In those days of Plants vs. Zombies

"Oh no, they've spotted us!"

Not far from Courtyard 5905, on the rooftop of a building in a certain block, a fat Imperial engineer couldn't help but shout loudly.

The remote control he was holding was the device used to operate the drone from earlier.

"This war courtyard is really something else. They even set up a lot of surveillance cameras around the courtyard. It took a lot of effort from me and my little darling to find them."

An Imperial soldier dressed out of place among his comrades squatted on the ground, fiddling with a bunch of decommissioned Bee-Eye mechs.

Meanwhile, the "little darling" he was talking about (a fat, strong, and ferocious zombie hound) was lying on the ground, enjoying its master's reward—a large piece of fresh meat steak that had just been slaughtered and was still bloody.

Using various cute nicknames to refer to the zombie hounds they personally captured, raised, and trained is a common trait among the dog trainers of the Empire.

"Wow, it seems there's a very skilled mechanic in this courtyard. Madden, why don't you take a look?"

The dog-training zombie, marveling at the sight, stood up, walked over to the Imperial engineer named Madden, and patted the latter hard on the shoulder.

“Wait, I’m setting up the drone’s return route. Okay, Kennell, what did you just say?”

Madden put down the remote control in his hand and turned to look at the dog trainer named Kennel.

"Look at this, see for yourself. It's made of scrap metal, but it's comparable to the treasures of your engineering corps."

Kennell handed the wrecked mech to Madden, who took it and examined it carefully.

Not long after, his excited shout rang in Kennell's ears: "Damn, you're right, the mechanic who made this thing is really skilled, even comparable to our boss's work!"

Kennell knew perfectly well who the boss Madden was talking about was—the chief engineer of the Imperial 59th Army, a colonel who was a top student and a graduate of the Imperial Academy of Engineering.

If judged by federal standards, he would be a gold-level mechanic.

Even Kennell, a complete novice, could see how powerful this thing was, so Madin, as a professional, naturally saw through its tricks at a glance.

He didn't even dare to disassemble these scrapped mechs himself, for fear that he might accidentally damage their intricate structure.

"They didn't even handle it gently when they took them down; it's such a waste of these little things."

Madin, who was filled with admiration, even rolled his eyes at Kennell, his tone carrying a hint of disdain.

"Huh? It's my fault and Little Darling's fault. Wasn't it you who provided the jammer that caused them to break down?"

Kennell, who had almost lost his composure, couldn't help but choke back when he caught the reproachful look in Madden's eyes.

Feeling extremely annoyed, he walked over to the hunting dog and vigorously rubbed its big head.

Seemingly understanding its owner's thoughts, the hunting dog, which was tearing at the meat patty, stopped eating and looked up at Maiding not far away.

Its sharp, cold, scarlet eyes sent a chill down Madden's spine.

"Forget it, I won't stoop to your level. By the way, don't touch these decommissioned surveillance cameras. I need to take them back to the fortress."

Realizing he had misspoke, Madin put the wrecked mech back into the pile of "spoils of war," then instructed several Imperial soldiers on guard duty to pack them into boxes.

"I know, I know. Come on, little darling, keep eating. I have more if you're not full."

Kennell ignored the busy Madden and took out a few freeze-dried snacks from his bag, handing them to his hunting dog.

Just then, the drone that Madden had previously launched to conduct high-altitude reconnaissance of courtyard 5905 successfully returned and landed on the rooftop.

The door to the rooftop was pushed open, and a man carrying a black banner strode up to Madden and Kennell.

The purple medal pinned to his chest indicates that he is an Imperial squadron leader whose profession is Flag Zombie.

Since the stormy night attack, Courtyard 5905 has naturally become a key target of the Imperial 59th Army.

The reason is simple: this first-tier advanced courtyard not only did not sacrifice a single plant spirit warrior, but also caused considerable losses to the Imperial 59th Army.

A steel-willed vanguard fell on the battlefield, a standard-sized squadron was wiped out, an armored transport vehicle and several machines used to create a fog of war were destroyed...

These alone are enough to reduce an empire's already meager savings by several figures.

Not to mention the losses of professional units and sleds, which made other imperial leaders quite prejudiced against them.

Therefore, the Imperial 59th Army dispatched a reconnaissance team to reassess the threat level of this newly emerged tree-shaped courtyard.

Only in this way can we clarify our attitude towards this courtyard and then adjust our subsequent strategic policies.

"Engineer Maiding, the reconnaissance mission on courtyard 5905 has been successfully completed, right?"

"I have accomplished my mission, Captain, although... there was a slight mishap."

After handing the crated, decommissioned mechs over to the Imperial soldiers and recovering the drones, Madden hurriedly went to his superiors to report on the mission's progress.

This Imperial Company commander was under the command of the Town Army Commander and was the same battle flag bearer who had recently received intelligence from the Steel Vanguard.

Having arrived near courtyard number 5905, he was specifically assigned by the town's military to participate in this reconnaissance mission.

Upon hearing this, the battle flag bearer looked puzzled: "A minor accident?"

Madin tapped his helmet on his head sheepishly: "They found the drone, hehe."

Kennell, who was angrily rubbing the dog's head, added without looking up, "That was quite a little accident."

"I understand."

The battle flag bearer rolled his eyes in exasperation, then pressed on, "What did you gain?"

"Ahem, yes, this aerial reconnaissance has revealed that there is indeed a Steel Spikes Plant Spirit in courtyard 5905, in addition to at least two Machine Pea Shooter Plant Spirits."

"Wait, Gatling Pea Shooter Plant Spirits? Or at least two of them?"

“That’s right, at least two. Courtyard No. 5905 is only a Tier 1 Advanced level and cannot recruit Machine Pea Shooter Plant Spirits. It can only be a hired Federal Machine Gun Company Tactical Squad.”

"It makes sense."

The leader of the battle formation strongly agreed with Maiding's assessment.

The results of the drone reconnaissance alone show that Courtyard 5905 is now even stronger than it was during the rainy night attack.

Such rapid development would make it a key focus for the Empire in any war zone.

Kennell stood up, led his hound over, and pointed to the pile of scrapped mechs that the Imperial soldiers were packing up.

“There’s one more thing, Captain. Courtyard 5905 has deployed a lot of surveillance cameras in the surrounding abandoned city area. According to Madden, the manufacturers of these cameras are as skilled as our chief engineer.”

"Before he died, he mentioned in the intelligence that those mechanical creations were all made by the Magnet Mushroom Plant Spirit in Courtyard No. 5905."

The flag bearer couldn't help but sigh as he thought of his friend who had died in battle.

"Captain, I suggest we launch a probing attack on courtyard number 5905, sending in low-level zombies."

Kennell whistled, and the hound at his feet barked excitedly, "A long-awaited foggy day, don't miss such a good opportunity."

"Sure, let's see if this courtyard is just for show or lives up to its name."

After a moment's thought, the standard-bearer readily adopted Kennell's suggestion.

A group of low-level zombies received orders and slowly walked towards the backyard battlefield of courtyard 5905.