The Weapon Genius: Anything I Hold Can Kill-Chapter 73: Into the Unknown

The smell of food drifted through the hallways, warm and rich, cutting through the usual crisp morning air.

Jin stepped out of his room, rolling his shoulders. His body still remembered last night—the way his arms ached from pushing his skill further, the way his fingers tingled from forcing control where there was none.

But it wasn't exhaustion that filled him now.

It was focus.

Today, they were making the first move.

As he walked toward the cafeteria, he could hear voices—the low murmur of conversation, the scrape of chairs against tile, the occasional clatter of dishes. The atmosphere was different from previous mornings. Less tension, more anticipation.

They were getting used to this.

Jin stepped through the doors, taking in the sight of the recruits gathered at the long tables, eating real food—not ration bars, not scavenged cans, but something freshly made.

Seul was standing by the counter, serving up portions with practiced efficiency, her sleeves rolled up.

It was becoming routine.

And routine meant stability.

Echo, already halfway through his plate, leaned back in his chair, chewing slowly. "I could get used to this," he muttered.

Joon, across from him, smirked. "Better than our first day here, huh?"

Jin pulled out a chair, sitting down as Seul set a plate in front of him.

"You didn't have to do this again," he said, glancing up at her.

Seul shrugged. "Had to."

Jin raised an eyebrow. "Had to?"

Seul glanced toward the recruits, watching as they ate. "This isn't just about food," she said simply. "People fight better when they feel like they have something normal to come back to." freewebnøvel.coɱ

Jin didn't argue.

Because she was right.

Jin picked up his utensils and took the first bite, the warmth of the food spreading through him. It was a simple meal—eggs, rice, and whatever meat they had left in storage—but it was real.

He didn't realize how much that mattered until now.

For a while, they just ate. No strategy talk, no immediate planning. Just food and silence.

But Jin's mind never fully quieted.

Eventually, he set his fork down and glanced at the others. "We move out in an hour."

The shift in the room was instant. The casual conversation faded, replaced with sharpened focus.

After breakfast, the main fighters and selected recruits gathered in one of the cleared-out classrooms, a large holographic map hovering in the air between them.

Jin stood at the front, arms crossed, scanning the layout.

"This is where they went," he said, pointing to the cluster of occupied zones that had appeared on the map overnight.

He zoomed in. The exact location was still unknown, but it was clear now—there was a base somewhere in that direction.

"Yesterday, we didn't know where to look," Jin continued. "Now we do."

Seul studied the map, arms folded. "And you're sure this wasn't showing up before?"

"It wasn't within range," Echo muttered, hands in his pockets. "System only shows occupied zones when they're close enough."

Joon let out a short breath, cracking his knuckles. "Guess that means we're walking right into their turf."

Jin nodded. "Which means we stay careful. We don't charge in. We track first, confirm their numbers, and adapt from there."

Haneul, standing toward the side, gripped his staff. "And if they see us first?"

Jin's gaze didn't waver.

"Then we handle it."

A tense pause followed.

Then, Seul exhaled sharply and nodded. "Alright. You know what you're doing. Just don't get yourselves killed."

Joon grinned. "No promises."

An hour later, the assault team stood by the gates, ready.

Jin stood at the front, eyes scanning over the group one last time.

Haneul. Areum. Doyun. Echo. Joon.

Everyone had what they needed. Weapons, gear, focus.

Seul, standing nearby, watched them with her usual unreadable expression. But Jin knew her well enough now to recognize the tension in her stance.

She didn't like staying behind.

But she understood why she had to.

Jin gave her a slight nod. "We'll be back by nightfall."

Seul didn't nod back. Instead, she just muttered, "Don't be stupid."

Jin smirked slightly before turning away.

With that, he stepped forward, leading the team beyond the school gates.

The streets stretched out ahead of them, eerily quiet under the midday sun.

Jin kept a steady pace, eyes scanning their surroundings. They were deeper into the city now—more buildings, more open spaces, more places for something to go wrong.

Echo walked beside him, hands in his pockets. "Feels different being out here when we're not running from something."

"Yeah," Joon muttered. "This time, we're the ones hunting."

Jin didn't respond. He just kept walking.

After about thirty minutes, they reached an overpass that gave them a higher vantage point.

Jin motioned for the group to stop, pulling up the map again.

Then, he saw it.

A new cluster of occupied territory, just barely visible at the edge of their range.

He exhaled slowly.

"There," he said, pointing. "That's where we start."

No one argued.

Jin closed the map and turned forward again.

They kept moving.

The city stretched out before them, a sprawling maze of empty streets and hollowed-out buildings.

Jin moved at a steady pace, his boots hitting the pavement in even strides. The others followed closely behind, their eyes scanning the surroundings. It wasn't paranoia. It was habit.

There was no reason to expect an ambush yet, but they had learned quickly—expecting safety was the fastest way to die.

Echo walked beside him, his hands tucked into his pockets. He was quiet for the most part, but every now and then, Jin could hear him muttering under his breath—resonating with the sounds around them, stretching his awareness.

Joon, on the other hand, was the opposite.

"Man," he sighed, rolling his shoulders, "we've been walking for like an hour, and nothing's happened yet. You'd think we'd run into at least one crazy mutant dog by now."

Jin didn't bother responding.

Areum, walking a little further behind them, raised an eyebrow. "Why are you hoping for something to attack us?"

Joon grinned. "Not hoping. Just noticing the pattern. We step outside, something tries to kill us. It's practically tradition at this point."

Areum rolled her eyes. "Tradition's overrated."

Haneul walked in silence, his grip firm around his staff. He wasn't tense, exactly—but he was watching. Jin could tell by the way his head turned slightly every now and then, his eyes sharp under his messy hair.

Good.

He was learning.

Doyun adjusted his sleeves, his expression unreadable. "It is kind of weird, though," he muttered. "Not the quiet. Just the way it feels like... something should be here."

Echo snorted. "You're expecting logic from the system?"

Doyun shrugged. "Not logic. Just patterns."

Jin understood what he meant. They were in the heart of the city now. More structures, more places for people to hole up. And yet, there was still nothing.

It wasn't unnatural.

It was just normal now.

Echo tilted his head, his expression shifting slightly.

Jin noticed. "What?"

Echo exhaled, shaking his head. "Nothing. Just thought I caught something for a second. Guess not."

Jin didn't push. If Echo actually sensed danger, he would say something.

The road ahead sloped downward slightly, leading into an area filled with larger buildings. Some old warehouses, maybe a few repurposed office buildings. Places that could be turned into strongholds.

Jin glanced at the map again.

Still nothing.

No occupied markers.

They were heading in the right direction, but their range still wasn't far enough to pinpoint anything for sure.

He pressed forward.

The group wove through the streets, stepping over cracked pavement and rusted-out cars that had been abandoned when everything first fell apart. Some still had shattered windows. Others had dried blood smeared along the edges.

The signs of what happened two weeks ago were still there. Fading, but not forgotten.

Joon clicked his tongue, glancing toward the side of one of the buildings. "You know, back before all this, I was planning to get a bike. A real one, not one of those electric ones."

Areum gave him a flat look. "How is that relevant right now?"

Joon grinned. "It's not. Just saying—this whole 'walking everywhere' thing is kinda ass."

Doyun rolled his eyes. "Maybe if you trained your stamina instead of talking so much, you wouldn't be complaining."

Joon clutched his chest dramatically. "Damn. That hurt."

Echo smirked. "Not as much as Jin's gonna hurt you if you don't shut up."

Jin ignored them, his focus still on the road ahead. The buildings were starting to get taller here. More places for people to hide. They were getting close.

Then—finally—the map flickered.

Jin stopped walking.

The others noticed immediately, their casual conversation cutting off as they turned toward him.

Jin didn't say anything right away. He just looked at the new information appearing on the interface in front of him.

A cluster of occupied territory.

Not just a small outpost—something bigger.

Areum stepped closer, looking at the projection over his shoulder. "...That's not just one building."

No.

It wasn't.

The map was picking up multiple marked areas. Some connected, some spread slightly apart—but all of them were grouped together.

Jin exhaled slowly. "Looks like we found them."

Haneul gripped his staff tighter. "How close are we?"

Jin studied the distance. "Not far. An hour at most, if we don't run into anything."

Joon grinned, flexing his fingers. "Guess that means we should pick up the pace."

Jin didn't respond.

He just closed the map and started walking.

This wasn't like before.

They weren't just searching anymore.

They had a target.

And soon, they'd be right in front of it.