down the pipes to the second floor and explained to the rest, "We're starting now. We'll catch them from behind. Scream to attract the zombies. Then, they'll have to clear them out. We'll wait leisurely and jointly attack at the right moment to kill them all."
"Sounds great."
"Amen!"
Unlike Class 3, they hardly spent any time persuading and explaining to their group.
Jessie led the way into the second floor corridor.
"Let's go."
The kids from Class 2 also followed, tense with anticipation. Although they were tense, none of them seemed afraid. They were no longer ordinary after surviving the hell outside the main building.
For them, having fewer numbers than the enemy wasn't enough to cause fear.
"Start."
At Jessie's signal, the students silently moved with military precision along the corridor walls as if they had military training. Nothing trained one quite like real combat. For them, it was as if they had undergone such military training.
“Class 2 is moving!?”
The commentators focused entirely on Class 2's movements. The impending encounter between Class 2 and Class 3 would determine the outcome of the challenge.
“They're employing a rear-attack strategy.”
“Class 3 has just entered the stairwell to the fourth floor. The timing is almost perfect?”
“This timing is due to Jessie's continual scouting.”
“Yes, they've already reached the third floor!”
Led by Jessie, all the students from Class 2 ascended to the third floor. It would be game over if they were discovered. Their movements were relentless.
"Oote."
"Got it."
Oote laid his ear on the floor.
“Is this a unique scouting method from Civil Empire? Almond also did that.”
“Seems like it?”
“What can you hear?”
Oote, who was the strategist among them with high perception stats, became even more capable with his already notable scouting abilities from Civil Empire.
"… It's the opposite stairwell. They've almost reached the top. If they go up, the change in the floor stops the vibrations from reaching here."
“Ah, how does he know this!?”
“The level of detail in his information is incredible.”
“Are these guys RTS players?”
"Okay."
Whoosh.
Led by Jessie, all of Class 2 began to move. However, there was something odd.
"Huh?"
"The door is closed."
The door leading to the stairwell was closed.
They murmured and quietly exchanged opinions.
"What now?"
"Well…"
Jessie felt puzzled. Who would close this and walk around? If they were chased and forced to flee from zombies, re-entering would be inconvenient.
"Oote?" Jessie called out to Oote, signaling for him to take a listen.
"Ah. Yeah… Uh… Can't hear anything. They're not on the same floor."
"Then, I'll just open it."
Considering it was an issue that had to be resolved eventually, Jessie tried pulling the door handle.
Creak...
"It's open."
The door opened. It seemed it wasn't locked.
'The noise is annoying though.'
Jessie signaled to the back. That meant they were going up.
The fire door had no deadbolt. It would close again once Jessie removed her hand from it.
"Hold this."
"Pass it like a baton."
Click.
The person following had to grab the door individually as they entered.
Click. Click.
After all of them had entered, the last person quietly closed the door again.
Creak...
The friction of the door once again rang out like a warning.
"There’s something off."
Jessie intuitively felt that the likelihood of something going wrong was increasing, but she couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was.
"Try to make as little noise as possible."
She thought it was right to minimize the noise, but then—
Clang!!
"…!"
Everyone was startled and looked toward the door. Why did it close so forcefully?
The last student looked bewildered and gestured with his hands.
"Ah... No, I didn’t mean to do that…"
"Haah. It’s fine. There’s no reaction from them anyway."
Jessie coolly moved on and climbed upward. It was a mistake to have entrusted such a task to an NPC in the first place.
But then—
'!?'
Thud!
Suddenly, her weight shifted back. Someone had grabbed her by the hair and pulled her.
"Oote? Wha, what…?"
It was Oote. He whispered urgently, "Jessie. There’s someone above us. I heard—"
It was already too late.
Whoosh!
A dark figure dropped in front of them.
"Hey. You rats," a somewhat arrogant voice echoed out.
He smirked and crossed his arms. It was Bubble Gum.
"Making such a racket just like rats."
"You…"
Bubblegum didn’t give them a chance to retort.
Bang!
He clapped his hands and shouted, "Now. Perish like dogs!"
Countless footsteps resounded simultaneously with his words.
Ratatatatata!
Suddenly, dozens of people appeared from the stairs above, blocking their path.
— Hahaha!
— Ah, a one-trick performance haha
— That’s a leader for you
— Lol
— He said rats, why perish like dogs? Seriously, I have no clue.
The two classes quickly faced off against each other.
"Mwahahaha! I knew all about your plan! That’s what I’m talking about!" the triumphant Bubblegum burst into laughter as if to say, ‘Got you, didn’t I?’
The enemy's reaction wasn’t very spirited.
"Ah. So we’ve been found out?"
Jessie merely chuckled as if she had been caught playing a prank, showing no sign of being bothered. She tied up her disheveled red hair and paid even more attention than usual.
— Wow, she's pretty, geez.
— Huh? But she's a foreigner?
— Where did this stunning beauty come from??
— Not surprised at all, wow.
— She’s kinda scary though.
"Huh? What... what's this?"
Bubblegum looked back as if to say, ‘This isn't what I expected.’
"I thought they'd be so scared that they'd start windmilling. Foreign rats are different."
— Only you can pull that off, bro.
— You think anyone can do that, huh? LOL
— Windmill LOL
— Foreign rats LOL
Tako stepped forward from behind.
"You guys. Did you intentionally try to take the rear to kill us all?"
He tried to uncover their intentions and boost his team's morale by confirming his hypothesis.
Jessie smiled broadly and nodded, "Yes. Sorry~"
"…"
— No words LOL
— Yes, we tried to kill you. Sorry.
— Can't help but forgive!
"I, I forgive you... not. Ahem."
Tako took a breath and steadied himself again.
"You seem very confident. You Mickeys..."
— Because they're foreigners, they're Mickeys? LOL
— LOL
— Evolved from rats, did they?
"But how long can you keep that up?"
At Tako's signal, students with shields started moving forward.
Thump! Thump!
"Interesting."
A battle was about to begin.
Jessie gripped her spear more tightly. The playfulness vanished from her eyes, which now held a hint of calculation as she surveyed Class 3.
They were outnumbered, but they were better armed. If they could just overcome the terrain, the fight would be manageable.
"Masok, we can't fight from the stairs. Secure a retreat and fight in the corridor."
"Got it."
They had to fight in the corridor instead of being confined to a stairwell.
NerdKing slowly moved to the back and pushed the door.
Thunk. Thunk.
"… Huh?"
The door wouldn't open.
"There's a saying in our country. Like a rat trapped in a jar."
Takoyaki burst out laughing as he explained.
— LOL, tea bagging
— What a fine culture!
— Mouse in a jar, wow
Thump. Thump.
Despite repeated attempts, the door was steadfast. How did they manage to do this?
"We have a barricade expert on our team. That door probably won't open for a while."
Hyun-Ah and Su-Hyun had stealthily waited in the bathroom and locked it up.
— LOL, General Hyun-Ah
— she is Korean
— How many times has General Hyun-Ah carried?
— Masok and General Hyun-Ah together?! Oh…
— Poor Masok LOL
"Damn. So it wasn’t the NPC's mistake?"
Oote clicked his tongue.
"Is it really locked? How did they barricade it so quickly?!"
Barricades weren’t usually so easy to make.
Tako answered him, "General Hyun-Ah says that just a mop handle can hold the door for ten minutes."
"… A handle?"
Just a mop handle was currently holding them off?
"Just kick it! Then we can get out—"
"Of course! Initially, it was just a mop. Not anymore."
Creeeak.
As if to make sure they could hear, the sound of moving desks came from outside the door. It was already too late. Once desks were involved, breaking through with brute force was impossible.
"Huh?"
With their retreat blocked and overwhelmingly outnumbered by the enemy, the ease disappeared from Jessie's face.
"Are we screwed?"
***
[Beginner’s Tip: In real battles, it's common to secure the enemy's escape routes. That prevents the rat from biting the cat.]