'What do you mean free stuff?! These resource points were clearly earned by me risking my life!'
Lux complained bitterly in his head. Nearly getting wiped out just to kill an evolved zombie only earned one hundred thousand resource points. This was practically spending his life as currency.
Fortunately, the system had stated that a Tactical Doll's strength was not tied to star rating. No matter which doll was drawn, it would significantly improve their overall combat power.
So there was no real risk of wasting resource points.
'Alright, I've decided. Four Tactical Doll summons.'
[Tactical Doll orders accepted. The following four Tactical Dolls will report to the Commander within a maximum of five hours. Thank you for your patronage]
The very next second, Lux suddenly heard crisp gunshots ringing out in the distance.
HK416, who had been resting against the car window, instantly snapped awake. MDR put down her phone and yanked Candice down beneath the window, then quickly left her seat as well.
Candice hugged her head and crouched fearfully below the window.
"Lux, please stop the vehicle and stay low. Do not expose your head through the glass."
HK416 spoke firmly.
Lux slammed on the brakes and ducked down beneath the driver's seat.
This was his first time encountering a gunfight. His experience was nowhere near as rich as HK416's.
HK416, crouched in the passenger seat, cautiously raised her head to look outside.
"No hostile units detected between the two o'clock and five o'clock directions. MDR, what about your side?"
"No enemies on my end either."
"This gunfire… sounds like a submachine gun? And it seems to be coming from straight ahead?"
HK416 guessed uncertainly.
"That's right. You heard it correctly. It's coming from the front."
MDR opened the door, tilted her head to listen for a moment, then confirmed it.
"Lux, can you reverse the car without turning the steering wheel? Submachine guns use pistol ammunition. Once we pull back more than two hundred meters, it shouldn't pose much danger."
"MDR and I can use our range advantage to eliminate the enemy from afar."
"Okay."
Lux restarted the engine, shifted into reverse, and began backing up.
The crisp gunfire paused briefly, then rang out again.
"Only one source of fire. Probably a survivor."
HK416 judged calmly.
"Hey, wait… isn't this person moving toward us? 416, the gunfire sounds like it's getting closer!"
MDR asked in confusion from the back seat.
"No choice then. We'll both get out and deal with it. With our range advantage, they won't be able to get close. Lux, stop the car."
HK416 ordered.
At the same time, Lux's tactical headset suddenly crackled with an unfamiliar girl's anxious voice.
{Commander, this is Sten MKII. I'm under indiscriminate attack by a large number of irrational humans. Requesting support, requesting support}
"Huh? Hold on, we're coming right now."
Combining the Tactical Doll summoning he had just done with the sudden gunfire, Lux quickly figured out who was firing.
He had been wondering who besides the military could obtain firearms so quickly. Turns out it was a Tactical Doll summoned by the system encountering zombies.
"Don't panic. The one with the gun is on our side, but she's clearly in trouble. We're going to pick her up now."
Lux returned to his seat and shifted back into drive.
"Tch, at least give us a heads-up next time."
MDR complained as she sat back down.
Less than two hundred meters ahead, Lux spotted a blonde girl in a red jacket sprinting toward them, with over twenty snarling zombies chasing behind her.
"HK, MDR, provide covering fire."
At Lux's command, HK416 and MDR leaned out through the windows and began precise burst firing.
The zombies behind the girl fell one after another, but due to the distance, headshots were difficult, and many of the fallen zombies soon struggled back to their feet.
Still, under the rifle cover, Sten MKII successfully reached the vehicle.
"You must be the Commander, right? Nice to meet you, please take care of me! But what are those irrational humans?! Why won't they die no matter how much I shoot them?!"
Sten MKII shouted through the driver's side window.
"No time to explain. Get in the car now! Once gunfire starts, all nearby zombies will converge here!"
Lux yelled urgently while lowering the window.
"O-okay! I'm getting in, I'm getting in!"
Sten MKII ducked under MDR's covering fire and ran around to the other side.
Candice immediately opened the door, and Sten MKII slipped inside the vehicle at lightning speed.
"You two, cease fire and secure yourselves. I'm going to ram through."
After a quick warning, Lux shifted up to third gear.
HK416 and MDR immediately reentered the vehicle and secured themselves in their seats.
Lux floored the accelerator. The van smashed through the zombies blocking the road, sending them flying one after another before breaking through and continuing down the road.
"Ah… we're finally safe. Thank you so much, Commander."
Sten MKII said shakily, sitting beside Candice.
"No need to thank me. Those things are humans infected by a virus who turned into zombies. A normal zombie's weak point is the brain. You have to destroy the head to kill them."
"…There were too many. I didn't have time to aim…"
Sten MKII said gloomily.
"In general, if you have to fight, don't attract so many at once. Try to eliminate them at range, and once you fire, move away from the area as soon as possible."
"My ammo is pistol caliber… once the distance increases, accuracy drops a lot. Sorry, I wasn't much help."
Sten MKII said with a hint of self-reproach.
"SMGs are meant for fire suppression during assaults. Long-range precision kills were never their strength. That's our job as rifle units."
"They're far more effective against people."
HK416 said calmly from the passenger seat.
"I understand."
Lux nodded.
Right now, since the disaster had just begun, resources were still plentiful. He hadn't yet encountered survivors desperate enough to attack others over food.
But as time passed and supplies dwindled, greedy survivors would inevitably appear. When that happened, Sten MKII would have her moment to shine.