ã€ŠLeveling Up Wives In The Apocalypseã€‹


 Chapter 1 Ultimate Sacrifice

    ¡°Go, now!¡± Mathew whispered.

    His wide-open eyes and tense facial muscles screamed urgency.

    Yet, he didn¡¯t need to hurry anyone off.

    Their entire group rushed forward the second he gave the signal. Their entire group¡­

    But Mathew.

    For a single second, he stood back.

    ¡®System miracle,¡¯ he chanted in his thoughts, a look of desperation shing in his eyes.

    ¡®My left lung,¡¯ he added, closing his eyes.

    This entire interaction took less than a second. And without thought, Mathew picked up the pace and ran after his friends.

    [Sacrifice epted]

    The cold voice of the system washed through Mathew¡¯s mind.

    He felt no pain when his left lung vanished.

    His miracle system was fair. Even though half of his lungs just disappeared, his body didn¡¯t go into a state of shock.

    The miracle that followed would prevent any secondary damage rted to his sacrifice.

    [Miracle activated] The cold voice of the system rang in Mathew¡¯s ears.

    A sense of strength filled his flesh.

    All the pain and exhaustion of thest two weeks vanished on the spot. His fear gave way to the cold andposed calction.

    He caught up to his group without anyone even noticing histe start.

    ¡®Here,¡¯ he thought, grabbing up Nadia¡¯s hand as he rushed ahead.

    ¡°Damn,¡± Mathew cursed under his breath when their group reached the corner. ¡°They are already here,¡± he uttered through his teeth.

    The main school¡¯s corridor ahead was filled with zombies.

    ¡®Judging by the bigger physiques in the crowd,¡¯ Mathew took notice, ¡®there are some evolved ones out there too.¡¯

    Their group didn¡¯t stop.

    The five of them were thest students of the 3G ss that survived. Maybe others were hiding in a different part of the school¡­

    But with the entire ce overrun by zombies and monsters, there was hardly any way to check that.

    ¡°Push through!¡± Mathew shouted, tightening his fingers over Nadia¡¯s wrist.

    ¡®No matter what, I will get her out of here,¡¯ he thought, steeling his resolve as he gripped his baseball bat.

    ¡°KILL!¡± he shouted a secondter when their group crashed right into the crowd of the zombies.

    Mathew swung his bat in all directions. His movements appeared frantic but were aimed at just pushing the zombies away instead of putting them down.

    The force behind his swings far exceeded the capability of his meager muscles allowing for such a reckless tactic.

    ¡®We can make it through,¡¯ Mathew thought when the first of his remainingpanions got caught. A rotting hand emerged from the crowd and caught the poor man by his throat.

    A grab like that easily subdued the athletic ssmate of Mathew. Before a second could pass, several mouths rushed to gnaw away at his flesh. In such a crowd, his muscles were of no use.

    ¡®No, we will make it through,¡¯ Mathew changed the wording of his thoughts, pushing his reinforced self to the limits.

    Two other ssmates of his died to a single strike of an evolved monster.

    Out of the original thirty-three, only five remained after two weeks of the siege. And right now, three of Mathew¡¯s friends disappeared as well.

    ¡°Just let me go!¡± Nadia shouted, desperately attempting to free her fist. With her injured leg, she was nothing but a burden for him.

    ¡°Shut it!¡± Mathew barked, too focused on dealing with the zombies to pay Nadia¡¯s protests any mind.

    A swing to the left. A swing to the right. Sidestep to dodge a projectile. Duck to avoid a shing grab.

    A swing to the left, a swing to the right, sharp pain exploding in his arm when a zombie scratched it.

    And then¡­

    The world opened before the two of them.

    Mathew¡¯s eyes widened as he stumbled for a second. The bright light of the outside nearly blinded him.

    Then, before Mathew would lose his momentum, he leaned his body forward and lunged ahead.

    ¡°LEAVE ME!¡± Nadia shouted.

    Now that their usual roles have turned, she couldn¡¯t handle seeing Mathew do the same thing that she did for him over all those years.

    ¡®Just a little bit more,¡¯ Mathew thought, ignoring the girl¡¯s cry altogether.

    The cube of the equipment shed was the light at the end of a tunnel. The onest spot that they could try after the fall of their previous hideout.

    Thankfully, the area between the school¡¯s main building and the shed was rtively empty.

    Their former stronghold fell because zombies and monsters alike would be drawn towards the living beings. Yet, the reason behind the doom of their former keep was also the source of this one in a million opportunity before them.

    Onest chance at prolonging their lives, even if only for a little. Because at this point, Mathew had no real hopes for surviving.

    He just kept on running. And just like that, he burst through the half-open doors of the shed, instantly scanning the area in search of zombies.

    ¡®I don¡¯t have time for this,¡¯ he thought, clenching his teeth as he turned around and pushed the doors shut. He then sacrificed his club to block the doors.

    The timer in the right upper corner of his vision was nearing its end.

    ¡°Wha¡­¡± Nadia uttered a small, shocked shout when Mathew rushed to prop the doors with anything he could find.

    Thankfully, no zombie appeared anywhere in the shed while he was busy fortifying the entrance.

    ¡®Was it a part of the miracle?¡¯ Mathew thought, finishing his task just as the effect of his system boost ran out.

    He slumped to the floor in extreme exhaustion, his back sliding down the barricade he had just finished.

    ¡°We did it¡­¡± Naida muttered, her face frozen in shock. ¡°No.¡± she shook her head and raised her deep, green eyes at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°You did it.¡±

    A bullet of emotions shot through Mathew¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Nadia added, kneeling down and cing her hand on Mathew¡¯s cheek.

    She then lowered her head and rested her forehead against Matthew¡¯s.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± she whispered, tears appearing under her closed eyelids.

    ¡®She smells insane,¡¯ Mathew thought, his consciousness hanging by a thin thread. His eyes went up a little as the girl¡¯s scent filled his nostrils.

    After a moment of massively increased emotions, this was the natural way for his body to react. After surviving a life and death situation, one would feel the need to root themselves into reality with intimacy.

    It was a bare instinct born from the times predating human civilization, supposed to pull the group together in danger.

    ¡®Still,¡¯ Mathew thought, reaching out and wrapping his arm around the girl¡¯s back, pulling her into a light embrace.

    ¡®We have close to no food. This ce is already surrounded by the zombies,¡¯ he thought, looking up at the window situated at the other end of the building.

    It was small, high up the wall, and enclosed by metal bars.

    ¡®While they can¡¯t get in, we can¡¯t really get out either,¡¯ Mathew thought, his mood worsening by the second.

    The equipment shed was thest ce where they could run to. Given how the entire school was enclosed by a massive wall, it was surprisingly one of the safest ces.

    Because right outside of the wall, there was an entire, highly-popted city.

    ¡®If the things are so dire within the confines of the school, I don¡¯t even want to imagine how it is outside the walls,¡¯ Mathew thought, rting a small, silent sigh.

    ¡®In other words, we are fucked,¡¯ Mathew added in his mind, wrapping his hands a bit tighter around the girl¡¯s soft frame.

    ¡°We are fucked,¡± Naida whispered right into Mathew¡¯s chest in which she buried her face. ¡°Aren¡¯t we?¡± she added, her voice changing into a weird chuckle.

    ¡®Is there really nothing more that I can do?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, his mind and body alike too tired to think and pay attention to the girl at the same time.

    An intense wave of regret exploded in his heart.

    He was the single system holder in the entire group of fifteen that created the stronghold within the school two weeks ago.

    Every other system holder has long disappeared from the school, enjoying the apocalypse to its fullest.

    It was just a matter of bad luck. When Nadia went to look for Mathew right when the apocalypse started, they ended up stranded from the rest of their ss. And when they returned, only the mob of this new, changed world was left for them to join.

    ¡°No,¡± Mathew suddenly muttered, shocked by an unexpected idea.

    ¡®It¡¯s so obvious,¡¯ he thought, unable to believe in his own stupidity. ¡®How could I miss it for so long?¡¯ he asked himself, only to bite down on his lips.

    ¡®No, it¡¯s not that,¡¯ he thought, raising his face up and locking his blurry sight on the beams on the ceiling.

    ¡°Mat?¡± Naida whispered, the look on her face changing again. A look of worry reced the distressed amusement formerly present in her eyes.

    ¡°There is still onest thing that I can do,¡± Mathew whispered, his face lighting up.

    His lips, formerly twisted in a grimace of stress and exhaustion, now rxed and formed a gentle smile.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Naida leaned her head to the side, unsure of the meaning behind her old friend¡¯s words.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Mathew said, pulling the girl back into his embrace. ¡°Everything will be okay,¡± he added, caressing the back of Nadia¡¯s head.

    ¡°Huh?¡± the girl shrugged in surprise before forcing her face up again.

    Nadia¡¯s eyes widened in shock, while her lips formed an uneasy smile.

    ¡°Are we finally going to¡­¡± she asked, her expression filling with happiness and sort of relief.

    ¡®System miracle,¡¯ Mathew thought, closing his eyes in peace.

    ¡°¡­do it?¡± Nadia asked, her face filling with joy.

    ¡®My life.¡¯

    [Sacriface epted]

    The ominous voice of his system was thest thing Mathew heard before his vision turned dark.

 Chapter 2 Did you bang her?

    ¡°So?¡± Peter asked, his lips forming ascivious smile. ¡°Did you bang her?¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t move.

    His body was fully frozen in the memory that he saw.

    Mathew looked down at his very own self, sitting silently in his own ce in the ss.

    His desk was surrounded from all sides by the perverted trio. They were the menace of all the girls in the school. And for some weird reason, they decided to pick Mathew as the one to share their infamy.

    ¡®Why am I seeing this?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, trying to look around.

    But he couldn¡¯t. His vision was stuck in a position and an angle that made the center of his back right in the middle of what he could see.

    ¡®Is this the side effect of the miracle?¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to rationalize the situation.

    And then he spotted it. The one thing that had no right to appear in the vision he saw.

    A system¡¯s clock.

    This time, it consisted of three parts, each of which counted down to some sort of event.

    The first one was about to run off, with a single minute left. The second one still had an entire hour, while thest one had two hours left.

    ¡®Judging from the time,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking at the clock hanging above the ss¡¯ ckboard. ¡®The second one is counting to the start of the apocalypse,¡¯ he thought.

    What was the first and thest one counting towards, though? Mathew had no clue.

    ¡°Come on, guys,¡± Mathew¡¯s body moved in the exact same way that he did a bit over two weeks ago. ¡°You know it¡¯s not like that. We have known each other since forever,¡± he attempted to defend himself. ¡°That¡¯s all there is to it, I promise!¡±

    ¡®Oh, how pathetic I was,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching his past plight.

    The numbers on the first of the clocks continued to tick down.

    ¡°You know, I heard about a few, pretty effective ways to get a girl to the bed,¡± Franc, the other of the group, whispered in a conspirational tone.

    ¡°That¡¯s perfect!¡± Peter once again took the prim of the bullying. ¡°But if we share it with you¡­¡±

    The first of the clocks only had ten seconds left.

    ¡®Wait, if I recall the events correctly,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the number continued to tick down with each passing second.

    ¡°You will have to share her with us too,¡± Peter finished his unholy idea before licking his lips.

    ¡°This is a great chance for you!¡± Adam, the third of the group, smiled viciously. ¡°With our help, you will be finally able to cast your V-card!¡± he announced loudly, instantly bringing some stares from the nearby students.

    ¡®This fucker,¡¯ Mathew thought, tightening his spiritual hands.

    Three seconds left.

    ¡°So, how will it be?¡± Peter asked again. ¡°Do you want to take her at the same time with us, or would you rather wait your turn?¡±

    Three things happened at once.

    The clock reached the end of its time.

    The doors to the ss mmed open.

    Mathew¡¯s vision blurred before changing from a third to a first-person view.

    ¡®Huh?¡± Mathew looked down at his hands.

    Theycked all the scars that he earned on the first day of the apocalypse. There was no innate exhaustion embedded deeply into his flesh and bones.

    He was just as fresh as he was before the apocalypse.

    ¡®I have a body of a weakling,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    ¡°Decide, you little dipshit!¡± Adam shouted out loud, annoyed by theck of reaction from the preferred toy of the group.

    ¡°Get away from him, you filth,¡± Naida spoke out from her position by the doors.

    ¡°Scram before I will make you,¡± Mathew spoke out, calmly raising his face and looking at Peter¡¯s face.

    ¡®I only need to waste him for the others to run,¡¯ he thought, clenching his hand into a fist.

    ¡°You fucking¡­¡± Peter squeezed through his teeth when his eyes wandered off, right at Nadia¡¯s nearby figure.

    The ck belt that she loosely kept on her shoulder reminded him of the reason why they never moved beyond words in their bullying.

    ¡°You better be grateful to your boyfriend!¡± Peter sneered, refusing the pleasure of insulting Mathew onest time. ¡°If not for your papa, you would long be just a stain on the¡­¡±

    Peter didn¡¯t finish his words.

    Mathew swung his shoulders sideways, burying his fist deep into his obnoxious¡¯ ssmate¡¯s stomach.

    ¡°You can insult me all you want,¡± Mathew said in a cold voice, allowing the lifeless Peter to hang over his shoulder. ¡°But include Naida in it, and I will pluck your balls out,¡± he added before shaking his shoulder and throwing the man down on the floor.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Nadia shouted in a sudden panic when Mathew engaged his bully. ¡°Are you okay?¡± she rushed forward only to grab Mat¡¯s arm and look at his face, all worried.

    ¡°Everything¡¯s okay,¡± Mathew replied, unable to stop a smile from forming on his lips.

    ¡®Whether it¡¯s just a nice dream or not, I don¡¯t care,¡¯ he thought, reaching with his hand and cing it on top of the girl¡¯s head.

    Nadia froze in ce, unsure how to react.

    ¡®Right,¡¯ Mathew suddenly reflected on himself. ¡®We weren¡¯t like that by this time,¡¯ he thought, eager to pull his hand away¡­

    But he didn¡¯t do it right away. Unable to resist his desire, he rustled the girl¡¯s hair before gracing her with a kind smile.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia finally managed to utter a small shout of shock through her lips. Her eyes opened wide, disying the beautiful, jade-like green of her pupils.

    ¡°How about we ditch the ss?¡± Mathew suddenly brought up a proposition.

    His eyes involuntarily moved towards the upper right corner of his vision.

    ¡®This can¡¯t be a system,¡¯ he thought, desperately trying to figure out what was going on. ¡®We only received them after defeating the first zombie, and they didn¡¯t even appear in this world yet¡­¡¯ he thought, trying to rationalize the situation.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew refocused his eyes and looked right at Nadia¡¯s face. Her long, golden streaks coated her face as if some kind of jewelry.

    Mathew couldn¡¯t stop a gentle smile from forming on his lips.

    ¡°Tell me,¡± Mathew muttered before raising his voice a little. ¡°Would you mind going on a small date with me right now?¡± he asked.

    ¡®There is only one thing that¡¯s supposed to happen in an hour,¡¯ he thought under the facade that he put on his face. ¡®And if my guess is correct, then I don¡¯t have any time to waste!¡¯

    Unaware of Mathew¡¯s thoughts, Nadia nearly jumped on the spot.

    She was a good student with good attendance and history with the teachers. Being one of the school¡¯s athletic champions, she could get away with a lot but rarely used that privilege.

    But when she heard Mathew¡¯s invitation, her eyes lit up with a shock mixed with excitement.

    ¡°Sure thing!¡± she chirped. Her lips formed a slightly weird smile as if she couldn¡¯t handle all the emotions that erupted in her soul.

    ¡®And whatever this situation is,¡¯ Mathew thought, bringing his hand back and grabbing Nadia¡¯s fingers, ¡®I will protect you. No matter what.¡¯

 Chapter 3 Making sure

    ¡®How should I proceed?¡¯ Mathew asked himself while pulling Nadia along.

    It was something that his former self would never dare to do.

    To grab and then hold a hand of a childhood friend? What was this kind of sacrilege? He wouldn¡¯t consider himself worthy of such luxury.

    But current Mathew was different. The two weeks of the apocalypse he went through changed him drastically.

    ¡®There is no time for shyness or hesitation,¡¯ he thought, checking the second timer in the corner of his vision.

    Roughly fifty minutes remained.

    Nadia didn¡¯t seem to notice Mathew¡¯s mental state. She was too immersed in the joy of ditching lessons with her friend for that.

    ¡®Seeing her jump around like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, overwhelmed with the challenges that waited ahead. Just gazing at this cheerful joy of his life was enough to lift his spirits.

    ¡®Still, I guess there is no other way,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He was guilty of never fully growing out of his delusional phase. Ever before the apocalypse, Mathew would imagine himself in different scenarios.

    One of which turned out to be a perfect n for his current situation.

    ¡®I will either end up a hero or a mental case,¡¯ Mathew thought before releasing a deep breath.

    The second he knew what exactly to do, a massive burden disappeared from his back.

    The two reached the first and most important point on their journey.

    The infirmary.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mathew turned his head to the girl. ¡°Would you mind waiting here for a second?¡± he asked with a small, slightly uneasy smile.

    ¡°Oh,¡± Nadia jumped a little, forced out of her momentary daze. ¡°Sure, no problem,¡± she then replied, smiling from ear to ear.

    ¡®She is just too bright,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes away from the glorious sight of Nadia¡¯s cheerful expression.

    He took a step. And then another.

    With every pace he made, he could feel the atmosphere changing.

    It wasn¡¯t a gift that he received from his former system. It was an instinct that only the survivors could develop. An innate feeling unlocked by those who bnced on the line between life and death.

    Mathew reached the doors. Its two wings both had a blurry ne of ss in their middle, allowing one to peek inside. While the image would be distorted, it was still enough for Mathew¡¯s purpose.

    ¡®It¡¯s crowded,¡¯ he thought. He then attempted to make out the rough shapes and then count people inside. ¡®Just like back then,¡¯ he thought, backing away from the door.

    He then rested his back against the wall. Yet, before his eyes could fully rest, Mathew caught a glimpse of a box.

    The treasure of the world that would begin in less than an hour. A cheap box ofmodities in the current world.

    ¡®No,¡¯ Mathew bit his lips. ¡®Not yet. It¡¯s too risky to blow a fuse so early,¡¯ he decided, turning his eyes away from the box of medicinal supplies handing on the wall of the infirmary.

    He froze in ce for a moment. Even though Mathew already knew the exact path he had to take, he still required a moment to sort his thoughts out.

    Because what he just saw basically confirmed his worries.

    The apocalypse wasn¡¯t just a hyperrealistic dream. The clock in the corner of his vision wasn¡¯t some kind of illusion or hallucination.

    For now, everything checked out.

    ¡®I really traveled back in time,¡¯ he thought, taking deep breaths to calm himself down.

    ¡®The situation calls for the desperate measures,¡¯ Mathew thought, closing his eyes.

    He then pushed his back against the wall, propelling himself forward and returning to Nadia¡¯s side.

    ¡°Can I borrow your phone for a bit?¡± Mathew asked while approaching the girl.

    ¡°Sure,¡± Nadia turned her head sideways, giving Mathew a cute look before passing her cell.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Mathew muttered, typing out a rtively short number on the phone.

    For a moment, the two of them continued to climb the school¡¯s stairs in silence.

    Nadia was simply happy to enjoy her time alone with Mathew. Mathew didn¡¯t have the luxury to think about anything but his current mission.

    They reached the second floor in no time.

    ¡°One more stop,¡± Mathew said, patting the girl¡¯s shoulder as he went ahead. Yet, after just a few steps, he suddenly stopped.

    He then pulled out his wallet and then grabbed a single, thin coin.

    ¡®Come out,¡¯ he thought, pushing the coin into a small gap between the ss cover of the fire equipment storage box and its frame.

    This box quality was just like the rest of the school. Shitty and too cheap to be of any use.

    But the fire ax hidden inside was of top quality.

    ¡®I remember the guy who took it before,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling a certain bloody scene from the beginnings of the apocalypse.

    For some reason, this ax became a blessed weapon.

    Just some people would receive systems, some zombies would evolve, certain weapons and items, in general, would also be stronger than ever.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Nadia finally noticed a reason for concern and asked.

    ¡°Just wait a second,¡± Mathew replied, pulling the weapon out.

    It was a sturdy piece of equipment designed to break walls and doors alike.

    ¡®And in the near future, it will get some nasty abilities,¡¯ Mathew thought before approaching the girl.

    This was the one decision that made him freeze before.

    Not the idea of blowing the whistle and starting the apocalypse several minutes prior to the world.

    It was the decision to reveal everything he knew to this one girl.

    She was the one that saved him on many different levels.

    ¡®She deserves to know,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    But this decision forced a moment like the current one to appear.

    ¡°Nadia, please,¡± Mathew said in a firm voice. ¡°Do you think I¡¯m crazy?¡± he asked, looking the girl directly in the eyes.

    For a moment, Nadia stared down into Mat¡¯s eyes.

    She was startled and shocked, for sure, but she didn¡¯t outright refuse his request. Instead, she opened her eyes wide and looked for any signs of craziness in Mathew¡¯s pupils.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± she muttered a momentter, lowering her eyes.

    ¡°That¡¯s why I can only ask you for one thing,¡± Mathew said, putting his weapon down on the floor before kneeling down. ¡°For the next hour, I need you to trust me.¡±

    ¡°Mathew, what¡¯s going on?¡± Nadia asked. And she used Mat¡¯s full name while doing so.

    This only indicated how serious the girl became.

    ¡°You won¡¯t believe me if I exin it with words,¡± Mathew said, shaking his head. ¡°I will exin everything as we go,¡± he promised, only to lower his eyes. ¡°But right now, we are on the clock,¡± he said, his eyes ncing over to the corner of his vision.

    ¡°And the time is really running out.¡±

    Once again, Nadia simply stared down into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    She then raised her hand and ced it on his cheek. Once again, the two of them froze at the moment.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Nadia whispered with her soft fingers. She kept looking into Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°What are we going to do next, then?¡± she asked in a mesmerizing tone, pulling Mathew¡¯s mind into the abyss of her alluring lips.

    ¡°We are going to visit the director of the school,¡± Mathew forced himself to reply. He then picked up his ax, smiled cheerfully, and looked at the girl. ¡°Shall we go?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nadia nodded her head. ¡°But are you going to tell me why?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Why are we going to the director¡¯s office?¡± Nadia repeated her question a momentter.

    Mathew didn¡¯t refuse the answer. He just had to take a moment to sort his thoughts out to figure out the simplest way to exin it.

    ¡°Right now, I just need another confirmation,¡± he said, forcing himself to look ahead instead of scouting out Nadia¡¯s reaction. ¡°Because I wish to be wrong from the very bottom of my heart.¡±

 Chapter 4 Raising the principals office

    ¡®How should I do it?¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He gripped the handle of his weapon tighter, hesitation filling his mind.

    ¡®I¡¯m about to turn myself into a terrorist,¡¯ he thought nkly as the reality of his ns started to dawn upon him.

    ¡®Worst of all, I¡¯m pulling her into all of this,¡¯ he thought, ncing over at the girl¡¯s face.

    She managed to somehow keep her cool despite how weird the situation was.

    Her obedient and trusting silence was like a nail right down Mathew¡¯s heart.

    ¡®But there is no other choice if I¡¯m right!¡¯ he protested in his thoughts as they neared the principal¡¯s office.

    Mathew stopped before the doors.

    ¡®Everything that I did so far could still be fixed,¡¯ he thought.

    An irrational hope appeared in his heart.

    ¡®If it¡¯s just me going crazy, I can still stop it,¡¯ he thought.

    The chance that it was nothing but a bad dream still existed¡­

    The tock in the corner of Mathew¡¯s vision continued to tick.

    Mathew took a deep breath. And then he knocked on the doors before intruding.

    ¡°Huh?¡± the middle-aged man raised his eyes from the newspaper he was reading. ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked, annoyed by the unannounced visitors.

    ¡°Excuse me, sir,¡± Mathew stepped forward, humbly bowing to the man. ¡°I promise, I mean no harm,¡± he added before pulling out the ax from behind his back.

    He then took a step forward to the right of the principal¡¯s seat.

    Mathew swung the weapon¡­

    The ax¡¯s de dug deep into the wood of one of the principal¡¯s cabs.

    Mat reached out with his hand into the destroyed piece of furniture.

    And there it was.

    The same pistol that Mat could recall from his earlier experience.

    The gun that gave his group hope back in his apocalyptic memories.

    But for now, what was most important, was that the details of Mathew¡¯s memories adhered to reality.

    This was the confirmation he needed.

    Because Mat had never been to the principal¡¯s office outside of that time in the apocalypse.

    ¡°Once again,¡± Mathew turned his face to the principal.

    The man was so shocked he was stuck in a weird pose on his chair.

    ¡°I apologize for the inconvenience,¡± Mat bowed his head again as he picked up both the gun and the bullets.

    ¡°What the hell is going on?¡± the principal muttered, glued to his chair.

    ¡°I will be calling the police myself,¡± Mathew informed, picking up the phone and showing the screen.

    The rm number was already connecting.

    ¡°Mat¡­¡± Nadia muttered silently.

    Up to this point, she still believed. She still believed that there was a reason behind Mat¡¯s actions.

    She was simply too stunned to react and too lost in how to react.

    ¡°Dispatcher,¡± the voice on the phone rang. ¡°What seems to be the issue?¡±

    This single line suddenly turned the atmosphere even tenser than it was before.

    If Mathew¡¯s attack at the principal¡¯s office and the act of stealing his gun wasn¡¯t serious enough, the voice from the phone now elevated it to another level.

    By announcing himself to the police, Mathew turned from a hooligan into a terrorist.

    ¡°I will burn this whole ce down!¡± he shouted into the phone, moving his head away from the microphone. ¡°A phone?¡± Mat sounded surprised for a second. ¡°Give me that!¡± he then shouted again before waiting for a second and ending the call.

    ¡°Cough¡­¡± Mathew cleared his throat and shook his head. He then looked at the principal and the girl.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for that little act. Once again, I will surrender myself to the police on the first-moment notice,¡± he said.

    For a second, Mathew closed his eyes. He had to collect his thoughts.

    ¡°Mat¡­ Please, tell me,¡± Nadia pulled on Mathew¡¯s sleeve, desperately trying to gain his attention. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± she cried out in a low voice, scared shitless.

    She didn¡¯t care about his actions or his gun. Nadia was worried about losing her dear friend.

    ¡°I still find it hard to believe. But so far, every single thing that I check does check out,¡± Mathew said, lowering his hands on his face and taking a deep breath. ¡°My one and only aim are to bring heavily armed police to a certain point in the school,¡± he exined in a single breath.

    The room tensed up even further.

    ¡°Wait, the infirmary?¡± Nadia quickly caught on.

    She wasn¡¯t one of the top students just for show.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head only to nce over at the phone¡¯s screen.

    ¡®Call made two minutes ago¡­¡¯ he thought, calcting everything in his mind. ¡®I guess we should go, now,¡¯ he decided, raising his eyes and looking at the girl.

    ¡°Principal, once again, I¡¯m sorry for the entiremotion,¡± I said, lowering my head in apology. ¡°I wish with all my heart for my fears to prove wrong. I won¡¯t hurt anyone, and I will pay back for the damage I made,¡± he added before raising his head again.

    ¡°But for now, I need to go,¡± Mathew said, grabbing Nadia¡¯s hand and pulling her out of the room. ¡°To that end, I hope you will remain in your office,¡± Mat added in a low tone before closing the doors.

    ¡°Mat, what the hell is going on?!¡± Nadia finally took a stance, refusing to just tag along. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with the Infirmary?¡± she asked, pressing the issue she figured out earlier.

    ¡°There is a reason why I only looked through the window,¡± Mathew replied, turning his eyes away.

    Nadia¡¯s face turned white as her eyes widened in terror.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with the infirmary, Mat?¡± Nadia asked, her eyes tearing up. She then raised her hand and ced it on Mathew¡¯s cheek. ¡°What did you do?¡± she whispered through her tears.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything,¡± Mathew shook his head and closed his eyes. ¡°But I know something very bad is about to happen in less than an hour,¡± he added, cing his hands on Nadia¡¯s back.

    For a moment, Mathew simply hugged the girl.

    It was a sole refreshing moment of the past two weeks. The one moment of relief.

    ¡°What are you going to do next, then?¡± Nadia asked, wiping the tears off her face as she looked deep into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to invite one of them inside,¡± Mathew said, regaining hisposure. ¡°I need to have an officer to witness what I believe is about to happen.¡±

 Chapter 5 Playing the terrorist act

    Mathew walked to the bottom floor of the building. Nadia followed silently behind him, unable to form a single cohesive thought.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± she whispered, once again trying to pry the truth from my lips.

    ¡°If I tell you now, you won¡¯t believe me,¡± Mathew replied, shaking his head. ¡°Soon, you will understand everything. But for now, we need to wait,¡± He exined as best as he could.

    ¡®What am I supposed to tell her?¡¯ Mathew thought, despairing over the situation.

    Any attempt at boldly dering what was about toe would fester one question.

    ¡®How did you know?¡¯ Mathew thought, his face turning dark at the mere idea of such a thing.

    If he were to be someone believed to be behind the apocalypse¡­

    His life would be short and eventful.

    ¡°Are we going to get out of this? Somehow?¡± Nadia asked as the two of them stopped in the same ce they saw at the very beginning. She rested her back against the wall before plummeting down.

    ¡°Why can¡¯t you just¡­¡± Nadia attempted to say something, only for the school to fill with the noise of sirens.

    Mathew¡¯s n was quicklying to fruition.

    ¡®Not a second too early,¡¯ he thought, pulling out his phone again. Mathew then turned his head to the girl and lowered it in apology. ¡°I will exin everything in a few moments when the police officer arrives,¡± he said before typing the short number.

    ¡°Dispatcher,¡± the voice rang through the phone.

    ¡°I wish to talk with the negotiator,¡± Mathew announced calmly.

    He could hear the sirens. Meaning the police were already there.

    And in the current era, the enforcement would do everything to stop a problem like this one.

    ¡®I hope so fucking much I¡¯m all wrong,¡¯ Mathew thought before steeling himself for what was toe.

    For a few moments, the dispatcher turned silent.

    Then, the voice changed.

    ¡°Here,¡± a voice of a tired, old man appeared on the phone.

    ¡®I don¡¯t recognize him,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    Some figures made a name for themselves in the first few days of the apocalypse. But this voice didn¡¯t belong to any of them.

    ¡°To start it off,¡± the man got tired of waiting and initiated the discussion.

    Nadia trembled by Mathew¡¯s side, the consequences of her friend¡¯s actions finally dawning on her.

    ¡°What the hell do you want?¡± the negotiator askedzily. ¡°Drop the entire hero pretense and just tell me what do you want,¡± he added after another moment of silence.

    ¡°First, I¡¯m extremely sorry for this entire disturbance,¡± Mathew spoke calmly to the phone.

    Nadia froze, surprised by the unexpected development. By this point, she appeared to lose all hope in her friend.

    ¡°To make sure we are on the same page,¡± Mathew continued, ¡°I didn¡¯t hurt anyone. Outside of a single cab, I didn¡¯t hurt anything at all. And I would be the happiest man in the world to keep it that way,¡± Mathew stated.

    ¡°What?¡± Naida kept silent, too scared to interrupt the call. But the expression on her face was clear.

    ¡°But in the off chance that I¡¯m right,¡± Mathew suddenly added, his tone changing a little. The difference even reflected on his face as he closed his eyes in peace. ¡°Then I need one of your men to witness it first hand,¡± Mathew added.

    For a moment, the negotiator turned silent.

    Then, a faint voice reached out to the two of them through the phone.

    ¡°You saw that too?¡±

    Mathew¡¯s heart stopped beating for a moment.

    ¡®What?¡¯ he thought, his eyes opening wide.

    He then shook his head and took a deep breath.

    ¡°Remember,¡± he said to the phone. ¡°I need one, fully armed man. If nothing happens in twenty minutes, I walk out in cuffs,¡± Mathew spoke to the phone, his face calming down.

    ¡°But if I¡¯m right, then you will understand my need for a heavily armed team in this ce,¡± Mathew added, a small smile appearing on his lips. ¡°I will be waiting by the infirmary,¡± he threw before cutting the call.

    ¡°Is this all¡­¡± Naida muttered under her nose, ¡°all necessary?¡± she asked, raising her eyes despite keeping her face low.

    ¡°Oh dear,¡± Mathew whispered as he closed his eyes. ¡°I hope not with all my heart,¡± he added before reaching out and patting Nadia¡¯s head. ¡°Whatever will be the case, I will make sure you will be safe,¡± he said, more to himself than to the girl.

    ¡°Safe?¡± Nadia raised her eyes again. ¡°Safe from what?¡±

    The look on her face started to change. As she learned more and more about the situation, she slowly managed to piece together some sort of exnation.

    Whether it was right or not, Mathew had no idea¡­ But he could tell that Nadia¡¯s mood had changed.

    ¡°Just wait for a moment,¡± Mathew smiled in response. ¡°Once the officer arrives, I will exin everything,¡± he said before sharply turning his head to the side.

    The sound of footsteps reached Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡®So he is here, already,¡¯ he thought, turning his face towards the entrance of the corridor.

    The Cherif of the town.

    Not in the direct meaning of this world.

    This man was just your regr cop. But his disposition and poprity forced this moniker upon him.

    ¡®I guess the cowboy¡¯s hat did its part in this man¡¯s image,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    ¡°So?¡± the man asked, his arms crossed over his muscr chest. ¡°What do you need me here for?¡± he asked, puzzled by Mathew¡¯s calm demeanor.

    ¡°Twenty minutes of your time,¡± Mathew replied bluntly before gracing the man with his smile. ¡°If nothing happens until then, I will surrender. And if something happens,¡± Mathew stopped, turning his eyes and directing them towards the opposite side of the corridor.

    Both his firearm and the fire ax rested against the wall. Each of them is at least two meters away from Mathew.

    ¡°Okay?¡± the man muttered.

    The dissonance between his expectations and reality boiled in the policeman¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°For now, though,¡± Mathew nced over at Naida before revealing a small, sad smile. ¡°I guess you need to hear what I saw,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose, only to raise his head and look at the officer¡¯s face.

    ¡°Roughly half an hour ago, I died.¡±

 Chapter 6 Calm before the storm

    ¡°Kid, what¡¯s your problem?¡± the officer asked, putting a weird grin on his face.

    It was a look of a man who just can¡¯t deal with the teenagers.

    ¡°Roughly half an hour ago, I died,¡± Mathew repeated his words, looking the man directly in the eyes.

    For a moment, the two entered a standoff.

    It was apletely random urrence when their eyes met.

    For the next few moments, the two of them simply stared each other down, each more desperate not to blink.

    ¡°With all my heart, I hope it was just a bad dream,¡± Mathew said, plummeting down to the ground and resting his face in his hands. ¡°But if it¡¯s not, I need to do everything in my power to survive what¡¯s about toe,¡± he added in a silent voice.

    ¡°So you just want someone to hold your hand and tell you everything will be okay?¡± the officer asked, an uneasy expression forming on his lips.

    ¡®Who is this guy?¡¯ Mathew thought, rolling his eyes. ¡®I know I asked for a Veteran, but still, how could they send someone so clueless¡­¡¯ he despaired.

    Since when calling someone out like that was a method of dealing with a potential terrorist?

    ¡®Or is it the fact that I let go of my guns that makes him so rxed?¡¯ Mathew thought before shooing all those useless thoughts aside.

    ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter,¡¯ he thought, moving his eyes on Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡°In twenty-seven minutes from now, I believe something will happen in that infirmary,¡± Mathew said, finally ready to exin what was going on.

    ¡°Did you¡­¡± Nadia whispered, her face tense as she thought about something. ¡°See something?¡± she asked, raising her eyes on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I saw a lot,¡± Mathew quickly replied. ¡°And the worst of it all is that I can still see something that I shouldn¡¯t see,¡± he added, ncing over to the clock in the corner of his vision.

    It continued to tick the time away. One second at a time. But it never stopped.

    Nadia turned silent.

    She was likely too confused to say something.

    ¡°And no,¡± Mathew said, turning his head back towards the officer. ¡°If it¡¯s holding hands that I needed, I could just ask my dear friend,¡± he said, nodding his chin towards the girl. ¡°What I need is someone good enough with the gun to cover my back,¡± he added in a half-voice, turning his eyes away.

    The officer¡¯s face tensed up when he realized the meaning behind those words.

    ¡°What¡¯s going to happen in twenty-seven minutes?¡± he asked coldly.

    His hand hovered near his holster, where his personal weapon could be seen just as Mathew requested.

    ¡°It has nothing to do with me,¡± Mathew raised his hands before slowly turning his face towards the infirmary. ¡°Once again. I died half an hour ago,¡± he put a huge emphasis on those words. ¡°I have no idea how, but I made it back. Back in time?¡± Mathew suddenly asked, covering his face with his hands.

    ¡°So you really need someone to just watch over those doors for a short while?¡± the officer asked. His voice softened a little. ¡°And then you will be happy, right?¡± he added.

    ¡°I certainly do hope so,¡± Mathew nodded his head, turning his hand towards the doors. ¡°But before everything starts, remember a few things,¡± he suddenly announced.

    ¡°First, you won¡¯t turn from a single scratch. It takes quite a lot of their body juices to enter your system for you to turn,¡± Mathew said in a tone of someone schooling a youngster about the basics of a craft. ¡°We have an hour once it starts to¡­¡±

    Mathew hesitated.

    ¡®Using kill right now¡­ It wouldn¡¯t be the greatest idea,¡¯ he noticed.

    ¡°To do what?¡± the officer asked. Even though he appeared to be rxed, the look in his eyes proved he didn¡¯t just let Mathew¡¯s words by his ears.

    ¡°To clean as many of them,¡± Mathew finished before turning his eyes back towards the nearby doors. ¡°All we had was just a guess,¡± he hesitated for a moment before biting his lips down. ¡°But it seems that the progress during the first hour decides who will receive a system,¡± he then randomly dropped another bomb.

    ¡°A system?¡± the officer repeated the word impassively, clearly confused about the sudden turn of the story.

    ¡°Wait, are you telling me¡­¡± Nadia suddenly turned energetic.

    Her interests aligned her to understand the term in its proper way. But the picture that such term usually invoked¡­

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°Thest time, I got a miracle system,¡± he exined without hiding anything. ¡°Basically, I could offer something in order to invoke a miracle,¡± he said.

    ¡°What are you even talking about, guys?¡± the officer couldn¡¯t hold it for long. He couldn¡¯t understand the topic, which didn¡¯t sit well with his desire to control the situation.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the jargon,¡± Mathew turned his eyes towards the man before casting a quick look at the clock.

    ¡®It will all start in ten minutes,¡¯ he noticed before refocusing his eyes on the man.

    ¡°If I¡¯m correct, then in ten minutes, the zombie apocalypse will start,¡± Mathew exined bluntly. ¡°It¡¯s just a guess, but the more zombies we destroy,¡± Mat was careful to avoid the wrong word, ¡®the better system we will receive,¡± he exined as simply as he could.

    ¡°A system is basically a cheat,¡± Nadia exined. She was well versed in all sorts of literature. ¡°An overpowered ability that makes one stronger than the others,¡± she borated a little before raising her thumb to her lips.

    ¡°No, that¡¯s not it,¡± she muttered, biting down on her nail. ¡°It¡¯s a way for the character to survive the situation. A power-up in a fantasy world,¡± she fixed her own mistake.

    ¡°Again, what do you want to do with those zombies?¡± the officer interrupted the deep exnation of the term.

    A rxed smile on his face¡­ felt weird. As if there was a second meaning behind it.

    ¡°Shit,¡± Mathew thought, realizing his mistake.

    ¡°Could you perhaps be interested in killing sick citizens and students of this school?¡± the man asked, openlyying his hand down at the handle of his weapon.

    Mathew raised his hands in reply.

    ¡°I won¡¯t reach for the weapon unless it is toote,¡± he promised, a knowing smile blossoming on his lips.

    ¡°And what do you mean by toote?¡± the officer asked, undoing the strap on the holster.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see,¡± Mathew smiled,pletely rxed in the situation. ¡°When this corridor will get overrun with zombies, and you will be desperately screaming for reinforcements. Fair enough?¡± Mathew asked with a smile of a naive child on his face.

    ¡°Fair enough,¡± the officer sighed.

    He seemed to realize what kind of situation they were talking about.

    ¡°Just keep those points in mind,¡± Mathew added, holding back a small giggle. ¡°Also, I hope your radio is working,¡± he added, turning his eyes towards the doors.

    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± the man asked, interested by the sudden question.

    ¡°It would be for the best if the rest of your people prepared to rush to this ce,¡± Mathew replied, turning his face towards the man. ¡°The sooner you make the decision, the more time they will have toe and help us contain it,¡± Mathew added before shaking his shoulders.

    ¡°And if nothing happens?¡± the officer asked, unwilling to drop the realistic approach to the topic.

    ¡°Then I will surrender, pay back the damage, and openly apologize to every officer that had to stayte in work because of my actions,¡± Mathew replied with a small smirk. ¡°Just kidding. I will most likely go serve my time. That or a mental hospital,¡± he added.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Nadia screamed out a little.

    The look of worry on her face made Mathew¡¯s heart tremble.

    This was the cost of his actions that he didn¡¯t foresee.

    If it all turned out to be a mere hallucination, a bad dream, and even worse decisions¡­ He would bring Nadia a lot of grief.

    ¡®Wait, what?¡¯ Mathew suddenly shrugged. ¡®What am I even thinking about?¡¯ he asked himself, puzzled by the sudden nostalgia. ¡®Between making her sad and having her torn apart by the zombies¡­¡¯ he thought, his entire body tensing up.

    Mat nced over at the clock.

    ¡°Two minutes left,¡± Mathew muttered, turning his face towards the officer. ¡°It will be a good moment to ask your men to prepare,¡± he advised.

    The officer raised one of his eyebrows.

    For a moment, there was only silence.

    ¡°Come in,¡± the man finally raised his voice, his radio by his mouth.

    ¡°Yeah?¡± Mathew heard a silent reply on the other side.

    ¡°Guys, the matter is handled. No killed or injured,¡± he added before taking a long nce at Mat¡¯s determined face.

    ¡°Just in case, get ready for a brutal fight in a minute,¡± he added before lowering the radio back on his chest.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Mathew replied, refusing to move his eyes away from the infirmary doors.

    The clock reached the breaking point. With all the minutes gone, it could only count thest remaining seconds.

    ¡°Nadia,¡± Mathew muttered, turning his head towards the girl.

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    ¡°Whatever happens¡­¡± Mat cringed at his own words.

    ¡®What, am I in some drama movie for teens now?¡¯ he asked himself before rolling his eyes.

    ¡°I will keep you safe,¡± he whispered, reaching the peaks of courage he didn¡¯t achieve back in the apocalypse.

    The seconds ticked down.

    ¡°If we get the chance, we should snatch the medkit from the infirmary,¡± Mathew said right as the second clock reached its final second.

 Chapter 7 Agile Zombies

    The time ran out.

    The clock struck zero.

    Mathew¡¯s heart beat faster, only to slow down.

    Instead of getting excited, his mind turnedpletely empty, ready to adapt to any and all possible situation from now on.

    The time came¡­

    And went away.

    The corridor remained as silent as one could imagine.

    In the middle of a massive high school, that is.

    ¡°Thank God.¡±

    A visible wave of relief washed off Mathew¡¯s entire self.

    He plummeted down on the ground, only supporting his upper body with his arms.

    ¡°Is that all this¡­ was about?¡± the officer asked.

    The man still kept his hand on his gun¡¯s holster. But he saw Mathew¡¯s reactions.

    And they were genuine.

    ¡°I guess so,¡± Mathew replied with an uneasy smile. But as much as he wanted, he couldn¡¯t rx.

    Because while the second clock stopped¡­

    The third one hidden in the corner of Mathew¡¯s vision continued to tick.

    A wave of uneasiness filled Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    He then shook his head.

    ¡°So, do you want to cuff me now?¡± he asked, rxing a bit.

    ¡®Thank fucking God,¡¯ he thought, all the strength leaving his arms.

    ¡°Now that I think about it,¡± the officer hesitated for a moment. ¡°You did say that you only destroyed a cab, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mat couldn¡¯t understand what the officer was talking about. He understood the words but not the meaning behind the question.

    ¡°Yeah, I only did it to confirm if what I saw in my dream adhered to the reality,¡± Mathew exined before releasing a deep sigh.

    The entire situation tired him down to no end.

    ¡°I guess¡­ This matter didn¡¯t really explode in the media yet. But, since there was no real harm attempted, I could put in a good word¡­¡± the man scratched his cheek, clearly unsure of how to proceed.

    He was a veteran officer of the prevention group. Not someone educated to deal with adolescents.

    But Mathew didn¡¯t smile. Instead, his face froze.

    ¡®Those sounds¡­¡¯ he thought, listening in to the lowest frequency that he could hear.

    His eyes opened up wide.

    ¡®Now I remember!¡¯ he thought, desperately shifting his attention to the girl beside him.

    ¡°Can you hear those low sounds?¡± he asked, grabbing the girl by her shoulders.

    It was a very low, barely noticeable beating. A rhythmic sound that one had to really focus on hearing.

    Nadia¡¯s face turned still for a moment before her pupils widened as she looked at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°What are those?¡± she asked, shocked to her wits.

    ¡°What are you talking about, guys?¡± the officer asked, puzzled by the sudden change.

    ¡°You won¡¯t be able to hear it,¡± Mathew rushed up, alerting the man in the process.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Mat added, seeing the nervous reaction of the man. ¡°We don¡¯t have the time for that, but you can grab any young student in the school right now,¡± Mathew pointed out as his expression sank.

    ¡°To do what?¡± the officer asked, clearly on edge.

    ¡°To ask if they hear a low, rhythmic sound beating at the very edge of their consciousness,¡± Mathew exined before focusing his eyes on the infirmary¡¯s door.

    The rtive silence of before was now nowhere to be seen.

    In the short moment when Mat¡¯s idea upied their attention, the infirmary turned into a mess.

    ¡°What is going on?¡± the officer started, moving his eyes on the care room¡¯s doors.

    ¡°It¡¯s starting,¡± Mathew replied, his face turning pale. He involuntarily took a step back, only to move his eyes on the girl behind him.

    ¡®No,¡¯ he thought, challenged by the reality.

    With every second, Mat could recall a new harbinger of what was about toe.

    The air in the school tensed up. The beating in his ears got louder.

    It was exactly the same symptoms that he had experienced two weeks prior.

    ¡°Stay behind me at all times,¡± Mathew ordered, shielding the girl with his own body.

    ¡®The first few moments will be the worst,¡¯ he thought, ncing over at the officer.

    It would rest on the policeman¡¯s right call for the desperate n to seed. And that was a variable Mathew couldn¡¯t allow.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Nadia muttered silently, grabbing herself by her head.

    Mathew¡¯s heart exploded.

    ¡®For her symptoms to appear so strongly¡­¡¯

    His soul broke apart.

    She not only would be forced to witness the apocalypse, but she would also turn into an evolved monster herself!

    ¡®What the fuck did change?!¡¯ Mathew thought, desperate to find a way to change this unfair fate.

    ¡®Wait,¡¯ he suddenly thought, as a wild idea appeared in his mind.

    The doors to the infirmary started to shake, indicating the scale of the hell inside.

    ¡°What the fuck is going on?!¡± the officer screamed out, pulling out his gun.

    ¡°Mathew turned his head to the man.

    ¡°This is the best moment to call for the backup,¡± he said calmly, looking the officer directly in the eye.

    And the man hesitated.

    He was a veteran of a police elite squad and a former military as well. And he could recognize the eyes of someone who went through hell and back.

    ¡®How the hell could a kid¡­¡¯ he thought, only to nce over towards the doors. ¡®Something wrong is really going on,¡¯ he thought, tightening his grasp over his handgun.

    ¡°Guys,e on in,¡± the officer muttered.

    He didn¡¯t bother turning the radio on. Which meant that his team outside heard everyst word.

    ¡®Just like expected,¡¯ Mathew smiled, reassured by the development.

    And then, just like that, it happened.

    The doors burst open. And then a single student walked out of ce.

    He was grabbing his own arm, but even his entire hand couldn¡¯t stop the copious amounts of blood that trickled between his fingers.

    ¡®Poor guy,¡¯ Mathew thought, unable to do anything for the man.

    ¡®With how little I know, stepping inside that room was a suicide,¡¯ he thought.

    The man that walked out wasn¡¯t turned yet. Which meant he was likely the first casualty of the apocalypse.

    ¡®Poor guy,¡¯ Mathew thought, steeling his resolve. ¡®But a lucky one too,¡¯ he added before ncing over at the officer.

    ¡°If you want me to grab my weapons, now it¡¯s the time,¡± Mathew announced. Even though he wanted to appear cheeky, he couldn¡¯t hide the worry on his face.

    ¡°There is no need for you to do anything,¡± the man said when the footsteps reached their ears. He fixed hisposure and aimed his gun at the door.

    ¡°It will take about ten more seconds before he turns,¡± Mathew said without a care in the world. ¡°You should watch it to make up your mind,¡± he added as he turned his eyes to the girl.

    ¡°I will save you, don¡¯t worry,¡± he said, his worry exploding when he saw Nadia¡¯s cloudy eyes.

    ¡®It¡¯s not good,¡¯ Mat bit down on his lips.

    ¡®If I managed to save her thest time by obtaining the miracle system, then what can I do now?¡¯ he asked himself.

    This was the hurdle that he didn¡¯t expect.

    When he received his miracle system two weeks ago, Mathew wished to reunite with the girl. But, outside of hisst wish, this one cost him the most.

    And then, just like one would expect from a miracle, Nadia just happened to appear beside him a momentter.

    It was this one desperate wish that gave him enough strength to survive. Even if it was for two more weeks.

    ¡®At the current rate, she will turn in about an hour,¡¯ Mathew thought, helping the girl down as she could no longer stand.

    ¡°What wrong with her?¡± the officer asked, turning his eyes away from the door for a moment.

    The rest of the police squad appeared in the corridor, all heavily armed.

    ¡®That¡¯s a good sigh,¡¯ Mathew thought, smiling gently at sight. Then, he turned his face towards the doors.

    ¡®It should start about now,¡¯ he thought.

    Then the wall crumbled.

    Pushed by the force of tens of zombies, the entire section of the wall around the infirmary¡¯s doors copsed. And a single secondter, the corridor filled with agile zombies.

    The rarest kind of this species. Within the two weeks that Mat survived before, they only appeared right at the beginning.

    Outside of their speed, they were no different from normal zombies. And in the time he spent hiding with Nadia away in their makeshift fortress, Mathew formted a guess.

    Mat smiled as he walked towards his weapons.

    ¡°Remember, guys,¡± he shouted over, noticing the shock in the eyes of the arriving men.

    They heard everyst word of his through the officer¡¯s active radio. So to a degree, they knew what was likely to be the emergency here.

    But anticipating something and experiencing it first hand¡­

    ¡°The more you get, the stronger your system should be,¡± Mat said, hiding his gun in his pocket and pulling out the fire ax. ¡°And if we contain them here, we might be able to secure the entire school!¡±

    ¡°What is this guy talking about?¡± one of the policemen muttered before moving their eyes on the mass of approaching zombies.

    They were agile¡­ but within the zombie meaning of this word.

    The officers still had some time to decide on the course of action.

    ¡°Stop right there!¡± the man that I requested before suddenly shouted, pointing his gun at the zombies.

    Obviously, not a single one listened. Instead, his voice only attracted their attention, making the entire wave rush right at the man.

    ¡°Ting!¡±

    Mathew stood too close to the gun. His hearing in his left ear went off instantly.

    ¡°Shoot them down,¡± the officer said,manding his entire unit.

    Mathew looked towards the zombies, preparing himself for the massacre.

    And then he saw just what made that officer shoot so fast.

    The nurse¡¯s corpse walked towards them with half of her ribs area gone.

    The officer has seen war. And he knew that people without half of their torse couldn¡¯t walk up straight.

    It was this one sight that made him shoot.

    ¡°Leave some for me!¡± Mathew shouted, rushing into the fray before the rest of the officers could start shooting.

    This was the only way to save Nadia from turning.

    ¡®If I could save her back then, that means she likely won¡¯t turn before the first hour,¡¯ Mathew thought, swinging his ax above his neck as he rushed forward. ¡®That means I need a system capable of saving her!¡¯ he thought.

    He never learned any facts about what the systems were. It was something that just¡­ appeared. The idea that those who killed zombies in the first hour would receive a system was¡­ a stretch.

    A simple attempt at exining the unknown by mixing the stories up and findingmon points.

    There was a chance it was all for naught already,pletely pointless.

    ¡®But I¡¯m not going to give up,¡¯ Mathew thought, reaching the corpse of the nurse.

    It used to be a lovely and kind woman, although legendary for her singlehood.

    And now, even with a bullet in where her heart should be, she continued to walk towards the humans.

    The key to fighting zombiesy in, stopping them from reaching you. As long as a human could remain in their top shape, they could easily fight off entire droves of zombies.

    Mathew cut the zombie¡¯s head away but didn¡¯t bother to stomp it down.

    Unable to move around, the zombie was now renderedpletely useless.

    But it was only the beginning.

    Matt looked up towards the wave of former students sleazing out of the hole and rushing all towards him.

    ¡°Once we thin them out, make sure to take some down in close quarters!¡± Mathew shouted, raising his weapon above his head. ¡°It¡¯s only a guess, but it might help!¡±

 Chapter 8 Insufficient

    Mat buried his ax deep into the head of the zombie nearest to him.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ he cursed, desperately pulling at the handle, only to realize it was toote.

    His desperate swing aimed at killing the one enemy that threatened him ended up costing Mat his weapon.

    ¡°Duck!¡± the officer shouted, pressing the trigger o his weapon a secondter.

    There was no sign of hesitation in his movements and actions either. The sight of those half-eaten bodies was enough to turn this calmw enforcer into a merciless veteran.

    ¡°Thanks!¡± I threw in the air, squatting and reaching out for my weapon.

    That man¡¯s shot gave me just enough time to grab my tool of the massacre.

    ¡®There is no end to them,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his eyes at the approaching enemies.

    The zombies in the opening wave were surprisingly swift¡­ but still within the scope of what one would expect from a zombie.

    There were limits to how fast a half-eaten body could move.

    Mat took a nce to update himself on the situation. He then nced over at Nadia. Following that, a long wrinkle appeared on his forehead.

    ¡®Why is she infected?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, unable to fully embrace the seriousness of the situation. ¡®What should I do? Will my system be able to save her?¡¯

    A flurry of questions exploded in Mathew¡¯s mind.

    ¡®No use, there is only one thing I can do right now,¡¯ he thought as he raised his eyes on the approaching zombies.

    There were two ways of saving Nadia.

    ¡®I can either rely on the system or force summon a merchant,¡¯ Mat thought, recalling the rules he learned about the apocalypse world in his past life.

    ¡®But this isn¡¯t going to be easy,¡¯ he thought, readying himself for yet another fight.

    ¡®Patric, was he?¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing at the bloodied face.

    A senior from one year up. A vibrant person in the music circle. And now but a headless zombie left to rot away.

    Mathew then swung his ax again and then again. The two weeks of intense and constantbat ingrained themselves into his flesh, allowing Mat to proceed rtively calmly.

    ¡®At the current rate,¡¯ Mat thought, using the opening in the fight to nce over at the girl.

    Nadia¡¯s forehead was already turning bright pink, coated with fat drops of her sweat. Her breathing was hard, and her eyes half-closed.

    Mat then looked over to the clock in the corner of his vision.

    ¡®She won¡¯tst until the first wave,¡¯ he realized, his fingers tightening into fists on their own.

    It meant a simple thing.

    It didn¡¯t matter whether his system could prevent Nadia from turning anymore. Because she would likely sumb to the virus before Mat would receive his system in the first ce.

    A wave of powerlessness surged through Mat¡¯s veins, freezing his body on the spot.

    And then, the fire behind his eyes reignited.

    ¡®If I can¡¯t use the system, then I will force summon this damned merchant!¡¯ he decided on the spot, gripping the handle of his weapon tighter.

    Whoever was behind this apocalypse sure thought things through.

    By killing zombies, one could extract a life¡¯s core from their brains. In the world changed by the apocalypse, those cores turned into the unified value for everything.

    Or rather, that¡¯s what Mat believed would happen if hested any further into the post-apocalyptic world. Yet, there was one thing that he knew for sure.

    One could forcefully summon a merchant by gathering a hundred of said cores.

    In the world of the apocalypse, those who worked hard would receive bountiful rewards.

    By exchanging further cores with the merchant, one could obtain basically anything they could desire, all for a fair price.

    ¡®I will need about a hundred and fifty,¡¯ Mat thought, focusing his eyes on the nearest group of zombies.

    But just as he was about to rush it, a series of shots shook the air in the corridor.

    The backup force of the anti-terrorists finally joined the battle.

    The battle went on quickly from that point on.

    Despite being slightly stronger than the normal zombies, they still didn¡¯t pose any real danger to a prepared defense. For now, Mathew¡¯s group was safe.

    ¡°Ugh!¡± Mathew moaned from exhaustion when he brough his ax down on the head of thest of the zombies.

    With several minutes left on the clock, he still had some time to help Nadia out.

    But he could only stand his ground, looking down at all the cores that he managed to gather.

    With the swift zombies all defeated, new zombies would only appear during the first wave. The first wave would start once Mat¡¯s third clock reached its time.

    In other words, with all the zombies gone, no more would appear before after Nadia would turn.

    And in Mat¡¯s palms, there were only ny-five stones.

 Chapter 9 Wives System

    ¡°Is that all of them?¡± the police officer approached Mat shortly after he finished the job.

    ¡°For now, yeah,¡± Mat replied, turning around and ignoring the man.

    ¡®There is no way I will waste my time talking with him right now,¡¯ Mat thought, falling to his knees by Nadia¡¯s side.

    He then picked up her delicate fingers, only to feel just how hot she was.

    ¡°Are you here?¡± Mathew asked gently, reaching out and wiping the sweat off the girl¡¯s forehead.

    Her half-opened eyes appeared to be asleep as if she was no longer aware of her surroundings.

    ¡®She is worse than it expected,¡¯ Mathew thought, carefully inspecting Nadia¡¯s face and eyes.

    Without a hundred cores, Mat couldn¡¯t summon a merchant. And even if he did, he would have no cores left for the medicine.

    ¡°Nadia,¡± Mathew brought his lips closer to the girl¡¯s ear, gently pushing her hair out of the way as he whispered. ¡°I need you to hold on for ten more minutes,¡± Mathew said before ncing over at the clock in the corner of his vision.

    Only five minutes left before the first wave would truly begin.

    ¡°Hey, is that all? Or is something else going to happen?!¡± the officer from before shouted, forcing Mat out of his daze.

    ¡°In five minutes, a small percent of the poption will turn into normal zombies,¡± Mat said before turning his eyes back to the girl.

    ¡°Nadia, I need you to promise me this,¡± Mathew then whispered right into the girl¡¯s ear. ¡°Promise me that you will hold on for ten more minutes,¡± he continued to press the girl.

    ¡°How could I refuse,¡± Nadia whispered, using as little air as she could to voice her words. ¡°When you are asking so sweetly?¡± she muttered, moving her hand around in an attempt to find Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡®She is losing her sight already?¡¯ Mathew thought, his body tensing up.

    The only reason why he tried so hard right now was to keep Nadia safe by his side. But as it turned out, no matter what he would do, it would be all pointless!

    Because losing one¡¯s sight, was thest symptom before one would turn.

    ¡®I don¡¯t give a fuck anymore,¡¯ Mathew thought, bringing the girl closer in his arms.

    ¡°I promise,¡± Nadia muttered, clearly having trouble voicing her thoughts. ¡°I will hold,¡± she added before suddenly sucking on the air as if she was drowning.

    Mat couldn¡¯t do anything but cuddle Nadia¡¯s shaking body in his arms.

    The clock reached zero.

    The first wave started.

    ¡°Man, speak to me!¡± the police officer attempted to force Mat out of his daze but to no avail.

    [System activated]

    [Wives Leveling System Awakens]

    [Pick Your Wife]

    Three windows appeared one by one, right before Mat¡¯s eyes.

    He then looked around to check on the situation.

    No police officer appeared to have any trouble, meaning none of them would turn during the first wave.

    And that left Nadia in Mat¡¯s arms.

    ¡°Nadia, do you hear me?¡± Mathew probed, once again clearing the girl¡¯s forehead from sweat.

    He then gulped down his saliva before leaning over the girl¡¯s ear, as close as if he wanted to nibble on it.

    ¡°Nadia, will you be my wife?¡± Mathew asked.

    But Nadia could no longer speak.

    Then, her lips moved a little. No voice came from between them, but they clearly formed two different figures!

    [Wife epted] the System announced in its usual, cold voice.

    And then, all the windows disappeared from Mat¡¯s vision, forcefully returning him to reality.

    ¡®

    Mat¡¯s eyes instantly moved down to the girl in his arms.

    Nadia¡¯s temperature fell down, signaling that the sudden appearance of the System worked.

    ¡®Thank God,¡¯ Math thought, feeling the stable rhythm in which the girl started to breathe.

    Whatever his System did, it clearly worked.

    ¡®But I doubt this will be all,¡¯ Mat thought, caressing Nadia¡¯s cheek for a while as he dealt with an overwhelming wave of relief.

    ¡®She is so fragile,¡¯ Mat thought, gently hugging the girl into his chest.

    Normally she would be the one to protect him. Yet, right now, she felt like a small, little puppy when confined to Mat¡¯s arms.

    ¡®Whatever will happen from now on, I need to protect her,¡¯ Mat thought to himself, resting his chin on the top of the girl¡¯s head. Keeping her enclosed in his grasp like that was the only medicine for his anxiety-torn heart.

    ¡°Listen to me, you little fuck!¡± the officer finally couldn¡¯t hold himself back anymore. He shouted so loud that Mathew had no other choice but to raise his head. ¡°What the hell is going to happen next?!¡±

    Now that his attention was back in reality, Mathew noticed the low, guttural sounding from the staircase to their back.

    The zombies were already nearing this ce.

    ¡®And she didn¡¯t turn,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking down at the girl in his arms.

    She was sleeping, clearly exhausted to no end by the attack of the virus.

    ¡°I can¡¯t stop yet,¡± Mathew told himself,ying the girl down on the floor. He then raised his eyes on the officer. ¡°Right now, we need to obtain as many life cores as we can,¡± he said, gathering himself up and taking hold of his ax.

    ¡°Those stones you collected before?¡± the negotiator asked, leaning his head to the side while sending a nce towards the zombies approaching from the side.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head, fixing his hold over his weapon. ¡°For a hundred, we can summon a merchant. But we need a thousand to establish a fortress,¡± he said, taking a step towards the iing wave.

    Now that Nadia was rtively safe, Mathew no longer needed to hold back. Contrary to that, he had to secure his position as soon as possible.

    Only by gaining ess to a merchant and farming the cores could Mat hope to establish himself in this new, changed world.

    ¡®Whatever it will take, I will do,¡¯ Mat thought, locking his eyes on the nearest zombie. ¡®No matter what, I will keep Nadia safe!¡¯

 Chapter 10 Mathews announcement

    ¡®A thousand to establish a fortress¡­ But we need to summon at least three merchants first,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to fight his confusion by organizing his thoughts.

    ¡®But that¡¯s all a song of the future. For now, we need a merchant,¡¯ he thought, reflecting on his own state of mind.

    ¡°How long do we have?¡± the officer asked, raising his hand to stop the rest of the group from approaching.

    The scene of the carnage just a few feet away from us was awful enough from a distance. There was no point in forcing those good men to endure this gruesome sight for no reason.

    ¡°Several minutes,¡± Mathew replied, only to cast a quick nce into the corner of his vision. ¡°Six minutes to be exact,¡± he then added, making his answer more precise.

    ¡°What should we expect?¡± the man asked, pulling out the mag of his gun and ncing down to check his ammunition.

    ¡°And how the heck could I know that?¡± Mathew asked, opening his eyes wide in a faked shock. ¡°I had my hands full trying to escape those agile ones. I only ended up killing one by ident,¡± he revealed, only to spread his arms wide. ¡°For all I know, this school might be safe now that the agile ones are gone. But it¡¯s also possible that the first wave of real zombies will begin soon.¡±

    ¡®That¡¯s right,¡¯ Mathew thought grimly. ¡®Even by surviving two weeks into the apocalypse, I still know shit,¡¯ he thought as he bit down on his lip in frustration.

    ¡°Mat?¡± Nadia muttered softly through her sleep. Her eyelids tightened only to rx as a wide,fortable smile emerged on her lips.

    ¡®I wonder what is she dreaming about,¡¯ Mathew thought, bringing his hand up to Nadia¡¯s cheek and caressing it gently.

    ¡°Anyway, what we need, right now is a merchant,¡± Mathew said as he stood up and looked around. ¡°But we are in a really bad spot to think about it,¡± he added, raising his hand to his face only to bit down on the nail of his thumb.

    A momentary grief took over Mathew¡¯s face, only for him to shake his head and then look up at the police officers.

    ¡°There is one thing that we can do,¡± he stated, only to avert his eyes a momentter. ¡°But I need to ask you first,¡± he added, his voice faltering.

    Because Mathew was aware of what was the true meaning of what he was about to ask.

    ¡°Do you want to operate with efficiency or morals in mind?¡± Mathew asked.

    ¡®Right now, the support of the armed forces is the best guarantee for safety,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a deep breath. ¡®Even if their strength fades away against the evolved monsters, they could offer me a kickstart into the economy of the new world,¡¯ he thought.

    In order to make a living, there was only one path worth pursuing.

    And it was collecting the life stones of the zombies and monsters alike only to then trade them away with the merchants.

    ¡®I only had the opportunity to visit a merchant once,¡¯ Mathew recalled the short memory from his previous life.

    Back then, he only had a few stones on himself, courtesy of defending their fortress from the iing zombies.

    With the favorable terrain and a small help from his former system, he managed to collect a small sum.

    ¡®To think that this would be one of my worst memories,¡¯ Mathew thought, lowering his eyes and taking a five-second period of silence to mourn his idiotic decisions from before.

    Back then, he wasted his entire fortune to heal the effects of thest sacrifice. Back then, he gave away all of his potentials to grow just to regain his emotions.

    ¡®Sure, it was torture to live without them, but I could just wait, grow more and regain themter,¡¯ he thought, unable to forgive himself for the past mistakes.

    ¡®But what¡¯s important right now is to not make any mistakes down the line,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his eyes and looking at the officer with a sense of urgency burning behind his eyes.

    ¡°I don¡¯t even want to know what n you have in store,¡± the negotiator only shook his head, making his mustache jump around as a result. ¡°But I say we go for efficiency,¡± he decided only to rest his free arm on his hip.

    His right hand, though, continued to tighten around the handle of the man¡¯s gun.

    ¡°Alright,¡± Mathew nodded his head only to then proceed to shake it.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± the policeman asked, weirded out by Math¡¯s sudden movements.

    ¡°Shaking off all the unnecessary thoughts,¡± Mathew replied, bringing his head back up and then taking a deep breath.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do it,¡± he added after just a short moment.

    There was no time for hesitation.

    ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter if my actions will turn me into a devil,¡¯ Mathew thought, the look in his eyes darkening as he picked up the pace and led the group down the corridor.

    The school was rtively small. The object of Mathew¡¯s interest was just right ahead.

    ¡°I hope you left someone to guard Nadia,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose as he approached the doors.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the middle-aged officer nodded his head in response. ¡°There are two gunmen with her; she will be safe,¡± he exined.

    The power bnce between those two changed greatly over the course of just thest few minutes.

    From the adult and the freaking-out kid to partners who each recognized the other¡¯s value.

    Mathew, despite not having any military or disciplinary upbringing, could recognize the discipline and prowess of a trained man. On the other hand, the officer could see the same type of determination that he experienced only on the battlefield before.

    It was a weird pairing, but one that worked out surprisingly well.

    ¡°What is this ce?¡± the officer asked when Mathew led the forward part of the group inside a small room, cramped with big boxes full of electrical equipment.

    ¡°It¡¯s the school¡¯s radio station,¡± Mathew smiled as he approached the desk and picked up the mic haphazardly thrown in the corner by the previous shift of the radio club.

    ¡°How was it¡­¡± Mathew muttered as he yed around with the switches and controls of the system. He would nce once every few moments towards the clock, watching with desperation as it continued to tick down.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m all set,¡± Mathew purred before turning his eyes towards the officer.

    ¡°Go and alert the others. We need to upy the rooftop and the highest floor of the school,¡± Mathew ordered, only to turn his lips back towards the microphone and press the main switch of the system.

    ¡°To all students! Our school will now go through the surprise fire drill!¡± Mathew announced into the microphone.

    In an instant, his voice filled every corner and corridor of the school.

    And before he could even make any follow-up, the entire ce started to shake when all the students started to move at once.

    A fire drill in the exam period was truly a god-sent, a gift that not a single one of them would pass on!

    ¡°All students are to calmly assemble in the courtyard of the school and wait for further instructions!¡± Mathew added only to flick the switch again and throw the microphone away.

    ¡°Hey!¡± the officer shouted, grabbing Mathew¡¯s arm as he turned around with the clear intention of leaving the room. ¡°What was that all about?!¡± he asked, clearly unhappy with Mathew making big moves without consulting them with the police beforehand.

    ¡°Controlling those two ces is crucial to our survival,¡± Mathew exined with a nk, passive voice. There wasn¡¯t even a single emotion in it.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you pull the students just from those two floors then?!¡± the officer shouted, clearly enraged by Mathew¡¯s autonomous actions.

    Or rather, not the actions themselves, but the insane burden that would fall on all of them as a result.

    ¡°If people will turn randomly, then we can¡¯t stop the culling. It will happen, whether everyone is at school or in the courtyard,¡± Mathew shook his arms, a strange, dark spirit appearing in the back of his eyes.

    He survived two weeks into the apocalypse. He saw a countless number of students, hot girls, kind and oppressive guys alike¡­ All of them eaten. All of them turned into gory sights.

    ¡°What good does amasing them all on the courtyard do, then?!¡± the officer still protested, unable to agree with Mathew¡¯s approach.

    ¡°For them?¡± Mathew asked, nodding his head towards the doors where people were starting to rush towards the exit.

    Given how excited they were, it would take a long while before anyone would notice the pile of corpses down the corridor.

    ¡°It changes nothing,¡± Mathew revealed without any hesitation.

    And most of the students and teachers in this school¡­ simply failed to get a piece of it.

    ¡°But it gives us more time to prepare,¡± Mathew finally revealed the true reason behind his actions. ¡°And well, if we only evacuated the top two floors,¡± he then added, a wicked smile appearing on his face as he approached the doors.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that alert someone, leading to the panic and paralyzing our ability to buy ourselves some time?¡±

 Chapter 11 Last clock

    ¡®Just a little bit more,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    Drops of sweat trickled down his forehead, the result of him carrying Nadia in his arms.

    ¡®We sure do look weird,¡¯ Mathew noticed as he passed by yet another group of his schoolmates.

    They were all heading down the main corridor towards the school¡¯s front yard.

    ¡®Just the fact that we are going in the opposite direction is strange,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to look around and then hang his head low.

    The sight of a huge group of heavily armed policemen was designed to draw attention.

    ¡®This could turn into a problem,¡¯ Mathew thought. He then bit down on his lip as he continued to push forward. ¡®Someone will notice there is something wrong; there is no stopping it,¡¯ he thought.

    Mathew then took a deep breath. The oxygen filled his lungs to the brim, pushing revigorated blood down his veins.

    Only two sets of stairs separated them from their objective.

    But thest clock in the corner of Mathew¡¯s vision continued to tick itsst toes.

    ¡°How are we standing?¡± the negotiating officer asked, his facepletely still and rxed.

    This man was a veteran, after all.

    ¡®He knows better than to panic or gets emotional,¡¯ Mathew observed, silently taking a note of the point.

    Managing people was a vital point of the young man¡¯s ns for the future. One couldn¡¯t build a world anew alone, after all.

    ¡°Two minutes left,¡± Mathew replied shortly.

    There was no need to borate. Only one set of stairs remained.

    ¡°WOAH!¡± someone in the crowd shouted. The people remaining on thest level all looked towards the center of themotion.

    ¡®There it is,¡¯ Mathew thought, his face darkening.

    His fingers tightened around the handle of the firemen¡¯s ax he held hidden under his hoodie.

    Before the first wave truly began, the most susceptible to the virus would turn. This attack in advance was clearly designed to strike terror and chaos into the public before the main wave of zombie-turning wouldmence.

    ¡®So devious.¡¯ Mathew swallowed down his saliva. ¡®Whoever nned for this to happen was meticulous to the tiniest detail,¡¯ he thought.

    The order of the things was simply too steady, too organized.

    And nothing in nature worked in a straight line.

    ¡°We need to hurry up,¡± Mathew shook his head and hurried everyone.

    Thankfully, thest floor of the school, the one Mathew was interested in, was generally emptied out.

    ¡°No good wille from standing in ce,¡± the negotiating officer bit his lips and pushed on ahead.

    Thest set of stairs separated them from the part of the school Mathew intended to put a im to.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with her?¡± someone from the crowd below casually asked, pointing their hand at the girl lying down on the ground.

    ¡®It¡¯s starting,¡¯ Mathew thought, hurrying up over thest set of stairs. Fat beads of sweat trickled down his neck.

    He was never athletic, and now he had to go all the way up the school¡¯s massive building, all the while carrying Naida in his arms.

    ¡®Just a little bit more,¡¯ he thought, pushing his tired muscles to their limit.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s with her?¡± A voice from below reached Mathew¡¯s ears just as he passed by thest set of stairs.

    ¡°Get the booms,¡± Mathew ordered, not paying any mind to the hierarchic structure of thew enforcement.

    The people serving in the anti-terrorist forces had to have wits quick enough to keep them alive. And right now, their senses were tingling all over.

    There was something in the air, even without all of Mathew¡¯s esoteric warnings.

    They all saw and participated in the massacre in the school¡¯s underground. And now, the one man who predicted it to happen was hurrying them up.

    This wasn¡¯t the time for any of those adults to oppose Mat¡¯s words.

    ¡°Mine the stairs, boys,¡± the leading officer of the strike team gave his order. It was just to formalize what his subordinates had already rushed to do.

    ¡°Hey, what are you guys¡­¡± someone called them out.

    ¡®Fuck, they noticed!¡¯ Mathew pushed with thest ounce of his strength, bringing Nadia away from the st radius.

    But the calling-out voice¡­ vanished.

    No other sound covered it. This suspicious and using voice¡­ simply ceased to be.

    ¡°Right ready,¡± one of the policemen reported and turned his head to the leader.

    ¡°AAARGH!¡± a first shout came from the level below.

    ¡°Let us!¡± an urged whisper reached Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t he from the year down?¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his head around. He recognized the young man instantly.

    He was the talk of the school since he got the school¡¯s beauty to go out with him.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t the lucky boy,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his eyebrows in surprise.

    And just like one could expect, Lydia, the shy and silent idol of nearly half of the school, was running behind him while holding tightly to her boyfriend¡¯s hand.

    There was a look of determination on Mathew¡¯s junior¡¯s face, as opposed to the scared and obedient look deep in Lydia¡¯s eyes.

    Her long, tinum hair coated the weirdest part about the girl, the one that got the imagination of countless of Mathew¡¯s ssmates going.

    It was her figure.

    One could tell, with just a single look, that she was perfectly slim¡­ Yet, her hourss figure betrayed that all of her parts were exactly as meaty as a man¡¯s heart desired.

    Behind them followed an athletic man, one of the ball kickers from Mathew¡¯s parallel ss.

    ¡°Left ready,¡± the soldier reported.

    ¡°Center ready.¡±

    The detonation was all green to go.

    ¡°We wait until we see what happens,¡± the leader of the strike squadmenced.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± the trio that luckily got to the upper floor just in the nick of time looked at Mathew in bewilderment.

    ¡°You got lucky to notice it,¡± Mathew replied, ignoring the obvious plea for information.

    He then tucked Nadia¡¯s powerless body into a corner before shielding her with his own chest.

    ¡°Ten!¡± Mathew shouted towards the officers.

    The men readied out their guns.

    They saw the culling at the bottom floor. And they were ready to fight for their survival.

    ¡°If we are sessful here, we might be able to sortie out for your families,¡± Mathew suddenly said.

    It was a weird idea, one that randomly popped out in his head.

    But after thinking through it all, there was a huge chance that some of their close ones would survive.

    And right now, what those hardened veterans needed, wasn¡¯t a threat.

    ¡®What they need is an objective close to their hearts!¡¯ Mathew figured it out.

    ¡°Five!¡± he then shouted.

    The sounds from the floor below were quickly intensifying.

    No one needed Mathew¡¯s warning anymore.

    The tension filled the air as all the shouting and crying suddenly ceased.

    ¡°One!¡± Mathew¡¯s calm voice filled the silent hall of the upmost floor of the school.

    And then, all hell broke loose just down the stairs.

    ¡°Get ready!¡± Mathew shouted, raising his hand.

    Mining of the staircase didn¡¯t mean they were going to just allow a massacre on the floor below.

    It was but a necessary preparation for how it would ultimately all go down.

    As the shouts and cries intensified, some people finally rushed to seek refuge on the upper floor.

    ¡°Go!¡± Mathew shouted, revealing his trusty weapon and rushing down the stairs.

    Between the real apocalypse and the one that Mathew read about in novels, there was one major difference.

    People wouldn¡¯t die from just a single bite or even a scratch.

    The zombies would basically need to gnaw at someone to the point where they would die anyway for them to turn.

    That¡¯s why, as long as one didn¡¯t let the zombies lock them down, their survival was still an option.

    On the other hand, those infected at random by the virus itself would stand no chance.

    ¡°Run towards the upper floor!¡± Mathew shouted from the bottom of his lungs, raising his ax above his head.

    The first target revealed itself in an instant.

    Someone Mathew couldn¡¯t even recognize, mostly due to how half of that poor victim¡¯s face was gone. And yet, it didn¡¯t stop the zombie from lunging at a nearby person.

    ¡°Sleep,¡± Mathew muttered softly, driving his de down with a wide swing.

    The crowds all around didn¡¯t make his task any easier.

    ¡®Thank God I stopped the early wave,¡¯ Mathew thought, swinging his hammer again, only to raise his face and look around for his next victims.

    The people all around rushed to escape¡­

    But only a portion of them would nail it. The rest of the students and teachers, boys, girls, women, and men alike, all ended up in the ws of the newly turned monsters.

    Seeing th3eir clothes, flesh and bones split and cracked open was a truly gruesome sight.

    Mathew didn¡¯t turn around, but he could feel how shocked the soldiers behind him were.

    ¡®No kind of battlefield can prepare one for this kind of sights,¡¯ he thought, coldly moving around the ce and finishing any zombie that he could find.

    Bit by bit, one by one, Mathew cleared the area. Yet, only a small fraction of those who were initially on the floor escaped to the upper floor.

    Some of them scattered around; others sumbed to the attack.

    ¡®It would be good if we got even twenty people,¡¯ Mathew thought, quickly judging the situation.

    But there was no time to waste.

    They couldn¡¯t secure this floor. As such, they had to work swiftly.

    ¡°Everyone, it¡¯s harvest time,¡± Mathew announced, raising his bloody ax above his head.

 Chapter 12 Summoning the merchant

    Extracting the life cores from the zombies was pretty simple. With how only a heavy trauma to the head could put an end to them, picking up those small stones that would crystalize out in the center of their brain was a job anyone could do.

    That is, as long as they wouldn¡¯t cover everything with their vomit first, only to faintter.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t measure everyone with your standards,¡± the police officer said, only to release an exhausted sigh a momentter.

    Even only a bit over an hour had passed since the man appeared before Mat for the first time; the events that transpired were so rapid and engaging that the young man felt as if he had known the man for ages.

    And here he was, schooling Mathew away after noticing just a small nce followed by a roll of Mat¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°My standards are the world¡¯s standards, now,¡± Mathew rebuked, only to straighten himself up and move over to another corpse.

    Thankfully, the crystalization of life¡¯s core within one¡¯s brain was the first step of the zombie transformation. As such, even those that Mat finished before they could fully turn turned into a harvestable material for him.

    Yet, while Mathew continued to look for any positives in the current situation, the few soldiers that helped him to gather the cores¡­

    Their attention was fully focused on keeping themselves sane.

    They were all veteran soldiers. They saw the true battle with their very own eyes.

    But what was left in the main corridor of the second tost floor was far from anything they could experience on a modern battlefield. In the battle, they would rarely have to dig through the literal brains of the fallen.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean people will have an easy time adapting,¡± the officer countered, only to turn his face sideways to cast a nce upstairs.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you help us earlier?!¡± one of the students cried out. From his point of view, Mathew couldn¡¯t even tell who it was. ¡°I almost died, you know?!¡±

    Hearing theints, Mathew only rolled his eyes before returning to his job.

    Dealing with the dissatisfied and distressed fellow students of his wasn¡¯t his job.

    ¡°You should go and save the others now!¡± a new, feminine voice entered the cry.

    ¡°What the hell are you doing here?! Go and clean the school from those freaks!¡± someone else joined in as well.

    ¡®They are refusing to ept the reality,¡¯ Mathew thought, sending a sneaky nce over to the panicky group. ¡®I didn¡¯t really believe something like this could happen back when they described it to me,¡¯ he recalled one of the stories he heard back at the fortress in the past.

    Apparently, the main reason behind the fall of the first attempt at organized attempt was just that ¨C people were too hesitant to do the one thing that could save them. Too stuck in the old world to ept the change and adapt to it.

    It was something that Mathew only heard happened. But now, he was growing increasingly aware he would also be the one who would have to deal with this mess.

    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s enough,¡± Mathew spat out. He stood up and looked around the ce.

    ¡®They might dislike it, but they are working like obedient little bees,¡¯ he thought, nodding with satisfaction at the effort of the soldiers dedicated to the collection task.

    It would be only a matter of a few minutes before they would be done with their task.

    And that meant Mathew only had a few more minutes to regain control over the top floors of the school.

    ¡°Everyone shut the fuck up,¡± Mathew shouted as soon as he appeared on the stairs.

    At first, his words only worked because his voice was loud and generally unexpected.

    Then, thew enforcement looked over, ready to deal with another troublemaker¡­ Only to rx and back up when they saw Mathew¡¯s face.

    Even if he wasn¡¯t their leader, Mathew¡¯s words already proved to be crucial to their survival.

    No one said a word to exin Mathew¡¯s importance to his fellow student. Yet, maybe it was due to the atmosphere that surrounded him or maybe his bloodthirsty rampage earlier, but not a single student dared toin to him.

    ¡°First, let¡¯s exin a few things,¡± Mathew stated as soon as he reached the end of the stairs. He put his legs parted wide and crossed his arms on his chest. ¡°Loud noises attract zombies,¡± the young man threw out a pretty important piece of information as if it was nothing.

    ¡°As such, I advise you lot to shut the hell up,¡± Mathew added, reveling in the newfound position of power. ¡°This is thend that I put a im to,¡± the young man continued, caring not for how cringy and chunni his words could sound.

    ¡°What im?¡± someone from the crowd asked, cleverly hiding behind the others just in case this question would bring forth a punishment.

    ¡°Here are the stones we gathered,¡± one of the soldiers from the floor below came up and passed a small bag into Mathew¡¯s hands.

    This particr soldier appeared to be too overwhelmed by the blood on his hands to care about Mathew¡¯s little speech.

    ¡°Good job, soldier,¡± Mathew replied with the line he heard in some western movie. A small smile appeared on the corners of his lips.

    Yet, instead of answering the question that the soldier stopped him from answering, Mathew grabbed the stones and poured them all directly on the floor.

    ¡®Damn, it¡¯s kinda exciting,¡¯ the young man thought, staring at the pile of shiny life cores at his feet.

    Mathew then brought his hand forward and hung it in the air, directly above the pile of cores.

    ¡°I, Mathew, son of Arthur, do hereby summon a im merchant,¡± Mathew spoke.

    Then, thebined shine of all the life cores suddenly multiplied, only to erect itself as a pir of light, as high as the roof of the ce. And just as rapidly as it appeared, the light condensed into an outline of an androgynous person.

    When the radiance fully faded away, instead of the huge chunk of the stones Mathew gathered, there was a hooded figure standing in silence.

    ¡®Good thing this form worked,¡¯ Mathew thought, swallowing his saliva.

    This was truly a nerve-wracking moment. Depending on whether this form would work or not, the future of all the people around him would change.

    Thankfully, for the first time since the apocalypse started in Mathew¡¯s previous life, he could im to see a ray of hope.

    ¡®Summoning a merchant is the one step I never reached back then,¡¯ Mathew thought, moving back with his thoughts to the past now gone.

    Their fortress gathered ny-three life cores. A humble amount given the two weeks it took them¡­ But as the apocalypse evolved, those who failed to stay on track would be left forever longing to catch up.

    ¡®Once monsters started appearing, hunting expeditions were no longer possible,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his hand as he approached the hooded figure.

    There was no face, no legs or hands. There wasn¡¯t a body to that figure, just a dark shadow hidden within the confines of the floor-long, grey robe.

    Mathew¡¯s hand stopped just an inch away from the shadoww coiling underneath the robe.

    He then turned his head around to where he left Nadia to rest.

    ¡®I will heal you, you understand?¡¯ Mathew thought, reaffirming himself in his determination.

    He then moved his eyes to the side, to where all the saved schoolmates of his stood.

    ¡®Right, I still didn¡¯t answer their question,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    The edges of his mouth curled up, turning his lips into a small smile.

    ¡°As of now, I¡¯m the lord of this merchant,¡± Mathew revealed, looking at his colleagues with a serious expression. ¡°I¡¯m also the only one capable of expanding on the merchant¡¯swork of this area,¡± he added, sharing the info that he never got to confirm.

    ¡®Let¡¯s hope that no one tries to call this bluff,¡¯ Mathew thought, only for his smile to turn slightly wicked. ¡®Well, I shouldn¡¯t worry too much. The chances of anyone being able to summon another merchant so soon¡­¡¯

    With each passing second, Mathew¡¯s smile turned darker and darker.

    But his strange position was quickly bing ufortable.

    ¡°It¡¯s better if you keep that in mind for the future,¡± Mathew threw at his colleagues before turning his eyes back towards the shadowy figure of the grey, im merchant.

    ¡®Now then, show me your wares!¡¯ Mathew uttered apletely useless and unnecessary form in his mind before reaching out and grasping at the darkness coiling underneath the merchant¡¯s robe.

 Chapter 13 Cheap prize of five lives

    The second Mathew¡¯s hand grasped at the darkness, the ck shadow suddenly expanded, shielding the young man from the world around him.

    Surrounded by the vividly ck shadow, Mathew remained calm.

    When he visited a merchant before, his heart nearly stopped. But now that he knew what to expect, he managed to keep his calm.

    And then, one by one, items started to appear on the screen of said shadow. Like a light thrown into the dark surface, the outline of each item was carved out in the darkness, only for the exnation of the item itself to appear right besides it.

    ¡®Just like I expected,¡¯ Mathew thought, releasing a heavy sigh.

    The items on disy were exactly the same as what he saw during his former visit to the merchant. Or rather, the stock of the im merchant turned out to be even smaller than what the wandering merchant offered back then.

    ¡°First off, how many stones do I have?¡± Mathew muttered, using his voice to help direct his actions.

    The young man then bent his knee, leaning down to grab all the remaining cores.

    ¡°Roughly twenty, huh?¡± he muttered.

    As disappointing of a number as it was, it also reflected the number of people that Mathew and the police failed to save.

    ¡®I have quite the mixed feelings about it, don¡¯t I?¡¯ Mathew reflected on his own state of mind. He then shook his head, clearing it from the useless doubts and hesitations.

    ¡°I would like the basic expansion of the system,¡± Mathew stated, throwing a single stone into the darkness.

    Yet, instead of disappearing just like the stones that Mathew used to summon the merchant, the core simply slowed down and came to aplete halt in mid-air.

    And then it just dangled in there, suspended in the air as if there was an invisible surface prompting it up.

    ¡®This is weird,¡¯ Mathew thought, baffled by theck of reaction from the merchant. ¡®That¡¯s how much I paid back at the wandering one, so why doesn¡¯t it work now?¡¯

    The basic expansion of the system was a pretty confusing name for the service Mathew attempted to buy.

    It was one of the wares that would never be disyed out in the open as, ording to the rumors Mathew learned, it was one of the four services that all the merchants provided. Yet, rather than the expansion of the system, it should actually be called the system discovery instead.

    ¡°Let¡¯s try with two?¡± Mathew muttered to himself, bringing another life core up and then throwing it forward.

    The two cores gently shone as they hovered mid-air, only for their radiance to explosively increase and then disappear along with the physical manifestation of the cores.

    ¡®Did it do anything?¡¯ Mathew thought, puzzled by theck of reaction from himself or his surroundings.

    But the stones disappeared. And that meant the transaction went through!

    ¡°Do you have any items to heal the virus zombification?¡± Mathew asked, pursuing the most important of his tasks.

    Now that he confirmed that the merchant worked more or less the same right now as it did back in his past future, Mathew could move on to the important stuff.

    ¡°One hundred and fifty cores,¡± a strange, nearly robotic voice filled the shadowy realm that currently trapped Mathew.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ the young man cursed in his thoughts, only to tighten his knuckles. ¡®One hundred and fifty cores it is, then,¡¯ he thought.

    A hundred and fifty lives in exchange for healing one.

    That was the prize the merchant asked for, turning Nadia back into a human if Mathew¡¯s system wouldn¡¯t be sufficient to stop the process going on in the girl¡¯s body.

    ¡®Right, I have yet to even check my system yet,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around the shadowy realm in a hurry.

    ¡°Five food packs,¡± Mathew said, picking five more stones before throwing them at the shadows of the realm.

    ¡®Transactionpleted,¡¯ Mathew thought when the stones disappeared. And once the light they created had subsided, five crates, each roughly the size of a personalputer, waited on the floor.

    ¡°End the transactions,¡± Mathew spoke.

    He had too few stones to get anything of value from this merchant.

    Sure, the notes with information that he offered were pretty damn interesting¡­ But each of those pages cost a steep prize of fifty coins.

    It wasn¡¯t a big prize for learning something new about this changing world¡­ But it was a prize that Mathew couldn¡¯t afford right now anyway.

    Then, the smoke that trapped Mat in this strange realm suddenly started to move towards the center of the space, all condensing back into the swirling darkness that Mathew initially grasped.

    ¡°Hey, are you okay?!¡± the police officer shouted, his face screaming worry.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew shrugged, surprised by the unexpectedly warm wee. ¡°What do you mean?¡± he asked, puzzled by the reaction of this otherwise stoic man.

    ¡°Ever since that man appeared¡­¡± the officer moved his eyes towards the figure of the merchant. His hand voluntarily moved to the man¡¯s holster, resting down on the handle of his pistol. He then moved his eyes back at Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°You just stood there and threw the stones up, all for those stones to disappear,¡± he added before taking a closer look at the ce where Mathew stood.

    ¡°This figure is a merchant,¡± Mathew exined before stepping to the side, allowing others to see the stock of food that he bought for the low price of five lives.

    Each of the food crates would provide enough food for a group of five to survive for a day. With five crates of food, there were enough supplies to sustain twenty-five people for a day.

    ¡®Not enough,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around the group.

    Twenty-five rations would be enough just to feed the students. But adding thew enforcement guys would instantly make their current stock of food¡­ insufficient.

    ¡°Counting the stuff we can pige from the vendors and the warehouse¡­¡± Mathew muttered, paying no mind to the people around him.

    Then, the young man looked up at the officer.

    ¡°I want you to search around the floor for any form of food and supplies,¡± Mathew informed, only for a wrinkle to appear on top of his forehead. ¡°Also, could you station two of your mean on each of the two secondary staircases?¡±

    The main stairway leading to the topmost floor was mined and ready to be demolished. But that didn¡¯t mean it was the only way to get on thest floor.

    ¡®Even though there are only small chances the zombies would find them, one cannot be too careful,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    ¡°Will do,¡± the officer nodded his head, likely seeing no point in arguing right now. ¡°But where do we find them?¡± he then asked before raising his hand and scratching the side of his head.

    ¡°Just ask one of the students,¡± Mathew replied and waved his hand, leaving the area near the merchant as he moved towards sleeping Nadia.

    ¡°Right now, I don¡¯t want anyone to disturb me. Is that understood?¡± Mathew informed in a voice that wouldn¡¯t ept any opposition.

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s better not to ask what you are going to do to her,¡± the officermented, only for a small smile to appear on his lips. ¡°Fine, take your time. Just tell me onest thing,¡± he stated, his smile evaporating in an instant. ¡°What should we do if more studentse here?¡±

    ¡°Kill the infected, let the others in,¡± Mathew gave his directions. ¡°The more manpower we have, the longer we should be able to survive.¡±

    With that said, Mathew didn¡¯t allow anyone else to stop him in his march toward his girl. Towards his wife.

    And the second Mathew¡¯s fingers made contact with Nadia¡¯s skin, his vision suddenly blurred, only for a set of three half-transparent windows to appear before his eyes.

 Chapter 14 System and demolition

    ¡®What the hell are those?!¡¯ Mathew riled up when he first saw those three windows. Yet, as the young adult of his time, he could instantly recognize their content.

    ¡®What kind of joke is this¡­¡¯ he thought, gazing at the simple text contained by those windows.

    [Wife #1]

    [Name: Nadia Astra]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 1]

    [Race: Half-zombie]

    [ss: None]

    [Status: Recovering (78%)]

    The first window outlined Nadia¡¯s basic information.

    ¡®Half-zombie?¡¯ Mathew thought, his attention instantly drawn to the aspect of Nadia¡¯s status that he cared the most about. ¡®Does that mean she didn¡¯t fully turn?¡¯ he attempted to figure out the meaning.

    ¡®She is recovering. Does that mean she will regain her mind?¡¯ Mathew then turned his attention to thest of the information outlined by the main status window of the girl.

    Then, the number of Nadia¡¯s recovery ticked up by two percent.

    ¡°So it goes up at a rather fast pace,¡± Mathew muttered, not even realizing that his thoughts escaped through his lips.

    ¡°How is she?¡±

    The negotiating officer approached Mathew¡¯s side and looked down at the sleeping girl. His face was filled with worry.

    ¡®Does he feel indebted to me and thus project his ideas on Nadia?¡¯ Mathew attempted to figure out the source of the man¡¯s worry. ¡®Or is he scared that if something happens to her, I will go rogue?¡¯

    Mathew had no means of determining the answer to this question. That¡¯s why, rather than wasting time on overthinking things, he simply moved on.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know yet,¡± the young man said, patting Nadia¡¯s head before moving his eyes to the other two windows of her system.

    But for now¡­ they were empty.

    ¡®Does she need to level up first? Or maybe obtain some sort of ss?¡¯ Mathew thought.

    His experiences from his past walkthrough of the apocalypse made the young man certain about one fact above anything else.

    The greatest weapons humans had in this apocalypse, their greatest tool for survival, was the system.

    And understanding the system was the very prerequisite to using it properly!

    ¡°When will you know?¡± the officer pressed the topic, clearly unwilling to just let it pass.

    ¡°What makes you think that I know?¡± Mathew replied in an instant, only to shake his head a momentter. ¡°I just hope it will happen sooner thanter,¡± he added, raising from his knees.

    Mathew then threw onest look at the girl before turning around and approaching the stairs.

    For a moment, Mathew looked down at the level below, only to then take a nce into the corner of his vision.

    Just like he expected, all three of the clocks disappeared the second their purpose was fulfilled. As such, for the first time since he came back to life, Mathew had nothing leading him.

    ¡®Juding by how long has passed since the apocalypse started, everything should be settled by now,¡¯ he thought.

    Mathew then swallowed his saliva before turning back and looking at the officer.

    ¡°Detonate,¡± he ordered, taking a step back to watch the fireworks.

    For a moment, the officer hesitated. And then, he silently nodded his head, confirming the validity of Mathew¡¯s order.

    ¡°Right now, there are only two other paths that zombies can take,¡± Mathew reminded everyone of the fact he brought up earlier. ¡°Once you guys secure them, we should be safe for now.¡±

 Chapter 15 Horde and levels

    The racket caused by the copsing stairs filled the entire school.

    The sound of the explosion turned out to be nowhere as loud as Mathew expected. That was a good thing, as sudden noise was one of the main attractors for the zombies.

    But on the other hand, when several hundred pounds worth of concrete fell down and crashed into the floor below, the ruckus turned out to be immense.

    ¡®It¡¯s bad,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s attention spiked up in a mere instant.

    The main stairs to the floor were gone. The safety of the floor should then be secured¡­

    ¡®If an entire hordees, not only will they sweep up through all the survivors, but force their way through the side entrances as well,¡¯ Mathew could easily imagine the scenario ying out.

    During their normal activities, zombies wouldn¡¯t do much. They would naturally gravitate towards areas with a high number of living humans, but that effect often took a long time.

    The situation changed when a zombie would get agitated, though.

    It could be done by rming it with sounds, attacking it, or allowing it to smell a human¡¯s blood. And smell it they could, even from several meters away.

    But what was important was that once a single zombie in a congested area would end up agitated¡­

    Mathew swallowed down a gulp of saliva, forcing his imagination to shut the vivid picture out.

    He never took part in the defense against the horde. But he caught some rumors about it happening near the school. It was about when one day, almost all of the zombies from the school, for some reason, rushed towards one side of the fenced area.

    ¡®Thinking back, if that didn¡¯t happen, we would all die a week earlier,¡¯ Mathew thought, noticing the mistake he made.

    IF the power of each specific zombie wasughable, then the might of the horde was on an entirely different level.

    ¡®They said it could bepared to locust swarm,¡¯ Mathew recalled, blinking his eyes a few times as he focused on his hearing. ¡®Eating everything in their way to a degree of copsing entire buildings,¡¯ the young man continued to recall the pieces of the story.

    Mathew¡¯s mouth twitched, only to turn into a small smile.

    The noise caused by the crumbling stairs finally concluded.

    And in the sudden silence, Mathew could clearly hear it. The sound of the approaching mass of zombies.

    ¡®We don¡¯t have much time,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then shook his head, snapping out of his daze. Then, he looked toward the officer.

    ¡°I changed my mind,¡± Mathew spat out, turning around and approaching the merchant, now standing near the edge of the broken stairs. ¡°Go and destroy the other stairs as well. Then, throw some explosives outside the windows so that they will explode near the lower floors,¡± Mathew gave a very specific order.

    ¡°No way,¡± the policeman only shook his head. ¡°We used all the stuff we brought on the main stairs,¡± he shook his head, refusing Mathew¡¯s request for the first time since the man bloodied his hands for the first time. ¡°And I can¡¯t allow you to cut all our routes of escape,¡± the man added.

    From the tone of the officer¡¯s words, it was clear that his decision wouldn¡¯t change, no matter what Mathew would say. As such, keeping the negotiations up would only waste time for everyone.

    A time everyone was currently in desperate need of.

    ¡°Youck explosives?¡± Mathew raised his eyebrow. He then rxed his hand only to bring it up in one fell swoop, grasping at the darkness of the merchant¡¯s face.

    The shadowy realm expanded outwards from the strange figure, enclosing Mathew within its bounds. And just like before, some force projected the images of the items on the shadowy clouds.

    ¡°Explosives,¡± Mathew stated, throwing a life core towards the center of the weight of the realm.

    The core shed, exhausting its energy in the process. And when the small star of light vanished, a neat package with three premade demolishing charges appeared in its ce.

    ¡°I guess I need to use another,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose, giving up on yet another core.

    Bit by bit, the small fortune he made during the first two waves continued to melt away. And in the current world, rather than a tool to buy both necessities and luxuries, this new currency became one¡¯s bargaining chip with the very death.

    For the outsiders, Mat appeared to simply freeze in ce as if ying a mime. And then, a short momentter, his consciousness would seemingly return. But what was pretty weird was how his body would twitch during thetter transition, as if Mathew¡¯s real body took over the still image cast by some projector in its stead.

    And it was during this twitch that the two sets of charges appeared in the young man¡¯s hands.

    ¡°What the hell¡­¡± the officer muttered, taking a step back and nervously raising the barrel of his handgun a little.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have that many explosives left, you said,¡± Mathew brought the recent words of the man up. ¡°Here,¡± he said, only to throw the two packages towards the man. ¡°Use what you have left as the lure,¡± Mathew ordered, instantly moving forward, not waiting for the officer¡¯sints.

    For a moment, the middle-aged man stood in his ce, watching how Mathew approached his girl yet again.

    ¡®Should I? Or should I not?¡¯ the officer asked himself, only to raise his hand to his face and then cover his eyes for a little.

    The events of the recent hours took a toll on everyone, all the more on one of the leaders of the police. He had to both make use of his physical skills but also keep his mind in its peak condition.

    The officer then shook his head.

    ¡°Fine!¡± he muttered under his nose as he picked the explosives up.

    A sudden racket from one of the floors below reached the now silent hall of the topmost level.

    Mathew froze in the ce, perfectly aware of what this sound meant. Yet, even with his prior experiences, the next sound took him by surprise.

    ¡°ROAR!¡±

    The cry of a monster.

    Not an evolved one, a creature that was still within the frame of what the human brain could expect and, to a degree, exin.

    But it also meant something far more disastrous. Because back in Mathew¡¯s first round against the apocalypse, the evolved monsters wouldn¡¯t appear until the second week after it all started.

    ¡®There is no way it¡¯s something else,¡¯ Mathew thought, tightening his hands as he pulled his eyes away from the girl to look towards the demolished stairs.

    ¡®But the monsters shouldn¡¯t appear for over a week yet!¡¯ Mathew attempted to ridicule the truth, refusing to ept it.

    He then shook his head and pped his hands on his cheeks to sober himself up.

    ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising from his knee.

    Nadia was still several minutes away from waking up. Only God could know if she would still act like a human by the time she would wake up, which would mostly happen right as the horde would attack their makeshift stronghold.

    Mathew couldn¡¯t change the facts. He had no magical, out of ordinary power to reshape the fabrics of causality.

    If there was a monster here, one could only think about how to deal with it. Ignoring the reality just because it didn¡¯t suit one¡¯s tastes just wasn¡¯t to Mathew¡¯s taste.

    ¡®I guess we will need to deal with it sooner orter,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to hear two dull explosions going off a momentter. ¡®Good,¡¯ he thought, ncing over in the directions the booms went off.

    And then, Mathew threw onest look at the girl, still fast asleep. Or rather, instead of looking at Nadia, Mathew nced at her system.

    Because there was one line that he suddenly noticed.

    [Level: 1]

    It was said that defeating the unevolved monster was just as hard for the system-less, as easy as it was for those who possessed a system. In other words, while a person without a system could still kill it, it was basically the limit of how far an ordinary human could go.

    ¡®The problem is,¡¯ Mathew thought, gnashing his teeth together. ¡®I don¡¯t really know how to use this damned system!¡± heined in his thoughts.

    ¡®If I don¡¯t know how to use this damned system, what did I pay that merchant for?!¡¯ Mathew neared a state where he couldn¡¯t hold his sour cry back.

    But then he raised his eyes. Then, he moved up only to approach the merchant¡¯s shadowy figure for the third time.

    ¡°Since we are going to abandon this floor,¡± Mathew said in a clear voice, paying no mind to the survivors eavesdropping on every word that he would say. ¡°I might as well use all those cores up!¡±

 Chapter 16 Pendulum

    Mathew grabbed at the shadow of the merchant for the third time.

    Now that he had ess to the greatest supply of everything in the universe, Mathew decided to use it to its limits.

    The dark shadows of the merchant¡¯s realm surrounded him, separating him from the rest of the world.

    ¡®I wonder how does this really work,¡¯ Mat thought, looking around the ce. But it was exactly theck of the answer for this that forced the young man to hurry it up.

    ¡°I wish to purchase a second expansion of the system information,¡± Mathew announced.

    He had no way of knowing whether others could hear his words. But right now, he had no time to think about potentially revealing too much.

    ¡°Five cores.¡± The same voice from before filled the shadowy realm.

    ¡®That¡¯s cheap,¡¯ Mat thought; the meager price of what he asked for stunning the young man.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Mathew threw five more cores up in the air.

    ¡®I think I gathered a hundred and seventy-three cores,¡¯ Mathew calcted, looking down at the remaining cores in his hand. ¡®Between the cure, the information, food, and explosives, I used a hundred and fifty-nine,¡¯ he calcted.

    Then, he brought his eyes down and counted the cores still in his possession.

    ¡®That leaves me with fourteen,¡¯ Mat thought, raising his eyes at the floating robe of the merchant. ¡°How much for the next level of information?¡±

    For but a moment, Mathew could swear that he saw the merchant smirk.

    But there was no merchant in this strange, shadowy realm. Nor was there any face on which lips could form a smile.

    ¡°Ten cores,¡± announced the cold, metallic voice of the system.

    ¡°Deal,¡± Mat threw ten more cores at the shadows, only to watch them disappear in the burst of their inner light.

    His body didn¡¯t twitch. Mathew didn¡¯t feel any strange sensation of something changing whatsoever.

    ¡°What about¡­¡± Mat smiled a little, ready to ask for the next level.

    ¡°Twenty cores,¡± the metallic voice of the realm replied before Mathew could finish his sentence.

    ¡°I see,¡± Mat replied, releasing a small sigh as he shook his head. ¡°Then, what kind of weapons can I get for the fourteen cores?¡±

    Mathew¡¯s question was given.

    The horde wasing. It would be a wave that they wouldn¡¯t be able to stop. But, if the push came to shove, Mat¡¯s system would be the greatest weapon the survivors had.

    That¡¯s why he didn¡¯t bother asking about weapons before spending all the cores he could on his system first. And now that Mat had reached the limit of the information about his system that he could buy, he simply moved on to the next best investment.

    ¡°Weapon of first grade cost five cores,¡± the metallic voice filled Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡°What about the second grade?¡± Mat asked, despite not knowing what those grades of the weapons could be.

    Sure, it appeared to be pretty self-evident¡­ but using the oldmon sense in this new, changing world was something that Mat was pretty worried about doing.

    ¡°¡­¡± The merchant didn¡¯t respond.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew twitched when a strange sensation appeared in his mind.

    It wasn¡¯t something that he could experience with any of his senses. But he still somehow felt as if the smirk returned to the faceless merchant¡¯s lips.

    ¡®What was that?¡¯ Mathew thought, stumped by the strange experience.

    The young man then shook his head.

    ¡®No.¡¯ he sped his hands against his cheeks. ¡®I have no time for this.¡¯

    Mathew raised his at the floating, empty robes of the merchant.

    ¡°I want to buy two grade one weapons, two packs of supplies, and two packs of explosives,¡± Mathew listed out the items before throwing the rest of his cores into the air.

    A light shed brightly as the stones turned into small stars, only to subside a momentter.

    ¡°What the fuck¡­¡± Mathew muttered, only for the shadowy realm around him to disperse.

    Yet, right when only a fleeting sense of the merchant¡¯s presence remained, Mathew could feel its aura smirking.

    ¡®It¡¯s not like I can see the smirk, but more like¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to put what he just went through into words.

    But before he could do so, the real vanishedpletely, banishing Mathew out into the real world.

    Now that he had no more cores left, his presence was of no worth for the merchant.

    And the second Mathew returned to reality; the entire school shook with another scream from a monster approaching from below.

    ¡°ROAR!¡± the cry filled every nook and cranny of the building, instilling a sense of a deep, primal fear into any and all that heard it.

    ¡°What the hell is this?!¡± the officer moaned, sounding as if he no longer had any energy to deal with Mathew¡¯s bullshit.

    The thing is¡­ Mathew was just as stunned by how the merchant did him in.

    ¡®I made a mistake,¡¯ Mathew thought, allowing himself a short moment of respite for a small smile. ¡®I didn¡¯t specify what exactly I wanted,¡¯ he thought, lowering his head in the admittance to his shameful disy.

    And right by the merchant¡¯s figure, on top of two crates of military supplies and two bags filled with grenades¡­ there was a simple, robust sword¡­.

    And a trebuchet-like pendulum mounted right on edge formerly upied by the staircase.

    It was made from a mix of wood and some glistering metal, holding a wheel roughly two meters in diameter right above the floor. The big wheel was then attached to a tiny one, on which a huge, swinging hammer was mounted.

    The hammer consisted of two parts. The longer one bore a simple, sharpened tube on its end. And from how it hung down in its resting position, it was clear that its handle could bend pretty smoothly.

    On the other end of the wheel was the counterweight. But right between those two-sized gears, there was a rope that connected the entire thing to a simple rotating wheel.

    ¡®This feels both futuristic and ancient at the same time,¡¯ Mathew thought, baffled by what he could see before his eyes.

    The mechanism of the weapon was pretty simple and easy to understand.

    By spinning the power wheel of the construction, one would put the main, big gear in motion. The big wheel would then turn the tiny one, which would then swing the hammer.

    ¡®Is that an alternating mechanism?¡¯ Mathew thought, falling down to his knees when he spotted the detail.

    He couldn¡¯t exactly tell its details from just a single, short look, but the use of thisplicated box of gears and switches could only have a single purpose.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t the other stairs blown up yet?!¡± Mathew barked, ignoring the officer¡¯s question.

    There wasn¡¯t any time for idle discussion now.

    ¡°What the hell is going on?!¡± the officer shouted in response, clearly aware of how the air continued to tense with each passing second.

    ¡°We are about to get swarmed,¡± Mathew informed before approaching the bag with the grenades and throwing its opening towards the ground, causing the explosives to trickle across it.

    ¡°I need three men. One more to throw with me, two more to keep passing up more of them,¡± Mathew informed as he approached the edge of the former staircase with an explosive in each of his hands. He then turned his head to the back.

    ¡°I also need enough guys to spin that wheel, but I trust you can organize that,¡± Mathew added, throwing another order towards the officer before moving his head back in the direction the noise wasing from.

    For the next few moments, people rushed about the ce. Some followed the orders; others were too frozen in fear to move.

    By the time everyone finally took their positions,  the noise made by the approaching horde was already pretty loud.

    ¡°Mat?¡± Mathew heard a tiny voice. It barely reached his ears, proving just how weak it was.

    But the young man recognized it in an instant. Sadly, he could no longer afford Nadia any attention.

    ¡°They are here,¡± he informed calmly, pulling the pins of both of his nades and releasing the handles.

    ¡®Five,¡¯ Math thought, sensing how everyone on the floor froze.

    ¡°When I give a signal, you need to all rush towards the rooftop,¡± Mathew announced. ¡®Four,¡¯ he thought, holding the live grenades like hot potatoes in his hands.

    ¡°Mat?¡± This time, Nadia¡¯s voice was clearer, stronger, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps.

    ¡°Stay back!¡± Mathew shouted, not daring to turn his face away. ¡®Three,¡¯ the explosives in the young man¡¯s hands seemingly got hotter.

    But it was all an illusion. A projection of his mind that grew increasingly aware of the threat.

    ¡®Two,¡¯ Math thought, swinging his hands to the back.

    The noises stopped. And then, the sidewall of the corridor exploded under the pressure of an entire horde of zombies smashing through it.

    The undead cmity rushed around, all drawn towards Mathew¡¯s position.

    ¡®One,¡¯ Mat thought, swinging his hands forward and dropping his grenades right in the path of the approaching horde.

    Powered by seven athletic men and policemen alike, the pendulum started to swing.

 Chapter 17 End in sight

    The two grenades exploded almost at the same time, right when the horde rushed past them.

    The explosion shook the entire building.

    Even though he was likely the only one who knew what to expect, that didn¡¯t make it any less stressful to face thousands of zombies all crammed into the school¡¯s corridor below them.

    ¡°Free the pendulum!¡± Mathew shouted when the wave of the zombies pushed those still shocked by the explosion out of the way.

    With the stairs demolished, a huge chunk of the floor copsed, creating something akin to a fall trap.

    Under the force of the zombies pushing from behind, the zombies at the front would run towards the former staircase¡­ and either fall down the stairs or directly drop over the edge to the lower floor.

    Sure, it would only take to turn around and climb the stairs back to get where they started¡­ But an action like this would require the zombies to be capable of thinking.

    ¡®It¡¯s gonna take them a while, but they will find a way,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the group of seven men rotated the power-wheel and swung the pendulum into the crowd of the zombies.

    This stationary weapon was made so that the hammer would first gain momentum and then strike right at the height where the head of the zombies would be. What¡¯s more, the zombies lucky enough to avoid getting hit in the head would still end up pushed down the hole and forced to move up the floor.

    ¡°Pull it back!¡± Mathew shouted, reaching out with his hand to the back, only for one of fellow students of his to pass him a grenade.

    ¡°Throw the nades whenever they are raising the pendulum!¡± Mathew shouted, moving towards the second phase of his n.

    For now, this was the most effective way to keep thinning out the number of zombies. With the grenades preventing the zombies from stacking in a single ce, the pendulum continued to crush several zombies with each swing it took.

    ¡®It¡¯s far more effective than I expected it to be,¡¯ Mathew thought, throwing yet another grenade down the gap and leaning back.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Nadia shouted, trying to force her voice through the constant noise of the ongoing fight. ¡°What the hell is going on?!¡± she cried out, clearly in distress.

    But who could me this poor girl for being stressed out if she first sumbed to some strange and insanely rapid disease, only to wake up in the middle of a zombie apocalypse!

    ¡°Nadia, I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t right now,¡± Mathew said, turning his head to look at the girl.

    ¡®As much as I want to just cuddle her and keep her in my arms to calm her down,¡¯ Mat thought, moving his eyes towards the girl¡­

    And then, he saw the depth of terror in her eyes.

    It wasn¡¯t an expression one would make when faced with a horde of zombies. What¡¯s more, from her current point of view, Nadia wasn¡¯t likely to even have an angle to see the zombies in the first ce!

    ¡®Is this about her race?¡¯ Mathew thought when he noticed the information shing in the half-transparent windows floating slightly above the girl¡¯s head.

    ording to the only window that had any content, Nadia was no longer a human but a half-zombie.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Mathew asked, forgetting about the ongoing battle and focusing all of his attention on the girl. He then brought his hand forward and grabbed Nadia¡¯s fingers only to cup them together and then cover Nadia¡¯s hands with his own.

    ¡°Everything¡­ I can see everyone¡¯s hearts pumping, the sounds¡­¡± Nadia moaned before falling to her knees. ¡°The entire world is red all around!¡± Nadia cried out while wrestling her hands free. She then his her face in her palms.

    ¡®Is she turning?¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing over at the girl¡¯s status in panic. And the former ¡°recovering¡± changed to something else.

    [Status: In a shock]

    This one line was enough for the young man to somehow calm down. But the noises from right behind his back quickly brought Mat¡¯s thoughts back into reality.

    ¡°Nadia, I¡¯m here,¡± Mathew whispered into the girl¡¯s ear, hoping to reach her in this way. ¡°I need to take care of a few things for now, so can you just sit down and wait for me toe in a moment?¡±

    Instead of sharing Nadia¡¯s panic, Mathew decided to put on a perfectly calm but busy front.

    ¡°O-okay,¡± Nadia muttered, unsure how to react.

    Throughout their entire rtionship, she was usually the one to protect and cheer Mathew up. And from how easily Mat managed to subdue her fear, turning her into an obedient little girl, the change was still quite surprising for her.

    ¡°Good girl,¡± Mathew purred, rustling Nadia¡¯s curly hair.

    Mathew stood up and took a deep breath. He then turned his head to the other side, inspecting the progress of the battle.

    ¡°So far, so good,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose.

    The results were far from satisfactory, but they were better than Mathew¡¯s grave predictions.

    Even thebination of the explosions and the swinging pendulum had its limits.

    Soldiers could throw the grenades only once per swing of the weapon; otherwise, they would risk damaging it.

    Because of this short time window, the zombies eventually started to form into waves, quickly building up a disgusting pile of rotting flesh.

    Both the explosions and the pendulum would often miss the vitals, turning the zombie into a mesh yet not fully killing them. And as time went on, those broken parts of zombies continued to build up.

    ¡®Thank God the hole is quite big,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    When the explosions went off earlier, the resulting demolition deleted not only the stairs but also quite a bit of floor from the level below. The falling rubble simply sted past the aged floor, only stopped on the next level.

    That¡¯s why the zombies not only had to move up but also move forward.

    Unable to breach the gap on their own, they could only rely on this build-up of corpses that would eventually bridge it. Yet, it had to grow considerably higher just to ount for the changed angle.

    After all, for a pile to grow up, it had to rest on some kind of foundation.

    But the zombies kept oning. And there was no telling when this swarm would end.

    ¡®The monsters have yet to show up,¡¯ Mathew thought, scanning the area as he grabbed one of the grenades before timing it out and throwing it right at the zombies.

    A dull sound of the explosion shook several of the bloodied bodies, throwing them around like some rag dolls.

    One of the zombies, already only contained within its head and half of its shoulder area nearly managed tond on the upper floor.

    ¡®Tsk,¡¯ Mathew clicked his tongue when the still active corpse flew right past his feet.

    Even if it would take way more than a single scratch for someone to turn, it surely would cause a massivemotion.

    And then, something that Mathew initially didn¡¯t dare to believe.

    Mat¡¯s lips formed a smile, only for the young man to shake his head and focus.

    The influx of the zombies finally slowed down. One could see that down the corridor; their horde was starting to thin out.

    ¡®Right, the school is fenced off,¡¯ Mathew thought, relieved by the change. ¡®And there are only so many students to turn in here,¡¯ the young man added, blinking his eyes to refresh his eyes.

    It would still take them a long while before the fighting woulde to aplete end. But at least they could now see some kind of future ahead!

 Chapter 18 Hindrance

    ¡®I can see the end of it¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, only to anxiously look towards the staircase, already swarming with zombies.

    And a majority of the undead already moved on, naturally swayed to look for other paths.

    ¡®It¡¯s only a matter of time before¡­¡¯

    Boom!

    The dull sound of the explosion shook the building.

    ¡°Tsk,¡± Mathew clicked his tongue. ¡®They got the stairs already.¡¯

    In itself, it was just a part of the process. A nned element of Mathew¡¯s strategy.

    But it also meant that they were all on the clock right now. Because only the main staircase was nice and wide. The two side-stairs were pretty narrow, only serving a supporting role.

    In other words, even after demolishing the stairs, it was only a matter of time before they would bridge the gap.

    ¡®We are seriously running out of time,¡¯ he thought, anxiously tensing his fingers up.

    Mat then shook his head and turned around.

    ¡°Everyone, get two nades and prepare!¡± he shouted before turning his head towards the pendulum team. ¡°On my mark, stop the wheel!¡±

    The horde was about to slow down and thin out. But it was only a matter of time before other points woulde under attack as well, as the zombies that fell down before would find new ways to ess the upper floor.

    And then, it would be only a matter of time before they would tear the entire building down.

    Mathew grabbed the explosives and moved towards the edge of the floor. He looked down at the flowing horde and took two deep breaths.

    ¡°On my mark!¡± Mat turned his head towards the pendulum group. He then slowly raised his hand up in the air.

    ¡°Pull it away after the next swing!¡± Mat ordered, calcting the time while observing the horde. ¡°Pull the pins!¡±

    For one mercilessly long moment, Mathew observed how the bloody hammer swung for onest time, shoving yet another group of zombies into the fall to the floor below.

    ¡°NOW!¡± Mathew shouted, throwing the live grenades down. And then, he spread his arms to the side, pulling everyone to the back.

    Five secondster, a series of explosions came from the floor below. Theirbined strength easily sent some parts of the zombies flying to the floor above.

    Thankfully, Mat pushed everyone back far enough and now stood with his trusty ax, ready to do some cleaning.

    ¡°You need help?¡± the officer approached the young man just as he was about to rush ahead and do the job. The man¡¯s hand on the holster of his gun clearly indicated his intended form of help.

    ¡°I should be okay,¡± Mathew nodded his head with gratitude. ¡°Just watch my back, would you?¡± he asked with a smile before rushing in.

    ¡®This is one of the few moments of rest that we will get now,¡¯ Mat thought, leaping forward and bringing the de of his weapon down on a zombie¡¯s head.

    He then kicked to his right, knocking the upper half of a torso, only to then swing his leg forward, crushing a severed head with his heel.

    There wasn¡¯t a single zombie mobile enough for Mathew to be in any danger. One could say that it was a free farm of life cores¡­

    As long as one could limit the corpses of his former friends and schoolmates to just this new world¡¯s currency.

    No matter what, the greatest weapon of the survivors was Mat¡¯s system. And now that Mat could see Nadia¡¯s level, there was only one thing he could do to strengthen their strongest force.

    ¡°I will be going down,¡± Mathew threw before turning around and grabbing the de he bought from the merchant.

    He had his ax already, but Mat still wanted to test out how the weapons worked in this changing world.

    ¡®The system appears to be somewhat RPG-like,¡¯ Mathew thought, judging the distance, potential threats, and ways to return to the upper floor.

    ¡®Damn, those cracks on the walls¡­¡¯ Mat noticed the signs of wear on the structure of the building.

    It wasn¡¯t strange at all, given the number of explosives the survivors threw downstairs.

    ¡®I guess I will have to watch out for those spots,¡¯ Mat made a mental note before turning his eyes towards the officer.

    ¡°I need all of your men to protect my back,¡± Mathew announced, only to turn his eyes to the girl.

    Nadia still knelt obediently, allowing the events around to just brush past her. Still, in a state of shock, she really needed someone to check on her.

    ¡®But there is no time,¡¯ Mat thought, biting down on his lips to the point they started oozing blood.

    As much as he wanted to go and reassure the girl, he couldn¡¯t afford the time for that.

    ¡®There is still the problem of the monsters,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    He clearly heard them before. And it only made sense for them to appear during a horde.

    Yet, as far as the ongoing battle went, not a single monster made itself known.

    ¡°I would love if you could get someone to oversee the girl,¡± Mathew added in a lowered voice, wary of others potentially hearing him. ¡°And organize some guys to either finish off the scraps I will throw at you or catch the cores,¡± Mathew announced now in a normal voice.

    He then turned back and approached the edge.

    ¡®This is the only window of opportunity that we will get,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    It was only a matter of time before the horde would threaten the other entrances to the floor. Then it was also a matter of time before monsters would appear.

    And against monsters, conventional weapons would prove much less effective.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s go,¡± Mathew muttered to himself. The weapons in his hands bore a certain, reassuring weight to them.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Right before the young man could jump into the fray in hopes of somehow leveling up or at least gathering life cores, Nadia broke free from her shock, only to rush ahead.,

    It seemed that she somehow read Mathew¡¯s intention to jump down, an intention she instantly associated with danger.

    And following her natural instinct to protect him, Nadia ignored the weird state of her body, jumped up, and rushed ahead.

    Her face smashed into Mathew¡¯s back, only for the girl to wrap her hands around his waist and then fall down to the ground in an attempt to tackle and anchor Mat down.

    ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Nadia screamed out, scolding Mat in the voice of a worried parent that caught their kid in dangerous mischief.

    ¡°Nadia?¡± Mathew shook off his focus for a moment. ¡°Are you okay?¡± he asked, instantly looking at her status.

    The ¡°In a shock¡± status from before was now reced by a new one.

    [Status: Worried for her love]

    Initially, about to just shove the girl away and do his thing, Mat suddenly froze in a ce.

    It was one thing to have her ept his marriage proposal right as she witnessed the wave of the agile zombies.

    ¡®But for me to be her love,¡¯ Mat thought, instantly assaulted by his morals.

    Learning about Nadia¡¯s feelings in this way felt like robbing her of something precious.

    But it also made it all the harder for Mat to allow the situation to develop as it was right now!

    ¡°Dear, I will be safe,¡± Mat said, patting Nadia¡¯s head before decisively pulling her hands apart and freeing himself from her grab. ¡°Just wait for me, for a little, okay?¡± Mathew asked, smiling gently at the girl.

    ¡°I¡¯m done with waiting,¡± Nadia refused without even a second of hesitation. ¡°I feel weird¡­ But I can feel my body got stronger, somehow,¡± she added, raising her hands and looking at her palms.

    For a moment, Mathew stood in ce, unsure what to do. And then the image of Nadia getting torn apart by the zombies and monsters alike appeared in his head.

    ¡°No freaking way,¡± Mat shook his head before bitting down on his lips even harder than before. Because what would follow would hurt him as much as it would hurt the girl.

    ¡°Nadia, I¡¯m sorry, but in your state, you would be nothing but a hindrance.¡±

 Chapter 19 Disaster

    Mathew¡¯s words voiced out and then disappeared, reced by the constant and everpresent noise of the ongoing battle.

    Now that the horde was properly thinned out, the pendulum returned to its usual job, pushing those few zombies remaining down the gap.

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Nadia muttered. She hung her head down. The hold of her fingers over Mathew¡¯s arm weakened.

    ¡°For now, I can only say I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mathew whispered, putting some weight on Nadia¡¯s shoulders to make her sit down.

    ¡®Sorry, but I have to do this,¡¯ Mathew thought as he turned around.

    The young man didn¡¯t stop there. He moved forward, his weapons ready in his hands.

    ¡®Well, I don¡¯t think I can do it if I hesitate,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking over the edge at the swarming river of the zombies.

    Even now, after all the explosions and the hammering, some of the zombies still managed to keep swarming the corridor.

    ¡®Then let¡¯s do it all at once,¡¯ Mathew decided.

    He closed his eyes and took one long breath. And then, he rushed forward.

    With just a few steps, Mathew managed to get enough momentum to make the jump. The gap between the edge of their level and the floor below wasn¡¯t big¡­ But for a human, making the jump wasn¡¯t an easy feat either.

    ¡°Off we¡­¡± Mathew hyped himself out as he rushed towards the edge. ¡°GO!¡± he shouted, knocking himself up.

    Mat pulled his knees up, looping over the mass of the zombies that gathered below. And after just a single second, his feet touched the lower floor.

    Tssk.

    Mathew could hear the ster crumbling away from the many cracks present in the building¡¯s structure. But so far, the floor held on.

    ¡®Let¡¯s begin,¡¯ Mathew thought, fixing the hold of his weapons.

    A swing to the right.

    Mathew¡¯s ax broke right through the skull of a zombie. He then swung his sword, cleanly cleaving another zombie¡¯s head out.

    Bit by bit, Mathew moved through the floor.

    He would finish any zombie that he could afford to, leaving them for harvestingter. Yet, most of the time, he had no other choice but to focus his full attention on warding off the ongoing attacks.

    ¡®This is pretty tough,¡¯ Mathew thought, grinding his teeth against each other.

    It wasn¡¯t that each of the zombies was much of a threat. It was their sheer number that made the operation difficult.

    ¡°Just¡­¡± Mat swung his ax sideways. Yet, as he had no time to turn its de around, he used the back of the weapon to cave the skull of yet another zombie in. His de then cut at the arm that reached out for Mat from behind¡­

    The de got stuck.

    Mat wrestled his hand, attempting to free the weapon.

    It wouldn¡¯t be a disaster if he were to lose it, but it would definitely mark the end of the easiest phase.

    Math continued to move forward, dealing with the zombies he encountered on the way.

    Step forward. Step backward to dodge. Another step to the back to avoid a group of three undead. A forced lung three paces ahead to escape from the zombies reaching out for his head from the side.

    BOOM!

    The noise of the shoot rang in Mathew¡¯s ears, causing him to waver for a second.

    What was supposed to be a support ended up as a hindrance.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mat cursed in his thoughts, shaking off the surprise. ¡®I forgot about that guy,¡¯ he thought, ncing over at the officer standing at the edge.

    The position of his pistol clearly indicated who was guilty of the distraction.

    But now that Mat recalled this part of the strategy, he moved his attention back to the only task that he had.

    To advance.

    The prime time for harnessing the stones has yet toe. But for it to happen, Mathew had to cull the numbers of the horde even further.

    ¡®More,¡¯ Mathew thought, swinging both of his weapons sideways.

    ¡®More,¡¯ Mat called out in his soul when two loud bangs took two zombies off his back.

    ¡°More,¡± Mathew muttered, getting into the rhythm of the zombie killing.

    ¡°MORE!¡± the young man groaned when a zombie cleaved at his side, leaving a bloody bruise where its sharp, broken nails cut Mat¡¯s stomach open.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ the young man thought, taking a step back and a breath to calm himself down.

    ¡®I can¡¯t let myself get into the heat,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth. He then took another retreating step.

    It was only a small injury. But it also marked the end of Mathew¡¯s forward adventure.

    ¡°Kill them all!¡± Mathew shouted, not even turning back. And then, a barrage of shots fell most of the zombies around. And in the few seconds that followed, the gunshots cleared out all of the zombies remaining in the corridor.

    ¡®Now!¡¯ Mat raised his eyes on the officer at the edge. But this time, he didn¡¯t even need to call for any order.

    ¡°Get them stones, now!¡± the officer shouted, hurrying his people up.

    What followed could only be called magnificent.

    ¡®Wait, isn¡¯t this bad?¡¯ Mat thought, a sudden thought making his face freeze. Then, his eyes moved over to the cracks that caught his attention before.

    Then, two things happened simultaneously.

    First, the police squadnded on the floor. And then, the already exhausted material it was made off¡­ just gave up.

    BOOM!

    The sound, many times stronger than the explosions before, shook the air within the corridor. And just like this, nearly half of the floor that made up the level broke off and crumbled down.

    The rubble crushed onto the floor below, its momentum big enough to shatter the next floor as well.

    For two more times, the hellish noise shook everyone that heard it, only for many tons of destroyed concrete to bury the brave police squad.

    ¡®Fuck¡­¡¯ Mat cursed under his nose.

    It was already a blessing for the building itself to keep on standing. But it didn¡¯t lessen the shock of watching those experienced veterans go out all at once.

    ¡®Wait,¡¯ Mathew raised his eyes, refusing to ept the two things that this changed.

    He raised his eyes¡­ but he couldn¡¯t see the negotiating officer anywhere over the edge.

    Just like the rest of his team, he jumped down to help gather the cores. And now rested somewhere below all the ruble that most of the floors in the building turned into.

    But that was something that Mat couldn¡¯t influence any longer. Who died was dead. It was a simple truth, but one that turned out to be insanely hard to ept and adapt.

    Still, that left Mathew with one problem.

    Because all the routes that he intended to take to return to the floor above were now gone.

    And to make it all even worse, the screeching scream of a monster suddenly filled the devastated building.

 Chapter 20 Take the fight to the monster instead

    ¡°Mat!¡± Naida shouted, kneeling right at the edge.

    But with most of the floors copsing, she couldn¡¯t reach him even if she would dare to make the jump.

    It was simply outside of the human ability to cover the distance that now separated the two of them.

    ¡°You don¡¯t know when the zombies will breakthrough!¡± Mathew shouted, still worried about the secondary staircases.

    ¡®Even with the stairs blown up, if the floors didn¡¯t copse there, the zombies could still warm the floor,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth in rage caused by powerlessness.

    ¡°I will find a way back up, but be ready to escape to the roof at any time, now!¡± Mathew shouted before decisively turning on his heel.

    Keeping eye contact with the girl for any longer would likely force the young man to change his mind. After all, if he dared to climb the outer wall of the building, he could still make it back¡­

    ¡®No way,¡¯ Mathew gritted his teeth as he moved away, directing his steps to one of the secondary staircases. Still, it wasn¡¯t an easy task.

    First, Mat approached one of the ssrooms located near the structural waypoint of the school.

    The entire building was built on the n of a cross of equally-sized parts. The world¡¯s directions aligned with each of thepounds and gave the name to each of the buildings.

    The main staircase of the entire building was located in the dead middle of the cross, a designated square area for people to move up and down the building.

    Yet, at the end of eachpound, there was a set of two secondary staircases.

    ¡®Yeah, there is no way,¡¯ Mathew thought after checking most of the level and then returning to the edge where the floor copsed. ¡®This building is busted,¡¯ he thought, looking down the gap only to see the zombies slowly roaming through the rubble.

    And since the east side of the campus was no longer possible to traverse, Mathew had no other choice but to reach one of the other wings!

    ¡°I guess I have no other choice but to scale the wall,¡± Mathew muttered after taking stock of the situation.

    His best bet was to enter the ssroom located nearest the devastated staircase. From there, he would stay by the wall and then move to the outside. From there on, he would have to somehow get to the oppositepound, hoping the floor would be in a better state there.

    ¡®There is one upside to the floors copsing,¡¯ Mathew thought when he continued to scour the floor. ¡®Even if only for a moment, zombies aren¡¯t there,¡¯ Mathew took notice as he bent down near the edge and looked as far as he could towards the insides of the otherpounds.

    Sadly, thest part that still had the floor was way too far from the main staircase to let Mathew get any intel on the state of the otherpounds.

    Maybe this choice didn¡¯t matter. But there was also a chance that one of the floors allowed easy ess to the upper floor, while the other was filled with zombies and impossible to traverse.

    ¡°Well, nothing good wille from just standing around,¡± Mathew decided, shaking his head before rxing the muscles of his neck and allowing the air resistance to stop the movement of his head.

    Thest time it swung a little before hanging still ended up to the right. And the ssroom to the left became Mathew¡¯s choice.

    Not because the swing of his head had any meaning. It would work the same as if he threw a coin up; Mathew simply had no coin anywhere on himself.

    And the only reason why he picked left, the opposite to what his head guided him to, was to demonstrate his defiance towards fate!

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what I have to deal with,¡± Mathew muttered as he made his way towards the doors of the ss.

    It had the usual setup, with one door leading directly to the ss for all of the students while the other door first led to a small shed for the teacher and only then to the front of the ss.

    And it just so happened that the convenient ss entrance was on the no-floor side of the building, forcing Mathew to carve his way out with the use of his ax and sword.

    The main doors to the shed gave up after just a few cuts that isted its hinges from the rest of the door¡¯s panel. Yet, contrary to Mathew¡¯s expectations, the door connecting the shed to the ss was of better quality.

    ¡°Damn,¡± Mathew muttered after tiring himself out a bit, only to see just a few shallow cuts on the frame of the wall.

    While it was clearly not reinforced with steel, the kind of stic and wood used to craft those inner doors somehow turned out to be pretty resistant against simple shing attacks.

    Yet, there was a limit to just how durable those doors could be. And given how Mathew approached them from the inner side, he simply changed his target to the hinges instead.

    ¡°Finally,¡± Mathew muttered when the metal bolts finally gave up, putting considerably lesser fight than the door itself.

    With thisst barrier now out of his way, Mathew stepped into the ss, only to notice how most of its floor was gone.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t going to be easy,¡± the young man admitted out loud, only to secure the ax by putting its handle down behind the cor of his shirt while attaching the de to his belt.

    ¡®The teachers would surely freak out if they were to see me like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, a mischievous smile appearing on his lips as he approached and then opened the window up.

    Just like he expected, the main structure of the building still stood. But in regards to wall-climbing, there was only a small gutter slightly above the windows¡­

    And no footing whatsoever.

    ¡°Nadia would surely freak out if she were to see me,¡± Mathew whispered to himself, putting the image of the girl before his eyes.

    The look behind his pupils steeled up, filling with determination.

    He already sacrificed his life once to save her. And he wasn¡¯t going to do that again. Because this kind of end was pretty sad.

    What Mathew wanted to achieve was a peaceful life that he could enjoy with Nadia instead!

    And for that end, he had no other choice but to stand on the edge of the building and eye the small, metal pipe that ran along the wall.

    ¡°God, I hope it¡¯s properly secured in ce,¡± Mathew whispered while swallowing a gulp of saliva.

    He was on the second-highest level of the school right now, putting him well above fifteen meters above the ground.

    The fall from such heigh would surely be unpleasant, although it would likely give Mat pretty short torture before his injuries would im the young man¡¯s life and end his suffering.

    But that didn¡¯t matter.

    The screaming of the monster indicated its presence somewhere amidst the lower floors. And with a monster roaming the school¡¯s building, the rooftop would never be safe.

    That¡¯s why, instead of waiting for it to threaten the survivors, Mathew was determined to bring the fight to the monster instead, dealing with it outside of the worried eyes of his girl.

    Or rather, outside of anyone¡¯s eyes, as Mathew¡¯s actions effectively limited the number of systems that the students of the school could receive.

    In other words, while this was the same world that Mathew experienced before his sacrifice, some things have drastically changed.

    And the approach to the system was one of those things.

    ¡°Well, I guess it¡¯s time for me to go,¡± Mathew whispered, encouraging himself. And then, with his eyes locked on the half-pipe running along the wall, Mathew jumped.

 Chapter 21 Jump

    ¡°Agh!¡± An involuntary moan escaped from Mathew¡¯s lips.

    The dull thud of his body crashing into the concrete wall of the building didn¡¯t bode well. But the metallic crack that followed and the cold feeling underneath Mat¡¯s fingers announced the important thing.

    ¡°I did it,¡± Mathew whispered, fighting off the momentary pain caused by crashing into the wall. He then took several deep breaths to calm himself down.

    ¡®Well, then, let¡¯s not waste any time,¡¯ Mat thought, dropping himself as low as he could before taking a look down.

    ¡°Damn it,¡± Mathew cursed when he realized the one mistake he didn¡¯t ount for.

    Even stretched out as far as he possibly could, his foot still dangled a few inches away from the window¡¯s frame.

    ¡®If I just drop, I will likely slip,¡¯ Mathew thought, bitting down his lips.

    There was only so long that he could spend theorizing while hanging down from the half-pipe. There was no telling when the bolts holding it in ce would give up. What was even worse, though, was that Mathew wasn¡¯t athletic enough to keep on hanging like that!

    ¡®Anything, is there anything¡­¡¯ he thought, desperately looking around to find a spot easier for him to descend.

    And there it was, near the middle point of the building length. A drain pipe ran down the entire height of the building.

    The problem was that Mathew was near the centerpoint of the entirepound, not in the middle of the wing!

    ¡°I don¡¯t have much choice, I guess,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose as he came to a decision.

    Creak¡­

    The pipe let out a long, wailing cry, signifying that it was under a lot of stress. Hardly any drain pipe was designed to support the weight of a human, after all!

    ¡®Please, just hold on for a moment,¡¯ Mathew begged in his thoughts, slowly moving his body sideways through the outer wall of the school.

    And below him¡­ there was nothing. Only a long distance to the ground, and then hard and unweing earth¡­ that was currently brimming with zombies to boot.

    ¡®It¡¯s better not to fall, I guess,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to make some light of the situation.

    Because in the position he was in right now, he could only try to scam himself into thinking positively¡­ as there wasn¡¯t a single thing that could make Mat feel optimistic.

    Bit by bit, Mathew moved across the wall. He only managed to reach half of his way before the asional noises made by the drainpipe turned constant.

    ¡®It¡¯s not going tost for much longer,¡¯ Mathew thought, hurrying his movements up.

    Sadly, he wasn¡¯t athletic at all. Sure, the system would help him grow faster than anyone without it¡­ but he has yet to start growing properly.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew tightened his lips, turning them into a thin line. ¡®Normally, I don¡¯t think I would be able to make it,¡¯ he thought while keeping his hands moving.

    And then, a bolt came loose. One of the supports on which the half-pipe was held to the wall came off.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew cursed under his breath as he hurried his hands. But it wasn¡¯t a simple task either, as his exhaustion started to get into Mathew¡¯s muscles.

    Another bolt came loose, causing the entire pipe to wiggle threateningly. It used to be stable support for Mathew¡¯s hands, but now it was slowly bing a challenge just to keep on holding to it.

    ¡®Hurry!¡¯ Mathew screamed in his thoughts, desperately moving his hands sideways.

    He reached out for the vertical pipe¡­

    The third bolt came loose.

    The horizontal line that Mathew hung down from suddenly broke, causing the part with Mathew to swing away from the wall and then down.

    It was only moments away from breaking offpletely.

    ¡®HELL!¡¯ Mathew screamed out in his mind, terrified beyond any measure. Yet, before panic could take over his body, he just happened to look forward, right towards the window he wanted to reach.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew froze for a moment when he saw more than he expected to in the reflection on the ss.

    The pipe cracked again, another bolting loose. The entire thing fell down even further, quickly threatening to go below the level of the window Mathew wanted to climb!

    ¡®Now!¡¯ Mathew forced himself to swing forward, despite how this would clearlypromise the structural integrity of the pipe. But right now, he was simply too far from the window to reach it.

    Mathew swung his legs forward, bending the pipe even further as he got closer to the window.

    Then, thest of the bolts that kept the pipe attached to the wall gave up.

    Mathew let go of the metal piece since it no longer provided him with any help.

    He was falling. There was no denying it. Mat¡¯s swing gave him some forward momentum, but it was nowhere close to the gravitational pull of the.

    ¡°FUCK¡± Mat screamed out when his hands struck the frame of the window, sliding past the ss only to end up crashing at the still.

    ¡°No, no, no!¡± Mat milled with his hands, desperately attempting to grasp at something. But no matter how hard he tried, his hands continued to slide down the metal of the window¡¯s still.

    And then, the fingers of Mathew¡¯s right hand hooked against something, giving the young man something to grab.

    ¡°OH FUCK¡± Mathew screamed when the entire weight of his body rested just on the fingertips of his right hand. He could feel his tendons crying out in pain, ready to snap at any given moment.

    ¡®Onest bit!¡¯ Mathew screamed out in his soul, tensing his muscles as he swung his body to the side, reaching for the support with his other hand.

    ¡°Uff¡­¡± Mathew released a long sigh when he finally managed to stabilize himself on the wall.

    His body was burning, exhausted beyond any measure. It was only a matter of time. But Mathew still managed to gather some remnants of his strength to pull himself up.

    Only when he safely sat on the window¡¯s ledge did Mathew breathe a sigh of relief. Yet, as he looked into the ss of the window, his feelings turned conflicted.

    On the one hand, he nearly turned desperate when seeing the monsters crawling all over the ssroom he wanted to break into. Yet, as he caught up his own reflection in the window, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but swallow a gulp of salvia.

    Because now that he could see in his own reflection, Mat could see the same informative windows that he saw above Nadia before, now floating all over himself!

 Chapter 22 On the edge

    ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Mathew muttered, looking at his reflection in the window.

    His face was as it always had been, maybe with the slight addition of the extreme exhaustion deep in his eyes. But what sparked the young man¡¯s interest shed behind his reflection in a ce he would never be able to normally see.

    [WIVES SYSTEM HOST]

    [Name: Mathew Karian]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 1/1]

    [Race: Evolved Human]

    [ss: System Holder]

    [Status: Desperate]

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 1/1]

    [Vitality ¨C 13]

    [Brawn ¨C 13]

    [Agility ¨C 14]

    [Mind ¨C 0]

    [Arcane ¨C 0]

    [Total ¨C 20]

    [umted Levels ¨C 1]

    It took Mat a short while to decipher all the words he could see in the window, given how distorted and reversed the image was.

    ¡®Are those my stats?¡¯ Mathew asked, struggling to ept the reality before his eyes.

    It was simply easier to assume it was all just an illusion, a mirage of his tired mind. It was easier, even though Mathew was already well aware of the existence of his system.

    ¡®No, I can¡¯t afford myself the luxury of not believing what I see,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth down.

    ¡®But I can¡¯t expect too much from those stats either,¡¯ he quickly noticed, his mood souring down.

    ¡°Screeee!¡± the zombies in the ss finally took notice, turning their attention towards the weird shadow behind the window. Or maybe it was the noises that Mathew made that attracted them?

    It didn¡¯t matter.

    ¡®I¡¯m running out of time,¡¯ Mathew thought, pulling out his sword and bracing himself against whatever he could find on the window¡¯s still.

    And then, while hoping for the best and praying to his sinful soul¡¯s delight, Mathew struck the window with the handle of his sword.

    But the pommel of his sword only bounced off the ss, sending Mathew¡¯s hand flying far outside of the frame of the window. And with the added weight of the sword pulling his hand down, the young man nearly lost his bnce, something insanely precious when hanging for his dear life inside the narrowness of the window¡¯s edge.

    ¡®As expected of the school¡¯s windows,¡¯ Mathew thought grimly, only to chuckle a little when he realized the actual benefit of this sort of construction.

    ¡®To think that the suicide prevention would stop the undead from iming the lives of the alive,¡¯ Mathew thought, his lips quivering as they formed a small, fake smile.

    There was nothing to be happy about in Mathew¡¯s situation¡­ But he still decided to press himself for a smile.

    If all it took to keep up morale was forcing his body to act as if it was happy and rxed, a small smile wouldn¡¯t be a high price to pay!

    ¡®But that doesn¡¯t solve the problem of getting inside,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around.

    He then grabbed the edge of the window¡¯s frame and leaned out as much as he safely could.

    ¡°No windows open, huh?¡± he muttered to himself, disappointed by the situation.

    At the current rate, getting back inside the building could prove to be a damned challenge!

    A thin panel of ss¡­ That was too sturdy and bouncy for either side to break through it.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m stuck,¡± Mathew muttered, only for the corner of his mouth to quiver as it formed a small smile. ¡°At least I don¡¯t have any stepbrothers or sisters to worry about, now,¡± he added, trying to lift his spirits with this silly joke.

    And then, a miracle happened. Or maybe a disaster?

    One of the zombies in its attempt to grab the shadowy silhuete on the other side of the window¡­ Pushed the window¡¯s handle down, allowing for the window to swing open.

    ¡®That¡¯s my chance,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his sword and just waiting as the second the window opened up, several arms reached out to grab him.

    sh.

    Cutting through flesh was easy¡­ but the same couldn¡¯t be said about the bone. Or rather, it shouldn¡¯t be that easy to cut the bone¡­ But Mathew¡¯s sword went through several zombies¡¯ arms as if they were made from butter!

    ¡®Did they rot away so quickly, or am I actually getting stronger?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as he grabbed the edge of the open window and swung his sword inside, cutting right through the zombies gathered there.

    This was all that Mathew needed to do to fully agitate them.

    Their screeching increased in volume, and soon, the entire ssroom filled with zombies to the brim, all eager to get that juicy bite out of Mathew¡¯s flesh.

    And then, with the path of the least resistance leading straight through the open window, zombies rushed towards Mathew¡­ Only to fall right through the window, slowly clearing the ssroom from the enemies.

    ¡°It makes me feel like a bully,¡± Mathew muttered, squeezing as far into the corner of the window¡¯s ledge as he could. Yet, every now and then, the young man had to swing his sword. After all, with the number of zombies that constantly made their way to the window only to fall right through it, some of them were lucky enough to hook up or something and stay on the ledge.

    ¡°ROAR!¡± a powerful, animalistic scream came from below, shaking Mathew¡¯sziness off.

    Even though he had no other choice but to wait for the ssroom to clear before he could enter it, the roar reminded him that the clock was ticking.

    It was only a matter of time before the rampaging monster or monsters would damage the load-bearing wall of the building.

    ¡®I¡¯m no architect,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the zombies in the ssroom neared the state where he would have a shot at barging inside. ¡®But if the load-bearing walls go down, it will be only a matter of whether a single wing will copse or if the entire building will go down at once,¡¯ Mathew thought grimly.

    And then, seeing an opportunity, he grabbed the vertical edge of the window¡¯s frame and, using it as a sort of swing, he jumped into the ssroom, kneeing the two zombies that were attempting to catch him in the process.

    In an instant, zombies inside got even more energetic than before, their prey now right before their rotting hands.

    Mathew pulled out his ax and looked up at the zombies swarming the ce.

    ¡®I need to clean this ce quickly,¡¯ he thought, swinging his heavier weapon and crushing the nearest zombie¡¯s skull with the de¡¯s butt. ¡®There is no telling how long this building will keep on standing!¡¯

 Chapter 23 Fighting smart

    Mathew continued to massacre all the zombies in the ssroom for a while.

    Thankfully, as no monster made its way to the floor, clearing this one room up took the young man only a short while.

    ¡®I would love to pick up the cores now,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head as he reprimanded himself. ¡®But it doesn¡¯t look like I have the time for that,¡¯ he thought when yet another roar filled the building.

    With all the zombies in the ssroom gone, Mathew slowly approached the doors before carefully opening them up.

    And just like one could expect from a time after a horde, the corridor was full of even more of the zombies.

    ¡®At a time like this, I regret entering such a massive school,¡¯ Mathew thought, keeping hisints to the inner voice of his soul.

    Yet, as much as he didn¡¯t like to move right back into fighting, he hardly had any other choice.

    ¡®I guess climbing through the outer wall is out of the question,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking onest look at the outer wall of the ssroom decorated with the windows.

    He already went through the adrenaline spike of having the only support for his body fail. And rather than resting his fate in the professionalism of the people that installed the drainpipes, Mathew decided to be the lord of his own fate.

    ¡®Wait, what about the floor?¡¯ Mathew suddenly realized one of the vital points to consider when following through with his n. And a single nce down proved that his hopes from earlier turned out to be correct.

    The floor in this wing of the building didn¡¯t suffer as much damage as the other floors. Still, a considerable portion of it was already gone, along with simrly-sized segments of the floor on the levels below.

    But there was one more important point about the way in which the floor copsed on this particr level.

    ¡®Save for a narrow path, it¡¯s nearly impossible to ess the back door to the ssroom,¡¯ Mathew noticed, only for a wide smile to appear on his lips as a n hatched in his mind.

    He then quickly retreated from the main doors of the ssroom. The young man then approached the reinforced doors leading towards the teacher¡¯s shed attached to the ssroom.

    ¡°Breaking it will surely cause a lot of noise,¡± Mathew realized. He then took a deep breath and ced his ax down before getting to work.

    Yet, rather than trying to force the door to the shed open, Mathew started to move the chairs and tables from the ssroom towards its main doors, all in an attempt to properly barricade it.

    ¡°That should be enough,¡± Mathew muttered with satisfaction when the pile of school equipment grew high enough to even cover the window within the ssroom¡¯s doors.

    Obviously, while working on his barricade, Mathew couldn¡¯t avoid making quite a bit of noise. As such, roughly by the time he was only halfway done with the barricade, the zombies outside had already started to test their resiliency.

    ¡°Well then, onto the main task,¡± Mathew muttered, grabbing the ax he left by the wall before as he approached the teacher¡¯s shed doors.

    Yet, right as Mathew raised his weapon and was about to bring it down on the reinforced material the doors were made from¡­

    ¡°Stop it!¡± a voice came out from the other side, only for the doors to suddenly open.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew muttered, instantly taking a position that would allow him to fight or flee, depending on the situation.

    Yet, instead of zombies or even monsters awaiting inside, he saw a pair of two girls, both of which belonged to a parallel ss.

    He never had much opportunity to talk with them, spare for some asional events or school-wide tournaments. Yet, the look of relief on the girls¡¯ faces when they noticed Mat lowering his weapon was real.

    ¡®At the very least, they do not consider me to be a threat,¡¯ Mathew thought, resting his back against the wall as he looked at the girls.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I need to use this shed,¡± he announced.

    ¡°This is our hiding spot!¡± they protested, although weakly with the fear still filling their minds. ¡°Find one for yourself!¡± the girl on the left shouted, only to shrink down when the screeching of the zombies intensified.

    But that was enough for Mathew to lose all the sympathy he had for the survivors.

    ¡°I¡¯m not here to hide,¡± he announced before shaking the ax in his head to remind the girls that he was the one with a weapon here. ¡°You can either leave on your own, or I will drag you out,¡± he then threatened while squinting his eyes.

    ¡°It¡¯s better if we move,¡± the other of the girls whispered, desperately tugging at her friend¡¯s sleeve.

    Out of the two of them, one appeared to be confrontational, while the other was meek enough for Mathew not to be bothered with her.

    ¡°Are you for real?¡± the more aggressive of the girls moaned at the attempt of her friend, only to squint her eyes and look at Mathew with clear hostility. ¡°There is no way he will dare to¡­¡±

    Before the girl could finish her sentence, Mathew took a step forward. He held his ax with his right hand, so he reached out with his left hand and grabbed the girl¡¯s long and silky blond hair before pulling at it without any mercy.

    ¡°AAARGH!¡± the girl screamed out in pain, not prepared for Mathew¡¯s decisiveness. ¡°I will go, I will go!¡± she then quickly changed her narration, unable to contest Mathew in terms of strength.

    But the young man paid her cries no mind. He simply forced her out of the shed before throwing her on the ground of the ssroom. Yet, as he looked back into the small shed, the other girl quickly raised her hands in a sign of surrender.

    ¡°I will leave on my own, I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said in a shaky voice, terrified to the point of wetting the floor below her.

    ¡°Do I really look that scary?¡± Mathew asked himself out loud, only to shake his head and allow the girl to pass by him. He then approached the outer doors of the shed.

    Due to the floor copsing, zombies couldn¡¯t really reach this ce, saving the girls from certain death. After all, the doors on the outer side of the shed were of the cheapest kind, almost as if the school intended to trap cheeky students if any of them dared to enter that ce.

    Yet, rather than contemting the history of the shed or its intended purpose, Mat simply kicked the doors open, grabbed the edge of the door¡¯s frame, and then swung his ax, hitting its but right against the wall of the corridor.

    ¡°HEY!¡± he shouted, instantly attracting the zombies still trying to go through the main ssroom doors. ¡°Over here!¡±

    That was all it took to attract the attention of the undead. And just like Mat hoped, as soon as the zombies rushed to attack him¡­ they started to fall off the edge of the copsed floor, allowing him to clear the corridor without actually risking his skin to do so!

 Chapter 24 Mathews dillema

    ¡°That should be enough,¡± Mathew muttered when most of the zombies from the corridor ended up falling down to the level below.

    Some of them were unlucky enough to fall even further, yet only a few of them fell on their heads, saving Mathew from the burden of killing them in the future.

    Mathew raised his eyes and looked towards the corridor.

    Given how he attempted to attract the zombie¡¯s attention only once, there were several stragglers that either didn¡¯t notice it or already forgot about his presence.

    A few stragglers that Mathew would have no problem taking down.

    ¡°Are you done, now?!¡± the more aggressive of the girls shouted.

    ¡°Shut up!¡± the other of the girls surprisingly spoke up, making Mathew doubt whether she was really as meek as she appeared to be before. ¡°Can¡¯t you see that he cleared them out?¡± she pointed out with her hand at the doors, only to shake her head and look towards the young man.

    ¡°I know we didn¡¯t start on the best foot, but I¡¯m Le,¡± the girl introduced herself, only to bow gently. Yet, as her outfit was pretty far removed from the rules the school implemented, even a simple bow like that exposed quite a bit of her cleavage.

    ¡®I guess that¡¯s only to be expected from the popr girls,¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing at the treat only to shake his head and then turn himself around.

    Just a few hours ago, he would be in seven heavens by getting attention from those girls. Yet right now, they were nothing more but unnecessary distraction.

    ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Mathew said as he fixed his hold over his weapons and approached the doors. ¡°And good luck,¡± he added, ready to open the doors and continue with his mission.

    ¡°Wait for a second, please!¡± Le called out, her voice revealing just how shocked she was with Mathew¡¯s pretty limited reaction. ¡°You won¡¯t leave us here like that, won¡¯t you?¡± she asked, her hands grabbing the bottom of her shirt as she sneakily attempted to make it tense and thus reveal the shape of her charms.

    ¡°He won¡¯t help us,¡± the other girl added grumpily, only to bring her hands up and start unbuttoning her shirt. ¡°He is just like all the other men. If we are of no use for him,¡± she said, taking her shirt off, ¡°then he won¡¯t bother with us at all!¡±

    Mathew threw only a single look at the now nearly half-naked girl before rolling his eyes, shaking his head, and pushing the doors open.

    ¡®In the past, that offer might catch my interest,¡¯ the young man thought. ¡®But now, I have a damned wife!¡¯

    ¡°Wait!¡±

    Just before Mathew could press the doors open, Le rushed forward, grabbing his other arm and wrapping herself around it.

    ¡°We will do anything!¡± she shouted, trying to pull Mat away from the doors. ¡°So don¡¯t leave us,¡± she added, raising her head and showcasing how teary her eyes were. ¡°Please?¡±

    ¡®I have a wife,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to ignore the pleasant feeling of one of the school beauties pressing her chest against his arm. ¡®I have a damned wife!¡¯ he repeated, trying to ignore the pleasure of having a cute girl like that beg him.

    ¡°Let go of me,¡± Mathew finally managed to utter those words. Yet, right as he was about to attempt wrestling his hand off the girl¡¯s grasp, Le¡¯s friend approached him from the side and wrapped her arms around his chest.

    ¡®I can feel it,¡¯ Mathew thought when two points of heat appeared on his back.

    ¡°I will let you fuck me if you protect us,¡± she whispered directly into Mathew¡¯s ear.

    There was a massive difference between teasing him with cleavage or pushing their breast against his arm and voicing out the actual possibility of the deed.

    And being the virgin he was, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but hesitate.

    ¡®Nadia would hate me for it,¡¯ he thought, trying his utmost to resist the temptation.

    Even though he went through the hell of apocalypse before, he was still a young man, only a few months into his legal age. And while the earlier tease wasn¡¯t enough to stop him in his tracks, the open and outright offer of losing his v-card¡­

    ¡°Not interested,¡± Mathew said, wrestling his hand free from Le¡¯s hold only to raise his hands, grab the arms of Le¡¯s friend, and then pry them open.

    Then, before his hesitation could once again make him stop, Mathew opened the doors and moved forward.

    ¡°STOP!¡± Le cried out, rushing up to grab him again. ¡°You can fuck us both!¡± she screamed, not even realizing she attracted the attention of the few zombies that remained.

    ¡°We will do whatever you want, suck you off, let you fuck us, even anal¡­¡± she spoke in an extremely fast manner, throwing more and more incentives in her desperate attempt to lure Mathew into the honeytrap.

    ¡®Damn it,¡¯ Mathew bit his lips to the point where they started to bleed. The gentle yet sharp pain that followed helped the young man to clear his mind.

    ¡°Get off me,¡± he ordered, shoving the girl aside.

    The noise of approaching zombies was thest medicine that Mathew needed to force the lewd thoughts aside and focus on the important matters.

    And so, with neither of the girls holding him back anymore, he pushed forward, right towards the approaching zombies.

    A single step outside of the ssroom was all that Mathew needed. With the undead in sight, the girls simply didn¡¯t dare to chase him outside.

    ¡®You only live once, man,¡¯ Mathew rushed towards the zombies, readying his ax for a swing. ¡®There is no telling if I will even be able to return to Naida,¡¯ he continued to think, his thoughts inadvertently turning into a search for an excuse that would allow him to forget about his morals.

    And then, right as Mathew swung his ax and decapitated the nearest of the zombies, he froze in ce.

    ¡®Wait a second,¡¯ he thought, looking down as he brought his sword-carrying left hand down, splitting another zombie¡¯s head into two.

    ¡®My system is called the Wives system,¡¯ he thought, recalling what he saw in the window¡¯s reflection before. ¡®Not wife system.¡¯

    Most of the zombies were long gone from the corridor, stuck on the floors below. As such, clearing out the remaining few didn¡¯t pose any challenge for Mathew at all.

    But one thing had changed between the moment he moved out of the ssroom and when he finished the job.

    ¡®I¡¯m going to fight a damned monster,¡¯ Mathew thought, perfectly aware that he was now just looking for thest push that would bring him into the sweet embrace of two beauties. ¡®Isn¡¯t it only right to have some fun before that?¡¯

    With no more threats present in the corridor, Mathew turned around and looked at the ssroom right by the edge of the copsed floor.

    ¡°And this might help me to discover a bit more about my system.¡±

 Chapter 25 Naked protest

    Mathew pushed the doors open. And to his surprise, there wasn¡¯t any resistance blocking him from doing so.

    ¡®Are they stupid or what?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, shaking his head as he entered the room. ¡®If they wanted to stay here, barricading themselves is a no-brainer!¡¯

    And as he stepped inside, Mat realized that the girls did nothing to block the doors whatsoever.

    ¡®So it¡¯s not like they were trying to prepare for setting up the barricade either,¡¯ he thought, unable to stop his head from shaking.

    Yet, the girls weren¡¯t in the ssroom. No matter how much Mathew looked around, they didn¡¯t appear to be anywhere inside.

    As such, there was only one ce where the two of them could be.

    ¡®Am I really sure that¡¯s what I should do?¡¯ he thought, unable to stop himself from hesitating.

    And then, he looked at his system once again. And just like before, the name remained the same.

    [WIVES SYSTEM HOST]

    [Name: Mathew Karian]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 1/1]

    [Race: Evolved Human]

    [ss: System Holder]

    [Status: Desperate]

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 1/1]

    [Vitality ¨C 13]

    [Brawn ¨C 13]

    [Agility ¨C 14]

    [Mind ¨C 0]

    [Arcane ¨C 0]

    [Total ¨C 20]

    [umted Levels ¨C 1] (A/N ¨C added this line 2 chapters behind, I forgot about it, sorry for that)

    ¡®It¡¯s a wives system after all,¡¯ Mathew thought, releasing a deep sigh before finally making use of his hand and knocking on the doors.

    ¡°So you came back,¡± the girl whose name Mathew still didn¡¯t know uttered, opening the door right in his face.

    Yet, what was the most shocking about her appearance, was how she no longer had any clothes on herself.

    ¡°What is the meaning of this?¡± Mathew asked while squinting his eyes and refusing to look anywhere but at the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°You are just a man,¡± the girl shook her shoulders in clear contempt for the young man. ¡°Given a free booty call, how could you refuse?¡± she asked before bringing her arms together and crossing them below her bust only to ent its size as she then shook her arms.

    Due to the movement, Mathew made the mistake of looking toward it. Yet, rather than throwing himself at the girl like a wild animal, he simply rolled his eyes, reached out¡­ and pushed the girl aside.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Le muttered when she noticed Mathew¡¯s actions. ¡°Could it be that I¡¯m the one to your liking?¡± she asked while sitting down in the very corner of the shed.

    ¡°What I need and what I want has nothing to do with fucking either of you,¡± Mathew replied.

    Despite his earlier decision to take the booty call and enjoy himself before going to what would likely be his death, when faced with those two girls¡­

    For some reason, Mathew just couldn¡¯t press the issue.

    Even with the other of the two girls standing stark naked behind him.

    ¡°Your friend should learn some shame, you know?¡± he muttered before looking at a piece of ss in the outer doors to the shed in hopes of finding some clues about his system.

    Yet, outside of the things he saw before, no new clues appeared to float above the young man¡¯s reflection.

    ¡°What do you want, then?¡± Le asked, a look of confusion mixing with some sort of disappointment on her face.

    Mathew kneeled down in order to get his eyes on the same level as the Le¡¯s.

    ¡°First off, the most important question. You want me to protect you from the zombies because you have no means of fighting them off,¡± Mat stated before swallowing his saliva as he gathered the courage. ¡°But what if I could offer you the strength to fight them?¡±

    ¡®From the looks of things, whoever I make into my wife, will receive system blessing as well,¡¯ Mathew thought, waiting anxiously for Le¡¯s answer.

    ¡°Do you mean you want me to fight alongside you?¡± Le finallyposed herself enough to push the topic ahead.

    ¡°Well, that all rides on a certain gamble,¡± Mathew admitted while shrugging his shoulders only to then nod his head. ¡°But yeah. That¡¯s the gist of it,¡± he added.

    Le lowered her head. She then raised her hand to her mouth and put her thumb between her lips, sucking on it as she thought.

    She then released a heavy sigh before raising her deep, blue eyes at Mathew.

    ¡°It sounds better than just waiting here to starve,¡± she added.

    ¡°Le!¡± the other girl protested, unable to hold herself back any longer. ¡°He is just going to use you as meatshield!¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t sound very convincing when you showcase your nudity for all to see,¡± Mathewmented, rolling his eyes. ¡°Anyway, back on the topic. What I need you to do, right now, is just vocally ept everything I say,¡± he exined before raising up only to fall down on one knee.

    ¡°Le, will you be my wife?¡±

 Chapter 26 Pushing the systems limits

    ¡°Eh?¡± the girl shrugged when hearing Mathew¡¯s question.

    First, she took a long, deep look at the young man¡¯s face as if trying to assess whether he was serious or just joking. She then nced over at her naked friend by the side only to avert her eyes as if she was scared by herpanion.

    ¡°Are you for real?¡± Le finally asked, unable to believe Mathew was actually serious.

    ¡°What did I say you need to do?¡± Mathew asked, rolling his eyes.

    ¡®I can¡¯t really me her,¡¯ he thought, perfectly aware of the thoughts that could travel through Le¡¯s head. Marrying someone was a big deal. Yet, bringing such an obscure and umon topic right in the middle of an apocalypse, after iming he could give her strength¡­

    ¡°Just ept everything,¡± Le replied without much of a thought.

    ¡°Then, let¡¯s repeat,¡± Mathew ordered before taking a deep breath. ¡°Le, will you be my wife?¡± his voice befitted the grandiose of the asion, even if it was all just a blind shot aimed at exploiting his system.

    ¡°Yes, I will,¡± the girl replied obediently, although her voice betrayed how unwilling she was in reality.

    ¡®Did it work?¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around the girl in hopes of seeing the status window appear¡­

    But nothing happened.

    ¡°That¡¯s strange,¡± the young man muttered, lowering his eyes and ignoring the two baffled girls around him. ¡°It worked thest time,¡± Mathew muttered to himself, trying to figure out what the hell did go wrong.

    ¡®Is it her unwillingness?¡¯ he attempted to guess, refusing to just give up on the spot.

    The possibility of gaining another wife was something that Mathew couldn¡¯t ignore. His first attempt at surviving the apocalypse already proved how insanely powerful one¡¯s system could be¡­

    As long as the system owner had a clue how to use it, that is.

    ¡®Back then, the name of the system was self-exnatory,¡¯ Mathew thought, reminiscing the not-so-far-off past. ¡®Why can¡¯t this be the same with my current system?¡¯ he then asked himself, raising his eyes towards the ceiling of the shed as if he wanted to somehow reach the heavens with his question.

    ¡®Or wait, maybe it is self-exnatory?¡¯ Mathew suddenly thought, despite already following this line of thought before.

    ¡°What does it mean to be someone¡¯s wife?¡± Mathew voiced out without even realizing that his lips parted open.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Le¡¯s friend groaned aggressively, unable to take Mathew¡¯s shit any longer. ¡°Fuck you and your wife¡¯s fantasies!¡± she eximed, raising her hand as if to p Mathew¡­

    Only to then lower it back along her waist when the girl¡¯s eyes fell on the weapons still ready in Mathew¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Daria, calm down,¡± Le urged herpanion, tones of panic appearing in her voice.

    ¡®To them, I must appear like some sort of madman,¡¯ Mathew thought, scanning the room and the two girls inside with his eyes before returning to his analysis of the situation. He then raised his eyes and looked Le directly into hers.

    ¡°What does it mean to be someone¡¯s wife?¡±

    This was the one question that Mathew absolutely had to find the answer to. Back in his original walkthrough of the apocalypse, his system was all about sacrifice. Right now, his system was all about getting wives.

    As such, the meaning of being someone¡¯s wife was the obvious solution to Mathew¡¯s current problem!

    ¡°Maybe going exclusive?¡± Daria barked, although she proposed a valid idea.

    ¡®What, are the two of them together or what?¡¯ Mathew thought, surprised by how Le¡¯s short request managed to calm her friend down nearly instantly.

    ¡°I think we can go with that,¡± Mathew said as he nodded his head before turning his eyes towards still naked Daria. ¡°Are the two of you together or something?¡±

    The air in the room turned so tense that one could hang a damned painting in the middle without the piece of art falling to the ground. It turned into a soup that Mathew had to exert quite a lot of strength to move through.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Le answered decisively, not letting Daria utter another word of insult towards Mathew.

    ¡°Okay,¡± Mathew nodded his head, unable to be bothered with a silly emotion like a surprise. ¡°Say out loud that you two are breaking up,¡± Mathew ordered, eager to test this new idea out.

    ¡°Daria, we are breaking up,¡± Le was quick to follow Mathew¡¯s order despite how ridiculous it was. The look of worry on the girl¡¯s face mixed with a quick nce that she sent towards herpanion hinted at the reason why she was so willing to follow Mathew¡¯s orders.

    ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s try again,¡± Mathew said as he nodded his head. ¡°Le, will you be my wife?¡±

    As the young man posed his question, his hands inadvertently tightened over the handles of his weapons to the point the whites of his bones showed underneath the skin of his knuckles.

    ¡®If that¡¯s not it¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling inwardly forced to put a time limit on how long he could try to meddle with his system.

    Because they were hidden in the shed right now, the roars of the monster from the bottom floor turned into background noise. A background noise that one could barely hear¡­ but that constantly reminded the young man of the time limit set for the entire building.

    ¡°I¡¯m willing,¡± Le nodded her head with a look of determination behind her eyes.

    Mathew looked around the girl again¡­ and then bit his lips to the point they oozed blood.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ the young man shook his head, sobered up by the sudden bout of pain in his mouth. ¡®At this rate, I will eat my lips before achieving anything,¡¯ heined in his mind, refusing to allow his state of mind influence the morale of the girls.

    Whether he would seed at forcing the system to attach to Le or not didn¡¯t matter in the long run. If it happened, it would be a great bonus. Yet, as it was something Mathew didn¡¯t n at all, the failure would simply mean returning to the original n.

    Still, by keeping the morale of the girls high¡­ or at least not any lower than it already was, Mathew could still hope for his attempts to proceed rtively smoothly.

    ¡°It still didn¡¯t work,¡± he whispered, more to himself, to release the pent-up frustration of the constant failures rather than to hint at something to his temporarypanions.

    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s all about dedication and honesty?¡¯ Mathew attempted another blind shot. He then raised his eyes at Le before bitting his lips for the third time in short session.

    ¡°You love your friend, don¡¯t you?¡± Mathew asked in a small voice as if he was sharing some sort of secret rumor that no other soul could hear.

    ¡°I do,¡± Le nodded her head without even a hint of hesitation.

    Mathew closed his eyes for a moment, only o then opened them and looked directly into Le¡¯s face.

    ¡°Then, if you want me to save her, or actually the two of you, I need you to honestly break up with her and submit yourself to me as my second wife,¡± Mathew stated, dropping the bomb on the girls.

    He didn¡¯t want to do it. Even though he couldn¡¯t really understand how two girls could be into each other, he wasn¡¯t one to judge or even care. Yet, whatever kind of love it was, from the determination in Le¡¯s eyes alone, Mathew could tell that it was real.

    That¡¯s why, despite his request being Mathew¡¯sst attempt at forcing the system to act, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a spear of guilt prate his heart the second he uttered his words.

    ¡°I¡¯m¡­¡± Le attempted to say something, only for Daira to suddenly rush forward and send a p right into Mathew¡¯s face.

    Clearly aware of what he did, Mathew didn¡¯t even attempt to dodge. Instead, he simply stood up and turned his eyes towards Daria.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care what you are nning,¡± she shouted, grabbing the edge of Mathew¡¯s pants down and pulling them down before the young man could even react. ¡°But you wanted to fuck us, right?¡± she uttered, still using the moment where Mathew was too shocked to do anything.

    She then raised her hands back up and reached out for Mathew¡¯sid manhood. Her fingertips touched the skin of Mathew¡¯s junior, sending an instant snap of electricity up his spine¡­

    And then, Mathew¡¯s vision blurred. And when it returned to its usual state, several windows floated all over both of the girls!

 Chapter 27 They wiggle nicely

    ¡°Get off!¡± Mathew barked, pping down at Daria¡¯s hand before leaning forward and pulling his pants back up.

    Now that the system finally reacted, there was no reason whatsoever for him to keep up with this charade.

    ¡°HAH?!¡± Daria uttered a weird cry, mixing both surprise, pain, and anger. ¡°The heck do you want, then?!¡±

    But Mathew didn¡¯t reply. Instead, he took a quick look at the status window that floated directly between the two girls.

    [Wife #2]

    [Name: Le Hussate/Daria Paternal]

    [Age: 19/19]

    [Level: 1/1]

    [Race: Human/Human]

    [ss: None/Seductress]

    [Status: Confused/Shocked + Embarassed]

    ¡®What the hell?¡¯ Mathew thought, confused to the end of his wits. ¡®Why are the two of them considered a single wife?¡¯ he asked himself, only to shake his head.

    ¡°What¡¯s important is that it worked,¡± Mathew then muttered, his thoughts slipping through his lips.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Le uttered a small moan of surprise when she heard Mathew¡¯s words. ¡°What worked?¡± she asked, pulling herself up from the floor and taking a long, inquisitive look at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°It¡¯s easier to show than it is to tell,¡± Mathew muttered in response as his eyes moved towards the second half-transparent window that he could see between the girls.

    [System alert]

    [Host can donate the umted levels]

    [Pick a wife to donate levels]

    The intention of this window was clear, and it finally exined the one line of Mathew¡¯s own system that he couldn¡¯t understand.

    ¡®Just to be sure,¡¯ Mathew thought, ignoring both of the girls as he scrambled around the room to find something reflective. And just like before, a single nce at the window embedded into the outer doors of the shed was enough to confirm his doubts.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 1/1]

    [Vitality ¨C 13]

    [Brawn ¨C 13]

    [Agility ¨C 14]

    [Mind ¨C 0]

    [Arcane ¨C 0]

    [Total ¨C 20]

    [umted Levels ¨C 1]

    ¡®Not a single of my stats increased, despite how I killed quite a few zombies on this floor,¡¯ Mathew noticed, only for his eyes to move over to the bottommost line of his own status.

    For a moment, he simply stared at the words visible in his reflection. And then, he turned his head back toward the girls.

    ¡°I¡¯m pretty confused about what the hell is going on myself,¡± Mathew announced to the dismay of the girls. ¡°But at the very least, we did something good,¡± he imed before putting his hands on his hips and looking at the girls with his eyes squinted a little.

    ¡°Now then, I¡¯m not sure how exactly it will work, so I need you two to decide who wants to fight,¡± Mathew imed before crossing his arms on his chest and turning silent.

    ¡°I will,¡± Le was quick to react, raising her hand along with speaking out.

    ¡°If you are just trying to y along, then I have some bad news for you,¡± Mathew warned as he shook his head. ¡°This is as real as it gets. But if you are still sure¡­¡±

    ¡°I will fight,¡± Le repeated, her eyes shing with a spark of determination.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Mathew nodded his head before turning around and moving back to the ssroom. He then grabbed one of the nearby tables before putting it closer to the girls and looking up at Le¡¯s face.

    ¡°Smash it with all your might, as if your life depended on it,¡± he ordered before taking a step back to give the girl some room.

    ¡°What the fuck are you talking about?!¡± Daria red up, tightening her hands into fists. ¡°Do you want her to break her hands or what?¡± she asked in a confrontational tone, clearly unwilling to take Mathew¡¯s bullshit any longer.

    ¡°Right now, I¡¯m showing you that I¡¯m not just some crazy idiot,¡± Mathew replied calmly before moving his eyes to Le. ¡°Continue.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Le threw towards her partner before taking onest look at the table. She then closed her eyes, screamed out, and smashed her fist down at the table.

    The unfortunate piece of furniture made a small noise when its structure came to a test¡­ But in the end, Le¡¯s attack turned out to be way too weak to do anything.

    ¡°Are you happy now?¡± Le asked, turning her face towards the young man while raising her hand to massage it with her other.

    In the end, smashing one¡¯s hand into a thickyer ofminated wood wasn¡¯t the most pleasurable experience.

    ¡°I need you to wait for a second,¡± Mathew ordered before recalling all of the things he saw in the status windows.

    ¡°Le Hussate, donate level,¡± Mathew spoke out.

    The girl shrugged, not expecting Mathew to suddenly bring out her surname¡­ Surname that the young man had no way of knowing.

    ¡°Not it, huh?¡± Mathew muttered to himself when he confirmed that there was no change to the status of the girls.

    ¡°Maybe¡­¡± Mathew muttered while rubbing his chin. Then, his eyes shed up. ¡°Second wife, donate level,¡± he spoke.

    [Donation epted]

    A single line of text appeared before Mathew¡¯s eyes only to disappear the very second he read through it. And when he took a nce at the status of the girls, he finally noticed some small change.

    [Level: 1/2]

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Mathew cussed under his nose before turning his eyes towards Daria.

    ¡°What, finally made up your mind?¡± the girl asked, grabbing her own tits only to shake them.

    Yet, rather than looking at her plump bosom that half of the school¡¯s male popce would kill to get a single nce at, Mathew moved his eyes towards the girl¡¯s status again.

    [Status: Confused/Shocked + Extremely Embarassed]

    ¡°You actually never did it, did you?¡± Mathew muttered, realizing the obvious conclusion to the equation of the girl¡¯s behavior and her state of mind revealed by her status.

    ¡°What?¡± Daria froze, not expecting Mathew to suddenly say something like that.

    ¡°Either way, I fucked up,¡± Mathew waved his hand to drop the former topic before admitting his fault. ¡°But is it safe to assume that the two of you have roughly the same level of strength?¡± he then asked, still hoping to proceed with the showcase.

    ¡°No,¡± Le shook her head sideways, ¡°Daria was always stronger than me,¡± she admitted, her cheeks turning red as she averted her eyes.

    ¡°But she still wouldn¡¯t be able to smash through the wood of the table, right?¡± Mathew asked, quickly losing hope for his current n.

    ¡°I happened to strike my desk in anger a few times,¡± Daria somehow managed to rein in her anger when she noticed that Mathew¡¯s questions, despite being extremely weird, were strangely specific.

    In other words, his words didn¡¯t sound like the words of someone who had lost his mind and was just living his fantasies.

    ¡°Did you manage to break it?¡± Mathew asked, drilling the same question as before.

    ¡°No,¡± Daria replied shortly, cutting straight to the chase.

    Mathew then released a heavy sigh. And then, he turned around and pointed at the same desk that Le had attempted to smash before.

    There was no need for words. Now that Daria realized Mathew wasn¡¯t some kind of horny animal, she was a bit more willing to at least see through his strange game.

    She then approached the desk, a look of hesitation appearing on her face. And just as she raised her hand to attempt smashing the desk, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but notice.

    ¡®They wiggle super nice,¡¯ he thought, allowing his mind a tiny moment of respite, a short moment of rest from thinking about theing fight, system, and the apocalypse in general.

    And then, Daria smashed her fists into the table¡­

    Breaking it in half.

 Chapter 28 I will have you help me

    ¡°What the hell¡­¡± Daria uttered in shock, her eyes opening wide as her forehead covered in sweat.

    She stayed in the same position that she ended up in after the attack. And she simply continued to stand in ce, staring down at the small amount of rubble she turned a school desk into.

    Daria then raised her head and looked directly at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°What did you do?¡± her lips trembled when she voiced her question in a low voice.

    Her eyes widened even further than before. The small blush of shame that she so desperately tried to hide away has now disappeared.

    ¡®She knew it¡¯s not something she should be able to do,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to breathe a sigh of relief.

    In the end, he didn¡¯t know how good donating a single level would be. The change could very well be super small, nowhere near enough to let the delicate hand of the girl split the hard wood of the desk in half.

    In a sense, it was a gamble. A gamble of whether or not a system¡¯s level could bring forth a noticeable change.

    ¡®From the looks of it, my gamble paid off,¡¯ Mathew thought, his lips twitching a little.

    ¡°I doubt you read enough novels to understand the concept of a system,¡± Mathew said. He then shook his head. ¡°To make it easy for you to understand, you can just assume that I can periodically make my wives stronger,¡± he exined.

    ¡°I know what systems are!¡± Le happily reported, eager to prove her use.

    ¡°Wait for a second.¡± Daria finally moved her body, raising her hand up like an obedient student in a ss.

    The thing was¡­

    If a student were to sitpletely naked, shing their charms all over the ce, hardly any teacher would pay them any attention! They would be too busy freaking out and calling for the principal and maybe even the police!

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t Le supposed to be your new wife?¡± Daria pointed out, showcasing how surprisingly calm her mind was. ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡± she cried out, quickly proving that it wasn¡¯t necessarily the case.

    ¡°Apparently¡­¡± Mathew muttered, turning his eyes away. ¡°My system ssified both of you as my second wife,¡± he admitted, averting his eyes even further.

    ¡°What the hell does that mean?!¡± Daria shouted out, clearly carrying not about potentially attracting zombies towards this ce.

    Mathew cleared out the corridor from all the stragglers, sure, but that didn¡¯t mean zombies couldn¡¯t ess this ce again.

    After all, the very reason why Mathew risked his life to get to this part of thepound was to reach a floor with its staircase still intact!

    ¡°I know that you are troubled, but isn¡¯t it better than to just leave your fate in the hands of the zombies?¡± Mathew asked, moving his eyes from Le over at Daria¡¯s face.

    ¡°I don¡¯t recall leaving my fate to zombies,¡± Daria countered, tightening her fists.

    ¡®Is she considering attacking me?¡¯ Mathew thought, taking such a possibility into the equation.

    The girl just received a power-up. And from the state of her mind disyed by the system, all of her nudity disying act was nothing more but a desperate attempt to gain his protection!

    ¡®It wouldn¡¯t be surprising at all,¡¯ Mathew summed up his chances. ¡°Tell me, then,¡± Mathew said out loud, raising his eyes on Daria¡¯s face. ¡°Where would you get food to survive past the next few days?¡±

    Ultimately, survival boiled down to exactly the same needs that their cavemen ancestors were troubled with.

    One couldst only a few days without food. Without water, even less. And once the entire logistic chain that supplied the world would go down as one of the first victims of the apocalypse, procuring for those simple needs turned into a massive challenge for modern people.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Daria attempted to speak up, only for her voice to end up stuck in her throat.

    ¡®She has no answer,¡¯ Mathew noticed, keeping his face as still as possible. There was no need to let the girl know that he realized that.

    ¡°We would somehow manage.¡± Le stood up and proimed. Her face was full of determination, her eyes sharply gazing down at Mathew.

    ¡°What are you, a teacher, to stare at me like that?¡± Mathew asked. He then shook his head and lowered his eyes; his hand found refugee on his hips. ¡°I know that between the apocalypse, zombies, and the situation right now, this is extremely confusing to you.¡±

    For a moment, pity shed in Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°But it¡¯s all our new reality,¡± Le suddenly imed, the doubt long gone from her eyes. ¡°By hiding in that shed, we tried to cover in fear, we hoped¡­¡± the girl hesitated before averting her eyes. ¡°We hoped someone woulde to save us.¡±

    Le took a step forward and raised her hands to the buttons of her shirt. Her fingers quickly solved the puzzle, leaving more and more of her impressive cleavage open.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really know how you can make us stronger. I know what a system means¡­¡± Le stopped for a moment. She turned her head away, hiding her blush. ¡°But I can¡¯t really ept that something like this can exist,¡± the girl said, raising her eyes back at Mathew.

    And so her march resumed. And for every step she made, Le took her shirt lower, to the point when she stood right in front of Mathew, she had nothing but her bra on.

    ¡°This is no longer necessary,¡± Mathew took a step back.

    Now that he figured out the system a bit, he really wanted to take it easy for a while, especially with two so clearly willing girls¡­

    But the roars of the monsters, the roars that Mathew continued to stubbornly ignore¡­

    They were getting stronger.

    ¡®I can feel the entire building vibrate,¡¯ Mathew realized when he took a moment to breathe.

    ¡°No,¡± Mathew shook his head. He kept his eyes clear from wandering towards the surely glorious sight below, hooking them in Le¡¯s pupils instead. ¡°What we need to do, right now, is to defeat the monsters at the bottom floor,¡± he stated, using this notion to kill all the lust born in his body.

    ¡°You surely can spare a few moments to let us help you rx,¡± Le hummed, taking a step forward and throwing her arms around Mathew¡¯s neck. Her naked breasts ttened against the young man¡¯s chest, the sense of enticing warmth assaulting his mind.

    ¡°Actually, we can¡¯t,¡± Mathew shook his head before grabbing Le¡¯s shoulders and pushing her away. ¡°Once we ensure this building won¡¯t copse on our heads, we can think about it,¡± he added, taking a step back and turning around.

    ¡°And now that I know I can raise your strength, I will have you help me with that task!¡±

 Chapter 29 Start of the job

    ¡°Can¡¯t we even take a moment to dress up?¡± Daria spat through her teeth. ¡°Surely, it wouldn¡¯t take us that long!¡±

    Her objection was pretty valid. She paraded through the blood-stained corridor butt-naked.

    Now that the situation has somewhat calmed down, she grew more and more aware of her exhibitionist tendencies. Yet, with only her long, dark hair to cover herself up with, Daria¡¯s wishes only made her look slightly adorable.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew suddenly froze for just a second. He then picked up the pace as if nothing had happened, but his attention was focused on something deep within.

    ¡®Did I just consider her¡­ cute?¡¯

    With the element of shocking seduction now out of the picture, Mathew managed to approach the situation with reason instead of instincts.

    ¡®How could I do that?¡¯ Mathewshed at himself in his thoughts while walking down the corridor. ¡®I really shouldn¡¯t let myself end in a situation like that again,¡¯ he thought, furrowing his brows.

    ¡°When fighting zombies and monsters, the less stuff they can grab you by, the better,¡± Mathew finally exined his reason why he kept the girls naked and half-naked. ¡°That¡¯s also why you should bind or even cut your hair,¡± he added.

    In the apocalypse, there was no room for sentiments. Those girls could fancy their hairstyle, yet it was one of the worst traps for those with long hair.

    Because in the slugfest of fighting with the zombies, a single, well-aimed grab and the zombies would effectively eliminate thebatant.

    The blessing of not turning from just a single bite or scratch wouldn¡¯t matter much if a zombie were to simply snap one¡¯s neck off.

    ¡°But wouldn¡¯t clothes offer us some protection from the zombies?¡± Le pointed out, holding on to a table¡¯s leg that she improvised as her weapon. ¡°I mean, one scratch, and we are out, right?¡± she suggested as if it was something obvious.

    ¡°You watch way too many movies.¡± Mathew shook his head before refocusing himself on the mission.

    They lingered on the single floor for long enough. Now it was the time to solve the problem of those monster roarsing from below.

    ¡°Remember, they look awful, but they are slow,¡± Mathew pointed out as they reached the intact staircase.

    It was also the first ce where they finally encountered the zombies again.

    Lured by the constant small noises they made while hidden in the ssrooms, zombies only needed time to find their way back to their floor.

    ¡®The same happened back to our fortress,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling the events from his first attempt at surviving this disaster.

    He then swung his fireman¡¯s ax down on a zombie¡¯s head.

    ¡°Normally, we would try to collect those stones,¡± Mathew instructed, pointing at a shiny bit hidden within the brain matter of the zombie that he just downed.

    ¡°E!¡± Daria protested, raising her hand to her mouth and turning her eyes away. The convulsion mixed with unsavory sounds that followed indicated what she was up to.

    ¡°If they are important¡­¡± Le proved to be somewhat cold-hearted, looking unperturbed at the corpse of her former ssmate. ¡°Why are we not collecting them now?¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t reply. He turned unusually silent, focused on the approaching zombies instead.

    The staircase was still rtively empty, with only a few zombies reaching that far. But as they moved down, more and more of the deceased students started to appear.

    ¡°What do we do?¡± Daria asked, clenching her jaws as she tightened her grasp over the sword.

    It was the weapon that Mathew bought from the merchant and now shared with the girl. She somehow ended up first to gain a level from Mathew¡¯s donation, so the young man deemed her more suitable to carry a proper weapon.

    ¡°Just inflict a heavy head trauma,¡± Mathew instructed, swinging his ax again as they forced their way into the thicker crowd of the zombies.

    As they left the staircase behind, the girls slowly got used to the simplisticbat.

    ¡®The first day or two should be easy like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, biting down on his lips. That¡¯s how the apocalypse yed out in his memory.

    And yet¡­

    A damned monster had already threatened to destroy the school¡¯s foundation only a few hours since everything began!

    ¡®How could the events change so much?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, steadily swinging his weapon to the sides andying scores of his former schoolmates to their final rest.

    ¡®I¡¯m the only one who changed,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to bite even harder on his lips.

    In the end, clearing an entire floor out of zombies took the group roughly twenty minutes.

    Just like in Mathew¡¯s original life, as long as one wasposed and determined, one could stop a wave of zombies all by themselves.

    ¡°We don¡¯t collect the stones because they are of no use to us,¡± Mathew finally exined the question that Le posed before they descended the stairs. ¡°For now, that is,¡± he added, only to begin his march back towards the secondary staircase.

    Normally, those stones would be amonce currency for the survivors. The few trades that his group at the fortress did were all about exchanging those cores.

    And yet, Mathew felt no fear in leaving them to wait in the rotting flesh.

    Because due to his interference, only he and several soldiers managed to kill a zombie during the opening phase of the apocalypse.

    In other words, besides the few corpses resting beneath the pile of rubble, he was likely the only system-holder in the entire school!

    In other words, in the entire school, Mathew currently held a monopoly over the usage of the stones. As such, they were of use only for him and those allied to him!

    ¡°Right,¡± Le nodded her head, gripping her worn-down metal rod in her hands. ¡°We are going to y some monster, right?¡± she added, cutely leaning her head to the side.

    ¡°That gesture would be quite cute,¡± Mathewmented, throwing a quick look at the girl. ¡°That is if you didn¡¯t have blood all over your tits,¡± he added before rolling his eyes and turning them back towards the staircase.

    Due to themotion, zombies already started appearing, slowly crawling out from the floor below.

    ¡°We still have several floors to go through,¡± Mathew announced, turning his eyes towards the two girls. ¡°Are you ready?¡± he asked while scanning the changes on their status window.

    [Wife #2]

    [Name: Le Hussate/Daria Paternal]

    [Age: 19/19]

    [Level: 2/4]

    [ss: Clubster/Warrior]

    [Status: Aroused/Determined]

    Just a quick nce was enough for Mathew to gulp down his saliva.

    Over the course of them clearing the floor, Mathew received the notification that his level donation function became avable. And without a second thought, he used it right on his wife number two.

    Between the donation and her own growth, Daria managed to reach level fourth, while Le ended up at a measly second level.

    ¡®I wonder how strong they are right now,¡¯ Mathew thought. He never got to experience levels or anything of that sort with his previous system. And now, he struggled to judge the meaning behind the information he could see.

    ¡®Still, they both gained an entire level just from this short fight,¡¯ Mathew thought, before looking around, right as he neared the staircase. ¡®I wonder how did my own stats change,¡¯ he thought before fixing his grip over the ax¡¯s handle and smashing it down on the nearest zombie.

 Chapter 30 This place is as good as any other

    ¡®Are those my stats?¡¯ Mathew stood still while turning a big shard of ss around to look into the details of his own progress.

    The first part of my status didn¡¯t seem to receive any major changes outside of the status of my mind. It simply changed from the desperate that I was before to the determined that I was right now.

    It was the other part of my status that picked up my interest.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 1/1]

    [Vitality ¨C 16]

    [Brawn ¨C 17]

    [Agility ¨C 16]

    [Mind ¨C 0]

    [Arcane ¨C 0]

    [Total ¨C 49]

    [umted Levels ¨C 1/3]

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shrugged when he finally managed to decipher the details of his detailed status. ¡®Did I miss the notification?¡¯ he thought, looking towards the bottom line.

    At this point, it was pretty clear what this line was all about.

    ¡®With two levels donated and one yet to be distributed,¡¯ Mathew thought before looking at thest number disyed in his reflection. ¡®The math does check out,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth.

    In theory, he could give that level to Nadia to help with her recovery. And it was something that Mathew seriously considered, given how he didn¡¯t know where the time of his end woulde.

    But ultimately, if he wanted the girl to survive, taking out that monster was the main concern. Because even if Nadia were to survive her current zombified status, she would then be just another victim of the crashed building.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Daria called out, desperately swinging down her sword. ¡°We would use some help here!¡±

    They have only managed to clear a single floor so far. Right now, they were just a few steps away from the staircase, digging into the mass of zombies on the floor below.

    But contrary to the previous instance, this floor turned out to be far harder.

    Not because the zombies received some mysterious and magically inconvenient power-up.

    It was all because of their number.

    And now, the young man and his two nakedpanions had to now deal with the problem they ignored earlier.

    ¡°Seriously, help!¡± L cried out when three zombies threw themselves at her.

    And even with her raised level, she could hardly stave off theirbined attacks.

    Mathew shook his head, forcing himself out of his daze.

    Whenever anything rted to his system woulde up, he would freeze to think it over. After all, it was his greatest asset and greatest tool to survive in the apocalypse.

    But checking his own status and then trying to modify his strategy¡­ was an activity that required a fitting ce and time.

    And due to the mass of zombies pressing toward them, the two poor girls couldn¡¯t give Mat the window of opportunity to calmly think about his system.

    ¡°Got it,¡± he called out in response, taking a wide swing of his ax before throwing its butt directly into the crowd of zombies ahead.

    ¡®The roads are getting stronger,¡¯ Mathew thought as he immersed himself in the heat of the battle.

    [Host can now donate a level]

    A vision shed in the corner of Mathew¡¯s eyes, indicating that just a few moments of fighting were enough to bring his level up a notch¡­

    Or rather, to give him the chance to donate his level again.

    ¡°I need a moment!¡± Mathew called out after thinning out the crowd of the zombies a little before leaving the rest to the girls.

    He picked up another stray shart of ss and took a quick look at his own status again.

    ¡®Just like I thought,¡¯ he muttered under his breath, sping his teeth together.

    Even though Mathew clearly reached a new level, his level count on the main status screen failed to move!

    ¡®Am I going to end up as a forever-level-one character?¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth against each other before raising his hand and pping his own cheek.

    He then shook his head to distract himself from the downsides of his system.

    ¡°I wish to donate two levels to wife number two!¡± Mathew called out, ignoring the shame of uttering such words in public.

    [Donation epted]

    A message appeared before his eyes, prompting the young man to drop the shard of ss and rejoin the fight.

    Thankfully, be it thanks to their raised levels or maybe Mat¡¯s own progress, they managed to clear the floor without much trouble. Sure, the corridor crowded with zombies wasn¡¯t the ce Mathew would like to be, but he didn¡¯t really have much choice.

    ¡°The building is really shaking,¡± Daria observed as their small group turned around and headed for the staircase again. She then raised her eyes and looked toward Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°So you weren¡¯t lying about those monsters,¡± she muttered in a silent voice, as if too ashamed to admit Mathew was right.

    ¡°So it is,¡± Mathew replied impassively before taking a deep breath. ¡°We only have three more floors to go,¡± he said before ncing over at the girls.

    Spare for his donation, Le managed to raise her level by one. Thanks to that, they now reached fourth and fifth levels, giving Mathew some hopes regarding theing fight.

    ¡°We better hurry up, then,¡± Le summed up, only to take a look at the worn-out piece of metal she was using as the weapon all this time. ¡°It would be nice to get something better to swing, too,¡± she added before sending a strange look at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Thinking about this, this ce is as good as any,¡± he muttered under his nose, only to shake his head and turn around.

    ¡°Okay, girls, full stop,¡± he ordered as he lowered his ax. ¡°Le, you are responsible for gathering as many cores¡­¡± Mathew cleared his thought, ¡°as much of those shiny stones as you can. Daria,¡± the young man turned his head to the other girl. ¡°I need you to guard the staircase. Don¡¯t let any zombies near,¡± he instructed.

    Mathew then took a step back and looked at the bloodied corridor. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to picture their location on a model scale of the entirepound.

    ¡®This ce is really as good as any other,¡¯ he thought before opening his eyes and looking at the girls with a mysterious ray shing behind his eyes.

    ¡°We are going to summon a merchant!¡±

 Chapter 31 Second merchant

    ¡°Mat!¡± Le called, ignoring the risk of attracting the zombies.

    Or rather, she was clearly eager to bring more of them to the fray so that the count of their cores would increase.

    There was this visceral joy visible in the girl¡¯s eyes as if she truly enjoyed gathering the cores.

    ¡®It¡¯s as if she didn¡¯t see them as corpses of her schoolmates,¡¯ Mathew thought, lowkey troubled with such development.

    It wasn¡¯t anything bad for the girl to find a coping mechanism for her situation. But seeing her beautiful face all in smiles while her hands have blood all over them?

    This was the most disturbing image Mathew could find on the entire floor. Not the grotesque piles of corpses, not the blood sttered all over the ce¡­ The weird, satisfied smile of the girl who covered in fear from the zombies just a few moments earlier.

    ¡®Maybe leveling up has some weird effect on one¡¯s brain?¡¯ Mathew attempted to guess, only to shake his head and drop the topic.

    This wasn¡¯t the time for such unnecessary debate.

    ¡°Yes?¡± Mathew called back to the girl, standing up from the pile he finished counting.

    ¡°I think we have well over two hundred now!¡± the girl announced, brimming with smiles.

    ¡°Guys, how about some help?!¡± Daria called out from the staircase, despite progressing down the stairs instead of just holding her high ground.

    ¡®Yeah,¡¯ Mathew thought, shaking his head as he straightened up and picked up his ax. ¡®There is definitely something in the air messing with our heads.¡¯

    Maybe it was adrenaline rushing through their veins. Maybe a visceral joy of theirplicated lives simplified to the struggle for survival. Or maybe there actually was something in the system that messed with their brains.

    ¡®Did something like this happen before?¡¯ Mathew thought, reaching to his memories. And yet, no matter how hard he looked, he couldn¡¯t pinpoint the answer.

    ¡°I¡¯m on my way!¡± Mathew shouted, shaking his head to get rid of those useless thoughts.

    Whether or not something was interfering with their brains wasn¡¯t a topic for now.

    ¡®Once we will secure the school, there will be some time to think about it,¡¯ he thought, swinging his ax even before reaching the staircase.

    Daria would likely be able to hold the zombies off¡­ But Mathew didn¡¯t want to risk it. And since she called for help, he was more than happy to provide it.

    ¡°We should have nearly two hundred by now!¡± Le shouted over as she dropped yet another haul by the pile of the life cores. ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want to summon that merchant first?¡±

    Ever since Mathew first mentioned the possibility of summoning a merchant, Le was its greatest supporter. It was likely also the reason why she was so eager to collect the cores from the fallen zombies.

    Because with the merchant, their ability to survive in the apocalypse would skyrocket.

    ¡°Still, are you really sure it¡¯s better than going back to the one you already summoned?¡± Daria asked when Mathew reached her position and started to swing his trusty ax around. ¡°It¡¯s not like it would take super long either,¡± she added, only to shrug her shoulders before cutting off a zombie¡¯s head with Mathew¡¯s sword.

    ¡°We still need to summon two more merchants in the school to turn it into a true fortress,¡± Mathew rebuked, sharing the one vital piece of information that he found out in his past life.

    Normally, he would keep it hidden, staying true to his idea of keeping his cards by his chest. Yet in this world, where he was likely the only one to have a system within the boundary of the school¡­

    What could anyone do with that information?

    ¡®Sure, I could find a better location to ce the merchant, but at this very moment, there are far more benefits to just going with the flow,¡¯ Mathew thought, sending a few more hits into the horde before nudging Daria.

    ¡°Let¡¯s head back,¡± Mathew ordered.

    They reached the breaking point of the stairs, where their other part would descend towards the bottom floor rather than the wall ending the building. If they kept on going, they would soon attract the zombies from below.

    And this wasn¡¯t the purpose yet.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daria nodded her head, obediently pulling back.

    Compared to her girlfriend, she turned out to be much more level-headed, capable of holding her newly awoken instincts at bay.

    Now that Mathew had made his decision, he cleaned out thest few zombies from the stairs before lowering his torso to start picking up the cores.

    ¡®I guess it¡¯s better to just go and do it,¡¯ Mathew thought, stepping forward and leaving the task of protecting the staircase to Daria.

    He then approached the pile of the stones before putting them into a piece of cloth torn out of a random zombie¡¯s uniform. And then, just like he did on the top floor of the school before, Mathew repeated the summoning ritual.

    ¡°I, Mathew, son of Arthur, do hereby summon a tiered merchant!¡±

    This was as far as Mathew¡¯s knowledge reached. What was the title of the third merchant required to form a fortress? He didn¡¯t know.

    ¡®I bet I can buy that information out of this guy,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the stones exploded in brightness only for a hooded shadow to appear where they were once the light vanished.

    ¡°Tiered merchant?¡± Le asked, raising her eyes towards Mathew¡¯s face right as he reached for the merchant¡¯s shadow.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°Contrary to the im merchant above, this one, can evolve,¡± he exined before pushing his hand forward and grasping at the dancing shadow underneath the merchant¡¯s hood.

 Chapter 32 [Bonus chapter]Blunder

    The shadow within Mathew¡¯s grasp expanded the second Mat squeezed down on it.

    It suddenly expanded, forming a blurry barrier that separated the young man from the rest of the world.

    While stuck inside, Mathew¡¯s experience of time changed.

    ¡®It¡¯s always this weird feeling, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ the young man thought, immersing himself in the darkness.

    He never got to truly check whether or not the time flowed differently within the merchant¡¯s shop. It was something that only required both parties to carry a clock.

    But still, Mathew never really had the time and opportunity at the same time to pull such a basic test out.

    And what seemed like a mere momentter, the darkness suddenly pulled away, revealing three tables both on Mathew¡¯s right and left, with a sacrificial chamber in the middle.

    All those elements were made from some sort of chiseled stone, giving off a tough and cold feeling. There were some runes inscribed on the sides of each of the tables, while the sacrificial chamber turned out to be¡­

    A big, ck, metal pot. A kettle, to be more precise.

    ¡°So much for grandeur,¡± Mathew muttered, his lips twitching in a quick, small smirk.

    It appeared that the basic, unupgraded merchant would disy its status in the shop. And once its level would rise higher¡­

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s not waste time,¡± Mathew muttered, scanning the content of each of the tables.

    Sadly, most of it was already greyed out. Out of six items that this merchant would normally sell, only two remained intact.

    ¡®A weapon and a scroll, huh?¡¯ Mathew thought, analyzing the items.

    Scroll indicated some sort of knowledge; every RPG addict knew that. On the other hand, a single sword on the other table didn¡¯t really need any further exnations.

    ¡°I will get both of them,¡± Mathew said out loud, raising his hands and pointing at the items he wanted.

    ¡®Over two hundred stones, huh?¡¯ Mathew thought. ¡®A hundred to summon the merchant, and¡­¡¯

    A total of ten stones suddenly rose up from Mathew¡¯s makeshift pouch, only to turn into a ball of light and then reveal their content.

    And just like this, a sword and a note appeared below Mathew¡¯s feet. Notably, though, while the scroll now turned into a blurry illusion, the sword on the table remained as it was.

    ¡®So I can buy multiple weapons, huh?¡¯ Mathew took notice before turning his eyes towards the sacrificial pot.

    ¡°I wish to upgrade the shop,¡± Mathew called out.

    ¡°Ten cores,¡± the familiar, robotic voice responded to Mathew¡¯s call without fail.

    Mathew only nodded his head before throwing ten cores into the kettle.

    The shadow that earlier revealed the area suddenly pulled towards the young man. Covering everything away from his eyes, it then shook like a single, living organism before receding again.

    The stone bs making up tables turned into proper, wooden stools. And more importantly now, not only each of the tables housed now three items, there were even quettes with the names of the item attached!

    ¡°That¡¯s surely convenient,¡± I thought, my eyes moving towards the new grade of items I could buy. Yet, I quickly stopped my head and leaned down, picking up both of the items I had already bought.

    ¡°You may now know the names of the wares,¡± I spelled the words on the note out loud. I then raised my other hand and rubbed the side of my head, not caring for the sword I already held in it.

    ¡°I guess those quettes are not the benefit of the upgrade, then,¡± I muttered before raising my eyes towards the new items again.

    Contrary to my worries, the items from the first shop didn¡¯t disappear. Yet, with their form blurred, I somehow couldn¡¯t tell at all what they represented. As such, I didn¡¯t know whether I couldn¡¯t buy them yet or if they were already out of stock.

    ¡°New grade of weapons, huh?¡± Imented as I turned my eyes towards the table that still housed the simple sword.

    Now, there were two more options. A machete and an ax. Yet, there was a small caveat.

    Mathew reached down and picked up the name tag of the ax.

    ¡®Outside of a single exception, this is the only nametag written in golden letters,¡¯ he thought before looking at the weapon in his hand.

    It was almost exactly the same.

    ¡°What¡¯s the price of those weapons?¡± Mathew called out to the merchant.

    ¡°Five cores for the sword, twenty-five for the machete, one hundred and twenty-five for the fireman¡¯s ax,¡± the robotic voice, like always, responded in an instant.

    Mathew¡¯s lips twitched a little. He then raised his eyes towards what seemed like the densest part of the shadow.

    ¡°How much would the weapon I¡¯m holding go for, then?¡± he asked.

    ¡®In this way, I will see not only whether or not I can sell my stuff, but also what¡¯s the markup on the items,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to cheat out as much information out of his system as he could.

    ¡°Unable to purchase unidentified weapons,¡± the voice instantly shut down Mathew¡¯s hopes.

    ¡®As if I would give up so quickly,¡¯ he thought, a smirk appearing on his lips.

    ¡°Unable to appraise items of the rank higher than the shop,¡± the voice reluctantly gave Mathew another hint. While it still kept its robotic mannerism and tone¡­ It somehow appeared annoyed?

    ¡®It¡¯s actually way easier than I thought,¡¯ Mathew noticed, his eyes shing with excitement.

    There was something damn satisfying in finding ways around stuff to do what he wanted.

    ¡°How much for another upgrade, then?¡± Mathew asked, crossing his arms on his chest.

    ¡°Fifty cores,¡± the shop¡¯s voice replied in a cold tone.

    ¡°Tsk,¡± Mathew clicked his tongue. ¡°Cheapskate,¡± he spat on the ground before throwing a fistful of stones into a slightly bigger kettle than before. ¡°Go and get yourself a nicer sacrificial chamber,¡± he added, slightly perturbed by the changes in the merchant.

    This time, noment came from the merchant. The shadows exploded in volume, once again filling Mathew¡¯s immediate surroundings. Yet, when the shadows retreated a momentter, the shop changedpletely.

    There was no sign of the former tables, all the items that Mathew had yet to buy were now gone, reced by the new stock of even higher grade.

    ¡°Fuck¡­¡± Mathew cursed, realizing his mistake. ¡®I guess that¡¯s karma for me, for being rude to the merchant,¡¯ he thought, tightening his fists. ¡°May I ask where all the old wares went?¡± Mat asked, raising his eyes at the shadows with the hopes of mending his faux pas.

    ¡°User now reached a new evolution stage of the shop.¡± This time, the robotic voice was full of satisfaction. ¡°Please, do enjoy new wares!¡±

 Chapter 33 Jackpot

    ¡°The shop changed a lot,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose once he finally shook off the shock of his failure.

    There were several reasons why Mathew was in such a rush to raise the level of the merchant.

    First came the need for weapons. And given how many floors Mathew¡¯s group still had to conquer before getting to the bottom floor, buying something durable was a must.

    Then came the endgame of Mathew¡¯s ns. The monsters. And to defeat them, punny humans like them could only rely on the might of their weapons.

    ¡®That is, as long as we don¡¯t out level those monsters first,¡¯ Mathew thought, tightening his fists before taking a proper look around the shop.

    Yet, before he could as much as figure out the logic behind the way it was set up, the young man raised his eyes towards the densest part of the smoke before asking again.

    ¡°Can you appraise my weapon now?¡± he asked.

    This was the third of the big reasons why Mathew was so eager to push the merchant hard. Because from the looks of things, the ax that he wielded was actually of an even higher ss than the one he could buy before. Otherwise, the merchant being unable to appraise it wouldn¡¯t make any logical sense!

    And then, Mathew froze.

    ¡®Wait, how could I even use my own logic and impose it on the logic of the system?¡¯ he thought, noticing his second mistake.

    Mathew didn¡¯t know the rules on which merchants operated. He didn¡¯t know and could ultimately only guess whether or not his idea would turn out to be correct or not.

    ¡°Cost of appraisal, fifteen cores,¡± the mechanic voice of the merchant announced. This time though, just like at the beginning, there was no emotion behind it whatsoever.

    ¡°Deal,¡± Mathew threw another fistful of cores into the air. And while some disappeared in the same shy manner as before, roughly half of them remained suspended in the air, free for Mathew to pick up.

    ¡®At least it¡¯s not scamming with the price,¡¯ Mathew thought, waiting for the reveal.

    ¡°Status of the user¡¯s weapon updated on their log,¡± the voice announced before disappearing. Something about the air¡¯s quality changed as if the world twitched¡­ But Mathew couldn¡¯t really pinpoint the cause or location of this strange urrence.

    ¡°User¡¯s log?¡± Mathew muttered, lowering his eyes and resting his chin on his hand as he thought. ¡°Only one thing makes sense here,¡± he concluded before raising his eyes and finally taking a moment to look around the new shop.

    The tables from before were nowhere to be seen, reced by a row of seven shelves. They looked exactly like the furniture of your average convenience store. In fact, if not for how varying the wares on the shelves were, Mathew could think he actually entered a small shop instead!

    The quality of the ce was also better.

    The sacrificial chamber now turned into a box Mathew recognized from hundreds of magnas that he read in the past. It was as if it was stolen from some Japanese shrine, with five solid walls and a set of rails covering the top.

    Mathew moved up and approached the first of the shelves.

    ¡°Supplies,¡± he muttered, moving over to the next one. ¡°Clothes, weapons, information, tools¡­ and what exactly are those two?¡±

    Mathew took a closer look at thest two shelves. Even though they were brimming with items, one of them was greyed out, while the other one housed an impressive collection¡­ Of some strange, colorful stones.

    Mathew then leaned forward and looked at the quettes arranged to mark everyst of the disyed items.

    ¡°Zombie bait, Zombie repent, healing ground, empowering stage,¡± Mathew mouthed out several of the names before raising his eyes and looking at the items themselves again.

    Yet, they were still the same colorful stones as before.

    ¡°Maybe those are some kind of buffs? Special abilities for the user to purchase?¡± Mathew muttered only to shake his head and move back towards the two shelves that interested him the most.

    ¡°Chainsaw, gauntlet, cleaver, and handgun,¡± Mathew counted out the new weapons that appeared in stock. This time, however, not a single one was named with gold-bearing letters.

    ¡®Oh right,¡¯ Mathew shook a little when the sight of weapons made him think of something. ¡®Now that my ax is appraised¡­¡¯ he thought before raising his head back towards the shadows.

    ¡°How much would my weapon cost?¡±

    For the first time during all of Mathew¡¯s interactions with merchants, the voice didn¡¯te right away.

    ¡°Three hundred seventy-five cores,¡± the voice finally appeared, a clear annoyance perfectly noticeable in its dissatisfied tone.

    ¡®Woah,¡¯ Mathew took a step back before raising his hand and looking down at his weapon. ¡®It¡¯s that powerful?¡¯ he thought, baffled by the discovery.

    He heard from one of his surviving ssmates during the first run of the apocalypse that a golden fireman¡¯s ax could be bought from the merchants. That¡¯s why he was so happy to get one for free. And now, it turned out that the weapon he simply picked off the wall was worth nearly four hundred cores?

    ¡®If that¡¯s not a jackpot, then I don¡¯t know what else could it be,¡¯ Mathew thought, a satisfied smirk raising upon his face.

    ¡°How much do handguns cost?¡± Mathew asked before eyeing out the shelf with the weapon.

    And then, he noticed something that he had missed before.

    ¡®Something is stuck in the back!¡¯ Mathew called out, leaning over the shelf to check it out further.

    ¡°A hundred cores,¡± this time, the robotic voice of the merchant appeared to be in quite a panic.

    ¡°How about those machetes in the back of the shelf?¡± Mathew asked, recognizing the item.

    This time, he no longer bore a smirk on his lips. This time, Mathew¡¯s expression turned devious instead.

    ¡®You wanted to make me think I lost all the items from before?¡¯ he thought, raising one of his eyebrows before shaking his head and taking on a natural expression. ¡®Well, there is no point in flexing this discovery in the merchant¡¯s face. Let¡¯s just y it cool,¡¯ Mathew decided.

    He already suffered the consequences of angering the merchant. And even if its options to make Mathew¡¯s life were limited, there was no point in incurring merchant¡¯s wrath just for some self-satisfaction.

    ¡°Twenty-five cores,¡± the voice replied, once again appearing to bepletely emotionless.

    ¡®Does it hopes for me not to notice the pattern?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to ultimately ignore the topic and throw the rest of the stones from his pouch into the air.

    ¡°I want three machetes,¡± he announced. And after a quick explosion of bright light, Mathew¡¯s new weapons appeared on the floor right beside him.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew turned his head towards the other shelf that caught his interest. ¡°Could I maybe hear a little bit more about those scrolls?¡±

 Chapter 34 Weapon Delivery

    Mathew posed his question. And then he waited. And waited. And once some amount of time had passed, he moved his eyes from the thickest part of the shadow back towards the shelf with the scrolls.

    ¡®If it didn¡¯t reply right away, it likely wouldn¡¯t answer at all,¡¯ Mathew thought before focusing on the names written on the quette below every scroll on the shelf.

    ¡°Patterns of spread, fortress establishment, and strategies, level information, ss information¡­¡± Mathew mouthed the words, going through them all one by one.

    ¡°If this isn¡¯t a treasure trove of knowledge, then I don¡¯t know what is,¡± Mathew whispered to himself before throwing a nce towards the thick part of the shadow again.

    ¡°How much for those scrolls?¡± he asked, pointing his finger at the shelf in general.

    ¡°Unable to answer,¡± the robotic voice appeared right away.

    ¡°How about this scroll then?¡± Mathew changed his question, moving his hand to point at the scroll named ¡®ss Information¡±.

    ¡°Fifty points,¡± the robotic voice wasn¡¯tte this time. Yet, despite refusing to give the tally for all the scrolls before, it clearly didn¡¯t mind sharing the prices of each individual item.

    ¡°What¡¯s with thisck of amodation?¡± Mathew muttered as he shook his head sideways. He quickly recalled, though, that he wasn¡¯t in some kind of grocery where the word of a customer was a word ofw.

    He was in a shop of a merchant that appeared at the same time as the apocalypse, and from the looks of the names of just a few scrolls picked at random, this shop was strictly tied to the very apocalypse that was happening.

    In other words, the times when the customer was always right were already over. As such, Mathew could onlyin under his nose before epting the truth before his eyes.

    ¡°How about this scroll?¡± Mathew moved his hand over to another interesting piece. This time, it was one named ¡°Strategems of battling the monsters.¡±

    ¡°A hundred coins,¡± the robotic voice of the merchant replied without even a hint of hesitation, proving that there wasn¡¯t likely any point in trying to kick the price a little bit lower.

    ¡®I can¡¯t afford it,¡¯ Mathew thought, staring at the scroll on disy. ¡®Still, it¡¯s good to know that we can learn about how the world changes, even if ites at a steep price,¡¯ he thought before leaning down and picking his weapons.

    There wasn¡¯t anything specific for Mathew to grab. He simply reached out and waited while the shadows that created this strange realm started to contract.

    The momentum of the shadows quickly increased, turning their return into a vile storm that threatened to knock Mathew over. Yet, before the young man could lose his stability, everything came to an end.

    All of the shadows that made up the merchant¡¯s realm returned to the grasp of his hand only to then condense and turn back into the head of the merchant on which Mathew grabbed.

    ¡°I¡¯m back,¡± Mathew muttered, more to himself than to the girls left on the floor. ¡°How long was I away?¡± Mathew quickly asked, turning his head around to ensure the situation didn¡¯t drastically deteriorate while he was busy with a merchant.

    ¡°Only a short while,¡± Le replied, gracing Mathew with a small smile. ¡°Did everything go like you hoped?¡± she then asked, tilting her head to the side.

    ¡®She didn¡¯t even bother to clean herself up,¡¯ Mathew thought upon taking notice of the girl¡¯s bloody hands. Or rather, bloody arms, as the marks left over by what she was tasked with doing reached all the way to her elbows.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew replied, keeping his thoughts to himself before he reached out and pulled one of the machetes that he bought. ¡°This is your new weapon. It might look simple, but it¡¯s the best one I could afford right now,¡± the young man then lied without batting an eye.

    ¡®Well, that wasn¡¯t exactly a lie,¡¯ Mathew thought, thinking back over his own words as he turned around and headed towards the staircase to deliver the new weapon to Daria.

    Even though she actually started with a sword from the shop instead of some makeshift armament, it was only to be expected for that sword to start wearing off any moment now.

    Given the number of the zombies that she downed, the number of skulls she cracked, and the bones she split open¡­ The de of her sword was only moments away from breaking!

    ¡°Daria!¡± Mathew called out shortly.

    Despite the unlikeable front that she showed him at first, as their small group started to open up to each other, Mathew got to learn a bit about the two girls.

    And if Le was the unpredictable, cute yet crazy one, then Daria turned out to be just way¡­ simpler.

    ¡°Yes!¡± the girl replied right away, kicking away a torso of a zombie that attempted to climb the staircase. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± she then turned her head around, only to shrug when Mathew patted her shoulder with the handle of her new weapon.

    ¡°Weapon delivery,¡± Mathew gave a quick exnation before looking down at the stairs.

    The roars from below only grew stronger in the few minutes they wasted on collecting the cores and then spending them.

    They were truly running out of time.

    ¡°Well then,¡± Mathew shook his head and ced his hands on his hips, ¡°how about we finish up with gathering the cones and then keep on going?¡±

 Chapter 35 Anti-exhibitionist measures

    ¡°I think we are all done here,¡± Le reported as she approached the staircase. She then crossed her arms on her chest and looked down at the rest of her small group. ¡°Shall we go?¡±

    Mathew raised his head to take a quick nce at the girl. He then quickly turned his eyes back in the direction he aimed them at before.

    ¡°The next floor is quite full of zombies,¡± Mathew informed as he leaned over the rail and took a peek into the floor below. ¡°Are you sure you are up for the task, girls?¡± he asked, turning his eyes towards Daria.

    ¡®I shouldn¡¯t need to worry about Le, I guess,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    This girl showcased far less human emotions when it came to the apocalypse than Mathew expected her to.

    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s her coping mechanism?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to then shake his head. ¡®No, it doesn¡¯t really matter,¡¯ he swallowed a gulp of saliva. ¡®But at the very least, she is pretty scary,¡¯ he thought, sending a quick nce over to the girl before moving his sight back to her partner.

    ¡°I¡¯m up for it,¡± Daria replied, shaking her shoulders as if it was just a small matter. ¡°With this machete? Fighting those stupid zombies will be a breeze!¡± she eximed, raising her short weapon above her head in a triumphant gesture.

    ¡°Good.¡± Mathew shook his head, content with the level of motivation the girl had.

    Ultimately, this was something that they had to do, whether they liked it or not.

    ¡®Still, seeing her happy to participate makes me feel a little bit better about this entire ordeal,¡¯ the young man thought before turning around and taking a quick look at Le.

    ¡°While gathering the cores, did you check the ssrooms on this floor?¡± he asked.

    There was no telling whether or not some more survivors managed to stay hidden despite the entire floor being filled with zombies.

    ¡®I know that they are ultimately attracted to living beings, but it¡¯s a slow process,¡¯ Mathew thought, approaching the doors to the nearest ssroom himself.

    ¡°I checked a few, just to ensure no zombies are inside,¡± Le said before shaking her head. ¡°But if someone really wanted to hide in them, I didn¡¯t look close enough to be able to spot them,¡± she added.

    ¡®And I doubt anyone woulde out seeing her in nothing but a skirt and blood covering her arms, chest, and legs,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He kept by the wall for a moment, taking his time to think things through.

    ¡°Okay then,¡± Mathew said as he pushed himself away from the wall and looked at Le again. ¡°First, try to get some clothes. It can be pretty distracting when you are parading with your boobs out,¡± he ordered before sending a short yet meaningful stare towards the girl¡¯s chest.

    The young man only shook his head.

    ¡°Daria,¡± Mathew said in a soft tone, turning his face around to look at the other girl.

    Even though she first appeared to be the rowdy and sexually freed girl, Mathew has long abandoned that kind of view about her.

    ¡°I get it,¡± the girl nodded her head. ¡°I will be leaving the stairs to you for a while, then,¡± she added before jogging, butt-naked, back to the ss where she left her clothes.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew muttered, rolling his eyes with how annoyed he was already with the second part of his second wife. ¡°If you think being a virgin is a problem, then I can only have pity for you. I¡¯m not the ve to the modern ideas of the sexual revolution because I actually paid a little attention to who invented this entire thing and why was it spread in the western world,¡± he pointed out, staring daggers at the girl.

    For the next few moments, not a single word was said. Yet, it was still Mathew that ultimately released a deep breath before shaking his head.

    ¡°Well, not like that socio-political stuff matters today,¡± he imed before lowering his eyes. ¡°Now then, can you stop acting stubborn and get dressed already?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Le shook her head, denying Mathew¡¯s request. ¡°Now that I¡¯m all bloody, there is no way I will wear my clothes! How do you imagine me washing thenter?¡± she asked as if she was schooling the child over something that it should belong aware of.

    ¡°Is that really all there is to it?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyes and looking the girl directly in the face.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Le nodded her head, cing her hands on her hips while pressing her chest forward. ¡°But seriously, if it¡¯s really that distracting, you can just y with¡­¡±

    ¡°How many cores did you gather?¡± Mathew asked, cutting into the girl¡¯s words.

    Le tensed up her lips before squeezing a few words of answer through her tightened mouth. ¡°A little over two hundred in total. Seventy more than we had when you went to the merchant.¡±

    ¡°Good,¡± Mathew replied, only to approach the cores and gather them all into his improvised pouch before approaching the merchant again.

    Mathew¡¯s body froze in a weird position while he grasped at the merchant¡¯s head, only to return to its normal state a momentter.

    Yet, contrary to before, there was a set of in, ck clothes hanging down from his outstretched hand.

    ¡°Will those do for now?¡± he asked, throwing a set of pitch-ck yet simple clothes at the girl.

    ¡°You really are a massive virgin,¡± Le muttered as she grabbed her clothes. At the same time, the look in her eyes softened somewhat as she looked at Mathew again. ¡°You don¡¯t happen to have anything to wipe myself with?¡± she asked. ¡°Wearing clothes while smeared with all this blood,¡± she added, looking down at her hands and then her impressive chest.

    Mathew rolled his eyes again. Yet, rather than going to the shop again, he grabbed the side of his simple, in shirt before ripping it off with a single pull and throwing it at the girl.

    ¡°Here, this should be enough,¡± he said, throwing his ruined shirt at the girl before turning away and approaching the ss where Daria was still changing.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to interrupt,¡± Mathew said as he pushed the doors open. He happened to enter right as the girl was pulling her panties up her thighs.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Daria replied, her cheeks turning a tiny little bit brighter than before. ¡°It¡¯s not like you can see anything you didn¡¯t see before,¡± she added.

    ¡°Then hurry up,¡± Mathew said in a calm tone before approaching a pile of rubble. Initially used as a means to barricade the doors along with chairs and desks, it was now decaying away in the corner of the room.

    Yet, rather than rummaging through the items, Mathew simply hid the pouch with the remaining stones in the rubble before ncing over at the girl.

    Thankfully, Daira heeded Mathew¡¯s advice, doing her best to dress up as quickly as possible.

    ¡°Are you ready?¡± Mathew asked, watching with amusement as the girl struggled to pull her shirt down her sizeable bosom.

    ¡°Actually¡­¡± Daria hesitated before turning her face to Mathew and revealing a massive blush on her cheeks. ¡°I might need some help with putting this¡­¡±

    Just as the girl was about to finish her sentence, her boobs finally gave up under pressure, obediently sliding below the shirt.

    ¡°Or never mind, I guess,¡± Dariamented, a sense of loss shing in her eyes as her face darkened.

    ¡°Good,¡± Mathew stood up and turned back towards the doors. ¡°Then let¡¯s not waste any time, and let¡¯s go clear the rest of the school!¡±

 Chapter 36 Confrontation

    ***Nadia¡¯s PoV in case you guys need this kind of information***

    ¡°Mathew¡­¡± Nadia muttered under her nose.

    She sat down directly on the ground, right on the edge of the broken floor. Her eyes were directed straight down towards the hole that reced the once-grand staircase of the school¡¯spound.

    ¡®Just where the hell are you?¡¯ the girl thought, pulling her knees closer towards her chin and then wrapping her hands around her legs.

    It¡¯s been only about two hours since Mathew decided to jump down. Even a little less since the outer chunk of the floor copsed, bringing down all of the police officers but two.

    ¡°This is outrageous!¡±

    Themotion took ce just to Nadia¡¯s back. A bunch of students from the group Mathew saved were now arguing with the two remaining policemen.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t the world from yesterday anymore!¡± One of the students shouted, heavily gesticting with his hands. ¡°Police is no more, the military is no more!¡± he imed, only to end up with his hand pointing at the older of the two policemen. ¡°In other words, what makes you think you can tell us what to do?!¡±

    ¡®This fucking idiot,¡¯ Nadia thought, squinting her eyes as she took a nce at the situation.

    ¡°How about this?¡± the policeman didn¡¯t bother arguing with the group. He simply pulled out his gun and retracted its safety. Yet, even though his threat was obvious, he notably didn¡¯t point the gun up, keeping its muzzled aimed at the ground instead.

    ¡°How dare you!¡± Another student joined in, the policeman¡¯s action turning into the water for the man¡¯s mill. ¡°Threatening students with a gun?! Do you really think you can¡­¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± the policeman answered, raising the gun and pointing it at the troublemaker. ¡°I have a gun,¡± the officer stated as if pointing the weapon at the group wasn¡¯t enough to nail the point. ¡°And what are you going to do about it?¡±

    Like a wave, the group of students backed off, not expecting the policeman to be so forward with his threats.

    ¡®This is bad,¡¯ Nadia thought, bitting down on her lips.

    She then stood up and circled around the uppermost floor of the school, trying to keep as much distance from themotion as she could.

    ¡°A small reminder,¡± one of the saved girls spoke out while hanging on the arm of the burly student that kept at the back of the group. ¡°When Mathew went to fight zombies, he didn¡¯t bring any guns with him,¡± the girl pointed out with a smirk.

    ¡®Who gave you the right to utter his name?!¡¯ Nadia screamed out in her thoughts, clenching her hands into fists.

    The feeling of powerlessness surged through her soul, filling the girl¡¯s mind with sour thoughts.

    Nadia was always athletic. From the times of her childhood when she turned a local acrobatic park into her own yground, through the primary and grade school when she excelled in various sports clubs. She even managed to reach a ck belt in a well-known martial art, even if she always considered it to be just a fluke.

    ¡®All of that won¡¯t help me in a crowd¡¯s brawl,¡¯ Nadia thought, her teeth threatening to crack if she were to tighten her jaw any further.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡± Nadia suddenly moaned when her vision blurred.

    The girl momentarily lost her sense of self, her blurry vision then turning into the red world she saw before.

    A world where she could see everyone¡¯s heart beating, everyone¡¯s blood flowing. A world of no obstacles andplex problems.

    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Nadia heard a voice above her.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ the girl struggled on her feet. She then shook her head and blinked her eyes, only to realize she somehow ended up on the floor. Only thanks to her outstretched hands did she manage to keep her head from hitting the ground.

    ¡°Girl, are you okay?!¡± the voice from above turned strange.

    ¡®Who?¡¯ Nadia raised her eyes only to see that both of her visions now merged.

    The crimson world from before now seemingly faded. All its wonders were still there¡­ just that Nadia had to specifically focus on those peculiarities to notice them.

    ¡°I think?¡± Nadia replied, slowly gathering herself up from the floor. Yet, when she looked up to see the owner of the voice, her entire body froze.

    ¡®The other policeman?¡¯ she thought, instantly turning her eyes towards the man¡¯s partner.

    ¡°You won¡¯t scare us!¡± the turmoil in the middle of the floor continued.

    Nadia turned her eyes, already knowing by heart what would happen, even before it would happen.

    The older policeman aimed his gun at the students in the front. Yet, with his partner helping Nadia up, there was no one to watch his back.

    ¡°DIE!¡±

    BANG!

    Thew enforcement officer likely developed his sixth sense to its limits¡­ Or he simply paid attention to all the noises and clues of the situation he was in.

    The second the idiotic student shouted and then swung his improvised weapon, the policeman bent his knees, twisting his waist as he intentionally fell on his bottom.

    BANG!

    The powerful noise of the nearby shoot filled the open space of the floor.

    ¡®FUCK!¡¯ Nadia nearly screamed out when the loud noise seemingly threatened to split her head open.

    The unlucky student never finished his swing. At first, he simply froze in ce. Then, the metal pipe fell out of his hand, only for the man to follow it right after. By the time his head struck the floor, the student was already dead.

    ¡°STAY WHERE YOU ARE!¡± The policeman paid no attention to the corpse. He swung his torso back only to pull the gun closer towards his chest.

    Rather than going for the cinematic long-hold with his hands stretched out, he opted for a more efficient and maneuverable stance.

    ¡°Drop down or drop dead!¡± the policeman who helped Nadia before joined the fray, pulling his gun out and aiming it at the group.

    ¡®So that¡¯s why he came to me,¡¯ Nadia noticed when she realized just how smart thew enforcement officers¡¯ position was.

    By staying together, they would be susceptible to a rush attack. A charge heated enough for the group not to stop even if one or two shots were fired would be enough to discount the advantage of firearms of the policemen.

    Yet, by splitting apart, leaving the more experienced soldier close to the danger while putting the other one a bit away, with a better angle over the entire group¡­

    Now, the students had no physical ways of subduing both of the officers at once. Since they numbered around twenty, there was a huge chance both the policemen had just enough ammo in their guns to kill them all before reloading!

    And in this new situation, despite one of the students dying, the rest quickly fell to the ground.

    ¡®Right,¡¯ Nadia released the air from her lungs, only now realizing that she held her breath back. ¡®They are only students, not zombies nor veterans,¡¯ she thought, her body rxing a bit.

    Yet, there was one thing that kept the girl worried, despite the situation quickly de-escting.

    Now that everyone¡¯s blood was pumping under the kick of adrenaline¡­

    Nadia could feel a strange lust for that rushing blood as if an ancient, innate hunger awoke inside her!

 Chapter 37 Move!

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, little miss, but I don¡¯t think we can hold on here for much longer,¡± the policeman said in a low voice while keeping his eyes and muzzle still on the group ahead.

    ¡°But we don¡¯t really have anywhere else to go, do we?¡± Nadia muttered, fighting off her newfound desires in order to maintain the rity of her mind.

    Everyone who followed Mathew before ended up on the topmost floor of the school. Yet, by destroying all the staircases, they locked themselves out of the ability to run anywhere else.

    ¡®Sure, it was a good idea to stop zombies from swarming us¡­¡¯ Nadia thought, bitting down on her lips. ¡®But now, this gaping hole only serves to remind us that we cannot escape any further.¡¯

    ¡°That might be the case here,¡± the policeman whispered before taking a step forward.

    ¡°Back off!¡± he shouted, pulling the hammer of his gun back with his thumb.

    It was a tiny threat, especially for those who didn¡¯t really understand it. But in the era of movies, shooting games, and a general glorification of the gun, hardly anyone could fail to understand the policeman¡¯s meaning.

    ¡°Fine, fine!¡± the leader of the student group finally came forward, his hands raised in the gesture of defeat. If anything, only his girlfriend still cuddling herself into the man¡¯s raised arm made him look strange.

    Once ahead of the entire pack, the burly young man brought his hands to the sides as if he wanted to embrace the air ahead in a bear-hug. Yet, rather than going forward, he pushed backward instead, using his spread-out arms to force the rest of his group along.

    Strangely enough, though, he didn¡¯t seem to be perturbed by the death of one of his ssmates just now.

    ¡°We backed off. Are you happy?¡± the young man shouted over, alternating his eyes between the old officer in the middle of the room and the other policeman by Nadia¡¯s side.

    ¡°Back off,¡± the younger officer repeated his words.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Nadia shrugged a little when she raised her eyes and noticed a small peculiarity.

    The officer¡¯s hands¡­ were sweating.

    ¡®He sure knows how to put on a bravado,¡¯ Nadia thought, her facial muscles tensing up.

    Sure, his understanding of tactics against mob might be great, but¡­

    ¡®Compared to his senior, he is an amateur,¡¯ Nadia thought, sending a quick nce at the other officer.

    ¡°Peter!¡± the policeman shouted over. ¡°Get the supplies and head for the nearest staircase!¡±

    The sound of the old man¡¯s voice filled the floor. And for different people, this message bore different meanings.

    For the students that wished to do away with the police supervision, it was a dreame true. Since officers wished to retreat without a fight, there was no use and any real point in stopping them from doing so.

    Yet, the supplies thingy¡­

    Given the current state of the world, it was debatable whether getting rid of the police was worth the cost of then snatching the precious little resources the group had!

    ¡®What¡¯s the reason for this move?¡¯ She racked her brains, desperately attempting to see through the strategy of the senior officer. ¡®Weren¡¯t all the stairs blown up?¡¯

    For the policemen, retreating was likely the only option. They saw the hell and the bottom floor. They saw the hell that nearly reached them all the way up there.

    But contrary to what one could expect, it wasn¡¯t the zombies that were the greatest threat to them.

    It was the unruly students.

    The situation right now proved it. Sure, they managed to handle it so far, and it appeared as if a single shot was enough to convince the young ones about the futility of their attempts¡­

    But it was only a matter of time before the shock of what happened would pass. And in a world ruled by an apocalypse, people would strive to grow more and more resistant to the sight of death, indicating the officers had only a little time.

    Because once the push woulde to shove, they barely had enough bullets for the first wave of the students. If anything were to happen, if either of them were to fall to an ambush¡­

    ¡°We need to run right now,¡± the younger officer whispered, his forehead sweating just as much as his hands. ¡°The stalemate will crack any second now,¡± he warned. The officer then rubbed his fingers against the handle of his gun, shaving away the slick sweat to ensure his grip.

    ¡°Excuse me¡­¡± a voice from behind felt like a hammer for Nadia.

    She was so focused on the events ahead that she didn¡¯t pay even the slightest attention to what was on her back!

    ¡®Fuck!¡¯ Nadia cursed under her breath, rapidly turning her head around. ¡°It¡¯s on me!¡± she uttered on half of a breath, hoping to stop the officer from looking to the back as well.

    But it was toote.

    ¡°KILL!¡±

    This time, the students didn¡¯t hesitate.

    With the younger of the officers no longer paying close attention, they only had the older of the two to be worried about.

    ¡®Too quick,¡¯ Nadia thought, looking at the face of the remarkably cute student and likely her boyfriend that approached her. Even though she moved her eyes away, she could somehow sense the events happening in the back of her head.

    The students rushed forward, all eager to get the situation over with.

    The other officer raised his hand.

    Nadia could see it clearly despite not looking, as if the rushing blood in the officer¡¯s veins produced some sort of information that the girl¡¯s subconsciousness could somehow process.

    ¡®I can¡¯t see the gun,¡¯ Nadia thought, realizing the limits of her strange, new ability.

    BANG!

    The officer fired his first shot.

    Alerted by the exploding sound, the younger of the two turned his attention back to the fight, fixing his grip and raising his muzzle back towards his desired target¡­

    And then, he simply stood in ce, watching how four more students fell to the ground, only for the rest of the group to tear the older officer apart.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± The officer¡¯s face turned into a snotty mess. Tears appeared in his eyes. And yet, all he could do was utter the words of apology with his trembling lips.

    ¡°Move!¡± Nadia shouted, some sort of force pushing her into action. She reached out and grabbed the two that approached them. She then squeezed out her thigh, sending a kick towards the officer¡¯s butt.

    ¡®What¡¯s happening!?¡¯ Naida screamed out in her mind, her eyes widening beyond their healthy limits as shock filled everyst nook and cranny of her soul.

    Yet, her lips moved again, uttering a quick, simple shout.

    ¡°MOVE!¡±

 Chapter 38 Jump!

    ¡®From just the two of us, through having an entireando all the way to the current state of my group,¡¯ Nadia thought, unable to control her body any longer.

    Her muscles were moving on their own, just as if someone had taken over and was attempting to help her go through the dire situation.

    ¡®And now I¡¯m stuck with two normies, a dysfunctional officer and my strange state!¡¯ Nadiamented in her mind while her body continued to drag the three of her newpanions towards the staircase.

    ¡°I can run on my own!¡± the officer protested, shaking Nadia¡¯s hand as he started to run himself. ¡°Where are we going?¡± he then asked, turning his eyes towards the girl.

    ¡°How could I know?¡± Mia¡¯s lips moved on their own, uttering her words in a voice oozing annoyance. ¡°You wanted to run to the stairs, didn¡¯t you?¡± she then asked before shutting her mouth close to preserve her breath.

    As the very central point of the entire school, the ce that  Mathew initially picked for their stronghold was pretty spacious. It was so huge, in fact, that its creator actually fitted several rooms and additional ssrooms just in the middle area in the space used for technicalities on the lower floors.

    ¡®I wonder if we will make it,¡¯ Nadia thought, limited to just passively watching how the events unfold.

    She could tell that her body operated with the strength it shouldn¡¯t have. Yet, while she could no longer control her movements, she could very well feel the drawbacks of using so much strength to run.

    ¡®IT BURNS!¡¯ the girl screamed out in her mind, while her lips remained oblivious to the overuse of her body.

    ¡°There!¡± the cute girl that started the entire disaster shouted and shot her hand forward, pointing at something in the distance. ¡°The stairs¡­ are gone!¡±

    ¡®It¡¯s over,¡¯ Nadia thought, her mind projecting all sorts of things that would happen to her once the rest of the students would get their hands on her.

    ¡®I know I trained all sorts of stuff; I know it seems I¡¯m stronger now, but¡­¡¯ Nadia thought, only to then bite down on her lips. ¡®It still won¡¯t be enough!¡¯

    For a moment, Nadia¡¯s mind fell into despair. Yet, just as she was about to sumb to the dark state of her soul, the girl shrugged.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ she took a moment to clear her thoughts only to then cast them all aside and focus on a single, particr feeling.

    ¡®My lips¡­ are cut?¡¯

    It was only a small detail, a tiny injury, that she found herself suffering more often than most of the other people around. All because of Nadia¡¯s habit of biting down on her lips when she couldn¡¯t figure something out.

    Yet¡­

    How could her lips be split open right now? Or rather, why did her body react to her thoughts if she could no longer control them?

    ¡°We destroyed all the stairs, after all.¡± The voice of the officer¡¯sment forced Nadia¡¯s mind back on the track.

    She eagerly wished for a moment for herself so that she could figure out what was going. Sadly, the world around Nadia didn¡¯t care what she wished for or what she wanted.

    And neither did the group of students that finally figured out what was going on and started their chase.

    ¡°Supplies!¡± the officer shouted, turning his head to the back, only to feel Nadia¡¯s shoe on his butt again.

    ¡°Toote; we can¡¯t grab them now,¡± Nadia quickly informed, rushing towards the stairs.

    And right as the small group of four managed to reach the destroyed staircase, Nadia figured it out.

    ¡®I just need to stop resisting?¡¯ she thought before mentally swallowing a gulp of saliva and then rxing.

    In an instant, Nadia returned to reality. Her vision turned back to its human version, and the immense power bursting through her veins dissipated all at once.

    ¡®What the hell was that?¡¯ Nadia asked herself, only to take a quick nce to the back.

    ¡®Thirty seconds at most,¡¯ she judged the distance and the speed of their pursuers before taking a look at the gaping hole in the floor ahead.

    Surely enough, the floor below was filled with zombies. Yet, while jumping right into their brain-craving hands seemed like a bad idea, it was actually the act of jumping itself that Nadia was horrified by the most.

    ¡®If the floor breaks just like it did before¡­¡¯ she thought, only to shake her head and grab the arm of the officer.

    Now was no time to deal with the psychological problems of some randoms.

    ¡°I¡­I didn¡¯t¡­¡± the officer attempted to argue, clearly unwilling to assume responsibility for what happened, even if only on a mental level.

    ¡°You fucked up before,¡± Nadia cut the officer¡¯s words short before shaking her hand and the man¡¯s arm that she grabbed on. ¡°But now you can redeem yourself,¡± she stated, cursing away at the guilty feeling that instantly filled her soul.

    ¡®Who am I to offer that man redemption?¡¯ Nadia asked herself, only to shake her head and refocus her attention.

    The group of students was now only ten seconds away.

    ¡°What?¡± the officer asked, clearly not catching Nadia¡¯s drift.

    ¡°You fucked up before.¡± Nadia¡¯s eyes darkened, and her fingers tightened around the man¡¯s elbow.

    Five seconds.

    ¡°Then go and pave the way for us to escape now!¡± Nadia shouted, suddenly using all the strength of her muscles and weight of her bodybined into one of the simplest throws that she had ever learned.

    And without even a moment of hesitation, she threw the poor officer towards the zombie-filled staircase of the lower floor while using her other hand to grab the gun that fell out of the policeman¡¯s hand.

    A second. The students at the front already reached out with their hands, ready to grab the girl and her two otherpanions.

    ¡°Jump!¡± Nadia shouted, raising the gun in a single, fluid motion. She gently pulled on the trigger the second both the muzzle and the body of the nearest opponent appeared in a single frame of her vision.

 Chapter 39 Nadias Frenzy

    Nadia¡¯s shot stopped the advance of her pursuers only for a brief moment.

    The dust kicked by the shot fell down, clearing the air in the room. Once it settled, like soldiers following amander, the remaining students rushed forward.

    ¡®They are worse than zombies,¡¯ Nadia thought, rxing her finger only to pull on the trigger again.

    ¡°Jump!¡± she shouted, not daring to look away.

    A club came swinging from the right. Nadia lowered herself on her left knee, bending her entire torso away from the attack.

    Whoosh!

    The improvised weapon flew right past Nadia¡¯s ear. The wind dragged along by the club made her earlobe flutter.

    ¡®Piss off!¡¯ Nadia screamed out inwardly.

    ¡°Haaa¡­.¡± Nadia exhaled when she kicked her right foot forward. Her shoe struck a man in front of her. His outstretched hand, clearly aiming for the girl¡¯s hair,ically stayed in ce when the man¡¯s chest caved in under Nadia¡¯s kick.

    Bang!

    She quickly followed with another shoot, finally putting a stop to the frenzy of her pursuers.

    ¡°Help!¡± the officer shouted from behind.

    Nadia¡¯s red vision returned, growing more and more intense with each strike, each kick, and each shot. By the time the group of males hungry for Nadia¡¯s flesh realized their situation, it was Nadia who pressed up the attack.

    ¡°Jump after me!¡± the underssmanpanion of the cute girl shouted.

    Nadia then heard a slight rustle, only for her brain to make her feel how the young man jumped to the floor below.

    Right where zombies were busy swarming the defenseless policeman.

    ¡®I will surely go to hell for that,¡¯ Nadia thought, pulling the trigger yet again, mortified by what she had done just a moment earlier.

    ¡®I really did throw a man to his doom.¡¯ This single thought filled Nadia¡¯s head, making her doubt her morality as she continued to ughter her former schoolmates.

    All the aggressive students turned now into nothing but a lump of rushing blood.

    It was so charming, the rhythm of their beating hearts. A melody that Nadia felt a powerful urge to hear, to absorb, to consume.

    ¡°Die,¡± she ordered when her high-raised knee smashed against the throat of the retreating aggressor. This word came out of the girl¡¯s mouth without her even noticing.

    ¡°Die!¡± she cried out when her finger desperately clutched against the trigger, only for the gun to fail to shoot.

    With no munition, a handgun was nothing more than a doorbell-like shaped lump of metal.

    Heavy and unhandy.

    ¡®Perfect,¡¯ Nadia¡¯s soul resonated with the meaning of this word, her lips trembling in excitement as if she was a child that just found its new toy.

    Nadia switched her hold over the gun, grabbing it by its barrel instead.

    It took only a second for the bottom of the handgun to shatter the side of yet another student¡¯s skull.

    It didn¡¯t matter that the students started to retreat long ago. In her frenzy, Nadia continued to chase after her former pursuers.

    She killed more than half of the initial group. Judging from the sensation of beating hearts, Nadia could tell only five of the defeated foes remained alive, two of which would soon sumb to their wounds.

    ¡°Help!¡±

    A desperate cry somehow broke through the red mist covering Nadia¡¯s mind.

    The red-hued world before her suddenly stalled; a sh of the normal colored world reced it, only for the blood-like crimson to cover everything up again.

    Nadia¡¯s body moved, rushing back towards the staircase.

    Just like before, she couldn¡¯t really control her movements.

    ¡®It¡¯s as if my body worked on instinct and instinct alone,¡¯ she thought, her will reduced to just the spectator of the events.

    It was great to know that she could rely on this strange state of her mind in a pinch¡­

    ¡®It¡¯s really infuriating after all,¡¯ Nadia thought, mentally clenching her hands.

    Whatever she would do now wouldn¡¯t be the result of her own work, her own struggle. Unable to influence what she was doing at all, Nadia felt strangely detached from the events ying out before her eyes.

    But for her body, Nadia¡¯s mental struggle didn¡¯t matter.

    Her legs carried her towds the secondary staircase, the same one that she was at just a moment earlier. And as soon as she got to the edge of where the policemen had demolished the floor and stairs before, Nadia jumped.

    The policeman and both of the underssmen were already on the other side, dealing with the horde of zombies. Or actually, the pair of Nadia¡¯s juniors continued to struggle while the bloodied body of the policeman proved he paid the highest price for his ipetence before.

    ¡°DIE!¡± Nadia shouted from the bottom of her heart. She raised her legs and pushed them forward, opting to go for a double kick instead of a traditionalnding.

    Nadia¡¯s shoes dug into the skull and a shoulder of two different zombies, respectively, And while the attack she executed with her left leg only served to hinder the zombie¡¯s movement¡­

    ¡®What¡­?¡¯

    Nadia¡¯s shock was so great that she somehow got out of her frenzied state.

    Because the right leg that she brought down on another zombie¡¯s head¡­ Actually mashed its skull in, ending its struggle to stay somewhat alive.

    ¡°What?¡± Nadia muttered when she finallynded on the ground, only to instantly push forward, right into the wave of the zombies.

    While the shocking effectiveness of her kick took the girl by surprise, there was one memory that overshadowed everything else, forcing the girl to push through.

    And it was the moment when the floor of the same floor, just more towards the middle of the building, copsed.

    This single event took out several well-trained and armed policemen, all of whom Mathew tried so hard to gather. As such, between getting molested by the zombies and falling to her death along with the rubble¡­

    Nadia didn¡¯t need to think much to make her choice!

 Chapter 40 Prime Wife

    ¡°Just die already!¡±

    Nadia used her voice to add strength to her punches.

    With only an empty gun in her hand, she managed to clear her immediate surroundings, establishing a zone of rtive safety.

    It was only as wide as Nadia¡¯s reach, spanning just above the length of her arms. But against the slow and clumsy zombies, this amount of space was just right.

    ¡°Help¡­¡± the cry of Nadia¡¯s underssmen grew weaker.

    ¡®There is no time,¡¯  the girl thought, swirling in her spot, cracking heads all over the ce. Yet, the more she rushed to help herst remainingpanions, the less she cared about her own safety.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Nadia let out a small scream when a first scratch appeared on her arm.

    Her blood was pumping erratically, instantly covering the small yet ugly wound with blood.

    The entire crowd of zombies froze for a split of a second, only to then rush ahead, invigorated by the smell of truly living blood.

    ¡°Die!¡± Mia shouted from the bottom of her lungs. She swung her arms faster and dulled her kicks higher and further.

    ¡®I¡¯m at my limit,¡¯ Nadia coldly realized, only able to observe the events her body was involved with.

    Nadia¡¯s body couldn¡¯t move any faster. Her strikes had already reached their top possible strength.

    ¡®I can¡¯t do anything to help them,¡¯ Nadia thought, desperation filling her soul.

    ¡°Help¡­¡± the cry from nearby turned silent.

    And then, the zombies all over the ce started to move.

    As if someone pulled out the plug in the bath, the yet-to-rot corpses proved that while they were slow, they still did move.l

    ¡°JUST DIE ALREADY!¡± this powerful shout was out of ce, as it didn¡¯te from Nadia¡¯s mouth. It didn¡¯te from the students that had already arrived at the edge above and observed the struggle of the escapees.

    It came from the ce where only pleas for help arrived before.

    ¡®Hah?¡¯ Nadia nearly jumped when her attack suddenly didn¡¯t find an opponent tond on.

    As more and more zombies fell to the ground under her attacks, Nadia found the free space around her expanding.

    For the first time since she jumped down, she had some time to look around.

    ¡®They there are,¡¯ Nadia thought, directing her eyes where her crimson vision pointed thest remaining humans to be.

    And to the girl¡¯s surprise, her underssmen actually fought their way through!

    ¡°Die! Die! Die!¡± the young man swung a long piece of rebar, still covered in cement dust.

    ¡®Where did he find it?¡¯ Nadia initially thought, only to then shake her head and focus on cleaning the zombies out instead. ¡®No, it doesn¡¯t matter,¡¯ she quickly realized, pressing forward with her own fight in an attempt to join the forces.

    If there was an advantage to the situation they were in, it was the narrowness of the corridor. As it was located at the back of thepound, most of the student traffic was concentrated towards the central parts of the building, allowing for smaller corridors and bigger sses.

    And now, this small width of the path they had ahead was what allowed just three of them to withhold a charge of zombies.

    ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± Nadia shouted when she finally managed to cut herself a path towards the two underssmen of hers. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± she shouted again, hoping to encourage herpatriots.

    ¡®I don¡¯t know where did you find the courage and strength to fight like that, but it would be a waste not to use it now!¡¯ the girl thought, using this new hope as fuel for her body.

    ¡®Even with his help, it¡¯s still only a matter of time¡­¡¯ Nadia thought, running her mind through every possible scenario¡­

    And then she saw it.

    It was just a short, neatly instant sh when her eyes struck some sort of reflective material.

    Maybe it was the ss of a window embedded into the ssroom¡¯s sides? Maybe it was a random piece of rubble that ended up splitting so cleanly it could serve as a mirror?

    Nadia couldn¡¯t really tell what caused this, but for this one instant, she saw several strange objects floating all over her head.

    It all happened in an instant¡­

    Yet, Nadia¡¯s crimson vision allowed her to peer into the details kept within those strange, floating windows.

    [Wife #1]

    [Name: Nadia Astra]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level:  8+1]

    [Race: Half-zombie]

    [ss: Prime Wife]

    [Status: Frenzied]

    ¡°What the hell?!¡± Nadia screamed out, the reality around her resuming its usual pace.

    The strange, floating screens disappeared from before the girl¡¯s eyes¡­ but their image burned itself off in the back of the girl¡¯s head.

    ¡®What the hell is this?¡¯ Nadia asked herself, swinging her arms to clear the path deeper into the floor. For each swing of her limb, another zombie would fall to the ground, never to raise up again.

    And before Nadia could even notice, her small group managed to clear the entirety of the corridor.

    ¡°The others!¡± Nadia whispered as she violently turned around, facing the gap in the staircase.

    Those few students that stuck around to observe her rampage were now clearly considering whether or not to descend to the floor below. Thankfully, whatever motivation their leader potentially had for catching Nadia, it clearly wasn¡¯t enough to press those guys into a nearly suicidal charge.

    After all, they happened to witness both the floor copsing when a huge weight suddenly dropped on it¡­

    And they just witnessed how Nadia dispatched tens if not hundreds of zombies in a single rampage!

    ¡°Thank you¡­¡± a soft whisper reached Nadia from the back, followed by a dull thud.

    ¡®Not good,¡¯ Nadia forced her face back to its usual position, turning her eyes towards the source of the sound.

    And there he was. Nadia¡¯s underssman who bravely fought against zombies to save his friend or possibly girlfriend.

    ¡®That¡¯s so touching!¡¯ Nadia thought, unable to stop her girlish side froming out, even in the middle of her, as her own status called it, frenzied state.

    The young man was covered with wounds, some of which had already started to fester.

    ¡®A single scratch won¡¯t hurt you, isn¡¯t that what you said?¡¯ Nadia thought, recalling the words that Mathew left her with before she first started to lose her consciousness all this time before.

    And yet, despite only having his body covered in scratches, the young man was clearly in bad shape!

    Not minding all the blood and filth that covered the young man¡¯s body, his femalepanion stuck around, holding the young man¡¯s head on her knees.

    ¡°How is he?¡± Nadia asked, only to watch how the girl gently wiped a droplet of blood from the man¡¯s cheek.

    She didn¡¯t even turn her head around, nor did she reply, not giving Nadia any reason to believe she even heard the question.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Nadia opened her mouth, only to make it gape like a fish before closing it. She then took a deep breath as she raised her eyes back on the girl. ¡°I can end his suffering if that¡¯s what you want,¡± Nadia said.

    Now, it was the boy¡¯s girlfriend¡¯s time to make a decision. It was a sort of burden that Nadia couldn¡¯t help them to carry.

    Hoping to give the two some privacy, Nadia turned to the side, only for her eyes toy on yet another reflective surface.

    And just like before, there it was. The same status as before, with just her level rising by one. Yet, there was another screen hanging on the other hand of Nadia¡¯s head.

    ¡°¡­uck¡­¡± a distant echo of a curse barely reached Nadia¡¯s ears.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia shrugged when she noticed movement from the corner of her eyes.

    The girl¡¯s focus was now on a veteran level. Even though she only fought once, this life-or-death situation allowed the girl to crack open all the restraints that she imposed on herself over the course of her years-long training.

    Yet, when she turned her eyes to where she noticed the movement¡­

    It wasn¡¯t the corridor but the very first window with her status.

    And in there, her level continued to go up. This time, however, it was its secondponent that continued to reach new heights.

    From one to two. From two to three. From three¡­

    The counter ceased to move only when Nadia¡¯s total level reached fifteen.

    And then, the entire building shook as if it was about to copse¡­ Only for the entire wing to Nadia¡¯s right to go and vanish in a thunder-like noise!

 Chapter 41 Mathews doubts

    ¡°And with that¡­¡± Mathew muttered in a rhythmic voice while swinging his ax down on the zombie¡¯s head. ¡°We are done!¡± he shouted, turning his head to the back.

    ¡°All done here as well!¡± Daria reported a momentter. ¡°Should we do as usual?¡±

    Mathew raised his leg and ced it on the nearby zombie, keeping its corpse in ce as he pulled on the ax¡¯s handle. The de came out of the zombie¡¯s skull with a mix of sloppy and scratchy sounds.

    That sound alone would be enough to send an amateur puking. Yet, even though the apocalypse started rtively recently, Mathew and his group have long gotten used to this level of stimulus.

    ¡°No, this time, I want you to try to visit the trader,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°Le, you are still up for gathering the stones,¡± the young man quickly added.

    Mathew then made a motion as if he wanted to kneel, only to keep his knee just above the surface of the floor. He then grabbed an edge of the clothes of some corpse before tearing a chunk of the cloth away.

    ¡°On it!¡± Le replied, raising her bloody machete to her forehead in some sort of a weird salute. She then quickly turned her attention back to the zombies.

    Despite appearing as the shy and silent one of the two when Mathew first met those girls, Le now proved to mind her situation a lot less than Daria did.

    ¡®And that¡¯s why it¡¯s Daria who should check whether wives can use merchants as well,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the girl quickly rushed past him and then up the stairs, jumping two or three steps with each leap she made.

    ¡®They areing,¡¯ Mathew thought, alerted by his senses.

    Ever since he started fighting with the zombies, he could feel his strength growing. Be it the speed of his movements, the strength of his strikes, or the overall awareness of the situation, they all skyrocketed.

    Mathew initially picked the top of the school for that very reason. By keeping it clean from the zombies and gradually pushing to the lower floors, he could soon secure the entire school¡¯spound for his group.

    ¡®And all of this could work pretty well if not for those damned monsters!¡¯ Mathew thought, clenching his teeth. At the same time, his hands moved the piece of cloth over the ax¡¯s de, cleaning the filth of the zombie¡¯s blood from the dark metal.

    ¡°By the way,¡± Le called out right as Mathew threw the bloodied piece of cloth away.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Mathew asked while sending a nce over the stairs above.

    Daria should only need a moment to reach the floor where they summoned a merchant. Yet, even though a while has already passed, she has yet to make her way back.

    ¡®Anyway,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes towards the down-leading part of the staircase. And then, as if following a clock, zombies emerged.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Mathew shouted, raising his ax on his shoulder as he took a step down the stairs.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t we using the cores that we gather?¡± Le asked, not bothered by the iing wave of zombies at all.

    After cleaning four floors already, those zombies were no longer an opponent worthy of her worry.

    ¡°So you noticed,¡± Mathewmented, shing an approaching zombie in half. The task of cleaving through the flesh and bones of the undead turned easy ever since his brawn reached over thirty points.

    Yet, instead of following the stairs towards the bottom floor, Mathew simply stood guard at the edge of the stairs.

    ¡°But I¡¯m not really sure if I should reveal the answer,¡± Mathew added after a moment, using his improved senses to scan the nearby area for zombies.

    ¡®There are a few more on the other end of the stairs,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    There was no magic in his ability. It was simple awarenessbined with his improved senses and the sixth sense that he developed over all the fighting.

    ¡°Is there really any need for those secrets?¡± Le shouted over, the changes in her voice indicating that she was moving towards the other end of the floor.

    ¡°We don¡¯t know who¡¯s listening, after all,¡± Mathew replied while burying the butt of his de into the side of another zombie¡¯s head.

    ¡®And if you can¡¯t understand such a simple hint¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, rolling his eyes with annoyance.

    It was already taxing enough to take care of the choke point leading towards the floor they had just cleared out. Speaking nonsense with that weird girl felt like just a waste of time and energy.

    ¡°I¡¯m back!¡± Daria shouted, only a momentter than the sounds she made while running down the stairs. ¡°And sorry, but it doesn¡¯t seem like I can use the shop,¡± she added as soon as shended on thest set of stairs, grabbing the railing to keep herself up while she fought to catch her breath.

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Mathew replied, taking a step back up the stairs.

    Right now, there wasn¡¯t a single zombie within their line of vision. As such, they finally reached the point when they could take a short rest.

    ¡°Are you going to spend all those cores now?¡± Le asked, moving back from the far end of the floor, her hands upied by a pile of bloodied cores.

    Mathew raised his eyes at the girl and stared at Le¡¯s face with an intense look behind his own eyes.

    ¡°What?¡± Le asked, shrugging lightly. ¡°Do I have something on my face?¡± she asked, quickly moving her head around, and she attempted to check her own state up.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± Mathew lowered his eyes and shook his head. He then took a knee again, taking a cloth from a zombie¡¯s corpse to make a makeshift pouch again. ¡°Hide the cores like usual; I will use the one from the top floor,¡± Mathew instructed before turning his eyes towards the other girl. ¡°I will be leaving the stairs to you for a while.¡±

    Their rtionship didn¡¯t start on the best foot. From her strangely open approach toward intimacy to her fierce character,ter on, Daria didn¡¯t leave a good impression on Mathew. Yet, as the time went by and as the two of them fought the zombies off together, the young man couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit of sympathy towards this straightforward girl.

    ¡®To think that the secret to her character would be that simple,¡¯ Mathew thought, his lips forming a small smile.

    The young man then secured his ax between his shirt and the neck of his hoodie before climbing the stairs.

    ¡®I know it¡¯s only a guess, but isn¡¯t it strange?¡¯ Mathew thought to himself, analyzing the reason why he didn¡¯t want to talk about cores with Le.

    ¡®We cleared out four floors in total, but the monsters didn¡¯t react any stronger than before,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling the events of the recent past.

    ¡®And the only instances when I could feel their aura growing stronger was after¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head and focus on climbing the stairs.

    Despite all the growth that he experienced, the simple structure of stairs was still his nemesis.

    ¡°I guess there is only one way to find it out,¡± Mathew muttered before taking a deep breath and pushing up towards the merchant.

    And towards the possible cause of the evolved monsters appearing a lot sooner in this line of time.

 Chapter 42 Bugged purchase?

    ¡°Right, I should check my level first,¡± Mathew muttered to himself the second he reached the floor he was heading towards.

    He didn¡¯t bother to check his progress while they were cleaning the rooms at all. Sure, while it meant he couldn¡¯t really donate his levels as they came, Mathew opted to strictly focus on fighting instead.

    But now, with only the ground floor and the confrontation with the monster left¡­

    There couldn¡¯t be a better time to check his progress.

    [Level ¨C 1/1]

    [Vitality ¨C 32]

    [Brawn ¨C 38]

    [Agility ¨C 30]

    [Mind ¨C 5]

    [Arcane ¨C 5]

    [Total ¨C 110]

    [umted Levels ¨C 2/11]

    Mathew stared into his reflection that he procured on a random piece of ss he found on the floor. This was the one advantage of having the school in such a devastated state.

    ¡®I grew quite a lot, didn¡¯t I?¡¯ Mathew thought, taking in the news while trying to keep his calm. ¡®I didn¡¯t think it would grow THAT much, though.¡¯

    The disparity between Mathew¡¯s expectations and reality was, for once,-positive.

    ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Mathew uttered, turning his eyes away from the reflective surface of the piece of ss he found.

    And there it was. The being covered in a ck hood looked human only when looked at from the back or sides.

    Mathew took a look at the merchant, only to stand up and move towards one of the ssrooms instead.

    In order to make a purchase, he needed cores. And since they didn¡¯t want to carry the cores all over the ce just to weight themselves down, they were hidden in the ssroom Mathew was moving towards.

    ¡°There you are,¡± he muttered a momentter when he finally moved enough rubble away to uncover a small cave within the pile with a bag full of cores.

    ¡°There should be about a hundred or two hundred cores in there,¡± Mathew thought as he grabbed the bag and moved out of the room.

    Back in the corridor, Mathew took a moment to stand down, immersing himself in the peaceful atmosphere present in the ce.

    He closed his eyes and stood by the window, allowing the gentle wind sneaking in through many cracks and gaps in the building¡¯s outer wall to caress his face.

    ¡®If not for all the corpses around, this moment could be pretty tranquil,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a deep breath.

    He then opened his eyes, and with a refreshed resolve, Mathew approached the merchant.

    There was nothing out of the ordinary in the way in which Mathew summoned the shop.

    Just like before, he grasped at the shadow of the merchant¡¯s face, only for the domain of shadows to splurge around him and then pull the young man inside. And just like that, he returned to the familiar ce with seven different shelves and the sacrifice altar in the middle.

    ¡°I wish to buy knowledge!¡± Mathew shouted, not even giving the shelves a single look.

    ¡°State your desired question.¡±

    For some reason, the system no longer held any emotions. It was as if Mathew¡¯s earlier episode with the merchant never happened.

    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s not happy by allowing its emotions to y a role?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to bite down on his lips a momentter. ¡®Look at me, already assuming the merchant is a conscious being, isn¡¯t it funny?¡¯

    Despite forming his thoughts in the way he did, Mathew was as far fromughing out loud as he could humanly be.

    The prospect of the merchants actually being conscious and thus holding some sort of agenda¡­

    ¡®While it wouldn¡¯t be surprising, it would only confirm my guess,¡¯ Mathew thought, his face darkening a little to match the tone of what was going through his head.

    ¡°Do spending cores in merchants¡¯ shops affect the progress of the apocalypse?¡± Mathew asked the one question that he had continued to think about over a while already.

    Yet, he received no answer.

    ¡°Unable to set a price for the question,¡± the mechanical voice of the merchant quickly put down Mathew¡¯s hopes.

    ¡®Does that mean I¡¯m wrong?¡¯ the young man thought.

    The only logical reason for the merchant being unable to give him a price¡­ Was that either the question was outside of the scope of the merchant¡¯s current level¡­ Or if the answer itself had no value whatsoever.

    ¡®Judging from Murphy¡¯sw, it¡¯s likely the former,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around the shelves that hold the merchant¡¯s wares. ¡®And I guess I really have no other choice but to test it manually,¡¯ he thought before raising his hand towards a random piece of a scroll.

    ¡°How much for this scroll?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyes towards the densest part of the shadowy fog that made up the whole realm.

    ¡°A hundred and fifty cores,¡± the merchant replied with its usual voice.

    ¡®Perfect,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising the bloodied bag with cores and throwing them all up.

    A moment and an explosion of brightnesster¡­ Nothing happened.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew shrugged only to raise his eyes up.

    Around twenty cores still hung in the air, ready for him to pluck them back¡­ But theck of change,ck of information appearing¡­ The suddenck of responsiveness from the system worried Mathew.

    ¡°Where is the scroll?¡± Mathew asked out loud, hoping that the merchant wouldn¡¯t try to scam him just like that.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t buy any knowledge,¡± the merchant replied, a hint of amusement present in its voice. Yet, when it appeared once again, its vibe turned spiteful. ¡°What you purchased is an ability.¡±

 Chapter 43 [Bonus chapter]True role of the merchants

    ¡°Ability?¡± Mathew repeated after the merchant only to shake his head. ¡°Wait, does that have anything to do with my mind and arcane stats?¡± he asked, hoping to sneakily steal some knowledge from the merchant.

    ¡°Fifty cores,¡± the cold voice of the merchant sounded extremely pleased with itself.

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Mathew cursed, only to turn around on his feet and attempt to walk away from the shop. Yet, no matter how many steps Mathew took¡­ he didn¡¯t move from his ce at all.

    ¡®I don¡¯t feel any force pulling me back,¡¯ Mathew thought, surprised by the unexpected oue of his attempt. ¡®It¡¯s like the space here¡­ is curved in a way that disallows anyone to leave!¡¯

    This was a groundbreaking discovery.

    He turned around on his feet, ready to talk to the merchant again¡­

    Only for the young man¡¯s enthusiasm to die on the spot when he realized the downside of the idea.

    ¡°Just out of curiosity,¡± Mathew called out, shaking his head over his momentary naivete. ¡°How much would it cost for me to learn the spell allowing establishing areas like your shop?¡±

    Mathew had no hopes of receiving an answer. And even if he were to receive one¡­

    ¡®I¡¯m sure it would just say that it can¡¯t tell me,¡¯ Mathew thought, long parting with the idea that he actually asked about.

    And then, for but a moment, something changed.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯

    The young man only managed to shrug when everything went back to normal, as normal as standing in a separate dimension of the shop could be.

    ¡®What the hell was that?¡¯ he thought, staring towards the ce where for that single moment, Mathew could swear he could see the real figure of the merchant reveal itself.

    This figure appeared out of nowhere¡­ and just stood there with a small smirk on its lips before it disappeared altogether as if it never appeared in the first ce.

    ¡°Five hundred cores,¡± the metallic voice of the merchant appeared, pping Mat hard with both reality and the subversion of my expectations.

    There actually was a cost associated with learning this ability. But assuming that Mathew¡¯s guess was correct¡­

    Then all the cores spent at a merchant would end up elerating the apocalypse. In other words, by spending a whopping five hundred cores, a number that Mathew wasn¡¯t sure he could cough up in the first ce, he could obtain an ability that would likely no longer be useful.

    ¡°I guess I will have to get a bit more cores for that first,¡± Mathew stated, hoping that the merchant couldn¡¯t really read his thoughts.

    This was the very reason why he didn¡¯t want to reveal his line of thought to Le before. Because ever since Mathew noticed the possibility of a link between him using merchants to their fullest and the monsters evolving a lot sooner than they should, he could no longer happily thrust those merchants.

    ¡°I wish to go back,¡± Mathew stated a momentter, content with what he had achieved so far.

    And since he couldn¡¯t get the question of whether or not his guess was correct from the merchant directly, he was now ready to learn the news from his indirect method.

    ¡°May youe back to do more business soon,¡± the metallic voice of the merchant appeared right as the entire subspace started to copse, ejecting Mathew back into reality.

    ¡°Haah!¡± Mathew exhaled all the air from his lungs before desperately breathing in the fresh air.

    ¡®This was nervewracking,¡¯ he thought, falling to his knees as he desperately fought to regain his breath.

    Yet, the world wouldn¡¯t leave Mathew alone, even for a moment. Before he could even stand up, a new, powerful roar shook all the air in the school, only to be followed by the very walls of the building cracking.

    ¡®It¡¯s not going tost long!¡¯ Mathew thought, alerted by the rate of degradation of the building¡¯s structure.

    Wary of the potential copse of his footing, Mathew rushed down the stairs. Yet, the second he made his first step, his body suddenly refused to follow hismands.

    ¡®What the¡­¡¯

    Mathew couldn¡¯t even utter a curse when his consciousness suddenly wavered, only for a strange vision to appear before his eyes.

    In it, a man held something shiny in his hand. He then raised said hand¡­ only to smash it down to the ground.

    Snap.

    Within a single frame of his perception, Mathew appeared back in reality, now free to go wherever he wanted. The strange force that stopped him before was now nowhere to be seen.

    ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Mathew asked out loud, once again taking a moment to take a breath and calm himself down. Yet, this time, the new roar didn¡¯t appear once, only to then vanish and refuse to repeat itself.

    This time, the roar continued to shake the air in the school, forcing Mathew to enter his urgency mode.

    ¡°I need to hurry,¡± Mathew muttered, grasping at the corpses on the floor only to gain a little bit of momentum. He then finally managed to get back to his feet and rush towards the stairs.

    Mathew reached the staircase and instantly took a leap. Rather than trying to walk down the stairs like a normal person, he jumped all the way towards the ending wall of the corridor, only to bounce off it and jump down another set of stairs.

    By using this method, Mathew managed to reach the second floor of the building in no time, only to see two of hispanions with desperate looks on their faces.

    ¡°What happened?!¡± Daria screamed out, looking at Mathew in hopes of actually receiving an answer.

    Yet, instead of sating the girl¡¯s thirst for an exnation, Mathew looked over at Le.

    Maybe it was her coldheartedness, maybe her unnatural calmness¡­ But the girl somehow managed to notice Mathew¡¯s stare despite all themotion caused by the roars.

    In here, on the second floor, with just a single set of stairs separating them from the source of those roars¡­ The sound alone was so powerful it made Mathew doubt his ability to fight those evolved monsters.

    ¡°Now you know why I didn¡¯t want to talk about the cores before,¡± Mathew said before pulling out his ax from underneath his hoodie and looking down thest set of stairs left for them to clean.

    ¡°My bad, sorry for that,¡± Le muttered, not having any problems with epting her mistakes.,

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Daria shouted, infuriated by his attention going to her partner. ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡±

    ¡°Nothing much,¡± Mathew replied, only to shake his head. ¡°The monsters are just that eager to see those who fed them!¡±

    ¡°HAAH!?¡± Daria opened her mouth wide, uttering a loud shout without a care in the world about potentially attracting zombie attention to them. ¡°What the fuck do you mean?!¡± she screamed out, pping her fist against the concrete wall of the building.

    Thud.

    The dull sound of the impact initially yed a trick on Mathew¡¯s senses. Only when his eyes followed after the movement did he realize that the girl actually smashed the concrete in, nearly making a hole through the entire thickness of the wall!

    ¡°I can¡¯t give you any proof,¡± Mathew said, fixing his grasp on the handle of his ax as he took a step down towards the hell that he had no other choice but to conquer.

    ¡°But it seems that using stones at the merchant boosts the strength of monsters and zombies alike!¡±

 Chapter 44 Ground floor

    Mathew descended down the stairs. Following after him were two girls, each holding a machete in their right hand.

    They moved down the stairs, one step at a time. Yet, no matter how each of them wanted to prolong the moment before the fighting would resume¡­

    The world continued to move forward regardless of their wishes.

    ¡°Take the sides!¡± Mathewmanded, bringing his hand up the handle of the ax, grabbing it pretty near the de mount.

    ¡°Yosh!¡± Daria breathed out only to take a deep, long breath. And then, just as she started to let the air flow back into the atmosphere, she moved forward.

    Her machete drew a wide arc in the air, only for the girl to decapitate one of the few monsters that had already made their way towards the staircase.

    On the upper floors, clearing the corridor and the staircase adjacent to it would give Mathew¡¯s group at least ten to fifteen minutes of rest. But now that they were invading the very bottom floor of the building, that time shortened to just five minutes.

    ¡°I¡¯m on it too!¡± realizing that she waste for the party, Le shouted and rushed downstairs.

    ¡°Go on,¡± Mathew said, nodding his head.

    As ungentlemanly it was for him to move behind the girls, he had to save his strength for the fight with evolved monsters.

    It was a challenge he never encountered and, all the more, never aplished during his first run of the apocalypse.

    But now, Mathew had little to no choice regarding this matter.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Mathew said out loud, shaking his shoulder to warm them up.

    And then, he took the corner on the staircase, officially entering the space considered to be the ground floor.

    ¡®I can see¡­¡¯ Mathew ignored all the zombies swarming below, focusing his attention on scanning the ce of battle. ¡®Four¡­ No, five of them!¡¯

    The monsters were there, just like Mathew guessed.

    Each of the monsters took a separate spot in the open space of the bottom floor, each of them banging their massive bodies against the concrete walls supporting the building.

    ¡®What the hell?¡¯ Mathew thought, shocked by what he saw.

    This wasn¡¯t a random rampage of monsters unable to find the prey despite sensing it.

    It was a coordinated effort clearly aimed at taking the entire building down!

    ¡°Take care of the small fry!¡± Mathew shouted his order, rushing ahead.

    The experience of clearing the upper floors with the girls quickly proved to be quite useful.

    Mathew didn¡¯t pay any mind to the zombies. He simply rushed ahead, aiming for the nearest of the evolved zombies.

    Even though each of the zombies and evolved ones as well had distinctive traits that made it one of a kind, all the basic evolved zombies had a pretty simr frame.

    They all looked like massive piles of meat and bones. And from what Mathew could tell by staring one of such monsters down, the evolved ones actually were made from several zombies.

    ¡®They couldn¡¯t move like that without any sort of skeleton,¡¯ Mathew thought, using the fact that the monster didn¡¯t notice him yet to pave a way towards it.

    ¡®Still, that skull armor is going to be a pain,¡¯ Mathew thought, noticing where the rest of the bones from the five bodies of the evolved zombie consisted of go.

    The evolved zombies looked as if someone had taken a man, stered flesh of four more people all over him, only to then enclose the subject in a cage made of bones.

    There was only one special element about the monster, save for all sorts of organs hanging on the outside of its skin.

    And it was a gentle-shining crystal whose shine could be seen even from through the folds of fat of the monster that covered it.

    It was the monster¡¯s crystallized heart. An organ allowing its form to operate, yet so overused due to this task that a single scratch was enough to make it go into overdrive.

    ¡®Disgusting,¡¯ Mathew thought, swinging his ax to the side and allowing the handle to seemingly sweep out of his grasp.

    Thrown to the back, the ax¡¯s de pulled the entire weapon along. Mathew only closed his hand when nearly the entire handle brushed past his fingers.

    And then, with the greatest possible leaver on the weapon, Mathew swung it forward, right against one of the few exposed vitals of the monster.

    ¡°RAAOOARAR!¡±

    The monster unleashed a hectic scream when one of its organs squeezed and then exploded, covering everything in the vicinity with dark blood.

    ¡®Again!¡¯ Mathew shouted in his mind, retracting the weapon only to swing with his entire body and pull a downward sh right against the monster¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°SCREEEEE!¡± once again, the monster released a powerful cry. Yet this time, Mathew¡¯s attack turned out to be sessful, digging deeply into the monster¡¯s flesh and reaching all the way to its crystallized heart.

    The second Mathew¡¯s de touched the crystal hidden by lumps of flesh and bones, the entire thing exploded, shredding the body of the evolved monster apart.

    ¡®I guess it couldn¡¯t rely on muscles alone to keep that kind of mass up,¡¯ Mathew thought, shaking his head and looking around to take stock of the situation.

    The girls did their job well, holding all the other enemies at bay. Yet, the screams of the monster that Mathew defeated already alerted all the other ones present on the ground floor.

    And then, Mathew saw ite out.

    It wasn¡¯t anything that he had seen in either of his lives before.

    Just like the simply evolved monsters, it was constructed from flesh, blood, and bones, making it look pretty grotesque. Yet, its form alone was enough to nearly send Mathew into a frenzied puking.

    From afar, the new kind of monster looked like a centipede, standing on ten pairs of legs and hands alike while iling four more pairs in the air like some sort of weapon.

    Its legs were constructed out of bones connected with lumps of flesh.

    ¡®What the hell is this?¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling all the satisfaction and euphory from killing an evolved monster disappear in the heat of a moment.

    He had encountered the evolved monsters before. This was the one reason why he dared to go against them with only three souls in his group.

    Yet, in the face of this new opponent¡­ Mathew could feel something warm spreading over his legs and crotch.

    ¡®FUCK!¡¯ Mathew screamed inwardly out, shaking his body to get rid of the terror that froze him in ce.

    For a second, everything except Mathew froze in ce.

    The zombies stopped moving, and the evolved monsters dropped their charge.

    Then, everyst undead being on the ground floor of the building turned their eyes towards Mathew.

    ¡°ROAAAAR!¡±

    With what seemed like an order from the undead centipede, all the undead rushed forward, eager to tear Mathew¡¯s body apart!

 Chapter 45 Desperate measures(End of the arc)

    ¡°Shit,¡± Mathew only managed to utter a single curse before his mind went into a frenzy.

    ¡®No one told me that centipede would be able tomand the zombies, god damn it!¡¯ Mathew protested in his thoughts while pushing the speed of his body to the limit.

    ¡°Leave¡­¡± Daria jumped in from the side, kneeling a zombie that was about to snatch at Mathew¡¯s leg. ¡°The small fries¡­¡± she added, turning around on the spot and sending another zombie off with a kick.

    ¡°To us!¡± Le joined in, shing a hand aimed for Mathew¡¯s hair with her machete.

    ¡°Thanks!¡± Mathew momentarily nodded his head, only to shake off the feeling of terror and return to the battle.

    Right now, he couldn¡¯t afford to be absent-minded. Right now, he had an entire ground floor full of zombies and monsters to clear. And until that task was finished, Mathew couldn¡¯t rest easy.

    ¡°Die!¡± he shouted, moving towards the next nearest monster.

    Now that they were all converging on him, with the exception of the centipede monster that stood back, every moment brought Mathew closer to fighting several evolved ones at once.

    And this wasn¡¯t a task he was confident to fulfill.

    Mathew shed with his ax to the left and then to the right, opening up a path between two zombie victims of his attacks.

    Now that the battle had progressed, he could no longer just leave everything to the girls.

    ¡®How are they doing?¡¯ Mathew had to cut all the zombies in the proximity before he allowed himself the luxury of taking a glimpse at the girls.

    Currently, Daria was taking an attack from an evolved monster head-on while Le pushed through zombies to join hands with her.

    ¡®Good idea,¡¯ Mathew thought, intentionally slipping on the blood and seemingly falling down, all to avoid a shing attack of the nearby evolved monster.

    ¡®So this is an agile one,¡¯ Mathew thought, recognizing the building of the monster.

    It was the very same kind that the one who snatched two of his friends during theirst escape in his previous life.

    Whizz!

    The sound of the air getting cut by the extremely sharp ws of the monster prated deeply into Mathew¡¯s brain, assaulting his soul with a forced realization of what would happen if he ended up struck by this attack.

    ¡®Damn it!¡¯ Mathew screamed internally out, refusing to allow panic and terror to take control of his actions.

    Mathew used the momentum of his slides to bend backward, only to spring up a short momentter. Thanks to this clever maneuver, Mathew managed to sneak past the monster¡¯s defenses, only to smash at its chest with a round, wide sweep of an ax.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew thought, bitting down on his lips. ¡®It didn¡¯t go through deep enough,¡¯ heined, only to press the entire weight of his body on the ax¡¯s handle in an attempt at unlodging it from the bones of the monster.

    But the weapon didn¡¯t buckle.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯

    Left with no other choice, Mathew leaped back, only to watch how the muscles around the wound he inflicted on the monster suddenly squeezed,pletely locking his weapon in ce.

    ¡°SHIT!¡± Mathew cried out, forced into a bare-fisted battlefield.

    Right now, he had no advantages of his own and was pitted against monsters that could turn invulnerable even against his greatest weapon.

    ¡®We are screwed, aren¡¯t we?¡¯ Mathew thought, barely avoiding another shing attack, this time from a second monster that joined the fray.

    If Mathew had any hopes for winning the conflict and clearing the school before, they all vanished on this spot.

    He was already hardpressed to stay alive while against a single opponent and with his powerful weapon. And now he had to fight two of the monsters with more toe at any moment¡­ all the whilecking any form of weapon?

    ¡®Wait, what the hell,¡¯ Mathew shook his head, repelling yet another attack of terror on his soul. ¡®Who said I don¡¯t have any weapons?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, reaching to the back of his pants and pulling out the same kind of machete that his girls were using.

    ¡®Still,¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling how the spark of hope ignited by the touch of the weapon quickly extinguished under the cold wind of reality.

    What was he supposed to do with just a short machete against three monsters?

    Mathew gulped his saliva down.

    This was the end of the line.

    Mathew took a nce to the side, only to see that the two girls were hard-pressed to fight off the advance of a single monster and several zombies.

    ¡®And I am supposed to take care of all of¡­ those?¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes back towards his current enemies.

    And then he saw it.

    The centipede that kept to the back before now rushed ahead, most likely sensing the desperation oozing out of every fiber of Mathew¡¯s being.

    ¡®If it canmand the zombies, it has to be somewhat intelligent,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to suffer through yet another attack of terror.

    Watching how three burly monsters, a sea of zombies, and a massive, disgusting centipede all zeroed in on him, Mathew tightened his jaws, ready for the inevitable.

    ¡®And that means¡­¡¯

    If the monster was intelligent, then Mathew could trick it. And in the current situation of the monsters holding an overwhelming advantage, the best bet was to pretend to give in to the attacks of terror that shoot Mathew¡¯s soul.

    Left with no other choice, Mathew could only trust his gut. He could only trust his gut telling him the right moment to use it, his guess regarding what else he could do¡­

    Andstly, he had to trust that, albeit working for the apocalypse, merchants couldn¡¯t scam him.

    The closest monster reader, swinging its massive arm right towards Mathew¡¯s head.

    But while it managed to negate Mathew¡¯s attack earlier and ended up surviving the sh¡­ The monster clearly expected Mathew to back off.

    The young man only took a quick nce to the side, putting his eyes at the angle that allowed him to track the movements of the centipede. And right as the monster before him attacked, Mathew took a step forward, driving his fist directly under the folds of the monster¡¯s meat, right against its shiny core.

    Mathew didn¡¯t punch it, though. Instead, he pushed his fingers apart only to bring them down on the core and then pull it out with one swift move!

    Normal cores extracted from zombies would only reflect light; they wouldn¡¯t shine on their own. Yet, the stone that Mathew carved out of the monster¡¯s chest clearly illuminated its surrounding, even if the power of the light was pretty damn low.

    ¡®Well then,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his hand with his trophy in it while throwing onest nce towards the monster.

    ¡°Donate all my levels to my first wife,¡± Mathew muttered, counting seconds towards the right moment.

    He ignored a massive first rushing towards the side of his head. He ignored a set of three ws reaching out for his knees.

    He even ignored the face of terror made up of three different faces in a triangr shape and then surrounded by a circle made out of five sets of jaws filled to the brim with teeth.

    And right as the centipede monster brought its anus-like mouth to feast on Mathew¡¯s flesh, the young man brought his hand down.

    And just as the young man brought his hand down, a strange force seemingly appeared to assist his move.

    The stone crushed underneath the weight of Mathew¡¯s fingers. Its shine quickly seeped outside, only to turn into a sizzle¡­

    ¡®I hope you will survive,¡¯ Mathew thought, closing his eyes.

    The core in his hand disintegrated. And then, a wave of intense, white light covered everything on the ground floor of the school.

    ******

    The thickest part of the forest was usually the safest. The high-growing grasses, lush bushes, and plethora of ces to hide were Kaya¡¯s favorite yground.

    What she never expected, was for the said yground to turn into herst ce to hide in the whole world.

    The footsteps of the approaching soldiers could be heard in the distance. Those clumsy humans couldn¡¯t move through the forest without making a massive racket.

    It was one of the major upsides to hiding in the ancient forest. Kaya could hear the humans long before they would approach her.

    And just like many times over, when the footsteps got too close, Kaya stood up and silently ran deeper into the forest.

    Then, her fur-covered ears twitched, only for the girl toe at aplete stop and energetically turn her head around.

    ¡°Who are you?!¡±

 Chapter 46 Buried in the rubble

    ¡°Cough, cough!¡± Mathew spat out a mixture of blood, snot, and saliva that clogged his throat.

    He couldn¡¯t really remember anything that happened after he unleashed his ability.

    ¡®What happened?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, coughing out all the dust that he inhaled after losing his consciousness. Yet, as he opened his eyes, he felt a tingle of panic poking at his nerves.

    Because even after he opened his eyes, there wasn¡¯t a single thing that he could see.

    ¡®Wait,¡¯ Mathew thought when another realization struck his mind. ¡®I can¡¯t move!¡¯

    The young man managed to keep himself psyched up about the task by simply ignoring all the possibilities of him dying.

    It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t take them into ount; he simply refused to think about them too much.

    But Mathew now was different. Because he now realized that there was something worse than death.

    ¡®Am I seriously going to just lie down and wait for some zombie toe and snack on me?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, his heart starting to beat faster to pump more blood to his muscles.

    ¡°NO!¡± Mathew shouted, using the momentum of his lungs to tense all his muscles up.

    ¡®Maybe I¡¯m paralyzed, maybe I turned blind,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he pushed his muscles closer and closer to their limit.

    ¡°I heard him!¡± Daria¡¯s voice suddenly reached Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡®At least those do work,¡¯ he thought, his body rxing and¡­ not moving at all.

    ¡®Could it be that I¡¯m actually stuck under the rubble?¡¯ Mathew thought, trying his best to analyze his situation. ¡®Wait, I don¡¯t have the time for this! I need to free myself and finish those monsters up!¡¯

    Reminded of his goal, Mathew pressed his muscles again¡­ But whatever was covering his body refused to buckle.

    ¡®I guess I¡¯m stuck here,¡¯ Mathew thought, his lips inadvertently forming a small smirk. ¡®It¡¯s a pity I don¡¯t have any stepsister to help me out,¡¯ he thought, Mathew¡¯s humor somehow staying by his side instead of leaving like all Mathew¡¯s hopes and dreams.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± a voice prated through the darkness, reaching Mathew¡¯s ears again. ¡°Where are you?!¡±

    ¡®Is this a trap?¡¯ Mathew thought, the burden all over his body reminding him to be careful.

    Ever since Mat saw that centipede monster, he realized that he actually knew nothing about the apocalypse. His experiences from his previous attempts have already gotten him so far¡­ But the usefulness of what he knew back then was quickly running out.

    In other words, his future was just like his situation right now.

    Bleak, dark, and full of potential threats.

    ¡®Still, I guess I have no other choice but to take a gamble now,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then inhaled a mouthful of breath.

    ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± Mathew shouted as loud as his voice would allow him. Yet, stuck underneath a pile of heavy rubble, miraculously surviving the entire ordeal¡­ Mathew couldn¡¯t really use his voice as he would normally do.

    ¡°I heard him!¡± Mathew heard Le¡¯s voice only for a sudden tapping to reach his ears. ¡°Where does tappinges from?¡± Le asked as soon as the strange noise stopped.

    ¡°Above my feet?¡± Mathew replied, only for a powerful bout of pain to pierce right through his chest.

    ¡°Cough, cough!¡± Mathew¡¯s entire body tensed up as he coughed, yet it still wasn¡¯t enough for him to free himself from his situation. On the other hand, he could now see a slight ray of light reflecting on the blood he had just coughed up.

    ¡°Just wait for a moment!¡± Daria shouted over, only for a series of strange noises to follow.

    ¡®I guess I was right about being stuck underneath the rubble,¡¯ Mathew thought once he recognized the strange noises for what they were.

    And soon enough, enough of the broken concrete and various elements of furniture ended up removed from the pile to allow the young man ess to fresh air.

    ¡°WHEEZE!¡±

    The powerful breath Mathew took of this rtively dust-free air seemed to reinvigorate his body, filling his muscles with strength once again.

    ¡®Was I on the verge of suffocating?¡¯ Mathew thought as he pushed his muscles to their limits, slowly pushing a massive concrete b off his chest.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Daria shouted when the two could finally see each other. ¡°How are you doing?¡± she asked, a look of worry appearing all over her face.

    ¡°I¡¯m alive¡­ somehow,¡± Mathew replied, only to move his hands to another task.

    Now that three people worked on uncovering Mathew from where the rubble burying him, they managed toplete the task pretty soon.

    ¡°Here,¡± Le reached out with her hand towards Mathew, helping him to get back up to his feet.

    ¡°What¡¯s the situation?¡± Mathew asked while still lying on the ground. Yet, even when he stood up, he simply hung himself on Daria¡¯s shoulder, unable to keep himself upright just yet.

    ¡°All the monsters are gone,¡± Daria replied, only to point her hand out in a seemingly random direction. ¡°One of them died on the spot; another one got buried under the rubble. We finished thest one to remain,¡± she exined.

    ¡®The numbers don¡¯t add up,¡¯ Mathew thought, forcing his head up and looking around the ce.

    ¡°Where is the centipede?¡± Mathew asked, unable to see a single hint of this strange monster falling prey to his skill and its after-effects.

    ¡°Centipede?¡± Daria asked, cutely leaning her head to the side like some sort of confused animal.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you see it?¡± Mathew asked, his eyes opening up wide. ¡®Was this some sort of illusion? Charm?¡¯ he thought, racking his brains toe up with a possible exnation.

    A small noise came from a ruble nearby. Just like Mathew managed to survive the onught caused by his own ability, it seemed that some zombies did just the same.

    ¡®Well, given how we need to destroy their brains to really kill them, it would be no wonder if some survived that hell,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking onest deep breath before moving on and approaching the source of those noises.

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Mathew moaned a little as he raised his hand and rubbed his cheeks.

    He now stood directly on the pile that produced the small noise that attracted his attention. Yet, rather than going in to finish the zombie below, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but shake his head and close his eyes for a moment.

    ¡®Nadia¡­¡¯ he thought, clenching his hands into fists. ¡®I hope that donating those levels was enough for you to survive.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s head turned to the side. Even after the fight, he could still see the path that his small group took to reach the middle part of the bottom floor.

    And what he could also see was the very reason for the rubble littering all over the ground floor.

    He could see the massive walls of the school¡¯spound, blue sky, and a mass of zombies filling up the outer grounds of the school.

    All of that, because of a very simple reason. A reason that also exined the amount of rubble all over the ce.

    It was the western wing of the school.

    Or rather, itsplete absence and a massive pile of rubble that reced it.

    ¡®I guess I can only hope you were in a different wing when it all copsed,¡¯ Mathew thought, clenching his fists even tighter than before.

    Then, Mathew¡¯s body suddenly shook as his footing became unstable.

    ¡®What?¡¯ Mathew thought, looking down¡­

    Only to see a massive w emerge from underneath the pile of concrete and broken furniture!

    ¡®So it¡¯s alive!¡¯ Mathew thought, instantly jumping off the pile and towards the two of hispanions.

    ¡°What the hell is this?!¡± Daria screamed out when more and more ws started to break through the rubble, only for the trio to soon realize that those weren¡¯t ws at all.

    The sharp, pointy bones that prated through the rubble¡­ were actually the legs of the centipede that Mathew was so worried about!

    ¡°Retreat!¡± Mathew muttered, the sight of the centipede emerging from the rubble sapping all the strength and motivation that he had left. ¡°We are no match for¡­¡± he said, only to watch Le leap ahead, right towards the sharp bones of the centipede¡¯s legs.

    ¡°ROAAAAR¡± a massive, anus-like head of the monster finally broke through the rubble, emerging from the pile while the dusted trash cascaded down its long neck¡­

    A long neck that Le jumped towards, only to sh right through it with her machete!

 Chapter 47 Headless centipede

    ¡°How in all hells¡­¡± Mathew muttered.

    His eyes followed the centipede¡¯s head that Le cleanly cut off with a single sh.

    The bloody chunk of meat moved through a wide arc, spraying blood all over the ce.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew thought. He could feel his legs weakening.

    ¡®Was this supposed to be that easy?¡¯ he thought, his hands trembling.

    The severed head drew its arc and fell to the ground. It then tumbled across the rubble.

    The sound of the centipede¡¯s head appeared inplete silence as if no other sound dared to make itself known.

    ¡®Wait, what?¡¯ Mathew forced his eyes away from the bloodied chunk, turning it back on the scene of action.

    For but a second, the world appeared to freeze. All the zombies stood in ce.

    In that single instant, they seemingly all lost interest in the events from before.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew thought.

    And then everything snapped right back to reality.

    The zombies started to move again. While they clearly lost their goal as an entire horde, the nearest few of them instantly looked toward Mathew and the girls.

    And the centipede that Le beheaded started to move again as well.

    Its razor-sharp legs swung forward, threatening to cut the girl in two.

    All before Mathew¡¯s eyes. All in a strange, slowed-down pace, as if the world only turned one frame at a time.

    ¡®I won¡¯t make it,¡¯ Mathew thought. He didn¡¯t even think when his muscles tightened, making his body constrain a tiny little bit.

    And then, following nothing but his wits, Mathew leaped ahead.

    ¡®Come on!¡¯

    There were only a few meters apart. A distance as great as several football fields for a geeky nerd.

    ¡®Just a little bit more!¡¯ Mathew¡¯s soul screamed out.

    His hand reached out, strangely drifting through the changed, denser fabric of the space.

    The centipede¡¯s legs nearly reached Le¡¯s exposed sides. Even with her shirt on, it offered close to no protection.

    And right when those razor-sharp bones brushed against the girl¡¯s sides, Mathew¡¯s handnded on her shoulder.

    ¡®GET BACK!¡¯

    Mathew didn¡¯t waste his time or breath on shouting. Instead, he channeled all his willpower, strength, and agility into a single task.

    He jerked his hand to the back.

    As if he was on thest stroke before a piece of paper in his other hand would cover with an army of his white, would-be descendants.

    And somehow, before Le¡¯s body would be cut at her slim waist, Mathew pulled her out.

    ¡°Wha¡­¡± the girl didn¡¯t manage to utter a single, full word of surprise when her back crashed into the rubble behind.

    The centipede didn¡¯t wait.

    Once its legs cut at the air, it had to realize that its prey had somehow escaped.

    And as if it wasn¡¯t just deprived of its head, it shed its legs at Mathew.

    ¡°Get,¡± Mathew shouted, kicking at the long, thurd-like pile of flesh that made up the centipede, ¡°lost!¡±

    Before the monster¡¯s legs could injure Mathew, the entire thing flew several meters away. And even if that alone wasn¡¯t a feat, that single kick forced the entire thing from underneath several tons of rubble!

    ¡®What the hell?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to dodge a step when the centipede raised up.

    Now that it was fully erected, it stood at an astonishing five meters up.

    ¡°Tsk,¡± Mathew clicked his tongue, staring at five meters of flesh sprouting razor-like ws on both of its sides.

    The blood continued to sprout from its severed neck.

    ¡®Aren¡¯t I¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva. ¡®A little strong?¡¯ he thought, taking but a faintest of moments to look down at his hands.

    It was then that he noticed the simple yet disastrous fact.

    He no longer held his weapon in his hands.

    ¡®There is no time to think about it,¡¯ Mathew thought, desperately raising his eyes.

    He then shifted his hips to the side, avoiding a rock thrown by a jerk of the monster¡¯s legs.

    ¡®Wait, I need to calm down,¡¯ Mathew thought, jumping to another pile of rubble. Secondster, the entire upper part of the centipede smashed into it, crushing the cement bs into fine dust.

    ¡®It¡¯s far stronger than a bunch of meat like it should be,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then squinted his eyes and tightened his fists.

    ¡®But I seem to be stronger as well,¡¯ he thought, heavily stomping his feet on the ground.

    Mathew thenunched himself forward.

    The strength of his kick before proved just how insane his own development was.

    ¡®This system didn¡¯t help any bit to let me realize that,¡¯ Mathewined in his thoughts, dishing out a fat kick to the monster¡¯s side.

    ¡®Since we are both too strong for our physical limitations,¡¯ Mathew thought, ¡®then its power has toe from somewhere!¡¯

    This was the one belief Mathew refused to give up on.

    A belief that everything had to abide by some fundamental rules.

    All zombies and monsters had a core somewhere inside their bodies. Merchants would exchange those cores for various items. Spending cores at merchants would affect the progress of the apocalypse.

    Those three were just the first few things that Mathew learned about this new world of his. Yet, just like the physic that he knew before the apocalypse came, those appeared to be strict rules.

    And two different systems of rules couldn¡¯t exist side by side. In other words, while in a way that Mathew couldn¡¯t yet understand, this world still had to follow the physical rules Mathew knew about!

    ¡®And in this case¡­¡¯ the young man thought, kicking away at the ground to retreat, ¡®it has to have a core somewhere inside!¡¯

    This was the one notion, one idea that Mathew wascking.

    The one element missing in the choreography of the fight that yed out in his mind.

    ¡°BLURP!¡±

    Blood shot from the severed body of the monster like a hose.

    ¡®Did it try to roar?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, retreating another leap only to fall down to his knees and reach out with his hands towards the ground.

    The centipede then pushed its center of weight forward, falling on its bony-legs and rushing forward.

    Mathew pulled his fingers down, grasping his right hand over the handle of his ax.

    All of his retreats brought him right back to the ce where he jumped from to save Le. An event that urred only a few seconds prior yet felt as distant as yesterday¡¯s fight.

    ¡°This time,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose, raising his right knee.

    The centipede¡¯s body was just too massive. And the young man had no idea where its core could be. What¡¯s more, the zombies were now all starting to converge on him due to all the noises caused by his fight.

    ¡®I guess I have no other choice,¡¯ Mathew thought, swallowing down his saliva as he tensed his muscles for this onest effort.

    The easiest way to find the centipede¡¯s core was to simply split its entire body in half.

    A deed that Mathew doubted he was capable of.

    But a deed he had to aplish to fulfill his one mission.

    Mathew jumped¡­

    Or he didn¡¯t. His mental projection of himself got ahead of his physical self. For but a split of a second, those two elements of Mathew¡¯s perception, his idea of himself and his natural senses, failed to synchronize.

    And right at this moment, something bloody shed right past Mathew¡¯s eyes, only to drill right through the centipede¡¯s body!

    Tap, tap, tap.

    Blood slowly trickled down a girl¡¯s hand as a massive stone she held with her fingers pulsated with a gentle light.

    ¡°I¡¯ve finally found you!¡±

 Chapter 48 Last struggle

    Blood trickled down Nadia¡¯s fingers.

    It had a strangely thin consistency, flowing down as if it was water rather than a much denser and more viscous liquid like blood.

    She stood tall, her chest pushed out, and her chin pulled high. Her eyes fell gently along the slope of her tiny nose as she cast her sights on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯ve finally found you!¡± her lips uttered, trembling gently like butterflies dancing on the winds.

    Mathew was stunned.

    Save for all the blood and destruction all around, this was the scene that yed out more times than necessary in the past.

    Mathew slowly gulped down a mouthful of saliva.

    ¡®It¡¯s hard to be a boyfriend of a girl that¡¯s so cool,¡¯ he thought.

    And exactly the same feelings would fill Mathew in the past, where his greatest worries were limited to bullies and grades.

    His muscles rxed a little; the familiar safety offered by Nadia¡¯s protection and oversight dulled the young man¡¯s senses and will to fight.

    ¡®No, that¡¯s wrong,¡¯ he thought, unable to tear his gaze away from Nadia¡¯s deep eyes. ¡®She¡¯s not my girlfriend,¡¯ Mathew realized, about to rise from his lowered position to embrace the girl. ¡®She is my wife!¡¯ he thought triumphantly, finally finding some room to amuse himself with this fact.

    And then, Mathew snapped right back to reality.

    A shiny stone pulsated waves of light in Nadia¡¯s bloodied hand. But the centipede didn¡¯t cease to move.

    And it was actually rising up.

    Mathew saw all of those moves before.

    Sure, they were heavier and clumsier now, but that didn¡¯t make the evolved monster slow!

    ¡°Watch!¡± Mathew shouted, his body tensing up and then springing out in a single instant.

    ¡°OUT!¡± he finished his warning as he brought his ax down the middle of the monster.

    It didn¡¯t die after Le cut its head. It still didn¡¯t die after Nadia stole its life core.

    ¡®I just need to quarter it!¡¯ Mathew decided, shing down on the turd-like pile of flesh.

    ¡°KILL IT!¡± Daria finally shook off her shock.

    For the first time since the centipede took them by surprise by not dying, she could actually catch up to everyone¡¯s moves!

    Mathew¡¯s ax split the entire five meters of the meaty thurd in two¡­ Or it would if only the de of the ax was about ten times longer.

    All that Mathew¡¯s downward sh from a leap managed to achieve was a long cut at the monster¡¯s belly.

    A cut way too shallow to seriously damage it. But a cut that revealed exactly what Mathew guessed already.

    There was another shiny core in the bottom part of the centipede¡¯s body!

    But this time, it wasn¡¯t only Mathew or Nadia that rushed to fight it.

    Daria approached from the beast¡¯s right side, cutting at the blunt side of its legs with her machete. The weapon¡¯s de met the bones of the monster¡­ only to cleave right through.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew gasped in shock as he jumped two steps away. He then brought the weight of his weapon to the bottom back, intending to go for another leap and a wide arc of sh.

    ¡°It¡¯s there!¡± Le added, appearing from the monster¡¯s left and following Daria¡¯s example. Yet, instead of simply copying the idea, Le aimed her attack at the legs near the monster¡¯s core.

    Her de cut through three of the centipede¡¯s legs, opening roughly a meter-long gap in its defenses.

    ¡°Get on top of it!¡± Mathew shouted as he rushed forward. He used the distance he gained by retreating to gain momentum¡­

    But he didn¡¯t jump. He pushed both of his feet ahead of his knees, falling down on his ass. The momentum he stacked carried his slide on, bringing him right towards the opening Le created.

    The girls both long retreated from the monster¡¯s sides, following Mathew¡¯s order.

    ¡°Cut to it from above!¡± Mathew shouted as he fixed his grip over the ax¡¯s handle¡­

    And then, by using the remaining momentum of his slide, he threw his shoulder out, spinning the ax in a perfect, nearlyplete arc.

    His swing could only gain momentum in the free space Le created. But with Mathew¡¯s improved flesh, it was enough.

    His ax cut right through all the bony legs of the monster near its remaining core, exposing the bottom part of the centipede to even lousy attacks.

    At the same time, Le and Nadianded on the monster¡¯s back, only to furiously sh at its flesh with their short weapons.

    He always hated the idea of Nadia standing up for him. Sure, it felt great to be saved from bullies; it felt great to have someone always ready to jump into the fire to help him¡­

    But all of those ideas involved Nadia putting herself in danger. And this was the one aspect of the situation towards which Mathew¡¯s hatred knew no bounds.

    ¡®There is no other choice,¡¯ the young man thought, clenching his teeth as he retreated to make space for the girl.

    The time of apocalypse wasn¡¯t the time when he could allow such worries to rule over his judgment. Right now, they needed all the help they could. And Nadia¡¯s disy from a moment earlier was perfect proof of her newfound capabilities.

    ¡°Fuck off!¡± Nadia uttered in a cold voice, appearing in the gap Mathew created out of nowhere.

    It was as if she stopped the passage of time, calmly walked to the spot, and then ordered the flow of time to resume.

    Or maybe she was just too fast for Mathew¡¯s senses for the young man to perceive her movement at all.

    And then, Nadia pped the centipede¡¯s bottom.

    It was a juicy p, one that would send sparks of rumors and drama all over the school back in the day.

    But now, with Nadia¡¯s augmented strength, it disintegrated the flesh of the monster that she pped, along with the stone that hid underneath.

    The centipede¡¯s flesh turned into mist, and the shiny stone that powered its movements shattered before turning into a pile of dust. Those two elements created some sort of sticky fog that took a long while to actually fall down.

    And once it did, the massive body of the centipede finally fell to the ground before falling apart into a bloody mess of limbs, organs, and bones.

    The force that held it together was no more, turned into a mist by Nadia¡¯s p.

    ¡°Who is this girl?¡± Daria¡¯s mouth uttered a question, her wide-open eyes showcasing just how awed she was.

    The girl¡¯s voice seemed to snap Nadia out of her strangely dazed state. She shook her head before refocusing his eyes and looking around the ce.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia muttered,  raising her hand to her head as if she was in pain¡­ But then she energetically raised her head again, turning her eyes towards Daria¡¯s face.

    ¡°Mathew?¡± Le asked, noticing the strange behavior of the neer. ¡°What¡­¡±

    ¡°Mathew?¡± Nadia repeated, her eyebrows raising as her voice turned nearly hostile. She then turned her deep eyes towards the young man.

    And then, ignoring all the conflict, all the zombies that still threatened them with their presence, all the blood around¡­

    Nadia took a step forward and crossed her hands on her chest. She then raised her chin and looked down at Mathew¡¯s face, like a mother who came home after long hours of work only to learn her kid forgot to pull the chicken out of the freezer.

    ¡°Who the hell are those bitches?!¡±

 Chapter 49 Exhaustion catches up

    From Mathew¡¯s protector and savior to an angry girlfriend questioning her boyfriend about the events of thest night.

    The change that Nadia went through in the span of mere seconds was immense.

    ¡®Damn.¡¯ Mathew swallowed his saliva, not sure how to approach the topic. ¡®I knew it woulde to this, but how the hell am I supposed to tell her?¡¯ he thought.

    Mathew averted his eyes to the side, pointing his right hand towards the girls a bit further away.

    ¡°It¡¯s Daria and Le,¡± the young man exined obediently. He then lowered his head before Nadia¡¯s stormy gaze. ¡°I met them while trying to reach the bottom floor. The two of them helped me a lot while clearing the zombies out of our way.¡±

    Mathew was only a single instant away from kowtowing on the ground, with no care for all the blood and filth that covered it.

    ¡°Isthatit?¡± Nadia¡¯s doubtful reply merged into a single word.

    She dropped the stone from her hand to the ground and then rested her fists on her hips. One of Nadia¡¯s eyebrows went up as her left foot started to tap against the floor.

    ¡®Wait a second, did we change genres or something?¡¯ Mathew stumbled to his feet. ¡®Wasn¡¯t this supposed to be an apocalypse?¡¯ he thought, feeling weak in his knees.

    The exhaustion of all the fights finally caught up to the young man.

    And just in thatst fight, the strain that he put his body under¡­

    ¡®This is going to suck like fuck!¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling how his body weighted forward, his head on a crash course with one of the random piles of rubble.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Nadia¡¯s disposition changed in a mere instant.

    She leaped forward, grabbing Mathew by his shoulders. Just in time to save the young man¡¯s head from striking a sharp bolt of a broken concrete reinforcement.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡± Mathew gasped for the air, somehow regaining the reins over his flesh. He jerked upwards, hoping to regain his stability¡­

    The feeling of Nadia¡¯s skin rubbing against his threw Mathew¡¯s senses into disarray.

    As a long-time close friend, he considered skinship with Nadia as something normal.

    No, something casual yet essential.

    And over the course of thest events, Mathew desperatelycked the mindest that simply hugging Nadia would put him in.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry it took me so long,¡± Nadia muttered as she rubbed her hands against the back of Mat¡¯s head.

    The young man¡¯s head was stuck in the sweet opening of Nadia¡¯s cleavage. Yet, for some reason, even the drops of blood that dirtied her skin didn¡¯t stop Matt from melting under the heat of the girl¡¯s skin.

    ¡°Wait, what the hell?¡± Le stepped forward. ¡°Who the hell are you?¡± she asked, keeping her machete in her hand.

    ¡°Calm down,¡± Daria raised her hand to stop her friend before turning her eyes towards the couple. ¡°It¡¯s like he said, I¡¯m Daria, and this is Le. We cooperated with Mathew to survive.¡±

    Nadia only threw a single nce at the girls before turning her eyes back to the top of Matt¡¯s head. She then lowered her eyelids and rested her head on top of Matt¡¯s.

    ¡°I¡¯m so fucking d you are okay,¡± Mathew uttered, all the air escaping from his lungs as his body plummeted.

    Every fiber of his being was on fire. Every strain of his muscles was overstressed beyond any reason. Even his bones were on the verge of shattering under a single breath of wind.

    ¡®Fuck¡­¡¯ the young man thought, unable to move a muscle.

    ¡°God damn it,¡± Nadia muttered as she reaffirmed her grasp over Mathew¡¯s body. She then sharply raised her head and looked around.

    ¡°You two,¡± Nadia raised her voice as she threw a cold stare toward Matt¡¯spanions. ¡°Go and fetch the two rats that are waiting in the southern alley,¡± Nadia ordered before throwing a kick and decimating the nearest zombie.

    Despite how long the events appeared to them, they all took ce in a short span of time. And now, the window where they were free not to care about the zombies¡­ was now closing.

    All the fighting definitely attracted a lot of zombie attention. And even with the boss monsters now gone, Mathew was in no shape to participate in such a fight.

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Daria asked as she stepped forward and started to clear the path for the couple.

    ¡°Where are you taking him?¡± Le posed a different question, her eyes still hostile.

    ¡°To somewhere safe, he needs to rest,¡± Nadia replied without the slightest care in the world as she made her way towards one of the school¡¯s wards.

    It was a nearly autonomous area designed for the use of apany that sponsored the school. There, excelling students would usually kickstart their careers by going through the real-life practice of the craft.

    Or that was the idea behind that ce, now long abandoned and closed off due to the bankruptcy of the saidpany.

    And now it stood. An empty area in the corner of the school¡¯s ground floor. Cleared out from all furniture, left to rot until someone would actually buy it out.

    And now, Nadia kicked the blocked doors open before pulling Mathew¡¯s lifeless body inside.

    She couldn¡¯t care less about those two girls or the couple that she brought with herself. Right now, the entire world shrunk into the feeble body of Nadia¡¯s beloved.

    Nadiaid Mat¡¯s body down on the floor, resting his back against the thick, concrete wall of thepartment.

    She then kneeled by his side and brought two of her fingers to the side of Mathew¡¯s neck, checking for his pulse.

    ¡®Ugh,¡¯ Mathew protested in his thoughts, feeling as if the tips of Nadia¡¯s fingers turned into red-hot drills.

    ¡°You always have to end up in a lot of trouble, don¡¯t you?¡± Nadia asked in a weak voice. Worry filled her eyes as she moved her hand and caressed Mathew¡¯s pained face.

    ¡°Nadia¡­¡± Mathew managed to utter a small whisper, his body slowly but surely regenerating. And now that Nadia was there to take care of him¡­

    Unable to part away from Mat now that they had reunited, Nadia hugged him tightly. Yet, as time went on, she started to curl up. And soon, she ended up practically wrapping herself all over Mat¡¯s tired flesh.

    ¡°I will be okay,¡± Mathew muttered, desperate to calm the girl¡¯s worries.

    ¡®As great as it feels to get pampered like that,¡¯ he thought, only to mentally shake his head.

    Mathew then focused all his might, all his willpower, on raising his right hand.

    And with this heroic effort, he gently patted Nadia¡¯s back.

    ¡°It will be all right,¡± he whispered.

    That was the utmost limit of what energy Mathew had left. But it was more than enough to make Nadia freeze.

    ¡°Matty,¡± she muttered, raising her teary face above Mathew¡¯s eyes. She then brought her hand up and caressed his cheek while looking him deeply in the eyes.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, stunned by how the lights of Nadia¡¯s eyes glistered through the tears hanging right below.

    There was little to no light in the ce, yet Nadia¡¯s lips somehow got to shine with their own charming light.

    ¡®That¡¯s right,¡¯ Mathew suddenly thought, a momentary wake-up call shaking him awake. ¡®In the end, we never did it,¡¯ he thought, suddenly bing heavily self-aware.

    But there was little Mathew could do. With his body still on the brink of a total copse, he became a subject, not the force.

    Nadia¡¯s lips got closer. Her breath basked Mathew¡¯s face with a delicate aroma and filled his nose with the taste of the girl¡¯s air.

    And then, Nadia¡¯s lips gently fell down on Mathew¡¯s.

 Chapter 50 Let me help you relax (r18)

    ¡°Mhmm¡­¡± A small moan escaped from Mathew¡¯s mouth when Nadia pulled her head away.

    Her cheeks were blushed, her eyes filled with passion. And her hands kept on caressing Mathew¡¯s cheeks.

    ¡°That didn¡¯t feel bad at all,¡± Nadiamented in a tiny voice, only to lean forward again.

    Her mouth pressed against Mathew¡¯s, filling his head with only one sensation he could think about.

    ¡®They are warm,¡¯ Mathew thought, melting under the gentle embrace of the girl¡¯s lips.

    With only the cold walls and floor to his back and bottom and the warmth of Nadia¡¯s body above, Mathew¡¯s body couldn¡¯t decide whether to get too hot or too cold.

    ¡°Everything will be okay,¡± Nadia muttered silently, her face close enough for her lips to brush against Mathew¡¯s as she moved them. ¡°I promise,¡± Nadia leaned in, this time nting her kisses over Mat¡¯s cheek. ¡°Mkay?¡±

    ¡°Nadia¡­¡± Mathew spoke out, only to sap all his strength with this single word.

    It wasn¡¯t just the result of Mathew pushing himself way too much at the end. In reality, he continued to act way beyond his limits ever since he first swung his trusty ax. Yet, filled with determination and having no other choice, Mathew simply ignored all the warnings before.

    His powerlessness right now was just an end result of such a strain.

    ¡°You can just rx,¡± Nadia continued to whisper, her lips moving up and to the side of Mathew¡¯s face.

    And then, as if his earlobe suddenly turned into a prime sort of snack, Nadia caught it with her mouth only to then munch on it with passion.

    ¡°Nadia¡­?¡± Mathew pushed himself yet again, this time the single word he uttered taking on a doubtful tone.

    ¡®What is she doing?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as the girl continued to nibble on his ear. ¡®Is it her race speaking through her?¡¯

    This time, Mathew didn¡¯t have the miracle system to turn Nadia back into a fully-fledged human. He only managed to stop the progress of the virus that was about to turn her into a zombie.

    ¡®If I recall correctly, she is a half-zombie, isn¡¯t she?¡¯ Mathew continued to focus on his thoughts, refusing to acknowledge the strange tingles of pleasure that continued to spread away from his ear that Nadia snacked on.

    ¡°Everything,¡± Nadia¡¯s whisper blew directly into the hole of Mathew¡¯s ears, sending a shiver down his spine. It was then quickly followed by the sloppy sounds as Nadia¡¯s lips and tongue once again went crazy around his ear.

    ¡°Will,¡± the girl continued to cheer Mathew up while covering his ear with her saliva.

    ¡°Be,¡± Nadia moved her hands up and locked them behind Mathew¡¯s back, only to then use them as a support and ride up on hisp.

    ¡°Okay,¡± Nadia finished her effort, leaving Mathew¡¯s ear with a quick kiss.

    She then pulled her face up, only to look down at Mathew¡¯s face with a satisfied grin.

    ¡°I know that you are awake,¡± Nadia spoke softly. She then wiggled her hips a little, eager to find a morefortable position on Mathew¡¯sp. ¡°I guess you don¡¯t do or say anything because you are too tired to do that, isn¡¯t it true?¡± Nadia then suggested, only for her smile to widen as she brought her hands up and then rested them directly on Mat¡¯s chest.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva.

    His half-opened eyes allowed him to be aware of what was going on. Yet, the mischievous grin that emerged on Nadia¡¯s lips¡­

    For how well Mathew knew the girl, this was the one expression that actually could strike fear into his soul.

    ¡°And since you can¡¯t move at all¡­¡± Nadia¡¯s hands started to move up and down Mat¡¯s chest. ¡°Then you won¡¯t be able to defend yourself either, would you?¡±

    The grin on the girl¡¯s lips reached the limit of how wide it could get.

    And then, without even a second of hesitation, Nadia moved her hands down and grabbed the bottom of her shirt before pulling it out through her head.

    ¡®Woah¡­¡¯

    The breast that would always be hidden behind the barrier of Nadia¡¯s clothes and undergarments now was left behind just the second, skimpyyer. And seeing how Nadia brought her hands behind her back¡­

    ¡°Stop¡­¡± Mathew muttered, still unable to utter more than a single word.

    Nadia¡¯s hands froze for a moment as she looked down at Mathew¡¯s face. And then, as if not hearing his protests at all, she snapped her bra open, allowing thestyer of material that hid her chest to fall down.

    ¡®Woah¡­¡¯ Mathew¡¯s thoughts froze when the simple yet perfect image reached his eyes. The sight of Nadia¡¯s perfectly-shaped and sized breasts fried into his brain, only for Mathew¡¯s senses to sound an rm when Naida leaned forward.

    And then, she brought Mathew¡¯s powerless head and pushed it onto her breasts, enclosing his within a warm embrace.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Nadia muttered, her fingers running through the back of Mathew¡¯s head while his face buried itself in the flesh of her boobs. ¡°I don¡¯t want to die without doing it with you, at least once,¡± she whispered, her hands coiling around Mathew¡¯s head even stronger than before.

    ¡®Wait, is she¡­ shy?¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s brain was the only organ that continued to work properly despite his exhaustion. Mathew¡¯s brain and¡­

    ¡®So now I¡¯m turning from an apocalypse protagonist to a porn novel protagonist, huh?¡¯ Mathew thought as he became aware of one more effect that Nadia¡¯s intimacy brought upon him.

    ¡°And I can tell that you cannot wait to do it either,¡± Nadia¡¯s whisper prated through Mat¡¯s ears, drilling deeply into the tissue of his brain.

    And then, as if it was the most natural thing to do, Nadia reached out and snuck her hand underneath Mathew¡¯s pants.

    ¡®FUCK!¡¯

    Up to this point, Mathew hated the exhaustion that stopped him from moving. Yet, when Nadia¡¯s delicate fingers first touched his ns, only respect was left in the young man towards his current state.

    Because his exhaustion was currently thest bastion that allowed Mathew to contain his lust¡­ Or rather, stop it from spilling out right away!

    ¡°See?¡± Nadia whispered as her hand delved deeper into Mathew¡¯s pants. ¡°You are already hard,¡± the girl continued hermentary as her fingers wrapped around Mathew¡¯s shaft and started to slowly move up and down.

    ¡°We¡­¡± Mathew squeezed a single word out of his mouth. Yet, rather than giving up before his exhaustion, he pushed himself to the limit¡­

    And then, he did it.

    ¡°Can¡¯t¡­¡±

    A second word left Mathew¡¯s mouth, only to put a dissatisfied look in Nadia¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I am your wife, am I not?¡± Nadia asked as she pulled her hand out of Mathew¡¯s pants only toy both her hands on his shoulders and look the young man deep into his eyes.

    ¡°Are¡­¡± Mathew squeezed yet another word out of his mouth, this time propelled by the panicky fear of getting the girl angry.

    ¡®I never knew why she opted to stick with me, what made her like me so much,¡¯ Mathew thought. ¡®That¡¯s why using the situation to make her mine like that¡­ how could it not be wrong?¡¯

    The social standing of the two of them couldn¡¯t be any further apart. Nadia was a school¡¯s master of martial arts, a popr and idolized figure of the school.

    On the other hand, there was Mathew.

    Someone who even the nerds of the ss could easily bully.

    ¡®Even if that was in the past¡­¡¯ Mathew clenched his teeth.

    As happy as he was with the idea of getting down with Nadia, he was so focused on doing everything he could to protect her that when the time to do the deed came¡­

    Mathew¡¯s mind was paralyzed.

    Yet, it didn¡¯t matter at all. After all, he was still paralyzed by his exhaustion. And from the looks of things, Nadia wasn¡¯t going to take his bullshit of hesitation into ount.

    And just like Mathew expected, Nadia raised her hips and brought her hand down, grabbing Mat¡¯s pants.

    Her fingers quickly undid the button at the top of his pants, only to then lower the zipper and finally pull his pants down.

    At this point, with only his underwear on, Mathew could no longer even pretend not to be hard.

    ¡°Woah,¡± Nadia moaned, only for her movements to cease.

    It appeared as if seeing Mathew¡¯s tent for rea actually managed to shake her determination up.

    Then, the look in her eyes steeled up, only for her hands to move down again, this time hooking against the edge of Mathew¡¯s pants.

    And with a single move, Nadia forced them down, making Mat¡¯s dick spring out right out of his messy pants.

    ¡°Now that I see it¡­¡± Nadia swallowed down her saliva as she hesitantly reached down for her fingers to embrace Mat¡¯s junior, ¡°it really is big.¡±

    Once again, Nadia¡¯s fingers moved up and down while her eyes glued to the sight of Mathew¡¯s genitals in her hand. The glister behind her eyes made the girl look strangely fascinated by sight.

    ¡°You are tired, aren¡¯t you?¡± Nadia suddenly asked, her tone and disposition turning jumpy.

    And just like one could guess, Mathew had no strength left to even answer.

    ¡°Then¡­¡± Nadia hesitated for onest time before averting her eyes and sliding down Math¡¯sp. Her chest fell between Math¡¯s knees, and her head ended up just an inch away from the tip of his manhood.

    ¡°Let me help you rx a bit.¡± Nadia shook her hand for just one more time before parting her lips and bringing them down on Mathew¡¯s wet ns.

 Chapter 51 Nadias painful suspicions (r18)

    The second Nadia¡¯s lips made contact with Mathew¡¯s tip, the young man¡¯s body tensed all over.

    Even if all the girl did, was leave a gentle kiss on top of his shroom.

    ¡°I can see you are raring to go,¡± Nadiamented in a sweet voice. Her fingers then curled up only to tighten and pull Mathew¡¯s foreskin down.

    Then, a smug, mischievous smile appeared on Nadia¡¯s lips.

    ¡°Too bad!¡± She grinned as her grip continued to tighten to the point where the feel of her hands was no longer just pleasurable.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going any further,¡± Nadia suddenly announced, her smirk turning into a snicker.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew couldn¡¯t even shake to let out his surprise. Not only because of the strange way in which the girl led but also because the emotion behind her eyes¡­ changed.

    ¡°Now then, let¡¯s y a little game,¡± Nadia whispered, only to lower her head and run her tongue through the exposed part of Mathew¡¯s chest. She brought her head all the way back towards Mat¡¯s ear, only to whisper, ¡°who are those girls?¡±

    Obviously, as it was an open question, Mathew had no strength to answer it.

    Yet, his body still tensed up a little. And this was all the answer that Nadia could ask for.

    The vibrancy behind Nadia¡¯s eyes vanished, reced by a darker tone.

    ¡°You want to tell me that you made me your wife only a few hours ago, and you already got to cheat on me?!¡± Nadia asked, her tone turning raspy.

    As her right hand continued to pressure Mathew¡¯s hard-on, her left hand rested upon the upper part of the young man¡¯s chest. As such, with only his eyeballs still retaining some ability to move, Mathew could see the whites of Nadia¡¯s bones appearing underneath the skin of her knuckles.

    ¡°No¡­¡± finally, the young man managed to regain enough strength to utter a single word.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew wanted to scream. Because Nadia continued to push him into his current state, he couldn¡¯t really get anywhere near enough time to recover. And pressing himself to speak whenever he regained enough strength only made the whole process harder.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Naida shook, raising up on Mathew¡¯sp only to then look down on his face. Her expression was no longer angry, reced by a look of confusion. ¡°This no appeared to be pretty honest,¡± Nadia muttered, rxing her hands a little and allowing Mathew to take a small breather.

    Now that the pain of her small torture ended, he could breathe a small sigh of relief.

    ¡®It¡¯s damn hard to exin the situation with only a few words now and then,¡¯ Mathew thought. He then pushed his mind to its limits to figure out a solution for his current quagmire.

    ¡°But how can you feel guilty about those girls if you didn¡¯t cheat on me?¡± Nadia whispered her question, the inwards-focused look in her eyes hinting that she wasn¡¯t asking Mathew but herself.

    Well, that, and the fact that Mathew couldn¡¯t reply even if he wanted to!

    Nadia continued to muse over the situation for a little longer before she finally raised her eyes on Mathew¡¯s face.

    And then she saw it. The obvious result of first blue balling and then squeezing his cock way too damn hard.

    Mathew¡¯s face was all red. While it was initially caused by his lust invoked by the situation Nadia created, the reason behind his blush soon changed. And now, it was the sole responsibility for the little torture the girl put Mathew through.

    ¡°Oh god, I¡¯m sorry!¡± Nadia nearly screamed out, rxing her hand in an instant. Yet, after the initial rush to let go of Mathew¡¯s penis, Nadia quickly changed her mind and brought her fingers back to Mathew¡¯s shaft.

    Rather than letting it rest after her heavy-handed treatment, she opted to caress it with care instead.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t realize how much strength I put into my hands,¡± Nadia attempted to exin herself, her eyes filled with panic and terror. And with that, she refused to look Mathew in the face again, as if too worried about his potentially angered reaction.

    ¡°Still, you didn¡¯t cheat¡­¡± Nadia suddenly muttered, her hands starting to move up and down a little quicker. ¡°That means there is no problem with meforting it¡­¡± she added, her voice still full of doubt.

    Yet, Nadia wasn¡¯t one to hesitate too much.

    Before Mathew¡¯s mind could catch a break, she slid down his chest again, only to return to the very same position she was in before she started to throw her questions around.

    And once again, Nadia¡¯s eyes glued in to Mathew¡¯s cock. Her lips slowly parted as she brought them closer to Mat¡¯s ns.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, his penis twitching when he saw the wet insides of Nadia¡¯s mouth. Another twitch followed when the girl gulped down her saliva before slowly wrapping her lips around the tip of his cock.

    ¡®Fuck!¡¯ Mathew¡¯s entire body tensed up yet again. The familiar sensory overload numbing his senses only to then fill them up with pleasure.

    Nadia was a quick learner.

    After ying around with the tip of Mathew¡¯s cock for a while, she gathered her courage and pushed it deeper into her mouth.

    Her glib tongue swirled inside the girl¡¯s mouth, rubbing against the ns and sides of Mathew¡¯s thing. And then, to top it all off, Nadia suddenly sucked all the air in as if she wanted to suck out Mat¡¯s sperm directly from his balls.

    ¡®God damn!¡¯ Mathew¡¯s mind went nk.

    He could y zombies in tens and hundreds without batting an eye, yet a single suck of the girl he liked was enough to send his mind on vacation.

    With his mind number, Mathew lost a sense of time. All he knew about was the hot wetness of Nadia¡¯s saliva, the gentleness of her tongue, and the softness of her lips.

    And all of that, coupled with the asional look from her upturned eyes that Nadia would grace Mathew with¡­

    Only theck of sense of time stopped Mathew from worrying too much about acting prematurely.

    Yet, just as he was about to release his first directly into the girl¡¯s mouth¡­

    Nadia pulled her lips away.

    A sudden wave of cold struck Mathew¡¯s penis. Even though the temperature in the room wasn¡¯t low at all, whenpared to the hotness of Nadia¡¯s breath, the difference was massive.

    ¡°You are twitching,¡± Nadiamented as she brought one of her fingers up to clean a strand of precum from her lips. Yet, rather than wiping it against her clothes, she brought her finger to her mouth before licking it clean with a satisfied smile¡­

    That quickly melted into an expression of a soft disgust.

    ¡°Yuck,¡± Nadiamented, moving her lips around as she worked hard to swallow the tiny amount of Mathew¡¯s juices.

    ¡°I guess you were really close to cumming,¡± Nadiamented again when she noticed the twitchy dance of Mathew¡¯s penis.

    ¡®Damn you!¡¯ Mathew scowled in his thoughts.

    To think that Nadia would blueball him during their already strange first time¡­ And not once, but twice at that!

    ¡°Fine, fine,¡± Nadiaughed out a little, the expression on her face softening. ¡°But if you want to cum,¡± she said, rising up and climbing back on top of Mathew¡¯sp.

    She then reached down and grabbed the side of her panties, only to slide them down without a care and then position herself directly above Mathew¡¯s crotch.

    ¡°Then you need to do it here,¡± she said, using her hand to guide Mathew¡¯s thing towards her moist opening.

    Mathew¡¯s consciousness threatened to evaporate when he felt the hot touch of Nadia¡¯s insides.

    He could see Nadia biting down on her lips as a look of determination appeared on her face. She then moved her hands on Mathew¡¯s shoulders before looking him deeply in the eyes.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do it,¡± she whispered, leaning her head over Mathew¡¯s side as she whispered directly into his ear. ¡°Mkay?¡± she asked, only to hug herself close to Mathew¡¯s chest before slowly pushing her hips down.

    And just when Mathew could feel his shroom pushing Nadia¡¯s hot yet incredibly soft flesh aside, the doors to their remote hideout suddenly opened up.

    ¡®PROTECT!¡¯

    A single thought appeared in Mathew¡¯s soul. A single order pushed his muscles to tense up, burning through his very flesh as hecked any proper nourishment.

    Mathew¡¯s body lifted for a single inch¡­

    ¡®

    And then he saw two girls calmly enter the room.

    Mathew¡¯s body slumped down in an instant.

    Since there was no threat, there was no lethal pressure necessary to irk out thest sparks out of Mathew¡¯s flesh.

    ¡°Hey!¡± Le shouted the second she noticed what was going on inside.

    Yet, there was one more thing that Mathew¡¯s slight jerk aplished.

    It pushed Naida¡¯s body up a little, and when it slumped down¡­

    Nadia failed to control the stability of her hips, plunging down with her crotch.

    ¡®FUCK!¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s eyes moved up to the point he showed the whites to the world. His consciousness shook. And Nadia¡¯s soft flesh tightened around his cock as a moan of surprise mixed with a bit of pain emerged from her deepest parts.

    ¡°What the hell do you think you are doing?!¡± Le red up, her eyes opening wide as she rushed forward.

    Mathew¡¯s soul twitched. Then it twitched again. And then it continued to ring as if something in it was bugged¡­ Only for the strange even to end just as suddenly as it started.

    And then, despite living through the moment of casting away his v-card with the woman he crushed on for years, Mathew¡¯s focus suddenly moved to something entirely else.

    Because from a single nce at the status of any of the three girls, he could tell that his system suddenly changed!

 Chapter 52 [Bonus chapter]Moment of true reunion (r18)

    ¡®What the hell is going on?¡¯ Mathew thought, shocked by too many things happening at once.

    He just lost his virginity.

    His system underwent tremendous changes.

    Le and Daria walked in on him, losing his first time with Nadia.

    ¡®What else is going to happen now?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, irony filling his soul to the brim.

    ¡°Stop it!¡± Daria shouted, seemingly joining the choir with her cowife. Her words, contrary to Le¡¯s, were directed at Le herself. ¡°Can¡¯t you fucking understand?¡± she asked, shaking her head like a mother disappointed by the sheer degree of the inability of her child.

    ¡°What?¡± Le stopped in her ce, sending a shocked look at her partner. ¡°We are his wives too!¡± she added, clearly set on infuriating herpetition.

    ¡°What the hell do you two want?¡± Nadia leaned her head to the back and side, sending an annoyed nce at the neers. Unable to spare that much of her mind, she could only let the remark regarding wives fly by her ears.

    ¡®This was the moment!¡¯ she cried out with passion in her soul.

    Right now, there was only one thing that upied Nadia¡¯s mind. The passion of uniting with Mat and the desperation of having this moment interrupted.

    ¡°Haah?!¡± Le gasped for breath. With her lungs now full of fresh air, the fires behind her pupils exploded. ¡°And what do I fucking care?!¡±

    Le clearly wasn¡¯t here to talk things through. She was in for blood¡­

    But it was Nadia¡¯s blood that trickled down the tiny part of Mathew¡¯s cock that the girl failed to get inside.

    Yet, in spite of the situation, a victorious grin appeared on Le¡¯s lips. At the same time, Daria¡¯s face flushed with panic.

    She knew her friend just too well.

    ¡°What do we want?¡± Le asked, staring at Nadia¡¯s dissatisfied expression with an extreme, passionate amusement. ¡°We did like you told us to do!¡± the girl added, only to turn sideways and point at the doors.

    ¡°Shit,¡± Daria cursed.

    ¡°Come inside!¡± Le invited, energetically gesticting towards the doors.

    ¡®This bitch¡­¡¯ Mathew¡¯s thoughts finally resurfaced.

    His mind, suppressed by an overwhelming pleasure, wasn¡¯t cooperative at all.

    It wasn¡¯t Le¡¯s words that woke him up. It wasn¡¯t his own willpower pulling the young man by his straps.

    It was all the subtle change in Nadia.

    Just as the neers were about to enter the room, the girl on top of Mathew¡¯s lifeless body tensed up.

    Yet, as challenging as it was to fight the wave of pleasure caused by Nadia¡¯s reaction¡­

    Mathew¡¯s heart filled with wrath.

    And with all his power, he attempted to raise his hand.

    ¡®What?¡¯ he thought, his conscious self somehow separating from the inner desire that drove his attempts. And in this split moment of the two desynchronizing, something strange happened.

    Mathew didn¡¯t know what he wanted to achieve by raising his hand. It wouldn¡¯t be nearly enough to cover any of Nadia¡¯s nakedness, something the girl clearly wasn¡¯tfortable with others staring at.

    ¡®She endured enough by having the two intrude on us like that,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s inner desire was simple.

    Ignoring all the strange ways that led to this moment, this was the time that he should share with Nadia.

    With Nadia and Nadia alone.

    Mathew seemingly pushed his hand forward. Yet, his body remained as it was.

    Still, driven by this simple desire to protect the girl, his inner self pushed through, clearly expending energy on something.

    And just like that, a barrier of bright light suddenly rose up, splitting the corner with Mathew and his girl from the rest of the school¡¯s abandoned office.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia only moaned in surprise when the surroundings suddenly exploded with light. Yet, as she realized what just happened, she first froze, only for her inner folds to mp down on Mathew¡¯s junior.

    ¡®Fucking hell,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s mind shook again, threatening to simply dissolve in the immense pleasure.

    The heat of the girl¡¯s insides reached just the perfect temperature. The softness of her flesh caressed every nook and cranny of the young man¡¯s dick.

    Yet, with the walls now separating the two of them from the others, Nadia finally got time to think.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ She thought back to just a few moments earlier. ¡®Didn¡¯t she im the two of them are his wives as well?¡¯

    ¡®Wait, doesn¡¯t that mean¡­¡¯ she thought, looking down at Mathew¡¯s face.

    Yet, due to his current state, it was perfectly nk. Not a single emotion could be seen on it, as everyst of his muscles rxed.

    ¡®Doesn¡¯t that mean that for him, being a wife is only rted to that system of his?¡¯ Nadia asked herself.

    And this single thought shattered the point of view that the girl had over the situation.

    From lovers finally reuniting both on the tonic and then on the intimate level¡­ To Nadia misunderstanding and then opportunistically raping her crush when he was unable to resist or even say no!

    ¡®Oh my God¡­¡¯ Naida¡¯s thoughts froze. Her eyes filled with tears while her body shrank.

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry,¡± the girl bawled. She then shook her head only to bring her hands down on Mathew¡¯s chest and use them as support to raise her hips up.

    The contrast between what she felt towards Mathew and how she believed she made him feel in exchange¡­

    This single dissonance shattered the girl¡¯s soul.

    Yet, just as her hips were about to raise high enough to free Mat¡¯s dick from the girl¡¯s insides, a hand fell on Nadia¡¯s back.

    ¡°Huh?¡± she whimpered in surprise, turning her teary eyes to the side.

    Mathew didn¡¯t raise his hand. Not a single muscle of his body moved to fulfill that objective.

    It was the same force that erected the walls of light that pulled his arm as if it was a marite and then rested it on Nadia¡¯s shoulder.

    All ording to the inner desire of Mat.

    Mathew¡¯s touch was gentle. It had no strength to itself at all. Yet, under the weight of Mat¡¯s careful touch, Nadia suddenly plummeted down.

    This time, her crotch directly mmed against Mathew¡¯s, forcing a slightly pained moan. Yet, as the tones of Nadia¡¯s sudden sound twisted, it turned into a breath of ecstasy.

    Still pushed by the strange force, Mathew¡¯s hand moved up, falling on the back of the girl¡¯s head. And this time, the young man managed to make his hand pull the girl¡¯s lips closer.

    Closer¡­ but not close enough.

    The moment of brilliancested only for a second¡­ And then Mathew slumped right back to his powerless state. This time, whoever, both in terms of his physical body and this new, strange energy he found.

    But Mathew¡¯s mission was over.

    The tears still hung around Nadia¡¯s eyes¡­ but this time, they appeared only to decorate her innocently shocked expression.

    For a moment, Nadia remained frozen, unable to move a muscle, gazing down Mathew¡¯s deep, brown eyes.

    Her lips twitched, forming the tiniest smile.

    Nadia pushed her face closer. And contrary to Mathew, she had the energy to move her body far enough and close Mat¡¯s lips with a kiss.

    The two of them fully united. The bright walls of the light brought everyst detail of their sweaty bodies into sight.

    And then, Nadia gently shook her hips.

 Chapter 53 Ero-times flux (r18)

    Mathew¡¯s mind went nk.

    Just inserting himself inside Nadia was enough to send his thoughts into disarray. A single twitch of the girl¡¯s insides, and he could no longer control the events happening around him.

    And once the girl started to move for real, the reality around the young man broke.

    ¡®What the hell is going on?¡¯ Mathew asked himself when his consciousness hung up, pushing him into a strange dimension when time seemed to flow differently.

    Just like what would happen whenever Mathew would step into the zone of a merchant.

    The entire course of Mathew¡¯s first experience stretched out in time, turning every passing second into an endless moment. Yet, at the same time, it appeared as if everything reached its conclusion in just a sh.

    An eternity of watching how Nadia¡¯s boobs jiggled to the rhythm of the movements of her hips. A mere instant of feeling the insane warmth of the girl¡¯s insides coating his dick.

    The experience condensed, turning every second of it into a fountain of pleasure. The same experience prolonged, turning what was only a short amount of time into infinity on its own.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Nadia screamed out when her body tightened all over.

    She buried her fingers into Mathew¡¯s chest as her hips fell down for thest time.

    Unable to move at all, Mathew could only focus on timing his reaction to the tempo of the girl. And despite how tight the thread on which his consciousness held was, he held strong for just long enough.

    ¡°I¡¯ming!¡± Nadia moaned, her insides mping down on Mathew¡¯s dick.

    Faced with the new, extreme tightness, Mathew could no longer put up any fight.

    And in the instant their bout started, roughly an infinity after it began, it came to a fitting end.

    ¡°Aahhh¡­¡± A small, involuntary moan escaped from Mathew¡¯s mouth when his body reached the limit, and then Nadia¡¯s movements made him break right past it.

    A wave of rxation flooded Mathew¡¯s flesh at the same time as his dick sttered its seed all over Mat¡¯s crush¡¯s insides.

    ¡°Ha, ha, ha,¡± Nadia breathed heavily, keeping herself right on Mathew¡¯sp as he continued to pump her stomach full of his semen.

    ¡°I can feel it,¡± Nadia moaned lightly, bitting down on her lips as she brought her hands to her waist and ced them slightly below her belly button. ¡°It¡¯s burning me from inside out,¡± she added, only to ignore the stability of her body, allowing it to loosely fall down on Mathew¡¯s chest.

    And there, Nadia finally allowed herself some well-deserved rest, joining Mathew in his attempts to regain his strength.

    ¡®And just like I thought, being unable to do anything at all¡­¡¯ he thought, only for his lips to twitch as if in an attempt to create an ugly grimace. ¡®This wasn¡¯t enough,¡¯ he thought, looking down at the sweaty body of the girl resting on top of his chest.

    If there was any other benefit to the barriers of lights that he somehow erected, outside of the obvious perk of keeping others away, it was the light that they produced.

    The light thatnded on every inch of Nadia¡¯s skin allowed Mat to marvel at even the tiniest detail of her beauty.

    The drops of sweat trickling down her skin acted like tiny magnification lenses, giving Mathew a closer look at the girl¡¯s skin. They also decorated the sides of her bust, turning into some sort of fleeting yet dignified jewelry.

    And then, just like Mathew finally managed to focus his attention and direct it towards the girl on top of him¡­ Nadia¡¯s breath stabilized, and her eyes closed.

    With Mathew¡¯s dick still firmly lodged within Nadia¡¯s overflowing pussy, he had no other choice but to endure the invitation of Nadia¡¯s naked body.

    ¡®This fucking exhaustion,¡¯ Mathew cursed inwardly.

    He wanted to scream.

    He wanted to move his hands and touch everyst bit of Nadia¡¯s body. He wanted to discover how it felt to get touchy-feely with the girl that he loved.

    Yet, his current state robbed him of this opportunity.

    ¡®I guess I really have no other choice but to wait,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a deep breath to slow down the beat rate of his heart and thus calm himself down.

    ¡®Since waiting is all I can do, for now, then I could at least try to figure out what changed in the system,¡¯ he thought, his eyes moving around the room and taking stock of everyst. tiniest thing that remained within the barriers of light.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew quickly cursed under his breath again as he realized that there was absolutely nothing that he could use as a mirror.

    Not a single item that happened to end up in their area had any reflective properties!

    ¡®I guess enjoying the views is the best thing for me to do,¡¯ Mathew thought, lowering his eyes back at the sweaty skin of the girl.

    And then, as he stared at one of the drops of her sweat, Mathew finally caught on.

    ¡®Will this work?¡¯ the young man asked himself as he directed his eyes towards a stationary drop of Nadia¡¯s natural cont.

    And in it, although in a very limited way, Mathew could see his reflection. But what was far more important were the messages that floated all over his face. They covered both the reflection of his face and most of the windows Mathew would normally see.

    ¡®This is going to be a pain,¡¯ Mathew thought as he realized just how challenging the task would be. Because rather than just reading the messages, he had to piece them one by one, then reverse the order of the letters, and only thenbine them into sentences.

    And it was a process that Mathew had to repeat several times just to decode a single message out of tens that burdened his reflected vision!

 Chapter 54 Are you shitting me?

    ¡®U, n, l,¡¯ Mathew repeated the three letters that he figured out to fix them in his memory. And then, his eyes focused once again, delving into the world confined within a single drop of sweat on Nadia¡¯s back.

    ¡®O,¡¯ Mathew thought, after wiggling his head for the tiniest of bits to change the angle of his look.

    ¡®U, n, l, o,¡¯ Mathew repeated all the letters he managed to decode.

    ¡®I bet this is going to form some sort of word around unlock.¡¯ Mathew could tell as much just from the first four letters that he managed to uncover.

    Yet, what he was trying to read, wasn¡¯t the usual status windows that he could check in a normal reflection properlyter on. What he was trying to read were system messages.

    Announcements, notifications of change.

    And Mathew couldn¡¯t really tell what sort of behavior they would represent.

    ¡®Assuming that they work the same way as the level donation notification, I will only ever get the chance to see them once,¡¯ Mathew conjured an idea.

    As a human being, someone used to operate within the framework of a world he could understand¡­ Mathew struggled.

    He struggled to just ept things on the go as he saw them. Because in order to properly figure out the situation he was in, Mathew felt the need to understand the underlying rule of the world, not just ept its wildness as something given.

    ¡®Fuck, I got distracted,¡¯ Mathew cursed, only to direct his eyes towards that particr drop of sweat on Nadia¡¯s back that proved to be so helpful.

    And only a few momentster, Mathew could officially confirm that his earlier guess was correct.

    ¡®Unlocks Challenge Rewards¡¯ the young man attempted to voice out the first of the messages that he managed to decode, only to watch how the entire pop-up window within his reflection vanished on the spot.

    ¡®I guess that proves I¡¯m right?¡¯ Mathew guessed, only to mentally shake his head and look deeply into the drop of sweat again.

    And then, a disaster struck.

    Nadia, in her sleep, wiggled around a little, slightly adjusting the way in which sheid down on Mathew¡¯s chest.

    And that alone was enough to kick that particr drop of sweat out of its stable spot, killing the one source of reflection that Mathew managed to find.

    ¡®Her skin may be shining, but it¡¯s impossible to read stuff out of it,¡¯ Mathew thought, desperately looking over the girl¡¯s naked back. Yet, rather than focusing on her gently curving spine, the sideboobs created by the girl squeezing her bust against Mat¡¯s chest¡­

    All Mathew looked at were the drops of sweat that remained on her skin.

    ¡®I¡¯m running out of time,¡¯ Mathew thought when he realized something that should be obvious long before that point.

    And it was that Nadia¡¯s sweat¡­ continued to quickly evaporate.

    ¡®There!¡¯ Mathew finally found another drop of sweat that could serve his purpose. Yet, just as he looked towards it, Nadia moved again, rustling about atop his chest.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s breathing somehow produced a small whistle. ¡®That was close,¡¯ he thought as he looked at the wiggly curve of the single drop of the girl¡¯s sweat.

    ¡®C.¡¯ Mathew¡¯s moved on to decode another message.

    ¡®h¡¯, ¡®a¡¯, ¡®c¡¯¡­

    ¡®I guess it¡¯s another challenge,¡¯ Mathew thought, recognizing the shape of the entire word rather than opting to decipher each of the letters one by one.

    ¡°Challenge achieved!¡± Mathew uttered in a tiny voice.

    Now that Nadia couldn¡¯t pester him for answers or push her dare to make him react, Mathew managed to recover quite a bit of his strength.

    It was still way too little for him to move his body, but the young man finally becamefortable with a slight whisper.

    And following Mathew¡¯s tiny voice, another message disappeared, allowing him to look at the ones hidden underneath.

    ¡®S¡¯,¡¯y¡¯,¡¯s¡¯,¡¯t¡¯¡­

    Mathew¡¯s thoughts froze for a second.

    ¡®System,¡¯ he thought, refusing to waste his time checking everyst letter of the word.

    In the end, there was a limit on how long he could take to decipher all of that. If he were to delve into every word for so long, there wouldn¡¯t be any point in his task at all!

    In the end, he would be able to read it all at once the second he would find a proper mirror!

    ¡°System levels up,¡± Mathew mouthed, guessing more than half of the letters in the message.

    And as he continued to y around, the young man became more and more efficient with this strange task reading the world from the drop of sweat on his crush¡¯s naked back.

    ¡®Unlocks Skill Disy Function,¡¯ Mathew read out another message within his mind. And just like before, yet another message disappeared from his view, only to reveal a window of a structure he didn¡¯t recognize at all.

    ¡®That¡¯s a good thing, I guess,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    While he would take up the task of tranting everything within that new window to his system, it was reassuring to know that his system now would recognize and disy the abilities he could use!

    ¡®I wonder what sort of exciting stuff I will be able to do once I regain my strength,¡¯ Mathew thought, a primal sense of excitement exploding in his insides.

    ¡®Unlocks Wives Development system,¡¯ Mathew read out another message, a sense of satisfaction over had good he became at his task filling his soul.

    ¡®I guess that message is all about the changes to the wives¡¯ status?¡¯ Mathew initially thought, only to mentally shake his head a secondter.

    ¡®No, that wouldn¡¯t be. The disys became more informative; there weren¡¯t any interactive options out there at all!¡¯

    If this was a development system for his wives, then it had to allow Mathew to interact with them at a level he couldn¡¯t before.

    And while he could see the disy status of Nadia changed in regards to how it was before, Mat couldn¡¯t see any sort of function that he could use.

    ¡°Oh, I see,¡± Mathew muttered, not even realizing his voice leaked out.

    ¡®Unlocks self-view of the system,¡¯ the message spoke. And then, as soon as Mathew got it right, it disappeared.

    ¡°You¡¯ve gotta be kidding me,¡¯ Mathew thought, all the strength that he regained now leaving his body.

    Only for all the system windows that Mathew had to painstakingly decipher before, now to freely appear in his vision, floating all over the ce right at the edge of the young man¡¯s perception!

 Chapter 55 He wont make the same mistake twice

    ¡®This has to be some sort of a joke,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He could feel his blood stalling, reaching an all-time low in its flow.

    A single drop of sweat squeezed out through the pores of his skin. It then trickled down his face, leaving a wet trail all the way down to his chin.

    ¡®ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?!¡¯ Mathew raged in his soul.

    His face moved even so slightly, courtesy of his recovering strength. He was still a way off, but from how the state of his soul started to affect the state of his body, he was on a good way to recovering.

    ¡®I worked so fucking hard to decipher it all, only to gain the ability to see the system without any of that effort?!¡¯ Mathew¡¯s soul exploded with rage.

    ¡®I could take it when the merchants were messing with me,¡¯ he thought. ¡®I could take it when monsters I have never seen even two weeks into the apocalypse appeared on its first day.¡¯

    Mathew took a deep, long breath. And then, he slowly let the air out.

    ¡®But I can¡¯t take it when even my system is fucking messing with me!¡¯

    For a moment, Mathew could only let his fury rage on. The mental feeling of disgust filled the young man¡¯s soul as he faced the deviousness of

    his own system.

    ¡®Wait, no,¡¯ Mathew thought, virtually shaking his head. ¡®Without the system, I would long be one of the corpses on the ground,¡¯ he thought, forcing his anger down.

    ¡®It¡¯s quite inconvenient how this feature unlocked,¡¯ Mathew admitted, calming his thoughts down. ¡®But that doesn¡¯t mean there is anything wrong with the system. I should be grateful for how much it helped instead,¡¯ Mathew thought, forcibly changing his train of thought.

    He already went through the process of angering a seemingly emotionless force.

    ¡®I¡¯m not going to make the same mistake that I did back with the merchant,¡¯ Mathew thought, slowly and carefully mending his attitude.

    Angering the merchant led to said merchant making things hard on Mathew. And the young man knew better than to risk going through the same situation but with his system, the one lifeline he had in this apocalyptic world!

    ¡®Anyway,¡¯ Mathew thought, finally putting the state of his soul aside only to focus on the new content of his system. And now that he could just see it rather than trying to decipher every letter he saw within a single drop of sweat on Nadia¡¯s back¡­

    ¡®This bonus ability really is worth a lot,¡¯ Mathew summed up a mere momentter, once he was done with reading through all of the new stuff.

    First came the new window. It bore the name ¡°System Skills¡± and floated amidst the ranks of the other two windows that Mathew saw before.

    The window itself was exactly the same as the others. It consisted of a solid-like frame with half-translucent letters detailing whatever information the system wanted to present.

    [System Skills]

    [Core detonation: by filling the core with the energy of his own, the host can then proceed to smash it. The physical stimulus releases the energy stored within the core in the form of a shockwave and a ray of light that knocks away and stuns all in the vicinity.]

    [Overuse(Passive): By constantly pushing himself beyond the limits, the host acquired the ability to temporarily present strength and agility beyond his natural means. Activates whenever the host intends to use his full strength at the cost of immense pain after use.]

    [Overuse(Active): Expansion of the Passive skill. Requirements to use: Unknown. Effects: Unknown)

    [Mind¡¯s flesh: Allows its user to project his innermost desire into creating a phantom force that can then interact with physical word. The more intense the activity, the greater the burden on the user¡¯s arcane.]

    [Barrier of light

    : Host can expend his arcana to create a barrier of lights separating him from the greater area around.]

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, the air wheezing as he took in a deep breath. ¡®Tha¡¯s quite a lot of things to remember and practice,¡¯ he thought.

    Mathew¡¯s normal reaction to a new set of assignments would usually be quite weak. Yet, this time, he couldn¡¯t help but get excited.

    After all, contrary to whatever he would learn at school, Mathew could see the benefits of figuring out the ins and outs of his skills in the immediate future.

    Yet, rather than losing himself in the excitement, Mathew once again restrained his emotions.

    ¡®As great as those skills sound, that¡¯s not everything that changed,¡¯ the young man thought, refusing to get emotional ever again.

    ¡®Now then,¡¯ Mathew mentally coughed to clear his thoughts, ¡®what was it about the wives development?¡¯ he asked himself in his Mind, only to move his eyes back at the naked back of the girl currently sleeping on top of him.

    ¡®I really am a nerd, aren¡¯t I?¡¯ Mathew suddenly thought, his soul filling with self-mocking. ¡®I have my crush soundly sleeping on top of my chest, and here I¡¯m thinking about gaming elements of this new reality.¡¯

    Mathew rolled his eyes before releasing a deep sigh.

    ¡®Huh?¡± Mathew shrugged when he realized what just happened.

    His body¡­ his body actually moved along with his sigh!

    ¡®Am I recovering?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, only to see how the hand that he naturally attempted to raise¡­ actually moved up.

    ¡®So I am recovering,¡¯ Mathew thought, staring at the inner side of his palm.

    It was a simple sight. Something that he unconsciously had seen tens of thousands of times in the past.

    Yet right now, being able to see the small lines of his palm, the same lines that kids in the kindergarten and gypsies would use to tell one¡¯s future, had a different feel to it. And all of it because of a very simple reason.

    Because now that Mathew could move¡­

    ¡®She lowkey raped me,  so she surely won¡¯t mind if I touch her a bit, wouldn¡¯t she?¡¯ Mathew thought, slowly lowering his hand over the girl¡¯s back.

    ¡®More,¡¯ Mathew thought the second he directly touched the girl¡¯s skin. ¡®I want to touch her more!¡¯ he thought, raising his other hand¡­

    And then, Mathew enclosed his hands behind the girl¡¯s back.

    All for the sake of hugging Nadia as she peacefully slept on top of his chest.

 Chapter 56 Nadia wakes up

    ¡®How lovely it would be if this moment couldst forever,¡¯ Mathew thought, slowly moving his hand up and down Nadia¡¯s back.

    Mat rubbed his fingers against his crush¡¯s soft flesh. His touch was gentle, yet her skin caved under even this tiny pressure.

    An absolute cushion. Perfectly soft yet firm texture, inherently full of heat.

    ¡®To think a day came when I could caress her like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, immersing himself in the cuddly warmth Nadia¡¯s body offered.

    The light suddenly flicked.

    Mathew turned his eyes towards the barrier that separated the two of them from the rest of the room.

    ¡®There is no information about how long will the barrierst,¡¯ Mat thought, squinting his eyes a little.

    ¡®So it¡¯s not only merchants and possibly the system itself, but even the world atrge?¡¯ Mathew thought, involuntarily clenching his fists.

    And that was it.

    Distracted for but a moment, Mathew made a small yet sudden move.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia muttered. It was the first sign of her waking up.

    Her body twitched a little, alerted by the movements of Mathew¡¯s hand despite how small it was.

    ¡®I wonder if she always was so jumpy,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how Nadia started the process ofing up to her senses.

    At first, she continued toze around, only moving as much as it was necessary for her to find an even morefortable position. Yet, as her attempts to fight the difort that alerted her continued to fail, the girl started to return to reality.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia muttered as she pried her eyes open. She then moved her hands on top of the young man¡¯s chest and then prompted herself up.

    ¡®What a view,¡¯ Mathew smirked when Nadia¡¯s movements made her push her boobs right towards his face.

    Nadia then stretched her arms to the sides only to raise her right hand to her mouth as she yawned. Yet, as her knuckles moved to wipe the doziness off her eyes, Nadia finally realized that something was wrong.

    ¡°Huh?¡± she moaned in surprise when she pulled her hand away and looked down.

    ¡°HUH?!¡± Nadia¡¯s body shook in a shock when she looked down and noticed just what kind of situation she was in.

    Yet, instead of screaming out and sending a juicy p towards Mathew¡¯s face¡­

    Nadia raised her hands and hid the bottom part of her face in her palms. Only her eyes were left peeking. They wildly moved around as if the girl couldn¡¯t believe what her eyes were telling her.

    ¡®She¡¯s blushing,¡¯ Mathew thought, a strange sense of satisfaction spreading through his lower abdomen.

    Even though the girl attempted to hide her blush behind her fingers, they were way too loose to actually stop Mathew¡¯s eyes from catching a glimpse of her red cheeks.

    ¡°Did we¡­¡± Nadia muttered after she gathered enough courage to speak up. She lowered her hands a little, so the tops of her fingers rested against her bottom lip.

    Mathew¡¯s lips curved up in reaction to the girl¡¯s beauty mixed with a cute vor of awkwardness.

    ¡°Yes and no,¡± Mathew spoke out.

    Even though his motor functions started to return, the young man was still very weak. A tiny whisper was the most he could manage.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia moaned again, the look on her face turningplex.

    Mathew sighed.

    ¡°We did the deed,¡± he exined in his weakly voice. And then, Mathew shook his head. ¡°Or rather, you did it,¡± he added, a small smirk appearing on his lips. ¡°I couldn¡¯t really move back then at all, so I hope you know what it means.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s smile blossomed even further as he watched Nadia¡¯s cheek turn even redder than before.

    ¡°I do¡­ recall something like this being the case,¡± she admitted in a low voice only to avert her eyes, too scared to look Mathew directly in the face.

    ¡°Do you know what it means, though?¡± Mathew pressed on, too amused by the girl¡¯s reactions to let her off with just that.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Nadia hesitated. She then brought her hands down, took a slow, deep breath, and then she lowered her head. Her entire body slumped down. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I will do anything to make it up¡­¡±

    ¡°Shush,¡± Mathew silenced the girl, even going as far as to use the little energy he had to raise his hand and seal Nadia¡¯s lips with his finger. ¡°You arepletely off the mark,¡± he stated, only to move his already raised hand to the side, brushing his palms against the girl¡¯s cheek.

    And it was on Nadia¡¯s cheek that Mathew¡¯s hand stopped, toofortable to retreat.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nadia asked, raising her hands up without actually bringing her face up. This upturned expression of her eyes only sent Mathew¡¯s insides into a frenzy.

    They did it only once, after all. Adoring all sorts of Nadia¡¯s new reaction was more than enough for the young man to feel the pressure building up within his crotch area.

    The light flickered again. This time, however, the swing of the brightness was far greater than before.

    ¡®Tsk,¡¯ Mathew clicked his tongue, yet he was too weak to do it loud enough for Nadia to hear it. ¡®We don¡¯t have much time,¡¯ he realized, only to move his attention right back to the girl.

    ¡°Back then, only you got to enjoy yourself,¡± Mathew exined his thoughts as he moved both of his hands behind Nadia¡¯s back only toy them down on her shapely ass. ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s only fair for me to enjoy you a little as well?¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t wait for Nadia to hear and then process his words.

    Before she could as much as understand the meaning behind what he said, Mathew sank his fingers deep into the soft flesh of the girl¡¯s ass.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Nadia moaned a little, more due to a surprise than some sort of pleasure.

    Her hand shot up as she covered up her lips once again, clearly ashamed of the sound she made. Yet, Nadia wore a ck belt for a reason. Before Mathew could swap ces with the girl by pushing her down and then pinning her to the ground with his own body, Nadia had already reacted.

    She pushed her arms and legs out. Only to wrap them behind Mathew¡¯s neck and waist, respectively. And once her limbs reached the limit of how far Nadia could stretch them, she brought them all back, locking Mathew in a tight embrace.

    ¡°That¡¯s fully right,¡± Nadia admitted, somehow finding out the courage to raise her eyes and look Mathew in the face. ¡°If that¡¯s what it takes for you not to hate me¡­¡± she muttered, hesitation all over her voice.

    Yet, she then shook her head before looking at Mathew¡¯s face once again¡­ And then, she took a deep breath and pushed her chest out.

    ¡°Here,¡± Nadia said, inviting Mathew to enjoy her body. ¡°Do as you wish,¡± she added only to then turn her eyes away, too ashamed to even watch how Mathew would react to such an obvious green light from her end.

    ¡°You dummy,¡± Mathew muttered and then shook his head. ¡°Just where did you get the idea that I could hate you?¡± he asked, only to raise his hand and rest it at the top of the girl¡¯s head.

    Then, ignoring the closeness and the intimacy of the moment, Mathew simply rubbed his hand through the girl¡¯s hair, taking a moment to calm her down.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to touch you to get even,¡± Mathew said, leaning over the girl only to then leave a long, sucky kiss on the corner where her left shoulder and neck met. ¡°I want you just because I like you a whole damn lot,¡± Mathew added, moving his hips up the side of the girls¡¯ neck.

    ¡°I¡­ I see,¡± Nadia muttered, a weak response. She then gulped down her saliva. ¡°Hahaha,¡± she released a small giggle, only to gasp for air a momentter and turnpletely silent. ¡°So you like me¡­¡± she added after a moment, raising her hands and then rubbing both of her cheeks as she looked down towards the ground.

    Mathew reached out with his hands as if to grab both of the girl¡¯s breasts¡­ Only for his movements to stop as the young man seemingly frozen in ce.

    Mathew then took a deep breath and,ter on, a minute to calm himself down.

    ¡°Actually, rather than ¡°will touch you,¡± it should be, ¡°I would touch you,¡± Mathew muttered, taking Nadia by surprise.

    ¡°Huh?¡± she muttered, a blush of shame mixing with confusion in her eyes. ¡°So you are not going to do it?¡± the girl asked, her voice housing a tinge of regret.

    ¡°No, not yet,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°Not now,¡± he added before shaking his chin in the direction where the barrier of light separated them from the other part of the room. ¡°I could feel you getting all shy over being seen fucking,¡± Mathew announced, only for the look in his eyes to mellow down.

    ¡°And I¡¯m not going to push myself onto you just for the sake of pleasure if the experience could end up being unpleasant for you,¡± he pledged.

    And then, Mathew pulled himself back before grabbing his very own clothes that Nadia pulled him out of earlier. Yet, rather than dressing himself up, he threw the torn rugs on top of Nadia¡¯s shoulders, trying to cover as much of her skin as he could with the limited supply of cloth.

    And then, just as Mathew was about to finish helping Nadia to tie her appearance up, the wall of light flickered once again¡­

    Only toe crashing down, the light evaporating into nothingness.

 Chapter 57 From the rubble

    ***Change of POV in case someone didn¡¯t notice***

    Darkness.

    This one word described everything that Daniel could feel and experience. Darkness¡­ and pain.

    ¡®What the hell happened?¡¯ he asked himself before trying to stand up¡­

    Only to discover that his body wouldn¡¯t move at all.

    ¡®Where the hell am I?¡¯ Daniel asked, too exhausted to utter even the tiniest voice.

    And that was a point worthy of consideration all on his own.

    He couldn¡¯t move¡­ but nothing stopped him from thinking.

    ¡®What¡¯s thest thing that I remember¡­ It has to be standing on the edge of the floor, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ Daniel rummaged around his memory.

    ¡®Well, judging from my state I think I can guess what happened,¡¯ Daniel thought before releasing a heavy sigh.

    Yet, as his chest squeezed down on his lungs, the middle-aged man realized something else.

    ¡®My body actually can move?¡¯

    He could clearly feel his chest moving up and down. He simply had to focus on this sort of feeling that a human brain would naturally filter out.

    ¡®Did we fall?¡¯ Daniel asked himself, racking his brains toe up with an answer.

    Once he knew what happened, he could figure his current situation out. And that was the minimal necessary framework that Daniel needed to move ahead.

    ¡®If we fell¡­¡¯ Daniel hesitated.

    Even his heart, long used to the notion of death and injury, froze when he was about to voice out his situation.

    He hesitated to do so because it would mean acknowledging what was going on.

    ¡®I need to move!¡¯ A sudden thought appeared in Daniel¡¯s mind.

    The perspective of wasting the spark of his life away while buried away under some trash and rubble just didn¡¯t appeal to the middle-aged man.

    He tried to move¡­ And albeit with a great effort, his hand managed to twitch.

    Daniel dedicated even more strength into his muscles. And a mere momentter, he simply gave up.

    ¡°Duh¡­¡± a long sigh escaped from the middle-aged man¡¯s lips.

    ¡®There is no way I can lift it,¡¯ he realized.

    Just a mere second of holding the piece that blocked him up sapped half of his strength.

    ¡®Wait, I shouldn¡¯t try to lift it,¡¯ Daniel calmed his breath down as he focused on the problem. ¡®How about trying to roll it off instead?¡¯

    Daniel didn¡¯t rush into action. From the looks of things, he had all the time in the world to figure a way out. And spending a few minutes to recover his strength before an attempt to free himself out didn¡¯t seem like that much of a bad idea.

    ¡®Okay then,¡¯ Daniel thought, tensing his muscles. Yet, contrary to his previous attempt, he didn¡¯t bother to lift the entire chunk of rubble at once.

    Instead, he raised its right side as far as he could, before rxing his arm and putting his strength to his other arm.

    And the rubble that locked him down¡­ It tilted a little. And while it wasn¡¯t much, Daniel could at least move his arm a little.

    ¡®Now that I can get a better leverage,¡¯ he thought, squeezing his elbow through some sort of floor panels before trying again.

    Right then left. Right then left.

    During his second attempt, Daniel managed to repeat the process twice.

    Changing the position of his elbow appeared to help a whole lot.

    ¡®Again!¡¯ Daniel scolded himself, moving around a tiny little bit before trying again.

    Right, left, right, left, right¡­

    The chunk of the rubble moved a little bit further, only to tip its point of bnce and with Daniel¡¯sst push to the left, the piece rolled off.

    ¡°AAAGH!¡± Daniel instantly took a deep breath.

    It felt as if several elephants stepped off from his chest, allowing the middle-aged man to finally take a proper breath.

    For a moment, Daniel simplyid down in his pit. With the burden taken off his body, he could finally see the light of the day again.

    Yet, before Daniel could get any real rest from the extreme task he aplished¡­ he heard rustling.

    ¡®Fuck, I forgot about them!¡¯ he realized, rushing to stand up¡­

    Only to be aware that while his upper body was now free, the same couldn¡¯t be said about his legs.

    His right foot was free, that alone was a huge relief. But his left ankle was stuck, blocked by some sort of steel reinforcement from the wall.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯  Daniel thought, his face darkening.

    The footsteps of the zombies were getting closer.

    The noise the middle-aged man made while freeing himself alerted them about his presence. And now he had no other choice but to face an entire horde while stuck in ce!

    ¡®Damn it all,¡¯ Daniel struck his fist out in a powerless fury.

    Only for a massive bout of pain to appear when his knuckles smashed into the concrete.

    ¡®AUCH!¡¯ Daniel screamed inwardly out, his body autopiloting another punch.

    ¡°DAMN!¡± Daniel screamed out. And his body, ruled by his raging emotions, made his fist strike again.

    All within the rhythm of the music that Daniel always listened to when enraged.

    The concrete, struck by Daniel¡¯s third attack, crumbled beneath his fist.

    ¡°Huh?¡±  Daniel shrugged, not prepared for this sort of novelty.

    But he was running out of time.

    A zombie was already climbing up the pile of rubble he was buried in just a moment earlier. More of them were bound to follow soon.

    ¡®Fuck it all!¡¯ Daniel reignited the spark of fury from before. He sang out the tune in his head. And then, right at the drop of the beat, he struck down at the stuff holding his ankle back.

    ¡°DIE!¡± Daniel screamed out, mirroring the lyrics of that exact part of the song.

    For but a brief moment, he turned into the vocalist of one of his favorite rock bands from the past. And as he screamed the iconic shout of the song out, a broken piece of wall that locked his ankle in ce crumbled under the force of his fist.

    ¡®Is this the kind of system that this guy from before talked about?¡¯ Daniel quickly connected the dots. Yet, this was the only clue that he had for this new, unexpected situation.

    ¡°System¡­ show up!¡± he attempted to order. ¡°System open!¡± he tried again¡­

    Only for a blush to appear on the middle-aged man¡¯s face when he realized just how stupid he had to look right now.

    ¡®To think I would be happy most of the students in this school are dead,¡¯ Daniel¡¯s thoughts darkened as he breathed a sigh of relief.

    Those deaths, although tragic and unnecessary, allowed him to keep this shameful disy a secret.

    ¡°Well then,¡± Daniel muttered, turning his face down the slope of the pile of rubble.

    Despite how long the situation appeared in Daniel¡¯s mind, realistically only a few seconds passed since he freed himself from the rubble. Yet, in those few short seconds, zombies managed to fully crowd out the main corridor. To the back, the outer corridor leading to the end of one of thepound¡¯s wings could be seen.

    ¡®I guess that¡¯s my way out,¡¯ Daniel thought, taking a step forward and stomping on the head of the first zombie to climb his pile of rubble.

    The tune of a death-metal band that he loved started in his brain.

 Chapter 58 A way to move forward

    ¡°You guys took your sweet time in there,¡± Le was quick to scold the couple when the wall of lights came undone.

    ¡°Piss off,¡± Mathew rugged the girl. ¡°We wouldn¡¯t need to hide like that if you didn¡¯t go all rouge. Tell me,¡± Mathew squinted his eyes. ¡°Who gave you the right to shame my girl the way you tried?¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t forget the situation that led him to unknowingly cast his spell before. And as great of a time as he had since then, that didn¡¯t excuse Le¡¯s actions at all.

    ¡°What?!¡± Le opened up her eyes, her face turning weird as sparks of fury shed behind her eyes. ¡°Aren¡¯t the two of us your wives as well?!¡± she cried out, more angered than saddened by Mathew¡¯s approach.

    ¡°Only for convenience¡¯s sake,¡± Mathew replied coldly, paying no heed to the girl¡¯s feelings. ¡°If you dislike the power that it offers, just say a word and I will do my best to free you from its burden,¡± the young man added, not shying away from threatening the girl.

    ¡®I wonder if it¡¯s actually possible,¡¯ Mathew thought as he gathered himself up from the ground and then helped Nadia up as well.

    Even though she had some rest since they did the deed, Mathew could see the girl had some problems with staying upright or walking in general.

    ¡®Well, I guess it¡¯s only to be expected,¡¯ he thought, his expression mellowing down a bit as he gazed at Nadia¡¯s cute profile. ¡®She gave me her virginity, back then. I can¡¯t let myself forget it,¡¯ he decided.

    ¡°Okay, that will be enough,¡± Daria said, appearing in the doorway leading to the main corridor of this separate area of the school they were in. ¡°Le, calm down. Mat is right. You had no right to treat his girl like that,¡± she scolded her partner only to turn her eyes towards Mathew.

    ¡°And you, you better watch your words,¡± she warned.

    ¡°Are you threatening me?¡± Mathew asked while raising his left eyebrow.

    Daria managed to catch him by a surprise. After all, out of the two girls, she appeared to be the more reasonable one.

    ¡°Not at all,¡± Daria shook her head, her face free of fear or intimidation. ¡°But every pair of hands matters now, doesn¡¯t it?¡± she asked while crossing her arms over her chest. ¡°That¡¯s why I believe you shouldn¡¯t talk about losing one of your soldiers so easily.¡±

    Certainly, Daria¡¯s words made some sense.

    With most of the students within the school¡¯spound turning either into zombies or zombies¡¯ food, there were hardly any people that Mathew could turn into his allies.

    And it went without a doubt that having more people to fight off the horde would be beneficial to his cause.

    ¡®Humankind grows by cooperating, after all,¡¯ Mathew thought, bitting down on his lips.

    As much as he didn¡¯t want to admit it, Daria¡¯s words were damn true.

    ¡°Anyway,¡± Mathew said, ignoring the chance of forcing Le to apologize in favor of regaining control over the situation. ¡°Who are those two?¡± he asked, jerking his head up to point his chin at the couple by the wall of the room.

    ¡°That, you need to ask your real wife about,¡± Daria said before putting a light, cheeky smile on her lips.

    ¡°Some random students that dodged the bullet so far,¡± Nadia finally opened up her mouth.

    Contrary to howbative she appeared before, now she turned far meeker, rxed.

    ¡°Is that it?¡± Mathew asked, throwing a curious gaze at the two.

    ¡®Aren¡¯t those the ones who I saw back then?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, struggling to recollect a specific memory. Yet, rather than wasting his time on such a useless topic.

    It didn¡¯t matter if he saw the two of them before or not. What mattered, was that surviving in this apocalypse without a system¡­ It was a nigh-impossible feat.

    ¡®Unless they managed to skip all the fighting so far, they shouldn¡¯t be alive,¡¯ Mathew realized.

    And once this notion appeared in his mind, the feeling behind his nce changed.

    Because this innocent-looking couple was either just a duo of shameless cowards or at least one of them held a vital secret.

    ¡°How did they survive?¡± Mathew muttered his inner question out. Yet, he didn¡¯t pose it to the people in question, opting to mutter it to himself instead.

    ¡°That¡¯s actually a good question,¡± Nadia echoed in on Mathew¡¯s words, throwing a surprising look at the pair herself as well. ¡°If I do recall, you did fight well back then, didn¡¯t you?¡± Nadia pointed out, finally treating the duo directly rather than speaking about them in the third person.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really know,¡± Mathew¡¯s junior raised his hands as if to show he carried no weapons in them. ¡°When I saw zombies about to bite Bethy, I just rushed in to save her,¡± he added only to then gulp down his saliva and lower his eyes, unable to withstand Mathew¡¯s intense stare.

    ¡®Could it be?¡¯ Mathew thought, squinting his eyes as he looked down on the duo.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t that one of the popr juniors?¡¯ he thought, only to shake his head and avert his eyes.

    ¡°Whatever,¡± Mathew uttered a smallment before approaching the side of the autonomous area of the school.

    Despite being just a separate area, there were actually some windowed walls to their part of the school, allowing the group to check the situation outside without taking the risk of opening up the doors.

    ¡®Those windows are going to be weak pointster on,¡¯ Mathew took notice before looking outside.

    Sure, their numbers dropped drastically since the time he first took a step on the ground floor¡­ But that didn¡¯t mean their number became manageable yet!

    ¡°For now, we need to get back to work,¡± Mathew announced as he stared at the zombies outside.

    Even if they didn¡¯t seem to notice their presence now, they would inevitably gravitate towards the office area within the school.

    And once such a situation was to ur, it would be only a matter of time before the ce would get overrun.

    A matter of a really short time, that is.

    Mathew turned around on his heel and looked at all five others gathered behind him.

    ¡°I know this might sound weird, but if we want to survive, we need to kill everyst zombie within the walls of the school,¡± he announced while moving his eyes from face to face.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get to it, then,¡± Nadia pped her hands together, clearly eager to upy her thoughts with something that she was pretty good at.

    ¡°You two¡­¡± Mathew said, turning his eyes towards the duo of stragglers.

    ¡®It¡¯s too early to ask whether the boy has a system or not,¡¯ he thought. Mathew then cleared his throat and raised his eyes again. ¡°I will leave gathering the life cores to you. We need a considerable amount for the next step of the n to go well,¡± he added before heading for the door personally.

    ¡°Are we ready?¡± Mathew asked, throwing onest nce behind his back, his hand already resting on the door¡¯s knob.

    ¡°We are good to go,¡± Le reported. From the look on her face, it was clear that she also had a wish to forget her worries and emotions in a simplistic fight with zombies.

    ¡®To think the two of them could be so simr,¡¯ Mathew thought, a small smirk appearing on his lips as he pushed the doors open. ¡®But I better never mention it, otherwise only God could protect my balls from disappearing!¡¯

 Chapter 59 A chord in Mathews soul

    The task that Mathew set for the group was monumental.

    But it was definitely possible.

    ¡°There are roughly three thousand students and staff within the school,¡± Mathew lectured as he stepped inside the central area of the school.

    From there, he could see one wing of the school fully copsed. The rubble that this massive building turned into now threatened the integrity of the rest of thepound.

    ¡®I will need to somehow reinforce it,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He had two of his merchants on the upper floors of the school and one at the bottom.

    ¡®I can¡¯t let it crash down,¡¯ the young man thought, the look behind his eyes steeling up.

    If the building copsed, he would lose easy ess to the merchants above. And if the worst really came to happen, the third merchant would end up buried by the ruins.

    ¡®Add a ce of rtive safety and high utility, a huge number of cores we can im all for ourselves,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then took a look at the sea of the zombies that still filled the ground floor of the school.

    ¡±Even after all the fighting, there are still so many of them,¡± Mathew muttered, his mood turning grumpy.

    ¡°Just give us time,¡± Nadia proved she could adapt to the new situation quite easily.

    ¡°Oh, right,¡± Mathew shrugged, reaching towards his pants and then patting his hands around the height of his belt.

    His fingers caught on to something, only for the young man to pull out the spare machete he bought from the merchant.

    ¡°Here,¡± Mat said, turning around as he gently threw the knife up, turning it around.

    He then caught the de itself before passing its handle to his crush.

    ¡®Wait, can I even consider her my crush?¡¯ Mathew suddenly fell into a phase of deep thought.

    ¡°Oh?¡± Nadia shook a little, her eyes widening up. Then, the corners of her lips rose up. ¡°Thank you,¡± she cooed.

    Yet, as the girl pulled on the de, Mathew failed to rx the grip. And with just two fingers, he easily held the de that Nadia attempted to free.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Naida yelped a little, perplexed by surprise.

    ¡°This looks like a scene from some third-rate chauvinistic movie from the eighties,¡± Lemented, still eager to put some pins between the couple.

    ¡°Shut it.¡± Daria was quick to scold her partner. She then rolled her eyes. ¡°Just rub one out to get rid of the itch and wait for your damn turn,¡± she added. Yet, as the meaning of what she just said reached her own brain, Daria¡¯s voice turned lower and lower.

    ¡®Oh boy,¡¯ Mathew thought, instantly releasing a sigh of exhaustion. ¡®This isn¡¯t going to be fun,¡¯ he thought, shaking his head as he pulled his attention away from the girls.

    He could easily focus on the talk and start the ughter of the zombies simultaneously, yet he decided against doing so.

    ¡®No, wasting this opportunity? When it¡¯s such a godsend?¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes turning lively as he readied himself for the fight.

    He could stay and hear what Nadia had to say about the words Daria just sputtered. Or he could fight the zombies and actively contribute towards the first step of his n.

    And as great as it could be to have three girls fawning for him at once¡­

    ¡®No,¡¯ Mathew thought, decisively shaking his head. ¡®In real life, foursomes like that do not work,¡¯ he thought, his mood darkening a little.

    But only a little.

    The two weeks Mathew survived in his former run effectively killed all his naive fantasies.

    ¡°Come on,¡± Mathew called out, not caring about possibly attracting more zombies by using a loud voice. ¡°Don¡¯t be shy!¡± he urged the girls before waving his hand and rushing right into the fray.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, stumped by the sudden change of atmosphere around him.

    The air was filled with the stench of sickeningly sweet rot, an odor of urine and excrements, and was slippery from all the blood to boot.

    Yet, Mathew somehow found the air to be far more refreshing than the immediate vincity between both Le and Nadia.

    ¡°Right,¡± Nadia shook her head, clearing the childish rivalry from her mind.

    She then turned around and followed after Mathew, long used to protect him from harm.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Daria shouted in half-voice, throwing a quick look at her partner before following after the couple.

    ¡°Dang it,¡± Le bit her lip, watching the backs of the rest of her group. ¡°This isn¡¯t how I wanted it all to go,¡± she muttered to herself, a sour smile of self-loathing filling her face.

    And then, just two secondster, Le rolled her machete in her hand before joining the fight.

    But Mathew¡¯s group right now was vastly different to how they were before.

    They fought the evolved monsters. They even fought something likely even above that rank. Everyone in the group raised their levels quite a lot.

    Right now, clearing out a huge mass of zombies was a tiresome task, sure, but not one that could prove to bear any hardships.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew shook his head, a dissatisfied, wry smile growing on his lips. ¡®This is too damn easy,¡¯ he thought, swinging his ax as if he was dancing.

    His somewhat graceful leap ended apanied by the stato of falling zombies¡¯ heads. Each swing of his weapon would im at least one or two heads more, leaving them to the couple in the back to clean from the cores.

    ¡°This is more exhausting than it is challenging,¡± Nadiamented, fending off a group of seven zombies with ease.

    She danced around their arms, using her extreme agility to simply avoid their reach.

    Now that she wasn¡¯t using the full output of her newfound potential, she turned into a shockingly efficient fighter.

    Her strikes were only as fast as they needed to be to hold enough momentum for the cut. And yet, her pace of iming zombies¡¯ heads exceeded even Mathew¡¯s!

    ¡°Don¡¯t get too cocky!¡± Le shouted, dropping down right in front of Nadia.

    She held a zombie¡¯s head in her hand while crushing another one with her fist, right where shended.

    She stared Nadia in the face for a second before turning her head around and hurrying off to fight more zombies.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for that,¡± Daria kicked a zombie¡¯s corpse away before mming her machete right down at the skull of another one.

    ¡°Please, don¡¯t mind her when she is tsun,¡± she requested, only for a weird smile to appear on her lips. ¡°Just wait till you see her being dere,¡± she added before turning her eyes to another fight.

    ¡®Well¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, shing another zombie¡¯s neck off while pretending not to notice Nadia¡¯s intense stare glued to his back. ¡®Fuck.¡¯

    The young man knew better than to let himself get embroiled in the romantic conflict.

    ¡®It will be better if I just ignore all thosements and focus on Nadia,¡¯ he decided, rushing into the fight to forget about the troubling matter.

    But the troubling matter wasn¡¯t going to go away just like that.

    ¡°You know,¡± Nadia muttered when she caught up to Mathew¡¯s side. ¡°All the stuff they are saying¡­ It¡¯s getting me quite worried,¡± she admitted, lowering her eyes when a blush appeared on her cheeks.

    Still, her hands never ceased to move, iming the heads of several more zombies just in that short moment alone.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this enough for you?¡±

    This was a simple question.

    From one end, there was absolutely nothing wrong about asking it.

    Yet, when those words left Mathew¡¯s mouth, he felt an urge to clutch at his heart.

    Not because he regretted them. Not because he was hurt by them either. But because asking this question could potentially harm Nadia¡¯s feelings.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like that,¡± Nadia shook her head, stopping the onught of zombies that became a background activity for us for the first time since she joined the fight.

    She then brought her arms together, acting as if she was trying to hug herself.

    ¡°I know that you are not lying to me nor trying to cheat¡­¡± Nadia said, hesitation written all over her face.

    In the end, she couldn¡¯t form even a single, proper sentence to exin what was going on in her head.

    ¡®Damn it,¡¯ Nadia inwardly screamed out, feeling as if her face was about to explode from embarrassment. ¡®Howe I¡¯m so shy even after we did it already?¡¯ she asked herself, only to shake her head and raise her eyes.

    ¡°I just know that in this new world, we can¡¯t discount any advantage that we can get,¡± Nadia said, lowering her arms and approaching Mathew from the front.

    She didn¡¯t stop all the way to the point when her forehead struck the young man in his chest.

    ¡°I just need some time to ept this idea. Is that okay?¡± Nadia muttered, her voice getting weaker with each word.

    ¡®Oh damn,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s entire body tensed up.

    Seeing Nadia so defenseless struck a strange chord in his soul. With her seemingly delicate body now gently pressed against him, her shoulders crying for a hand to embrace them¡­

    ¡°I do not know what the future holds,¡± Mathew whispered in a low voice, hoping to keep this moment as private and intimate as he could. ¡°But to make you as happy and asfortable as I can, I will stop at nothing,¡± he said before raising his hand to the girl¡¯s chin and raising it up while lowering his own face.

    Then, Mathew sealed his words with a gentle kiss.

 Chapter 60 Division of labour

    The time that Mathew could spend flirting with Nadia¡­ Was gravely limited.

    Fighting with the zombies didn¡¯t pose much threat to the young man¡¯s group. Yet, even if they could all take a single zombie out with no more than a single attack, it didn¡¯t change the one primal factor of fighting the horde.

    Once they were surrounded and swarmed, there would be nothing they could do.

    ¡°We need to keep on going,¡± Mathew muttered when he noticed the first signs of the potential disaster.

    It wasn¡¯t that there were too many zombies for them to take care of. At the current rate in which they marched into the ruined grounds of the school through the copsed wing of thepound was manageable.

    What troubled the young man, though, was the increasing number of corpses.

    ¡®Save for the disease and small, they are starting to pile up,¡¯ he noticed as he continued to swing his ax around, iming more and more heads for the back row of his group to harvest.

    Mathew¡¯s group left a trail of motionless corpses in their wake. Yet, as they had no concrete objective they needed to reach, everyst one of them just moved around.

    ¡®We gravitate towards zombies; zombies are drawn to us,¡¯ Mathew thought before stopping his legs and taking a proper look around.

    The problem would linger for a few more minutes worth of ying the zombies. But in some ces, like near the copsed wall of the southern wing, the corpses had already started to seriously pile up.

    ¡®At this rate¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, bitting down on his lips as he fell into deep thought. He then moved his eyes to the back, judging the number of the zombies they had fallen already.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Le shouted over from one of the big piles of corpses. She had a precariously satisfied look on her face as she waved her hand at the young man. ¡°Look over here!¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Mathew asked, slight displeasure shing before his eyes.

    Le had a strange talent for getting on his nerves. From how she was clearly hostile towards Nadia, through how pushy she was back then with her body all the way to how she just interrupted Mathew¡¯s train of thought¡­

    ¡°Can¡¯t we maybe stack those corpses up to block off the hole?¡± Le pointed her hand at the nearly uncountable number of bodies they could use as a building material. ¡°That would stop a lot of those freaks from getting in!¡±

    ¡®Damn it,¡¯ Mathew gritted his teeth. ¡®Why does it feel wrong to admit she¡¯s right?¡¯ he thought,menting over his ownck of foresight.

    Because Le¡¯s idea was as simple as it was genius.

    ¡°Good idea,¡± Mathew swallowed down his displeasure before shouting his praise.

    ¡®It¡¯s better to be impartial. I need to make sure this team will stick together, not like it went back in my first run,¡¯ the young man thought, closing his fists so strongly his nails started to cut into the skin of his palms.

    ¡°Can I do it, then?¡± Le asked while averting her eyes for some reason.

    ¡°Try to stack them into two piles. Those with cores and those without,¡± Mathew shouted before sending Nadia a quick nce.

    ¡°Fine, fine,¡± the girl shook her head, ¡°I get it. I will go help,¡± she offered before Mathew could even ask her for it.

    Nadia wasn¡¯t the one to throw around empty words or promises. She ignored her own dislike towards Le as she rushed in to give the girl a hand.

    Ultimately, whether they liked each other or not, they were survivors in the middle of an apocalypse. And only Mathew appeared to have any idea what they should do to keep their status as survivors.

    ¡®I wonder if it will be enough,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the girls got to work, moving the bodies and stacking them up in the long, open area where the southern wing used to stand.

    Due to all the rubble littering the ce, there were only a few rtively easy paths that zombies from the outside could take.

    And the girls appeared to be thankfully aware of that fact.

    ¡®This could actually work,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking at how quick the two girls were at filling the gaps.

    When the two of them pushed their animosity aside, they proved to be pretty efficient workers.

    ¡®Or maybe they are faster because of all the level-ups?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head. ¡®No, I don¡¯t really have the time to think about it,¡¯ he lectured himself before refocusing on the core problems.

    Right now, Mathew¡¯s greatest wish is to establish the fortress.

    For as little as he knew about what it was and what it would do, he still knew something.

    And by picking establishing a fortress as his objective, Mathew managed to avoid the depressing reality that he had no other idea for how to progress.

    ¡®This is going to be a huge pain once we actually set it all up,¡¯ he thought before casting his look all over the ground floor.

    ¡°Daria!¡± Mathew shouted once he made all the necessary calctions.

    ¡°Yeah?¡± the girl appeared by Mathew¡¯s side in a matter of seconds.

    This time, she didn¡¯t manage to keep her clothes clean or even remotely clean. Yet, each drop of blood that dirtied her clothes and skin was proof of just how strong this girl became.

    ¡°Can you go and pick all the cores that we left on the upper floors?¡± Mathew asked.

    He then took a quick break to swing his ax, cutting off the head of yet another zombie. ¡°Counting the cores we will get from this floor, we should have enough.¡±

    ¡°Weren¡¯t we going to clean all the zombies out of the school?¡± Daria asked, an expression of doubt appearing on her face. ¡°Is there something wrong?¡± she asked, reading way too much into Mathew¡¯s expression.

    ¡°No,¡± the young man replied with a shake of his head. ¡°Not yet, at least,¡± he added in a tone slightly darker than usual.

    Daria stood in ce, closely watching Mathew¡¯s face. Yet, only a few momentster, she nodded her head and left Mat¡¯s side without any further word.

    ¡®What now?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, puzzled by the girl¡¯s behavior.

    Up until this moment, save for how she acted when they first met, Daria appeared to be the reasonable one.

    ¡®It looks like not even she is safe from fostering drama,¡¯ the young man thought before dropping the topic out of his mind.

    Once again, his ax started to dance around, cutting Mathew a path towards the backline.

    With all three girls now busy with their respective tasks, only Mathew was left to defend the two civilians to the back.

    ¡°How does it go?¡± Mathew asked as soon as hended by the side of his two juniors.

    ¡°We gathered seventy-three so far,¡± the man replied for the two, raising his head and looking directly into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡®What the hell does he want?¡¯ Mathew thought, a stifling feeling making Mat clutch at his chest.

    The one fellow man, the one oasis of chill andck of drama¡­ turned out to be someone weird.

    ¡®Well, in a situation like this,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his head around, ¡®I can¡¯t really me him for acting weird.¡¯

    Only a few hours ago, this ce was bustling with student activity. It was full of people with dreams, passions, problems, and ambitions.

    But now, it has all turned into an open graveyard for all those who fell victim to virus or zombies.

    Mathew was already used to this sight, allowing him to save the time he would otherwise waste on making sense of the new reality.

    But the fact that he already went through this process in his first attempt at survival didn¡¯t mean others did the same.

    ¡°That¡¯s not bad,¡± Mathew finally reacted to the fellow man¡¯s words, only to turn around and throw a look at the rest of the floor.

    It was littered with decapitated corpses and heads rolling all over the ce.

    ¡®At this rate, we are never going to gather enough,¡¯ Mathew thought, his mood darkening even further.

    ¡°Why isn¡¯t she working?¡± Mathew then asked, turning his eyes towards the girl who sat in the back while constantly jumping whenever a zombie would get close.

    ¡°Come on, man!¡± the young man protested. ¡°I¡¯m barely holding my vomit; how do you expect her to dabble in this bloody mess?¡± he asked, raising his blood-covered hands.

    Mathew then took a step forward, quickly dealing with a group of six more zombies.

    ¡°Here,¡± he said, turning back to the couple as he kicked one of the heads towards the girl. ¡°Pick the core out of it.¡±

    The girl first raised her eyes at Mathew¡¯s face. For a moment, she simply stared down at his pupils¡­ only to then lower her sight and pick up the head from the floor.

    For a moment, the girl stared at the face of the deceased. She then swallowed a gulp of saliva before cing the head down and curling her fingers into fists.

    ¡°Here I go¡­¡± the girl muttered before closing her eyes and smashing her fists into the broken skull. A moment of moving her hand aroundter, she pulled it out with a core shining in her fingers.

    ¡°Good job,¡± Mathew nodded his head, finally turning away his judging eyes. ¡°Keep it up, then!¡±

 Chapter 61 Broken Wall

    ¡®Now it should go a little bit faster,¡¯ Mathew thought as he nced over at the girl.

    Yet, his eyes inevitably gravitated towards her partner, who was currently more busy with throwing hateful res at Mathew than he was with picking up the stones.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t like it, feel free to leave,¡± Mathew kindly informed his junior before turning his eyes back to more important tasks.

    Namely, defending the two from the approaching group of zombies.

    Just like it was the case with the matter in the wide universe, there were pockets dense with zombies to the point they would walk into each other.

    For thest few moments, the backline of Mathew¡¯s group could rest a little. Not because the world suddenly turned kind, but because they just happened to be in one of the emptier pockets for a moment.

    Yet, the eye of the storm would soon pass, putting them right back into a messy crowd of zombies.

    ¡°There is no end to them,¡± Mathew muttered as he swung his ax.

    This time, it wasn¡¯t some student of the school that he could recognize. It wasn¡¯t the staff either. And that got Mathew thinking.

    ¡®How could he be within the school?¡¯ the young man asked himself.

    His clothes didn¡¯t indicate any reason why such an adult could be on the campus grounds.

    And he couldn¡¯t stray into it either, given a massive wall that surrounded the entire school!

    ¡®Unless¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, clenching his teeth as he decapitated a few more zombies. ¡®No, it¡¯s better not to think about it,¡¯ he decided, focusing himself back on the indiscriminate ughter of the zombies.

    Yet, now that Mathew observed this peculiarity, he couldn¡¯t help but realize that something was seriously wrong.

    ¡®I don¡¯t remember when I saw a zombie that looked like a student,¡¯ he thought, cutting them down, seemingly not worried about that fact at all.

    And then¡­

    ¡°Mat!¡± Daria shouted over from the staircase they used to reach the ground floor before. ¡°You¡¯ve gotta see this,¡± she shouted with a grim look on her face.

    ¡®I really don¡¯t want to be a prophet here,¡¯ Mathew thought as his face darkened even further.

    He then raised his hands to his face and rubbed his cheeks, ignoring how he painted blood all over his face by doing so.

    ¡®No can do,¡¯ he thought, closing his eyes only to follow his instinct alone and swing his ax twice to the sides.

    The sound of the falling heads proved that this wasn¡¯t much of a feat for him.

    ¡°I¡¯m on my way,¡± Mathew finally replied after taking a moment to prepare himself. ¡°Nadia!¡± he then shouted over.

    ¡®For as long as they work, we can¡¯t leave them alone,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking over at the couple.

    ¡°On my way!¡± the girl shouted back without even a moment of hesitation.

    She dropped the corpse she was dragging to use as a building material for a barricade. She then bent her knees and leaped towards Mathew, cutting all the zombies that mindlessly stood in her path.

    ¡°I just need to keep them safe, right?¡± Nadia asked as she already jumped into action, smashing the head of the zombie approaching the couple from the other side.

    ¡°Correct,¡± Mathew replied, nodding his head. ¡°Good job,¡± he added before looking away and rushing in the direction of the stairs.

    ¡°Come, quickly,¡± Daria hurried the young man out before rushing up the stairs and leading the way.

    But they didn¡¯t stop at the first or the second floor.

    No.

    Daria leads him all the way to the second-most top floor of the building.

    ¡®I guess she couldn¡¯t bring me any higher because the stairs are not here,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to assess the situation as he followed after the girl.

    ¡°Look, here,¡± the girl finally revealed her ns, pointing her hand at the window.

    ¡®She isn¡¯t trying to throw me out or anything, is she?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head and approach the window.

    Thanks to their earlier culling, only a few zombies could be found on the upper floors of this wing of the campus. Sure, some managed to slip in while they were fighting on the ground floor, but their numbers were way too small to be any concern.

    ¡°What is this?¡± Mathew asked, approaching the window.

    And then he saw it, the confirmation of what he fearfully concluded when seeing those strange zombies from before.

    The wall that surrounded the school¡¯spound¡­ was broken.

    ¡°It¡¯s not as bad as I feared,¡± Mathewmented while grasping tightly the edge of the window¡¯s shelf.

    The opening most likely appeared when a huge chunk of the southern wing of the school came crushing down on it.

    And there it was, a proper, concrete bridge that crushed the wall underneath and caused it to partially copse.

    The rift wasn¡¯t that big, only about five meters wide. And for now, the number of zombies pouring in was definitely smaller than what Mathew¡¯s group could handle.

    And then, Mathew raised his eyes a little.

    The rest of the city stood in mes.

    Up until now, he didn¡¯t realize how far the situation would deteriorate and how quickly it would happen.

    The situation at the breach was manageable for just a single reason.

    The zombies in the city were far more upied with the survivors out there. That¡¯s why only a handful of zombies ended up gravitating toward the school.

    But it was only a matter of time before it would change. Once the zombies would clean up the system-less survivors in the city, their attention would obviously turn towards the pocket of surviving humans within the school.

    ¡°We need to seal it,¡± Mathew muttered before raising his eyes and turning his head towards Daria. ¡°And the sooner we start, the better,¡± he added before looking up. ¡°I wonder if anyone up there is still alive,¡± Mathew whispered to himself.

    A stray, weird thought appeared in the young man¡¯s head.

    He mentioned other survivors because he wished for manpower toplete this next project. And as they were near where Mathew¡¯s journey started, he couldn¡¯t help but think of all the students he hoped to save before.

    ¡°Wait for a second,¡± Mathew suddenly stopped, raising his eyes towards the broken floor of the topmost floor they could reach. He then looked at the gaping hole where the school¡¯s main staircase used to be.

    ¡°Why did Nadia leave the topmost floor?¡± Mathew posed the question that appeared in his mind.

    ¡®Was she looking to help me out? Or maybe she decided that she needs to do something? Or maybe?¡¯

    For a moment, the young man continued to stare as far as his eyes would allow¡­

    And then, he turned back.

    ¡®It¡¯s easier to ask than to risk climbing there,¡¯ he thought before grabbing Daria¡¯s hand and leading her back down the stairs.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to check that floor?¡± Daria asked, hurrying behind.

    ¡°There is no point,¡± Mathew replied, shaking his head. ¡°If anyone is left out there, they are people who have no will to change things,¡± he added.

    Everyone in the school¡¯spound could hear the sounds of the monsters¡¯ rampage. Everyone could feel the trembling said rampage would cause throughout the building.

    Yet, save for Nadia¡¯s small group, no one appeared to help them fight.

    ¡®It can mean there are no other survivors or it can mean they didn¡¯t bother to show up to help,¡¯ Mathew thought, putting the topic of the top floor aside for now.

    ¡°We still need to bring that floor under our control¡­ But for now, it can wait.¡±

    Mathew used the time he took to run down the stairs to think.

    ¡®What should I do now?¡¯ he thought. ¡®If we ignore the copsed wall, the situation will only get worse. But it¡¯s not like we can just walk outside and repair it while fighting.¡¯

    Mathew finallynded on thest step and scanned the situation on the ground floor.

    Le was nearly finished with her makeshift barricades. Two of them already redirected the flow of the zombies to the remaining ones.

    It was only a matter of minutes before all the easy paths inside the school would be blocked off.

    ¡°Le, leave one path!¡± Mathew shouted over. ¡°We will need to sortie!¡±

    ¡°We what?¡± Le raised her head, signs of boredom appearing on her face.

    ¡°We will need to repair the wall outside!¡± Mathew shouted the exnation before turning his eyes towards the other part of the group.

    ¡°Nadia, we will need you with us,¡± Mathew ordered.

    ¡°But what about them?¡± Nadia asked, pointing with her chin at the hard-working couple.

    ¡°Daria will lead them to the upper floors,¡± Mathew finally reached the girl¡¯s side, allowing him to switch from shouting to a normal speech. ¡°We already cleaned them out. And those few zombies that could straggle there¡­¡± Mathew cut his words short before grabbing a random mental rod from the floor and passing it to his junior.

    ¡°You will need to take care of them,¡± Mathew announced in a grim tone. Then, his face rxed a bit. ¡°You will hide in a ssroom facing the ce we will be at. If you get overwhelmed, make the girl shout for help.¡±

    Mathew had no ns of leaving the two on their own. But right now, leaving them alone was the only choice he had.

    ¡®Outside, they would be too much of a hindrance,¡¯ Mathew thought before turning his eyes back to Daria.

    ¡°Once you hide them away, join us at the southern wall!¡± Mathew ordered in a dead-pan voice before looking in the direction of the copsed wing.

    He then took a single, deep breath before closing his eyes.

    He opened them only when thest bit of air left his lungs, forcefully rxing his body.

    And then, he stepped forward, ready to follow through with his ns with action.

 Chapter 62 Reaching the breach

    Stepping outside of the strict boundaries of the school¡¯spound made Mathew shiver with a strange feeling.

    Over the past two weeks of his former life and the entire today, he didn¡¯t go outside.

    ¡®Back then, it was way too dangerous outside to step foot away from the school¡¯s walls,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling his memories.

    The one and only time when he stepped outside in his past life were right at the end when he sought refugee with Nadia in the equipment shelter.

    ¡®But it¡¯s different now,¡¯ Mathew thought, blinking his eyes a few times to get them used to the intensity of the sunlight outside.

    Thankfully, this was mostly a mental problem, as Mathew¡¯s eyes in this life have yet to forget the brightness of the sun.

    And then, just like that, Mathew ced his foot on thest remaining path, effectively leaving the school¡¯s grounds.

    ¡®This terrain is going to be a pain,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around the copsed wing of the school.

    With no roof above their heads, Mathew could no longer consider it a part of thepound. Yet, it also forced the young man to mentally split the widely-understood outside into several areas.

    ¡°We need to secure the ruins first,¡± Mathew ordered before fixing the grip of his ax. ¡°Once we cut all the zombies in ruins, try to spread towards the gap out there!¡± he shouted, pointing his hand in the direction he saw the copsed wall.

    ¡°On it!¡± Le didn¡¯t waste her time talking. She swung her machete in her hand before rushing in, eager to start the task as soon as possible.

    ¡®I can¡¯t let her outdo me, can I?¡¯ Mathew thought, a small smile appearing on his lips as he moved forward.

    Outside of the obvious pathing issue, there was only one other reason why Mathew was set on clearing the ruins of the copsed school¡¯s wing first.

    And this very reason came to y right now, considerably slowing his steps down.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew cursed under his breath when his swing once again sent his ax¡¯s de towards a rtively sturdy piece of ruins.

    The reason why Mathew decided to clear the ruins first was simple. They were the ce where fighting was the most difficult. And it was also a ce they had to go through whenever going in or out of the school.

    In other words, it was a transit area for the zombies attempting to enter the school. And whoever controlled this point wouldter control the entirepound!

    ¡°There is far less of them than I expected,¡± Nadiamented.

    She quietly followed in Mathew¡¯s footsteps, bringing forth her top-level acrobatic skills to keep the young man¡¯s perimeter clean.

    ¡°It is hard to fight here because it¡¯s hard to move around freely,¡± Mathew exined his take on the situation. ¡°Most of the zombies already made their way towards the ground floor. Those here are likely just stragglers and neers.¡±

    Mathew then pulled on the handle of his ax, scratching the ground with the butt of its de. He then kicked the lower part of the handle, sending the de flying towards a zombie crawling from a hole in a pile of ruins.

    ¡°That makes sense.¡± Nadia nodded her head only to bring her shoe down on another crawler¡¯s head. ¡°But doesn¡¯t that mean that the zombies are breaching the wall at a rtively slow pace?¡± she suddenly asked.

    ¡°Pardon?¡± Mat leaned his head slightly to the side.

    He wasn¡¯t surprised to hear about such a possibility. He saw the situation at the copsed wall with his very own eyes.

    What got him so curious, though, was just how did Nadia manage to figure it out?

    ¡°You know,¡± the girl shook her head only to raise her hand and m the bloody de of the machete down on another zombie¡¯s head. ¡°You said stragglers and neers,¡± Nadia pointed out. ¡°Stragglers, I can understand,¡± she added, pointing her machete at a nearby zombie the size of three normal zombies.

    It was the reformed body of the physical education teacher who used to be known for his weight and mocked for his choice of profession.

    Nadia then shook her head before turning her eyes to a zombie a bit off in the distance, right at the edge of where the ruins turned from dense to sparse.

    Shreds of a suit hung down from that zombie¡¯s corpse. In other words, his attire didn¡¯t suit the school grounds at all!

    ¡°Neers could only have a single meaning,¡± Nadia said before shaking her shoulders and focusing back on her job.

    ¡°Yeah, you are totally right,¡± Mathew nodded his head, looking at the girl from a new perspective. ¡°And yes, I saw only a few zombies crossing the breach at a time,¡± the young man added, using a piece of ruins as a foothold.

    He jumped, swinging his ax down while mid-air, splitting the head of a zombie open. He thennded on another pile of rubble, sending another zombie off with a kick to its jaw before mming the butt of his weapon into yet another opponent.

    ¡°To bepletely honest, I think our rate of killing them right now is pretty simr to how fast they areing in,¡± Mathew stated. He then took another leap and reached the border, where Nadia noticed a neer zombie before.

    ¡°And now, this is going to change,¡± Mathew added, a peculiar smile appearing on his lips.

    He then jumped off the pile of rubble he was standing at, right into the embrace of a dense horde of zombies attempting to scale the ruins up.

    His ax swung in the air, severing necks, splitting heads open, and pushing away any bloody hands that dared to reach out.

    Mathew¡¯s body was soon covered with the blood of his already dead opponents as he carved out a path for himself and Nadia to enter the true outside.

    And then, only a few minutes of intense ughterter, Mathew¡¯s task was generally finished.

    ¡°Now, then,¡± Mathew muttered, putting a de over the zombie¡¯s neck like some sort of executioner before raising his weapon up.

    For but a moment, Mathew looked at the zombie¡¯s features.

    ¡®Boy, seeing her like that makes me wonder if there are some psychos who would take this for an opportunity,¡¯ he thought before twisting his lips in disgust and bringing his ax down.

    Mathew personally knew a few who wouldn¡¯t mind the bloody state of the victims of their lust. And seeing how even some of the top chicks in the school ended up as mindless zombies, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but think of such a scenario.

    And then, for but a moment, he froze.

    ¡®Wait for a second,¡¯ Mathew thought, calling forth his system.

    He did it for the second time since he received this ability.

    The events around simply moved way too fast for Mathew to take it easy and waste several hours trying to learn more about his greatest advantage.

    The system¡¯s information appeared right before Mathew¡¯s eyes, partially blinding his view.

    A terrible mistake in the middle of a fight. Because even if it was a rtively easy conflict, a single mistake would be all it would take for Mathew¡¯s fate to go south.

    And just like he remembered, a single line of text made Mathew feel insanely awkward.

    [Wife #1]

    [Name: Nadia Astra]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 15+9]

    [Race: Half-zombie]

    [ss: First Wife]

    [Status: Focused]

    ¡®Doesn¡¯t this mean I¡¯m likely the first one to actually fuck with a zombie, even if she¡¯s only a half of it?¡¯ I thought, sneaking a nce at Nadia.

    I then shook my head before casting the system windows aside.

    Right now, I couldn¡¯t afford to distract myself with it. Not when a damned horde of zombies surrounded me from each direction!

    ¡°I¡¯m back!¡± Daria¡¯s voice brought some relief to my exhausted soul.

    Even though the fight itself wasn¡¯t a challenge, constantly moving around, swinging the heavy ax all the while, the pressure on my mind reached an all-time high¡­

    It wasn¡¯t something that I could keep for long.

    ¡°Check on Le first!¡± I shouted over.

    ¡®I know she has some ws, but I didn¡¯t hear anything from her in a while,¡¯ Mathew thought, anxiously looking around only to put his attention right back on the fight.

    ¡°On it!¡± Daria replied, plunging right into the ruins that we had just left.

    ¡®I hoped you would ask her to help us out a little,¡± Nadiamented.

    ¡°It¡¯s better if both of theme to help,¡± I countered before shaking my head. ¡°Nadia, dear, I know that you don¡¯t like her. I personally find her annoying too at times¡­¡±

    Mathew then shook his head.

    The information of the system appeared before his eyes once again. And just like with Nadia¡¯s race, Mathew¡¯s memories of seeing Le¡¯s name in the system weren¡¯t wrong.

    ¡°But for now, please, bear with her,¡± he added before forcing his ax down on the massive corpse of the physical education teacher that somehow followed them outside the ruins.

    ¡°Will do,¡± Nadia nodded her head before pointing her finger towards the nearby wall that surrounded the school¡¯s grounds.

    ¡°Look!¡± Nadia shouted, forcing Mathew to look after her hand. ¡°It¡¯s the breach!¡±

    And, just like the girl pointed out, over the course of their fight, they somehow made their way all the way to the breach.

    ¡®It¡¯s likely because we simply followed where the zombies are,¡¯ Mathew thought, only for a smile to appear on his face.

    ¡°Let¡¯s not waste time, then!¡± he shouted before swinging his ax in an encouraging manner and pushing towards the gap. ¡°Let¡¯s block it!¡±

 Chapter 63 Reconstruction

    ¡°Heavy-ho!¡± Mathew uttered a small shout as he lifted a zombie¡¯s corpse before throwing it on the rubble behind the breach.

    ¡°Leave the corpses to us.¡± Nadia was quick to approach Mathew¡¯s side. ¡°The boulders from over there would be perfect to close the gap,¡± she said as she pointed her hand at a nearby pile of rubble. ¡°But I don¡¯t think any of us could as much as make it tremble,¡± she added with a wry smile.

    ¡®I guess there are still limits to how strong we can get, even with the system,¡¯ Mathew thought before nodding his head.

    ¡°Will do,¡± Mathew said as he sped his hands to clear them out from dirt before moving in the direction the girl pointed at. ¡°Right, make sure Le won¡¯t venture too far,¡± the young man added after making barely a few steps. ¡°She¡¯s prone to getting emotional. And we can¡¯t afford to lose anyone right now.¡±

    The fight for the wall¡¯s breach¡­ was even more disappointing than clearing the ruins of the southern wing of thepound.

    At first, it was tough.

    When Mathew¡¯s group finally reached the breach, it was filled with a horde of zombies nearly as dense as the one they fought off inside the school.

    Yet, despite how many zombies there were on a small patch ofnd, their overall number wasn¡¯t all that bad.

    And now, a measly quarter of an hourter, Mathew¡¯s group could finally move on to actually fixing the gap in the wall.

    It took them only about fifteen minutes to clear the small horde and then the immediate surroundings of the wall.

    Yet, for how quickly Mathew¡¯s group reached this point, their progress soon stalled.

    ¡®As easy as it is to kill zombies, fixing a damned wall is actually a damned challenge,¡¯ Mathew thought as he approached the boulder Nadia pointed at.

    In reality, though, it wasn¡¯t a bolder but a broken piece of a building¡¯s wall. Yet, for the purpose in Mathew¡¯s head, it was perfect.

    ¡®MOVE!¡¯ Mathew screamed inwardly out, pushing his muscles to their limits in an attempt to push the piece of a demolished wall.

    First, he failed.

    Mathew put all his strength into his task, but it wasn¡¯t enough.

    ¡°Damn it,¡± he muttered, airing the frustration that quickly built up in his soul. Mathew then took a step to the back to size the chunk of rubble up.

    ¡®Maybe I should break it down into smaller pieces?¡¯ the young man thought, hoping to find a solution to his current problem.

    It would be most reasonable to simply give up and grab some smaller pieces. By standing and thinking, Mathew didn¡¯t contribute to rebuilding the wall at all.

    Yet, there was a difference between stacking boulders on top of each other and actually building a wall capable of stopping zombies.

    ¡®If we don¡¯t want to go just for visuals alone, I can¡¯t break it down,¡¯ Mathew realized before clenching his teeth and approaching the wall once again.

    ¡®Off we¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, only to take a deep breath and keep it in his lungs.

    ¡®GO!¡± Mat shouted, exhaling the air while he used everyst spark of energy left in his body.

    And finally, the wall moved.

    At first, it only wiggled a little, trying to regain a stable resting position. Yet, as the solid chunk of reinforced concrete started to move up and down, Mathew¡¯s strength proved to be finally sufficient to force it up.

    ¡°Do you need some help?¡± Nadia shouted over from the wall where she continued the task of moving the zombie corpses towards the bottom of the gap.

    ¡°Actually, yes,¡± Mathew admitted.

    ¡®Sure, it would be lovely to carry it on my own and leave a good impression on her,¡¯ he thought, his eyes gravitating towards Nadia¡¯s face. ¡®But right now, I can¡¯t allow myself such shallow luxury,¡¯ he concluded.

    The events from before proved that the apocalypse developed at a vastly different pace than what Mathew could remember from his previous attempt at surviving it.

    ¡®We can¡¯t tell when true hordes will start to gather,¡¯ he thought, only to breathe a sigh of relief when Nadia rushed to help.

    With the girl¡¯s strength, moving the massive piece of concrete proved to be a manageable task. It still required the young man to put absolutely everything he had.

    ¡°I will hold it now,¡± Mathew said. ¡°Can you make some room to slide it in?¡± he instructed.

    ¡°Give me just a moment,¡± Nadia replied before hurrying to pull some of the corpses away.

    The reason why they stacked the bodies by the bottom of the broken wall was pretty simple.

    They had no wet concrete or any kind of mortar. What was even worse, not a single one of them listened during the chemistry lessons that outlined the process of making the simplest mortar.

    As such, even though they could likely find all the materials they needed, Mathew¡¯s groupcked the know-how to build anything that couldn¡¯t support its own weight.

    ¡®If we can¡¯t build a wall, then let¡¯s build a rampart!¡¯ Mathew thought back then.

    And now, the corpse that the two of them stacked by the wall could serve as a support for the wall Mathew and Nadia brought!

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s push it in.¡± Nadia signaled as she stood in front of the wall only to pull it towards the gap she created.

    ¡®Just move!¡¯ Mathew urged the concrete in his hands, pushing his muscles to their limits to push it just a few inches further.

    For the next few moments, all the young man knew was the pain of overusing his flesh.

    ¡®I just hope I won¡¯t end up paralyzed,¡¯ Mathew thought as a wry smile appeared on his lips.

    And then, after a prolonged effort, the chunk of the building¡¯s wall finally rested against the destroyed wall of thepound.

    ¡°Can you hold it in here for a moment?¡± Nadia requested only to let go of the wall and take a few steps to the back.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Mathew replied, even though Nadia already moved ahead with whatever idea popped in her head.

    Yet, this time she didn¡¯t prove to be someone unorthodox. Rather than surprising Mathew with some ingenious solution, she simply moved over several bodies and chunks of rubble that she could lift before stacking them all at the bottom of the new piece of the wall.

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s see if it will copse,¡± Nadia muttered before gesturing at Mathew. ¡°Come here,¡± she requested, reaching out with her hand.

    ¡°Steady¡­¡± Mathew muttered, freeing his hands from the burden of holding the wall, only to stop his arms and hold his palms right off the surface of the rubble¡¯s chunk.

    He then slowly backed off, keeping his eyes alert for even the tiniest movement.

    ¡°But not for long,¡± Nadiamented, squeezing her lips together into a single line. ¡°Right now, all it needs is a small push to fall over,¡± she pointed out before shaking her head and starting to move again.

    ¡°At least we can use it as the base for the rest of the gap,¡± Mathew shared his idea. ¡°We could stack the support for it first and then fill the rest of the gaps around it,¡± he then exined his n.

    The gap was roughly five meters wide. And the chunk that Mathew and Nadia brought only covered about two meters at most.

    All in all, for all the effort they had to expend, the progress appeared to be pretty disappointing. But what couldn¡¯t be easily noticed, was how much easier it would be to fill the gaps between the standing wall and the makeshift barricade than actually building a five-meters long rampart made of rubble and corpses alone!

    ¡°Guys!¡± A sudden shout stopped Mathew from delving into his thoughts any deeper.

    The young man raised his head and looked in the direction of the voice¡­ Only to see both Le and Daria rushing back at a breakneck speed.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Mathew asked in a loud voice while rushing to the wall and pressing on it with his shoulder.

    If either of the girls were to trip and crash into this wall, the measly support he and Nadia provided wouldn¡¯t be anywhere near enough to hold the huge chunk of the wall in ce!

    ¡°Emergency,¡± Le said as she jumped over the unrepaired part of the wall only to fall down on her knees.

    She didn¡¯t follow her initial report with any exnation as she turned out to be too busy fighting for her breath to speak at all.

    ¡°A massive horde is nearby,¡± Daria finished the report for her partner, following closely after Le.

    She took a bit longer to reach and then jump over the broken part of the wall. Yet, she ended up capable of speaking way sooner than Le managed to calm her breath.

    ¡°Are they attacking us?¡± Mathew asked, a bad feeling filling his gut.

    ¡°No, not yet.¡± This time it was Le who replied. ¡°But what else they could attack?¡± she then asked, shaking her head.

    Le then stood up, sped her open palms against her cheeks, and looked towards the gap in the wall.

    ¡°Do you guys want to use this as a sort of foundation?¡± she asked, guessing Mathew¡¯s and Nadia¡¯s intentions.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head as he moved to the side to pick a suitable piece of rubble. ¡°And since the two of you are here already, we should be able to finish it in no time!¡±

 Chapter 64 Survivior

    ¡°I guess this is my way out,¡± Daniel muttered as he threw a nce towards the narrowing side of the corridor.

    There was no way for him to reach the central point of the school. And as great as it would be to start there from a tactical point of view, such a daunting task simplyid outside of the scope of Daniel¡¯s ability.

    Yet, that single quick look turned into a prolonged stare as the officer looked for any signs of survivors.

    ¡®I wasn¡¯t the only one who fell. I wasn¡¯t the only one who killed the zombie early on,¡¯ Daniel thought as he scanned everyst detail of his immediate surroundings. ¡®That means I can¡¯t be the only one left alive from those who fell!¡¯

    The officer refused to ept such a random development.

    The floor crumbling beneath his feat? He could ept that. In reality, it wasn¡¯t the first time Daniel to gone through an experience like this. Back during his deployment, he went through a far worse shit.

    Yet, the same could be said of most of the fellow soldiers and officers that fell along with him. And yet, he couldn¡¯t spot a single soul left alive.

    ¡®Maybe they ended up on the surface, not hidden by anything, so they already became zombie¡¯s feast?¡¯ Daniel attempted to figure out any logic behind the situation.

    And just as he was about to give up on his hope, a small stone rolled down a pile of ruins.

    Seemingly, with no force causing it to fall down.

    ¡®Someone¡¯s there!¡¯ Daniel thought, instantly rushing in the direction he noticed the weird movement from.

    But he wasn¡¯t the only one that took notice of the small detail.

    Or rather, the second his movements became energetic and quick, the zombies that formerly ignored his presence now became attracted to it.

    ¡®I don¡¯t have much time,¡¯ Daniel thought, watching how the already massive horde of zombies filling the corridor all started to move towards him.

    Daniel kicked the zombie that attempted to uncover whoever hid underneath the rubble. He then proceeded to wrestle with the next few of them.

    ¡®It¡¯s surprisingly hard without a gun,¡¯ he thought, his weapon lost somewhere amidst the rubble.

    Any attempts at recovering it now could only seed when all the rubble and bodies would get cleared out. Right now, looking for it amidst the ruins would be even harder than trying to find a needle in a haystack.

    Then, the officer froze.

    ¡®I might not have a gun, but didn¡¯t I somehow receive a weapon just as powerful as a firearm?¡¯

    Daniel raised his eyes at the few nearest approaching zombies. And just like before, he started to sing the tune of one of his favorite rock songs.

    And soon, his fists turned into rocks that stoned down the approaching zombies to the rhythm of the song Daniel hummed.

    ¡°Heck,¡± the officer uttered a small cry of astonishment when he finally stopped fighting, already ten meters away from the potential survivor¡¯s site.

    Lost in the power of music that used to be a major part of his life in the past, Daniel didn¡¯t even realize the results of his rampage.

    ¡®No, stop, I need to get them out,¡¯ he thought, turning around on his heel and tracking back his steps through the devastated area.

    The zombies that he faced weren¡¯t just killed. He didn¡¯t offer them the mercy of final and hopefully absolute death. What Daniel offered, though, was his army training mixed with the power that he knew close to nothing about nor how to control it.

    ¡®This looks worse than the stuff at the siege of Tarnow,¡¯ he thought, recalling the unpleasant memories from the war.

    It was a battle that devastated nearly half of the once prosperous city. Yet, surprisingly enough, the other half remained perfectly fine, with only an asional bullet marking the wall of the antique buildings.

    Even though the modern half of the city turned into the greatest bloodbath that history has seen in its course, both sides ended up respecting the legacy of the legendary family that turned this once small vige into a local powerhouse, both within the country and on the international scene.

    Daniel looked down at the fruits of hisbor only to swallow a gulp of his saliva.

    ¡®To think that I would find something even worse than the tunnels,¡¯ Daniel thought, clenching his teeth and tensing up the muscles around his throat to stop himself from vomiting.

    One could hardly recognize the corpses as what they were after Daniel¡¯s rampage.

    His attacks bore far more strength than he expected his fists to hold.

    An attack that would normally knock someone unconscious at best in the past was now well more than enough to st a human skull and brain into smithereens.

    ¡°This system is really powerful,¡± Daniel muttered under his breath before shaking his head and focusing back on what was truly important right now.

    ¡°Hey, can you hear me?!¡± the officer put his mouth by one of the many gaps left within the pile of ruins. ¡°Make a double sound or something if you can!¡±

    ¡®There is a chance he can¡¯t speak or move all that much,¡¯ he thought¡­ only for a blueish mist to suddenly start oozing out of the pile of rubble.

    ¡®What the hell is this?¡¯ Daniel thought, leaping to the back.

    He then cast a quick nce deeper into the corner, only to realize that the zombie had already recovered half of the ground that he fought so had to clear.

    And then, the blue mist suddenly all converged into a single point¡­ only to take the shape of a human.

    ¡®Ghost?!¡¯ Daniel¡¯s eyes widened as he started at the unexpected apparition.

    Yet, before he could as much as swallow his saliva, he recognized the face of the ghost.

    ¡°Norbert?¡± Daniel asked out, slowly approaching the blueish, half-transparent being.

    ¡°Daniel?¡± the ghost raised its face, only for it to explode in smiles. ¡°I knew you would get to survive it!¡± it rejoices, executing a strange dance right before the officer¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Are you real?¡± Daniel asked, suddenly acknowledging the other possibility. And judging from his experiences back before the floor of the school copsed,

    ¡°As real as it gets, man,¡± the ghost replied, a wry smile appearing on its lips. ¡°But for now, could you take care of those?¡± Norbert¡¯s ghost asked before pointing at the mass of zombies already reaching the foothold of the pile on which Daniel stood.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Daniel nodded his head.

    Whether this ghost was real or not, whether it was really the ghost of his teammate or a malicious scheme aimed at somehow forcing him to the open?

    Yet, for now, killing the approaching horde of zombies was of absolute importance. After all, it was the only immediate threat that Daniel had to face!

    ¡®I wonder if those kids survived,¡¯ the officer thought before shaking his hands up and down and pushing forward, right into the hungry embrace of the zombies¡¯ horde.

 Chapter 65 Daniel and a ghost

    The rhythm of Daniel¡¯s attack was perfectly aligned with the tune he hummed under his nose.

    Every tact of the song would result in several zombies falling apart under the strength of Daniel¡¯s attack. Yet, it wasn¡¯t the times when the officer sang that were the most devastating for the horde.

    It was when he would change the tune from one to another, throwing the zombies that slowly were starting to get used to his tempo off the beat.

    This constant alternation of the titles that Daniel would hum was the one and only reason why someone like him managed to avoid getting swarmed.

    Because even the system owners, if careless even for a moment, could fall prey to the ultimate monster of the apocalypse.

    And it wasn¡¯t an evolved monster like those burly ones Mathew fought with before. It wasn¡¯t the super-evolved ones like the caterpir either.

    That dangerous monster was nothing more but a bunch of weak zombies clumped together dense enough to block the freedom of movements of its prey.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Daniel cursed under his breath as the w-like nails of the zombie tore several rifts in his left leg.

    Surprised by the sudden bout of pain, Daniel retreated a few steps, buying himself just enough time to take a nce at the state of his leg.

    ¡®This is bad,¡¯ he thought, his face twisting as the sharp pain assaulted his mind.

    But the officer had no time toment over his situation. The zombies were slow for sure. But contrary to their alive counterpart, they never ceased to move.

    ¡®At this rate, I won¡¯t be able to pull him out,¡¯ the middle-aged man thought as his hand however over where the holster of his weapon would normally be, only to then stop as Daniel realized his mistake.

    He lost his gun when he fell along with hispanions and a huge chunk of the floor. And while it was still buried somewhere, the chances of just stumbling into it¡­

    ¡®I shouldn¡¯t waste my time even considering such a silly option,¡¯ Daniel thought, refocusing his attention on the things that actually mattered.

    Or any gun, for that matter, given how the ruins buried all those who dared to step on the edge back then to provide support for that crazy young student from this school.

    ¡®I don¡¯t know why, but thinking about him¡­¡¯ words appeared in Daniel¡¯s mind, only for the middle-aged man to shake his head. ¡®Yeah, I can¡¯t picture him randomly dropping off dead,¡¯ he thought before opening his eyes and raising them on the approaching horde.

    The corner of Daniel¡¯s lips quivered as he lowered himself slightly on his knees, bringing the center of his body¡¯s weight closer to the ground.

    ¡°Let¡¯s rock!¡± Mathew shouted right as the zombies were about to reach him, using his lowered position to shot his body forward for a loud opening of yet another bloody song of his.

    Soon, the torn pieces of the corpses started to fly all over the ce as Daniel¡¯s attack tore through skin, flesh and bones of the zombies alike.

    Smash the zombie¡¯s knees and it will no longer be able to chase it. Take out its arms and it will only be able to bite you. Decorate the floor with its teeth and its greatest weapon would be gone.

    There were many methods to defeating, or, at the very least, neutralizing zombies. Yet, despite all his tactical upbringing and then training in the army, when faced with his newfound power, Daniel couldn¡¯t really care.

    He didn¡¯t aim to make a zombie harmless when he caught both of its wrists and then jumped up, bringing his knees all the way up to his chin only to then rx his thighs, kicking both of his legs against the chest of the very same zombie.

    The officer wasn¡¯t trying to neutralize another zombie when a single, rocky punch of his turned three quarters of the zombie¡¯s teeth into a powder.

    All that Daniel did was just his own way of fighting, something he learned in scuffles with his teammates rather than self-defense lessons they all had to participate in.

    ¡°Damn, boss,¡± the blue ghost of Daniel¡¯s teammate somehow manged and decided to stick around. ¡°You better not show this side of yourself to anyone else if you want to find any allies,¡± the ghost advised, floating right above Daniel¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡®What, is it scared of the zombies?¡¯ Daniel asked out loud.

    The zombie that Daniel held in his hands snapped in half, torn apart by his powerful grasp.

    ¡®Or is it scared of me?¡¯ he asked, unable to guess the answer. ¡®Wait, can I even attack it in the first ce?¡¯ Daniel though, yet no answer came to his mind.

    And soon, rather than lingering of the topic of the weird state of hispanion, Daniels¡¯ focus returning right back at the iing zombies.

    His ughter surely brought forth a desired effect. For every kill that Daniel made here, the threat of the zombies continued to weaken. But that didn¡¯t mean it dissipatedpletely.

    ¡°That should do for now,¡± Mathew muttered when thest of the nearby zombies fell to its stomach, the open cut on its head giving some clues as the where said head flew off after Daniel¡¯s attack.

    The middle-aged man didn¡¯t waste any time.

    Just like he would rush to a wounded fellow soldier of his to bring him under cover, Daniel rushed towards the pile with the buried body of hispanion.

    ¡°What¡¯s your position?¡± he asked, turning his head to the side to monitor the few zombies that would make their way inside from the main hall of the school.

    ¡°I¡¯m stuck in this weird position. I need to make up a nk to survive for now!¡¯ the ghost exined.

    It then hurried away, sinking right back into the pile of the rubble. And a mere momentter, it came out only to points its fingers at two specific spots of the pile.

    ¡°If you lift those two stones, I should be free,¡± the ghost exined.

    ¡°Hungry and on the verge of death, but free,¡± it added a momentter.

 Chapter 66 Revealing the past

    ¡°It¡¯s done,¡± Mathew muttered as he took a step to the back and cast a long nce at the finished barricade.

    It was impossible to call the end result of their job anything else but that.

    One could tell that the part of the wall they fixed from the rest of the wall with a single nce, even from a super far away. Yet, in terms of a barrier for the horde of zombies, the barricade should do just as well of a job as the rest of thepound¡¯s wall.

    ¡°This took a lot more time and effort than I thought it would,¡± Daria muttered under her nose, sliding down the barricade and resting her back against it.

    From the outside, the difference between the reconstructed part and the normal wall was mostly visual. Yet, once one looked from the inside of the school grounds, the difference became obvious.

    Because while the normal part of the wall was roughly a third of a meter wide, the barricade reached even two meters in width!

    ¡°Not a single one of us has any experience in construction,¡± Mathewmented, only to release a sigh of exhaustion. ¡°We couldn¡¯t know we would need that much support just to hold our makeshift wall in ce.¡±

    This was the true form of the struggle that caused their barricade to swell up so much.

    With no industrial-grade adherents avable for the group, they could only rely on prompting the wall up from the inside.

    They managed to make the wall stand rtively stable on its own several hours ago. Yet, a single push from any of the group was enough to topple it right back down.

    ¡°What are we going to do, now?¡± Nadia asked as she sat down by Mathew¡¯s side. She then rested her head on the young man¡¯s shoulder as she attempted to rx after a long period of intense effort.

    ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m not really all that sure,¡± Mathew admitted as he lowered his eyes. ¡°We could either try to clean up the rest of the school or attempt to raise the fortress. But when ites to deciding which idea is better?¡± Mathew asked, shaking his head. ¡°I have no clue.¡±

    ¡°Right, I wanted to ask this for a long time already,¡± Le joined in the discussion as she sat on top of the fixed part of the wall. ¡°But what is this fortress that you speak of?¡±

    If he didn¡¯t know any better, Mathew would assume Le¡¯s position as nothing more but an attempt to make herself look cool. Yet, this time, it was his very own request that put her on top of the wall.

    After all, they could only know what to expect from itter on by testing the quality of their barricade themselves. And while Le herself didn¡¯t appear to weigh all that much, having her bnce on the edge of the highest part of the barricade was enough proof of the stability of the wall.

    ¡°To bepletely fair?¡± Mathew asked, shaking his head again. ¡°I have no idea. We never managed to raise it back then,¡± he added, too tired to care about the potential effects of revealing his situation to the rest of the group.

    ¡®Is there anything wrong with doing so in the first ce?¡¯ Mathew asked himself.

    In theory, it was always better to keep his own cards close to his chest, only revealing them when the right time came. But when it came to the truth about his past, Mathew couldn¡¯t see a single reason to not share it.

    ¡°Back then?¡± Le asked, sliding down the wall and jumping only tond right by Mathew¡¯s side. She then fell down to her knees before sitting herself down on her heels. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±

    The inquisitive look behind Le¡¯s eyes made it fairly obvious it wasn¡¯t the only thing she was asking about.

    ¡®I guess she doesn¡¯t want to push me too hard,¡¯ Mathew thought as he released a deep sigh. ¡®But I used them for long enough for the two of them to earn the right to know the truth,¡¯ he concluded before swallowing his saliva and raising his eyes.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t the first¡­¡± Mathew attempted to exin the truth, only to stop his words when Nadia suddenly nudged his side.

    ¡°Are you sure?¡± she asked, looking him deeply in the eyes.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m risking anything by telling them,¡± Mathew exined. ¡°And we already reached the point where it no longer matters if they know either,¡± he added, only to shrug his shoulders and look back at Le.

    ¡°It¡¯s not the first time that I went through all this shit,¡± Mathew stated, only to bite down on his lips and shake his head. ¡°No, that¡¯s not right. Back then, everything went differently,¡± he added as he turned silent for a moment.

    ¡°Roughly a ten hours ago, I died,¡± Mathew finally revealed the truth about his past in the simplest and the least confusing form. ¡°Yet, rather than reincarnating, vanishing on the spot, or going to heaven, I somehow returned to my past,¡± he finally revealed.

    ¡°I never asked this before,¡± Nadia spoke out right as both Le and Daria turned speechless. ¡°But how did you actually die?¡± she asked, snuggling up even closer to Mathew¡¯s side.

    For a moment, Mathew remained silent, refusing to open his mouth as he recalled the details of hisst day in the previous run.

    The fall of their makeshift fortress. The desperate rush to run from the horde. The bloodbath when they attempted to break away from the horde. And the moment when he forfeited his life for the sake of the girl that snuggled to his side right now.

    ¡°Back then, I didn¡¯t have a wives system that I have right now,¡± Mathew revealed. ¡°It was a miracle-sacrifice system that allowed me to sacrifice something of mine in order to invoke a miracle. It was also the only reason why I managed to bring the two of us as far as two weeks into the apocalypse,¡± he added, moving his hand to the side to grab Naida¡¯s fingers and squeeze them a little.

    ¡°But¡­¡± Nadia hesitated. ¡°Since I survived that long as well, how could you die?¡± she asked, a small, smuggish smile appearing on her lips. ¡°It¡¯s not like I would ever allow you to get harm as long as I was by your side!¡± she stated, moving her free hand over Mathew¡¯s stomach to hug herself even closer to him.

    ¡°You had your leg injured. And you still managed to stay by my side until the very end, when we broke free from the school grounds and reached thest ce with no zombies in it,¡± Mathew revealed as he looked at Nadia¡¯s face with deep affection.

    Sensing the intense emotions behind Mathew¡¯s weird smile, neither Le nor Daria dared to interrupt the moment.

    ¡°Then what happened?¡± Nadia asked, unable to grasp at the hints Mathew left all over his exnation so far.

    The young man turned his head away from Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡®How the heck should I tell her what happened?¡¯ he thought, struggling toe up with any believable lie. ¡®Or should I just tell her the truth?¡¯

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Mathew hesitated for a bit longer before resting the back of his head against the barricade¡¯s support and looking up.

    ¡°Back then, we were at the end of our rope. We had nowhere else to run and had no means of fighting off all the zombies within the school,¡± he exined before turning silent for a moment. And then, he revealed the rest in one breath.

    ¡°So after enjoying our first, deep kiss for a while, I offered my life as a sacrifice to keep you safe,¡± Mathew revealed, unable to look again at the girl.

    ¡®My cheeks are burning,¡¯ he realized, not sure what to expect. Because now that he put his past actions and decisions into words, he realized just how hasty and emotional they were.

    ¡°And then?¡± Seeing how Mathew had no intention of continuing and how Nadia was too shocked to ask about more details, Daria took this burden on herself. ¡°What happened then?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mathew shrugged his arms as he looked down. ¡°The second I finished the sacrifice, everything went ck. And before I knew it, I was back to two hours before the apocalypse kicked in.¡±

 Chapter 67 Nadias decision

    ¡°So that¡¯s why you were so frantic back then,¡± Nadia muttered, taken aback by the revtion.

    She knew the general idea of what happened and how Mathew got his hands on all the knowledge he shouldn¡¯t have¡­ But she didn¡¯t know the details of the story.

    ¡°Wait, you seriously believe him?¡± Le asked, refusing to ept Mathew¡¯s words. ¡°Isn¡¯t this just some nice story to sweeten your rtionship?¡± she asked as she raised her eyebrow to showcase just how doubtful she was regarding Mathew¡¯s words.

    ¡°It all checks up,¡± Nadia shook her head. ¡°Usually, he would be the one to get bullied whenever I entered the ss. But when I did it today, he was changed,¡± the girl said to her love rival before shaking her head and turning her eyes back to Mathew. ¡°You must¡¯ve been through a lot,¡± she spoke softly before resting her forehead against Mathew¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°If you im he speaks the truth, then I¡¯m in no position to doubt his words,¡± Daria said. ¡°Still, howe you returned to the time before the apocalypse if you wished to save Nadia?¡± she then asked. And then shook her head as if to ask to ignore the question she posed. ¡°No, more importantly, if you knew of the apocalypse beforehand, why didn¡¯t you do anything?¡±

    ¡°Right, they do not know,¡± Nadia muttered, a small smirk appearing on her face. ¡°He did a lot. Back then, it didn¡¯t make much sense for me, but he really did a lot.¡±

    ¡®You are always ready to take my side, aren¡¯t you?¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his head a little to the side to cast a quick nce at the girl.

    The young man¡¯s soul was filled with hesitation and worry. Now that the school¡¯s area was more or less secured, all the social fears and problems he buried in his soul started to resurface.

    ¡°What did he do?¡± Le asked, putting her doubts aside as she looked at Nadia with curiosity. ¡°Outside of that message urging everyone to go out, I don¡¯t recall anything of importance happening,¡± she added and then shook her shoulders.

    ¡°I only know the things that he did up until the apocalypse proper started,¡± Nadia revealed, only for her eyes to sh a little. ¡°Right, I¡¯ve yet to ask, what did happen after I lost my consciousness?¡±

    ¡®Urgh¡­¡¯ Mathew¡¯s entire body shrugged when his primary wife posed this simple yet extremely dangerous question. ¡®How the heck am I supposed to tell her that I barely managed to save her this time?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, averting his eyes as he was unable to look at Nadia¡¯s face while trying toe up with some believable lie.

    ¡°Even if he did, I don¡¯t mind,¡± Nadia didn¡¯t let Le¡¯s words bother her at all. Yet, the same couldn¡¯t be said about Mat.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t the first time that I¡¯m warning you,¡± he said, rising to his feet only to stand up straight and look the rude girl in the eyes. ¡°But it¡¯s thest time that I do.

    ¡°You are a valuable asset, a member of the group capable of pulling your own weight in a fight,¡± Mathew admitted Le¡¯s pros. ¡°But if you don¡¯t stop messing with Nadia, I will not hesitate before pushing you away.¡±

    The air tensed up as the two seized each other with their eyes. Yet, this time, Mathew wasn¡¯t going to give in.

    ¡®It¡¯s better to nip the bud of the trouble while it¡¯s still small,¡¯ he thought, staring down Le¡¯s eyes, ready to follow his words through right away if necessary.

    And in the end, it was Le that turned her eyes down.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she apologized, only for her cheeks to turn red. ¡°Seeing how close you two got so quickly¡­¡± the girl hesitated only to turn her face and then her entire body away. ¡°I was jealous and worried I was losing all my chances,¡± she added as her voice turned softer and softer, almost to the point of disappearing.

    The air was already tense¡­ But Le¡¯s honest admission of guilt allowed the atmosphere to somewhat rx.

    ¡°I understand,¡± Nadia suddenly spoke up, raising up from her sitting position. Yet, despite what she just said, she still opted to wrap her arms around Mathew¡¯s arm. ¡°I understand that you came to like him. Didn¡¯t he save your lives?¡± the girl asked, shaking her head and giving off a vibe of someone who made peace with just how powerless they were.

    Nadia then took a deep breath before raising her face.

    ¡°I¡¯m not ready yet to share him with anyone else. But I¡¯m also aware that all the reasons why monogamy became a thing are now gone,¡± she admitted.

    Nadia then took a quick nce at Mathew¡¯s face, only for her cheeks to cover with blush as she retreated with her eyes to the side.

    ¡°Can you give me some more time to make peace with this situation?¡± Nadia requested, raising her eyes at Le and looking her directly in the face.

    ¡°Tsk,¡± Le clicked her tongue as she broke off the eye contact and looked away. ¡°It¡¯s hard to say no when you put it like this¡­¡± she said. Le then bit on her lips as she raised her eyes back to Nadia¡¯s face. ¡°You are not going to monopolize him forever. Can you promise me that?¡±

    ¡°And when am I going to get any say in this matter?¡± Mathew finally decided that it was the right time to join the discussion.

    ¡°Shut it.¡± Nadia shot down Mathew¡¯s attempt in an instant. ¡°I know you for long enough to know that those two are just in your hit zone, aren¡¯t they?¡± she asked before reaching out with her hand and grabbing Mathew by his crotch.

    ¡°I happened to sneak on you during several sessions of your jerking off,¡± Nadia suddenly revealed while a small smirk crept up her lips. She then added some strength to the grip of her hand, sending a strangely pleasant bout of pain down Mathew¡¯s spine.

    ¡°And seeing for how long you could keep going back then, you won¡¯t convince me you would fail to satisfy all three of us!¡±

 Chapter 68 Dirty little secrets

    ¡°Am I supposed to now ignore the fact that you snuck on me to watch me jerk off?¡± Mathew asked, forcing the question out of his mouth while ignoring the extreme embarrassment that it caused him.

    ¡®I might not be a virgin anymore, but to have my dirty secrets pulled out like that¡­¡¯ he thought, a strange feeling of anger welling up in his soul.

    And then, something clicked in his mind.

    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t answer that,¡± Mathew requested as a small smirk appeared on his lips. ¡°What I want to know instead is how could you know how long those sessions were?¡± he asked while gracing Nadia with the loveliest of the smiles he could produce.

    ¡°Huh? I¡­¡± the girl attempted to answer right away, only to figure out the meaning behind Mathew¡¯s words when her own lips had already started to move.

    Nadia then turned her eyes away, her blush only intensifying.

    ¡°Come on, it¡¯s not nice to ask ady such a question!¡± she finally responded, protesting rather than giving a straight-out answer.

    ¡°Are you seriously going to p me with gender roles and privileges now?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyebrows. Even though he cared little to not at all about those topics, he just couldn¡¯t help himself but parody them right now.

    ¡°The world falling into pieces doesn¡¯t mean you should be rude!¡± Nadia protested again.

    ¡®So you can embarrass me, but I can¡¯t repay you back in kind?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to end up rolling his eyes and dropping the topic. ¡®It¡¯s better to pull back now than to get on her bad side and suffer the consequencester,¡¯ he thought, ignoring just how obvious Nadia¡¯s attempt at changing the topic was.

    ¡°Anyway, we will need to watch this wall at all times,¡± Mathew said as he turned his head to the schoolpound. He took only a moment to notice a single face ttened against one of the few windows that remained in ce.

    ¡®Thinking about this, isn¡¯t it getting cold?¡¯ Mathew thought when he caught himself up rubbing his hands against his exposed arms. ¡®The winter might still be a few weeks away, but I guess we need to start looking after some basic necessities,¡¯ he thought.

    It took only a second for the young man to recall all the trouble he went through to obtain simple stuff like food and clean water in his first run.

    ¡®At least we won¡¯t need to worry about wood to burn and warm ourselves or cook,¡¯ he thought, recalling all sorts of burnable furniture they could still find within the school¡¯s grounds.

    ¡°This is going to turn into a pain,¡± Le muttered under her nose. ¡°But I guess you are right,¡± she added a momentter as she turned her head around and looked in the direction of the city.

    She and Daria were the only ones in Mathew¡¯s group that actually walked outside. As such, it was no wonder they could readily ept the importance of this weak point of the school¡¯s defenses.

    ¡°But why?¡± Daria asked, quickly proving Mathew¡¯s quick assumptions wrong. ¡°It¡¯s not like this wall was designed to stop anyone in the first ce,¡± she stated as she knocked her knuckles against the healthy part of the wall.

    The dull, reverberating sound that followed only served to prove her point.

    ¡°Murphy¡¯sw,¡± Mathew replied with a wry smile as he grabbed Nadia¡¯s hand and started to move back into the partially ruinedpound. ¡°This ce is the weak spot of the wall. On the other hand, the gate should be the strongest,¡± he pointed out.

    Then, Mathew shrugged his shoulders and released a deep breath.

    ¡°What do you want to bet that it will be this part of the wall that will see the bulk of the next horde that will attack this ce?¡±

    Daria turned silent upon hearing Mathew¡¯s words.

    ¡°We will just have to deal with it once it happens.¡± Contrary to the others, Le didn¡¯t seem to be bothered by the perspective of the wall falling. ¡°It¡¯s not like we struggle when fighting zombies anymore, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Le¡¯s question fell on deaf ears, as Mathew already moved too far to even hear her words.

    Yet, Le didn¡¯t bother to move yet. Instead, she looked at the young man¡¯s back. Then, her expression soured.

    ¡°Give you some time, huh?¡± she muttered to herself, ignoring the fact that even her own partner already moved ahead. She then turned her head to the back, throwing onest look towards the city outside the walls of the school.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like we have that much time left, though,¡± she muttered before shaking her head and following after the rest of the group.

    ¡°Did you seriously watch me masturbate?¡± Mathew asked in a low voice once he realized the girls ended up straying a bit to the back.

    ¡°You are still on this?¡± Nadia moaned a little only to then aver her eyes and for her face to cover in blush again. ¡°Yes, I did,¡± she admitted in a tiny voice, giving up on pping Mat¡¯s thrust with further excuses.

    ¡°Do you want to get even, then?¡± Mathew leaned over Nadia¡¯s ear and whispered, only to see with satisfaction how even the girl¡¯s earlobe turned red from embarrassment.

    ¡°Wait, what?¡± Nadia nearly shouted, only managing to keep the reins of her voice at the veryst moment.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Daria suddenly appeared behind them, her hurried breath signaling she gave it a bit of effort to catch up. ¡°What was that?¡± she asked while moving her eyes from one lovebird to the other.

    She didn¡¯t seem to hear the exchange¡­ but the shy looks on the couple¡¯s faces were enough of a hint for the clever girl.

    ¡°I guess it wasn¡¯t anything important,¡± Dariamented before taking a stop and looking back behind the corner she had just emerged from. When she turned her head back in the right direction, there was no more sign of confusion on it.

    It was reced with a small, smuggish smile.

    ¡°I want to go check on some things,¡± Daria announced before hurrying forward and passing the couple. Yet, rather than stopping then, she elerated her steps even further, fully ignoring how treacherous the area of the copsed part of thepound was to tread on.

    Yet, rather than keeping with her pretend act of not knowing what happened, Daria suddenly stopped and turned around on her heel.

    ¡°You know, I¡¯m also extremely jealous of you,¡± she suddenly announced, putting an end to the small flirt going on between Mathew and Nadia. ¡°But I also want to respect your wish,¡± Daria added, lowering her head.

    For but a moment, there was only silence between the trio as all of them thought hard over what should they say next.

    Yet, it turned out that Daria had it the easiest out of all three of them.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to impose on you right now. Heck, I will even make sure to pull Le away as well so you two can get some well-deserved time together,¡± Daria offered up, only to then lower her head and tighten her fists.

    She then raised her eyes and looked directly into Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡°I just hope¡­ I hope this time that you need won¡¯tst longer than our lives in this brutal world,¡± she exined before turning her eyes to Mathew. ¡°You know, the two of us want to forget about all this shit, even if only for a moment, too,¡± she exined before turning around on her heel and rushing back into the school¡¯s building.

 Chapter 69 Best Bet For Survival

    ¡°Up we go!¡± Daniel shouted as he grabbed the edge of the stone and tensed his muscles to lift it up.

    Yet, just as one could expect from a sizeable piece of concrete, it wasn¡¯t an easy task.

    ¡®If it was going to be easy, he would kick it off himself a long time ago,¡¯ Daniel thought as he felt fat drops of sweat slowly trickle down his forehead.

    He pulled on the piece of rubble with all his might¡­ but the most he managed to achieve was lifting its side by a few centimeters.

    ¡®I guess I need to roll it off, just like I did before,¡¯ he thought, allowing the stone to slip out of his hands only to then attempt to pull it again.

    A few attempts like thatter, the piece of rubble finally gained enough momentum to unlodge itself from its ce and then slide down the pile of ruins.

    ¡°One more to go,¡± Daniel announced out loud, hoping his words would reach the ears of his friend buried underneath.

    ¡°I can see it, you know?¡± Norbert asked, appearing in its ghost form right on top of Daniel¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Damn, man!¡± Daniel jumped out, almost smashing his fists into the ghastly projection. ¡°Don¡¯t scare me like that!¡± he asked in a slightly raised voice.

    Even though Daniel wasn¡¯t the one to fear ghosts or zombies, it didn¡¯t change the fact that the current situation made him quite jumpy.

    ¡®Do I have the time?¡¯ Daniel thought, sending a nce to the side, where he wreaked havoc just a few moments earlier.

    ¡°The coast is clear for now,¡± Norbert¡¯s ghost reported as soon as he noticed where Daniel¡¯s stare went. ¡°You can focus on trying to help me out; I will keep the lookout in your stead,¡± he proposed before vanishing on the spot, only for his ghost to appear several meters away.

    ¡®Back to work, I guess,¡¯ Daniel thought before moving his hands to the other stone that his colleague marked out before.

    This time, thankfully, the piece of rubble turned out to be far easier to move. And while Daniel didn¡¯t have enough strength to fully lift it, he was more than capable of moving it aside.

    ¡°Done!¡± Daniel shouted as soon as he pushed the stone to the side, allowing it to drop down to the bottom of the pile of rubble.

    ¡°Thanks, man,¡± Norbert¡¯s ghost appeared right by Daniel¡¯s side. ¡°Be warned, though, a new group ising,¡± Norbert¡¯s ghost informed his friend. ¡°Can you deal with them while I will try to free myself?¡± he requested, only for the ghost to disappear.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Daniel replied, even though he couldn¡¯t see the person he was talking to anymore.

    He jumped down the pile of rubble without any hesitation. He then shook his arms in the air as if preparing them for the looming fight.

    And sure enough, just a few momentster, a huge group of zombies started to fall down the staircase, indicating that the entire horde on the upper floors was now attracted to their presence.

    ¡®This could be dangerous,¡¯ Daniel thought, moving forward in rhythmic steps along to the tune of the music that started to y out in his mind.

    Ever since he discovered the nature of his system, Daniel felt pressed to be better at using it.

    ¡®Judging by how pressed that youngd from before was to perfect his ability to use it, this should be the greatest source of our strength in this new, changing world,¡¯ Daniel thought, clenching his teeth when the music in his mind reached its first stato.

    And so, Daniel swung his fists, counting the number of zombies he fell along with the jumpy rhythm of the tune.

    ¡®I wonder if I could find a working VR set,¡¯ Daniel thought as he immersed himself in the fight, turning his punches, kicks, and blocks into an intricate dance.

    The zombies no longer appeared as the mortal enemies that were out for his blood, or rather, brain. Right now, they were his partners in this strange dance, all voluntarily participating in what could only be called a ughter.

    BOOM!

    A sudden explosion of noise right by Daniel¡¯s ear broke his momentum and focus, throwing his sense of rhythm off.

    ¡®What the hell,¡¯ he thought, feeling how the mysterious force behind his fists vanished into nothingness.

    But he couldn¡¯t stop his fists any longer. And when his knuckles smashed into the head of what used to be a student of the school¡­ Daniel failed to finish the zombie off with that single hit.

    The zombie¡¯s head turned at an unnatural angle only to then brush its broken teeth against the skin of Daniel¡¯s fist.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ the officer cursed under his breath as he jumped to the back. It was only then that he finally got the time to look to the back to check what the heck was this familiar sound all about.

    ¡°Don¡¯t thank me!¡± Norbert said with a smile, lowering the gun he wielded in his hand.

    ¡®So he didn¡¯t lose his weapon,¡¯ Daniel thought, noticing the point only to then shake his head.

    ¡°Brother, I¡¯m sorry, but can you fight any other way?¡± Daniel requested as he shook his arms to get rid of the residual blood on them. He then reached out to the bottom of his skirt only to tear a small piece out of it and first clean the broken skin on his knuckles from the foreign blood before wrapping it around to keep the wound rtively clean.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Norbert shook in surprise, not expecting his former senior officer to request him to give up his greatest weapon. ¡°How else am I supposed to fight?¡± he asked, clearly confused by the order.

    ¡°The shooting throws me out of my rhythm,¡± Daniel exined, only to shake his head and look towards the horde of zombies to judge how much time he had left. ¡°Just like that ghost of yours, I got some sort of a strange ability. But for me to use it, I need to keep the rhythm of my fight!¡± he quickly exined the situation in the simplest way he could figure out.

    ¡°Ah, sorry about that, then,¡± Norber quickly admitted to his mistake. ¡°I didn¡¯t know,¡± he added as he lowered his head in apology.

    ¡°You couldn¡¯t know,¡± Daniel said, shaking his head. ¡°Also, this ability of yours, can it do anything more than acting as a lookout?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡®If the systems are our greatest ace cards, then I need to somehow get him to use and develop his as well,¡¯ he thought, turning his eyes to his colleague for but a moment.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Norbert hesitated for a little only to end up averting his eyes while a shameful blush appeared on his cheeks. ¡°I don¡¯t think¡­¡± he shook his head. ¡°No, I just don¡¯t know,¡± he finally said only for the look behind the young officer¡¯s eyes to steel up. ¡°But I will do my best to find out!¡±

    ¡°Good,¡± Daniel nodded his head with satisfaction only to turn his eyes back towards the zombies. He then took a few seconds to hum a new tune under his nose before taking a step forward and starting the dance again.

    ¡°Let¡¯s hope you will find it out quickly, for those abilities of ours are our best bet for survival!¡±

 Chapter 70 Norberts ghost discovery

    ¡°And they all¡­¡± Daniel muttered under his nose as his knees smashed into a couple of two zombies. His body then turned on his heel. ¡°will turn to dust,¡± he sang in a silent voice, leaning his entire body forward only to throw a fist at the head of a rtively distant zombie.

    Daniel¡¯s song finished. And so did the wave of the zombies that they attracted with all the noises they had made before.

    ¡°That was pretty scary,¡± Norbertmented as he rested his hands on his knees while heavily breathing. He then shook his head and raised his eyes at his colleague. ¡°Still, do you think there is any chance to find some food in this ce?¡±

    This was a surprisingly important question. Because after all the zombies would be finally put to rest, daily human needs would still remain.

    And in a world where all the logistical chains were broken, procuring food would turn into the same kind of challenge as it used to be before farming allowed humanity to turn into proper civilization!

    ¡°There is a merchant at the top floor of the school,¡± Daniel pointed out, only to smash the head of the nearest fallen zombie. He then leaned down and pushed his hand into the mushy brain matter scattered by his foot, only to pick up a small, shining stone hidden in it. ¡°If we gather enough stones, we should be able to ess its wares,¡± he added, raising his eyes up to the ceiling of the corridor.

    ¡®Still, that doesn¡¯t mean reaching the top floor will be easy, not after we blew up all the stairs leading there,¡¯ Daniel thought, only to shake his head and keep his worries to himself.

    ¡°What are we waiting for, then?¡± Norbert asked only to pat himself on the stomach. ¡°We won¡¯t be able to fight for long if we don¡¯t eat,¡± he added, raising his eyes on hispanion.

    ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± Daniel agreed, only to turn around and look to the other side of the corridor, one that led back to the central point of the entire building. ¡°The question is, should we try looking for other survivors first?¡±

    ¡°There is no point,¡± Norbert replied as he hung his head low. ¡°What do you think I did first when I noticed this new ability of mine?¡± he asked, only to shake his head. ¡°We are thest ones standing. That is, from those who fell down,¡± he quickly added. ¡°There is a chance that those who stood back are still alive.¡±

    Not all the policemen joined in the firing squad that supported Mathew¡¯s efforts. As such, some of them could still be alive and waiting for them to hopefully return to the top floor of the school.

    ¡°With how he pressed everyone to go to the top floor, that youngd should still be there,¡± Daniel thought out loud, only to sp his lips together as he turned them into a straight, thin line. ¡°If he survived the copse of the floor, that is,¡± he added in a lower voice.

    ¡°Anyway,¡± Daniel turned his face back to his colleague. ¡°We won¡¯t achieve anything by just standing here. Our best bet is to find others for now, so let¡¯s climb instead of wasting time here,¡± he decided before pushing forward.

    ¡°There are close to no zombies left on the upper floor,¡± Norbert reported as soon as they started to move.

    ¡°Wait, you can reach that far with that ghost of yours?¡± Daniel asked, his eyebrows skyrocketing up on his forehead.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Norbert replied. Yet, when he looked at Daniel¡¯s face and noticed the hopeful expression behind his eyes, all the younger of the officers could do was shake his head. ¡°Sorry, but I can¡¯t any further. This ghost of mine can only move through open spaces, so in order to check the upper floor, I need to move it through the staircase. And currently, that¡¯s the limit of how far I can push it out,¡± he exined.

    ¡°Figures,¡± Danielmented, shaking his head as he dropped the genius idea that his colleague just proved to be impossible. Yet, before his negative thoughts could get to him, he turned his eyes back to his colleague.

    ¡°You say that you can only push this ghost of yours through open spaces and for a limited distance away from you, right?¡± he reiterated what Norbert said before just to make sure he wasn¡¯t mistaken about any of the parts.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Norber nodded his head, only to then trip on one of the zombie¡¯s corpses. He took a moment to regain his stability before picking up his exnation again. ¡°This is the only reason why I could move it through the rubble. Ultimately, it¡¯s full of gaps,¡± he exined, only for a powerful shudder to shake his body. ¡°If not for how small the gap needs to be for my ghost to move through it¡­¡±

    The younger of the officers didn¡¯t finish his sentence. He turned silent instead and locked his eyes on the staircase several meters away.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then all we need to do is to get closer to the upper floors and the staircase in general, right?¡± Daniel suggested as a smile appeared on his lips. ¡°In this way, we will be able to know what¡¯s going on on the top floor without taking the risk of somehow reaching it!¡±

    Daniel¡¯s face filled with color as he could push away one of his greatest worries.

    With no stairs left for them to climb to thest floor, they would have to somehow scale the walls to reach it. And if they were to go for such an extra effort only to learn that everyone on the top floor had already died or turned into zombies¡­

    ¡°Wait,¡± Norbert suddenly called out. ¡°I can already see it!¡± he announced. Yet, rather than stopping, he hurried his steps, eager to get closer to the stairs and, as such, see deeper into the top floor¡­

    But he never reached the bottom of the staircase. After making only a few steps, he suddenly fell to his knees and started throwing up.

    ¡°Those fucking bastards¡­¡± Norbert managed to utter before his eyes moved up, showing the whites below, only to then fall down right into the pool of acid he just vomited out.

 Chapter 71 l can understand them

    ¡°That was¡­ strange,¡± Mathewmented on Daria¡¯s words once she finally disappeared from their view.

    The look on his face was pretty peculiar. Yet, the hardships connected to traversing the area of the copsed southern wing allowed the young man to hide his expression.

    ¡°It might surprise you, but I can actually understand her,¡± Nadia replied in a feeble voice. And then, before Mathew could take another step, she leaped forward only to snuggle up to his side.

    She didn¡¯t say anything further, opting to immerse herself in the warmth of her partner¡¯s arm instead.

    ¡°Dear?¡± Mathew asked, looking down and to the side at the girl¡¯s head. He couldn¡¯t look Nadia in the eyes as she hid her face in the side of his shoulder.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t our height difference too damn convenient for her?¡¯ Mathewined in his insides. Yet, he had a very minimal amount of self-preservation instinct that stopped him from voicing thisint.

    ¡°I can understand her,¡± Nadia finally spoke up. Yet, her voice was muffled by Mathew¡¯s shoulder against which she pressed her face. ¡°No,¡± she then shook her head to the sides. ¡°I can understand the two of them,¡± Nadia corrected her initial statement.

    Yet, rather than borating to help Mathew figure out what the heck did she mean, Nadia finally let go of his arm before rushing ahead.

    ¡°Can you help me understand the two of them, then?¡± Mathew requested, watching Nadia¡¯s nimble movements. She had no problems catching up with him earlier. And now, she only needed two moments to hurry up ahead.

    Yet, rather than escaping into the central point of the school that still stood, she turned around on her heel and looked at Mathew¡¯s face with a look of determination behind her eyes.

    ¡°You want the two of us to get even, don¡¯t you?¡± she asked.

    ¡®Her voice is not flirty at all,¡¯ Mathew noticed, only to then bite down on his lips.

    He was a survivor of the apocalypse. The advantage of two weeks¡¯ worth of experience that he had over others sadly didn¡¯t extend over to the topic of rtionship, nor did it give him an easier time understanding what Nadia meant.

    ¡°If you are ufortable with it, then forget it,¡± Mathew said.

    It was the safest path out of all the routes he could pick. And the one that required the least courage out of him.

    ¡°I won¡¯t let you off without you saying it out loud,¡± Nadia smiled lightly.

    ¡®Did she notice my awkwardness?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head.

    ¡°Fine,¡± he said as he lowered his head and took a deep breath. He then raised his eyes back at the girl and looked directly at her face. ¡°I want to watch you pleasure yourself,¡± he said as he took a step forward. ¡°I want you to do it while looking me in the face,¡± he added, taking another step forward.

    He then leaped forward only to reach out and grab Nadia¡¯s hands as he brought them to his lips and nted a delicate kiss right on top of her knuckles.

    ¡°Is this the right way for us to get even?¡± Mathew asked as he allowed the weight of his and Nadia¡¯s hands to bring them down and away from their faces.

    A happy smile grew up on Nadia¡¯s face¡­ Only to suddenly mix up with embarrassment just a moment before she averted her eyes to the side.

    ¡°You guys really can¡¯t stop flirting for a damn second,¡± Le suddenlymented from behind Mathew¡¯s back.

    ¡®Woah,¡¯ the young man jumped up, letting go of Nadia¡¯s hands like some sort of a school boy caught up on the act by a teacher. Yet, this momentary surprise came and went¡­ but Mathew¡¯s shock remained.

    ¡®How could she move through this ce without me noticing it?¡¯ he thought, baffled by such a possibility.

    ¡°Is there anything wrong with that?¡± Nadia asked, shaking her head to get rid of her embarrassment.

    Even though she imed to understand what was going through Daria¡¯s and Le¡¯s heads, that didn¡¯t mean she was happy when interacting with the former.

    Le looked at Nadia¡¯s face, refusing to open her mouth for a moment. This silent confrontationsted only a short while. Afterward, Le lowered her eyes and shook her head.

    ¡°No, there is nothing wrong with that at all,¡± she stated before lowering her head even further and moving past the couple. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to bother the two of you,¡± she apologized before hurrying up inside the part of the school that still stood despite all the damage done to its load-bearing walls.

    ¡°That was different from what I expected,¡± Mathew muttered, still shocked by thepleteck of sound that Le made while approaching their back.

    In an open field with nothing but grass or soft floor to walk on? It would be doable. But in a field covered in ruins of an entire wing of the school¡¯s building?

    ¡°Same here,¡¯ Nadia admitted, looking in the direction the girl disappeared in. Yet, before long, she turned her eyes back to Mathew; the determination in them now reignited. ¡°So how about we stop dawdling and¡­.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Mathew denied Nadia¡¯s request before she could even voice it out. ¡°For now, there is something else that we all should do,¡± he said before taking a step forward. ¡°And it is to take a shower while the water is still running. Who knows when we will have the chance to do it again,¡± he pointed out before hurrying after Le¡¯s steps.

    The apocalypse started several hours ago. And ording to Mathew¡¯s experiences from his past run, the basic utilities of the city would continue to work only for a few hours into the next morning.

    That gave them more than enough time to fill all sorts of containers with rtively drinkable water¡­ but it also meant that a luxury such as a shower was only possible while those utilities still worked!

 Chapter 72 We are going to conquer theshowers

    ¡°You guys finally made it here,¡± Daria said as soon as Mathew and Nadia reached the central point of the school. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you two to get down to the business in those ruins, but as I waited, I already started to have my doubts.¡±

    The small smirk on Daria¡¯s face showcased how her words were nothing more than a friendly nab. Yet, the sour expression that those words caused to appear on Le¡¯s face, who stood right by Daria¡¯s side, was enough for Mathew to understand the situation a bit better.

    ¡®Judging from everything all three of those girls said, it seems that they really want to fuck,¡¯ he thought, shaking his head a little only to then do it more energetically.

    ¡°Anyway,¡± Le spoke out. ¡°I get it. Once you find a ce where you can enjoy each otherpany, we will stand guard to ensure nothing and no one will bother you,¡± she said, only to then avert her eyes and hide her displeased expression.

    ¡°It¡¯s lovely to hear that,¡± Mathew said, stepping forward. ¡°But right now, we all have something else to do. Daria,¡± Mathew turned his eyes to the girl he had an easier time ordering around. ¡°Can you go and fetch that couple of juniors for me?¡± he requested. A small smirk then appeared on his face. ¡°Believe me or not, but if we excluded them from what we are all about to do, that could easily lead to our group splitting up down the line.¡±

    Mathew then grabbed Nadia¡¯s hand and pulled her ahead, deeper into the central point of the building.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Daria nodded her head only to then lean it to the side. ¡°Dare to reveal what you have in mind, though?¡± she asked as a strange sh appeared behind her eyes. Yet, before Mathew could even have a shot at deciphering it, the girl turned her head away.

    ¡°Shower,¡± Mathew replied with a single word. ¡°Seeing how bloody we all are, I bet you guys would love to take one, wouldn¡¯t you?¡±

    Mathew had no need for any answer. He himself felt ufortable with all the blood and innards that cowered his skin and clothes. And if he, a man, had already reached the state of difort, then just how bad the girls had to feel about it?

    ¡°A shower?¡± Le asked, her eyes ring up.

    It appeared as if a single mention of the chance to clean herself up pushed aside all the thoughts of jealousy and lust from her head.

    ¡°Can you really organize one?¡± she then asked, squinting her eyes as she looked at Mathew with a terrible suspicion.

    ¡°Why would I need to do it?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise. ¡°Don¡¯t we have the showers running in the gym area of the school?¡± he asked, pointing his hand to the northern wing of thepound.

    Sure, they had yet to clear it from the zombies, but due to the simple physical features, the training grounds of the school were located on the very bottom floor of the northern wing. After all, what kind of sane architect would put a ce for a mass of students to jump around anywhere but on the ground floor?

    ¡°Damn, Ipletely forgot about it,¡± Le admitted, only to shake her head and then swing her machete around. ¡°Can I go already?¡± she asked, raising her eyes back on Mathew as sparks of enthusiasm appeared on her face for the first time since Mathew met her.

    ¡°Feel free,¡± Mathew said as a rxed smile appeared on his lips. ¡°Also, there might be another surprise waiting for youter on, so hold on to your pants until then,¡± he advised before fixing the grasp over his ax and heading north himself.

    ¡°First to the showers gets to choose!¡± Le shouted happily as she set off, rushing right into one of the few areas still crawling with zombies as if she was about to reunite with her long-lost family.

    ¡°Shall we go as well?¡± Mathew asked, turning his eyes to his prime wife.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Nadia smiled only to then lean over Mathew¡¯s ear. ¡°Is that where you want me to give you the show?¡± she asked, her voice finally fitting the meaning of the words she whispered.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t we going ahead?¡± Nadia asked, surprised by Mathew¡¯s sudden stop.

    ¡°Not yet,¡± the young man shook his head as he rested his back against the wall. ¡°We still need to tell Daria and those two juniors where we are going,¡± he exined before reaching out and pulling Nadia closer.

    From the outside, it looked as if he simply wanted to make out with the girl for a while. Yet, rather than feeling her curves up or sneaking his hands underneath her clothes, Mathew simply brought his lips closer to the girl¡¯s ear.

    ¡°I think I understand what you mean before,¡± he stated. ¡°And I think I need to take the lead in this situation,¡± he added.

    Nadia shrugged a little. She then raised her face and looked right into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°So that means you are going to¡­.¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°I¡¯m going to fuck them in the showers,¡± he exined his intentions, only to then shake his head. ¡°Still, I want to enjoy some private time with you first,¡± he added, raising his hand to caress Nadia¡¯s cheek.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ he thought as he brought his hand down, staring with slight displeasure at the blood he smeared all over Nadia¡¯s face. ¡®We really need to clean ourselves,¡¯ he thought, only to then focus back on the girl¡¯s expression.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Nadia hesitated for a second, only to gulp down her saliva and look straight into Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°I understand. And while I¡¯m still not ready to just ept it, I¡¯m going to allow it,¡± she said, her tone turning a bit sad.

    ¡°We are back!¡± Daria shouted even before she reached the bottom of the staircase she was in, as if with the intention of warning Mathew and Nadia about her presence in advance. ¡°Where are we going now?¡± she asked as she appeared in the nearby corridor with the two juniors of theirs.

    ¡°Shower,¡± Mathew revealed with a happy smile. ¡°We are going to wash all this blood away.¡±

 Chapter 73 Carols request

    ¡°Excuse me, but can I take a moment of your time?¡± the junior that Mathew generally ignored up until this point suddenly approached him.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Mathew turned his head around, directing his eyes towards the one the younger girl that pulled on the back of his shirt. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± he asked, masking the annoyance from his face.

    ¡®I¡¯m about to get Naida to masturbate for me. Could you please find better timing to bother me?¡¯ he thought while putting a gentle smile on his face.

    ¡°I¡­¡± the girl hesitated, lowering her eyes as if she couldn¡¯t look Mathew directly in the face. ¡°I¡­¡± she attempted to speak up again, only for a blush to appear on her cheeks as she pulled her hand away from Mathew¡¯s shirt. ¡°Actually, never mind, I¡¯m sorry to bother you,¡± she finally said, giving up on whatever she initially wanted to convey.

    ¡°Well, if you say it¡¯s nothing,¡± Mathew said, shrugging his shoulder. He then turned around and moved forward, eager to get his share of Nadia getting embarrassed before his eyes.

    ¡°Actually¡­¡± the girl¡¯s voice reached Mathew¡¯s ears right as he was about to escape from his junior¡¯s vincity.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, slowly closing his eyes and exhaling all the air from his lungs. He then breathed in again before putting a fake smile on his lips as he turned back to the girl again.

    ¡®Should I just shush her away?¡¯ Mathew thought, his crotch slowly pushing him towards the decision to risk the morale of their group.

    ¡°I actually wanted to ask if I can help in any way,¡± the girl revealed her wish, only to avert her eyes right away.

    ¡°What¡¯s so hard to ask about in it?¡± Mathew asked, unable to hold all of his emotions back. ¡°Was there really any need to hesitate so much?¡± he asked again, shaking his head as he thought about the question itself.

    ¡®Something for her to do¡­¡¯ he thought, trying to lead his thoughts in a certain direction.

    ¡®Well, Nadia would kill me if I just invited her to be my wife,¡¯ he thought, feeling the threatening aura from the girl standing just a few feet away.

    ¡®She is willing to concede when ites to Le and Daria; I would rather not push my luck any further,¡¯ Mathew thought as he refocused his eyes on his junior¡¯s face. ¡®Even if it¡¯s the most rational choice in our current situation,¡¯ he thought before shaking his head.

    ¡°First, can you remind me, what¡¯s your name again?¡± Mathew asked, just for the sake of buying himself a little bit more time.

    While they were never on talking terms before, not to speak about being on a name¡¯s basis in a conversation, he still knew how this junior of his was called.

    After all, she was one of the very few girls that the majority of the dick-possessing poption of the school lusted after. And it was a fact that even her boyfriend couldn¡¯t change.

    ¡®Thinking about that guy,¡¯ the direction of Mathew¡¯s thoughts suddenly changed. ¡®Where is he?¡¯ the young man asked himself, moving his eyes a little as he scanned the surroundings.

    Normally, those two would be inseparable. That¡¯s how they acted before the apocalypse, and that¡¯s how they were ever since they joined Mathew¡¯s group.

    And yet, right at this moment, when the girl was clearly vulnerable from how she acted, the guy was nowhere to be seen.

    ¡®There he is,¡¯ Mathew thought when his eyes finally located the person in question.

    He stood in the back, resting his back against one of the few walls that were left standing on the ground floor of the school. His head was lowered, and his eyes appeared to be pointed at the ground¡­

    But there was something to his aura that Mathew just couldn¡¯t figure out. Or rather, this very something made Mathew believe that this male junior of his observed and listened to everyst detail of his conversation with that guy¡¯s girlfriend.

    ¡°I¡¯m Carol,¡± (A/N I, for God¡¯s mercy, don¡¯t remember if I brought her name back before. If I did, tell me in thements where and I will fix it ¨C even if this particr name is pretty lit) the girl replied after a moment of hesitation.

    She then grasped the opposing sides of her shirt before bending her knees a little in a small, cute curtsy.

    ¡°And what do you think you could do, Carol?¡± Mathew asked, shaking the girl¡¯s boyfriend from his mind as he refocused on the girl herself. ¡°Picking the life cores for me is already a great help,¡± he added without even batting an eye.

    It was a stupid job that even someone with half of his limbs couldplete. And yet, it was a job that was tedious, boring, and time-consuming. A job that they ultimately couldn¡¯t afford to skip.

    ¡®She doesn¡¯t look to be dumb enough not to realize it,¡¯ Mathew thought, still puzzled by the girl¡¯s request.

    Yet, it took the young man only a mere moment to shake his head as his mind filled with self-critic.

    ¡®No, I can¡¯t assume they know everything that I¡¯m aware of already,¡¯ he realized, changing the perspective with which he looked at the girl.

    ¡°I¡¯m not talking about menial tasks!¡± Carol protested, tightening her hands into fists.

    ¡°What seems to be the problem, then?¡± Mathew asked, truly puzzled.

    ¡®She wants to help, but she is not talking about helping?¡¯ he thought, leaning his head slightly to the side.

    Then, Mathew released a tired sigh.

    ¡®I guess the sages of old were right on the point when they imed women are mystery not to be ever understood,¡¯ he thought.

    ¡°I want to get stronger!¡± Carol finally revealed cancer that weakened her soul. ¡°You have that system of yours; Nadia, Le, and Daria are all somehow included in it; even Sasha appears to have one!¡± the girl listed out every member of Mathew¡¯s group but herself.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any idea why you are bringing it up now,¡± Mathew replied when a cold sweat appeared on his back.

    Courtesy of a deadly stare that Nadia prated Mathew with.

    ¡®Right now, all I can do is y dumb, and home Nadia won¡¯t me me for itter,¡¯ Mathew thought, forcing a confused smile on his lips.

    ¡°I only heard a little, but I believe it¡¯s enough,¡± Carol said as a look of determination appeared on her face. ¡°It something rted to wives, isn¡¯t it?¡± she pointed out to Nadia¡¯s clear although mute dismay.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Mathew muttered, still set on ying dumb.

    Between the young flesh of this girl and infuriating Nadia that he already had a good thing going with¡­ Not to speak about the abundant charms of the two girls that Nadia was starting to somehow ept¡­

    The downsides of ying along with where this discussion was heading far outweighed the potential benefits!

    ¡°In other words,¡± Carol shook her head before finally raising her head and looking directly into Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°I want you to make me your wife so that I can get stronger as well,¡± she said.

    Carol then turned her eyes towards Nadia as if in a wish to confront her.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that how you got those weird powers of yours?¡± she asked, leaning her head to the side as a sh of brilliance appeared behind her eyes.

    ¡®Hmm?¡¯ Mathew froze for but a moment as a bad premonition appeared in his mind.

    His current understanding and judgment of this girl were pretty simplistic and brutal. In Mathew¡¯s eyes, Carol was nothing more but a cute doll that made half of the school¡¯s poption salivate¡­ but a doll without much to her brain.

    And yet, for but a moment, he felt as if there was actually more to this petite girl than she herself allowed the rest of the world to realize.

    ¡°It is,¡± Nadia admitted without even a second of hesitation. ¡°All my power steems from my dearest¡¯ system,¡± she said before crossing her arms over her chest.

    ¡°Then, I want to be his wife as well,¡± Carol stated as she once again looked right into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡®I guess the cat is now out of the bag,¡¯ the young man thought as he lowered his eyelids for a short moment.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think your boyfriend will endorse this idea,¡± Mathew said, openly throwing a nce at the guy in the back. ¡°And it¡¯s not like I already know what exactly needs to happen for you to be my wife,¡± he added, only to then shake his head. ¡°It¡¯s not like simply epting your proposal would suffice,¡± he stated, only to avert his eyes. ¡°Trust me, I already tested that.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care,¡± Carol said with a resolute look behind her eyes. ¡°In this world, cuteness no longer matters. If I want to stay alive, I need to get stronger,¡± she stated, only to tighten her hands into fists again. ¡°No matter the cost!¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Mathew crossed his hands over his chest as he shook his head for yet another time. ¡°It¡¯s all sound and dandy, but to be honest, right now, I don¡¯t give two fucks,¡± he admitted while shaking his shoulders. ¡°And to be perfectly honest, I don¡¯t give a single fuck about your desires either,¡± he added, not holding his brutal honesty back at all.

    ¡°Right now, all I want,¡± Mathew turned around and took a few steps forward, only to grab Nadia¡¯s hand. He then took turned his head and spared onest nce at the girl. ¡°Is to take a shower and enjoy my time with my prime wife.¡±

 Chapter 74 Lets wash each other (r18, duh)

    ¡°Dog for women,¡± Nadia muttered under her nose when the two of them moved up and distanced themselves from a couple of juniors a little.

    Yet, even though her voice was clearly displeased, Nadia didn¡¯t let go of Mathew¡¯s hand.

    ¡°You won¡¯t let a single ass go by unfucked, won¡¯t you?¡± Nadia continued toin in a tiny voice as if she was worried that raising the volume of her words would make her too negative.

    ¡°I did my best to hold her back,¡± Mathew said before releasing a sigh.

    ¡®I know I¡¯m not at fault here, but I can¡¯t me Nadia for feeling anxious either,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking Nadia¡¯s angered whispering on his shoulders and simply suffering through it.

    It was this girl that he sacrificed his life to protect in his first attempt. It was Nadia that Mathew had a lot of memories with. It was the girl by his side that Mathew had a crush on for years.

    And it was the very girl whose hand Mathew held that he believed to be out of his league in the past.

    ¡®To think that I woulde to thank the apocalypse for starting,¡¯ Mathew thought, bitting down on his lips in an attempt to stop them from identally revealing that thought.

    Before Mathew¡¯s thoughts could oveplicate and throw his soul into disarray, fate came with a helping hand. Because before his thoughts could turn into any greater mess, the two of them finally reached the showers.

    The sounds of the water falling down on the zed floor made Mathew know that Le and Daria didn¡¯t really bother to wait for them to start. It also allowed the young man to judge which part of the showers those two girls upied.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go to the private showers,¡± Mathew suggested in a small voice.

    Even though he cast the mark of the virgin away already, he wasn¡¯t all thatfortable with outright inviting his damned crush to a shared bath.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Nadia suddenly said, hugging herself closer to the young man¡¯s side.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew shook a little, not expecting the girl to kill her angry mood from before and turn cuddly in such a short amount of time. ¡°What are you thanking me for, though?¡± he asked, hoping to understand the girl a little better.

    ¡°For ying along with my selfishness,¡± Nadia exined her thoughts as she rubbed her hands against the length of Mathew¡¯s arm. ¡°For going along and organizing some time for just the two of us,¡± she added in a fleeting whisper.

    ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s what you are on about,¡± Mathew bought himself some time with those empty phrases.

    Yet, even once his voice daded away, he couldn¡¯t figure out what he should say next. And even though the two of them slowed down the moment Nadia hugged herself into Mathew¡¯s arm, they could stall any longer.

    Because before Mathew could gather either his thoughts or his courage to say something, they had already reached the end of the corridor where the doors to one of the three private shower rooms could be found.

    ¡°Shall we go in?¡± Mathew asked. His voice trembled as he did so, revealing just how anxious he was.

    ¡®Even though I¡¯m the one who created this opportunity¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, cursing his own cowardice in his thoughts. ¡®How can I act so uncertain right now?¡¯ he thought.

    And the answer to that question turned out to be fairly simple.

    ¡®If I want to stay true to myself, I can¡¯t act like that,¡¯ Mathew decided.

    So he took a deep breath, raised his eyes high, and opened the doors to the shower, pulling the girl along.

    ¡®Her hand feels so delicate,¡¯ Mathew thought, squinting his eyes as he fought off the desire to cherish the girl in every possible way or form.

    ¡®There will always be the time to be lovely-dovely,¡¯ Mathew thought, pulling his fingers over Nadia¡¯s hand a bit tighter. ¡®But the chance to have her act slutty, all for me?¡¯ he thought, only to feel a familiar throb in his pants.

    ¡°Shall we begin, then?¡± Mathew asked, turning himself around and casting a nce directly into Nadia¡¯s deep eyes. Yet, rather than pushing any further, Mathew let go of the girl¡¯s hand before taking a step back.

    He then rested his back against the edge of a small sink and crossed his arms over his chest.

    ¡°I mean¡­¡± Nadia muttered as she averted her eyes. ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± she then asked, turning her eyes back on Mathew¡¯s face with an adorable look of a lost animal.

    ¡®How can she be so damn cute?¡¯ Mathew asked, resisting the desire to clutch at his heart.

    The slight puzzlement, confusion, embarrassment, and a tinge of excitement. All those emotions and many more could be seen in Nadia¡¯s uncertain expression as she awaited Mathew¡¯s answer as if it was some sort of a criminal verdict.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I say it already?¡± Mathew asked, a smirk appearing on his face as he leaned his head slightly to the side. ¡°I want you to show me exactly how you masturbate,¡± he exined his wish from before.

    And then, with his arms still crossed over his chest, Mathew took a step forward.

    At first, he continued to look the girl in the face as he moved closer and closer¡­ Only to take a stop right when they were about to collide.

    ¡®Damn, that was tough,¡¯ Mathew thought, doing his utmost to not reveal the state of his soul to the girl.

    If Nadia knew just how he felt when teasing her like that, she would never react in the way Mathew wanted her to!

    He then brought his lips up, hovering with them only an inch away from the skin of the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°And I will make sure to watch everyst detail,¡± Mathew whispered when he brought his lips to the girl¡¯s ear.

    And then, as if nothing happened, Mathew took a step back, returning to his position by the edge of the sink.

    ¡°Oh,¡± the smile on Mathew¡¯s lips only grew. ¡°I want you to exin everyst thing that you will do,¡± he requested, only to lean his head to the side as his smile reached its peak. ¡°You know, I want to learn exactly what you like, what are your weak points, where you are sensitive¡­¡± Mathew allowed his voice to slowly fade into the echoey air of the shower room.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Nadia hesitated, her face fully covered in an intense blush. ¡°I-I would start¡­¡± she attempted to exin herself as she started to squirm a little.

    Nadia then took a deep breath and closed her eyes, holding the air in her lungs for a while.

    Tamp. Tamp. Tamp.

    The distant echo of her rapid heartbeat reached Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡°Haaa¡­.¡± Nadia released the breath from her lungs as she opened her eyes.

    The panic from before was now nowhere to be seen, reced with determination.

    ¡°I would usually start by thinking about you,¡± Nadia revealed as she brought her hands to her neck. ¡°I would then imagine the two of us in different situations. Sleeping together. Eating together, cuddling together,¡± she continued to reveal her secret thoughts as her hand started to move down to her chest.

    A momentter, Nadia¡¯s fingers mped down, digging into the flesh of her chest while ignoring the resistance of her clothes in the way.

    Nadia swallowed a gulp of saliva.

    ¡°I would imagine having you hug me from behind while groping my chest,¡± Nadia¡¯s voice turned more and more emotional as the movements of her fingers turned slightly frantic.

    She would grab her own chest over and over again as her breathing turned quicker with each passing second.

    ¡°Then¡­¡± Nadia whispered, one of her hands sliding down on her stomach and then lower, towards her skirt.

    ¡°Wait for a moment,¡± Mathew suddenly intervened, despite how heavy his heart it was. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s healthy if you continue with all that blood on you,¡± he pointed out before taking a step forward and reaching with his hands out.

    Mathew then grabbed Nadia¡¯s clothes from her shoulders¡­ only to pull the arms of her shirt to the sides and then let it freely fall down.

    At first, Nadia¡¯s shirt stretched out on her chest, refusing to fall down any further¡­ Only for the girl to wiggle her shoulders a little.

    The firstyer of clothes fell off Nadia¡¯s body, revealing her delicious-looking chest.

    ¡°Down there too,¡± Mathew added in a shaky tone, only to swallow a gulp of saliva as he grabbed the edge of Nadia¡¯s skirt.

    ¡®Why do I feel there is something wrong in just pulling her clothes down?¡¯ Mathew thought, revealing in this new, strange pleasure as he killed his hesitation and undressed the girl even further.

    Ever since their short adventure in the autonomous office, Nadia didn¡¯t bother to wear any undies. And with both her shirt and skirt now on the floor, only blood was left to cover her charms away.

    ¡°I think we should wash ourselves before continuing,¡± Mathew pointed out as he grasped the handle of the showerhead and turned the faucet on.

    A stream of water sprayed out of the device, throwing a chaotic array of water droplets all over the ce.

    ¡®Let¡¯s wait a second,¡¯ Mathew thought, waiting for the water to turn warm enough, before finally moving the showerhead and directing the water right on Nadia¡¯s bloodied skin.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew said as he put the showerhead in his left hand only to reach out and grab Nadia¡¯s boob with his right hand.

    The insane softness and warmth of his crush¡¯s chest instantly went to his head, causing another head of his to slowly raise.

    ¡°Shall we wash each other?¡±

 Chapter 75 Fulfiling Mathews request (r18)

    ¡°This is surprisingly nice,¡± Nadia muttered through a light moan of pleasure.

    She rested herself against Mathew¡¯s chest, allowing the stream of water to wash the blood off her body while Mathew¡¯s hand rubbed a cheap school soap into her skin.

    ¡°And we are saving the water too,¡± Mathewmented.

    Having his crush and a long-time friend hugging him while naked and soaked in wet and covered in foam from the soap made Mathew barely capable of thinking.

    Nadia¡¯s warmth, the softness of her skin, the small twitches that would shake her whenever Mathew rubbed his hand against her back a little harder¡­

    ¡°It¡¯s a pity we never got this kind of rtionship before the world went bonkers,¡± Mathew muttered.

    It wasn¡¯t a topic that he wanted to bring up with his girl as they took a steamy shower together. Yet, with his mind full of how close she was to him, Mathew couldn¡¯t really control his thoughts anymore.

    ¡°It really is,¡± Nadia muttered, only to suddenly bring her hands up and ce them on the young man¡¯s chest. She then pushed herself away, bringing her chest into Mathew¡¯s full view while allowing the water to flow down her curves.

    Yet, rather than saying something or even attempting to seduce her partner, Nadia simply reached out to the neck of Mathew¡¯s shirt before pulling it up.

    ¡°Let¡¯s forget about all those zombies and the apocalypse for now,¡± she uttered when Mathew¡¯s bare chest came into view.

    There was no sign of the usual thinyer of fat that covered his muscles just a few hours ago.

    ¡®It seems that growing along the system does have some physical effects on my body,¡¯ Mathew realized. His attention then flew right back to the naked and moist beauty within reach of his arms.

    Nadia then leaned her head forward, using the water and soap from her hands to thoroughly wash all the blood from the side of Mathew¡¯s neck.

    And then, as if she was a vampire, she brought her lips to the patch of the young man¡¯s skin that she cleaned.

    ¡°Ah,¡± Mathew let go a small moan of pain when Nadia strongly sucked on his skin, only to then peel her lips away. And right at this moment, when his mind was upied by the yful attack of hers, Nadia moved her hands to the edge of Mathew¡¯s pants.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get rid of this, too,¡± she whispered as she kept her head in the corner between Mathew¡¯s neck and shoulder.

    But her hands could only reach so far.

    After struggling for a while to pull down Mathew¡¯s pants due to his erection stretching them forward already, Nadia let the cloth in her fingers go.

    She then raised her left knee, rubbing the inner side of her thigh against Mathew¡¯s leg as she ced her foot over Mathew¡¯s lowered pants, only to then step down, bringing them all the way down.

    ¡°Now,¡± Nadia whispered, moving her hands behind Mathew¡¯s back only to then use them to pull herself right into his chest, ¡°we can wash each other properly.¡±

    As if eager to add some steam to their rtively chill shower, Nadia started to move her body up and down, washing the dirt off Mathew with her own skin.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew let go a small moan of pleasure when Nadia¡¯s overbearing softness forced him into a deen of deep rxation.

    There was something primal yet satisfying about having someone he loved to go out of her way like that for him. And there was obviously the simple pleasure of feeling Nadia¡¯s touch all over his skin or seeing how her foam-covered boobs ttened against his chest.

    ¡®I can feel her nipples,¡¯ Mathew thought, squinting his eyes as he attempted tobat the overbearing pleasure.

    Yet, despite all his attempts to keep himself calm, the jewels of his lineage had other ns. As such, it didn¡¯t take long for his already erected penis to reach new greatness, as if it hoped to star in amercial for some shady blue pills.

    Nadia didn¡¯t need long to realize that fact either. And what was even more interesting was how her body twitched and how a smirk momentarily shed on her lips when she appeared to figure the situation out.

    ¡°Should we¡­¡± Nadia asked in a lovely whisper as she snuck one of her hands between their stomachs only to reach out and grab the shaft of Mathew¡¯s pride. ¡°Clean this boy as well?¡±

    Nadia¡¯s voice filled Mathew¡¯s brain only to melt it down like some sort of horrific acid. Coupled with the sudden pleasure of her fingers delicately closing their grasp over his junior, Nadia effectively fried Mathew¡¯s brain.

    Yet, she was just a little bit too early.

    If she were to wait a little longer for the heavily sexual act of rubbing against each other to lower Mathew¡¯s guard even further, maybe she could get away with it.

    But Nadia¡¯s haste proved to be the undoing of her attempts.

    He then gently pushed her away.

    ¡®Damn.¡¯ Mathew clenched his teeth when Nadia¡¯s hand slithered up his thing, only for the girl to let go when Mathew pushed her far enough.

    That single movement alone was enough to bring him near the edge of his resilience.

    ¡°Huh,¡± Nadia only moaned in surprise when she could no longer feel Mathew¡¯s hard-on in her hands.

    ¡°We came here to do something specific, didn¡¯t we?¡± Mathew said in a low voice while a small smile quivered on his lips.

    He then lowered his hands and took two steps back, returning to his spot by the edge of the sink.

    ¡°Are you really¡­¡± Nadia muttered, the shock on her face slowly giving way to an intense lust.

    And without saying another word, Naida¡¯s hands moved to her foam-covered chest as she started to push her fingers into them, rub her nipples and even slightly pull on them.

    ¡°How lovely,¡± Mathew muttered as he brought his own hand to his junior before starting to slowly jerk himself off.

    ¡®I need to be careful just to keep myself near the edge,¡¯ he thought, already hatching a n on how to make this experience as great as it could be for the both of them.

    Nadia suddenly moved one of her hands down, slowly sliding it down towards her crotch. Yet, rather than watching herself, she glued her eyes towards the top of Mathew¡¯s dick that already shone from all the precum that covered it.

    ¡°I think you forgot to narrate what are you doing,¡± Mathew pointed out when he noticed the girl licking her lips clean.

    ¡°Oh,¡± the girl jumped a little, Mathew¡¯s voice shaking a little of the lust that clouded her brain. She then bit down on her lips as the blush on her cheeks only deepened.

    ¡°Once I would start getting excited, I would move my hand down.¡± Nadia bravely pushed through the ordeal. ¡°And then I would start touching myself while imagining my hand to be actually yours,¡± she said, averting her eyes when the embarrassment became too much.

    ¡°I see,¡± Mathew muttered, leaving his dick alone as he stepped back towards the girl only to then cover Nadia¡¯s lowered hand with his own. ¡°And then?¡± he asked, right as the girl started to y with her clit.

    ¡°Ah,¡± Nadia moaned a little when Mathew made sure to make her dreams turn into reality. ¡°I would then push my finger inside¡­ AH!¡±

    Mathew turned Nadia¡¯s narration into the directions he should follow. As such, when she mentioned pushing a finger inside, he was more than happy to oblige.

    ¡®It¡¯s so damn wet,¡¯ he thought when the thick moisture of the girl¡¯s insides served to transfer Nadia¡¯s inner warmth to his finger. Yet, this was also the point where Mathew could no longer just follow Nadia¡¯s dreams.

    Because before Nadia could utter a single word, Mathew started to rub her insides with his finger.

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Nadia whispered when her knees refused to cooperate, making the girl simply fall down on Mathew¡¯s chest, leaving the task of keeping her upright to Mathew¡¯s left hand, which grabbed the girl by her ass.

    Too weak to stand up on her own, Nadia rested her head against Mathew¡¯s shoulder. And as he continued to let his finger go wild inside her, Nadia¡¯s body quickly started to twitch at an ever-increasing rate.

    ¡°Mat¡­¡± Nadia muttered, only for her voice to crack as she let out another moan. ¡°Matty,¡± she tried again, her voice turning even meeker than before.

    ¡°Yeah?¡± Mathew suddenly pulled his finger out of the girl¡¯s pussy, judging it to be more than ready for more. Yet rather than pushing further, Mathew brought his hand up and rested it against the girl¡¯s cheek.

    ¡°Not like that,¡± Nadia pleaded as she obediently raised her face and looked at Mathew with her teary eyes. ¡°Not with your hand,¡± she begged as she stared directly into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡®Oh my god,¡¯ Mathew could only say an inner prayer when faced with such a direct request.

    To say that he was on edge would be a gross underestimation. Just watching Nadia react to his fingers was enough to make him ready and raring to go. Having her asionally rub her flesh against his skin only made the task of holding it in all the more daunting.

    And when coupled with her teary expression and outright begging¡­

    ¡°How would you like me to take you?¡± Mathew whispered his question while keeping eye contact with the girl.

    It was embarrassing for both of them¡­ But the young man was set on seeing all the embarrassment that Nadia had to offer!

 Chapter 76 l have no right to monopolizeyou(chapters will be r18 untilfurther notice)

    ¡°Are you seriously going to ask this?¡± Nadia whispered directly into the young man¡¯s ear. There was a slight hint of dissatisfaction in her voice, indicating that she had enough of Mathew ying with her like that.

    ¡°I only want to know what you like the most,¡± Mathewmented, once again pushing his finger inside the girl in return.

    Nadia squirmed in Mathew¡¯s arms, clearly unable to hold herself back for much longer.

    The saliva started to flow out of her mouth and trickle down her chin, only to fall down on Mathew¡¯s shoulder. Her body trembled, indicating that she was right on edge.

    ¡°Any way you want,¡± Nadia uttered in a weak voice, forced tobat her explosive lust just to speak out. ¡°Just take me already!¡±

    ¡°As you wish,¡± Mathew whispered directly into the girl¡¯s ear. He then moved his right hand from her ass a bit lower on her thigh.

    ¡®She¡¯s is so damn soft,¡¯ Mathew thought as he moved his hand up, pulling Nadia¡¯s leg along.

    It was the first time since Mathew got closer to the girl for Nadia to actually face him properly.

    ¡°I¡¯m going in,¡± Mathew informed, using his spare hand to grab his junior and guide it right towards Nadia¡¯s exposed crotch.

    Even without looking, Mathew simply needed to follow the trail of the girl¡¯s juices. And after tracking the head off his penis across Nadia¡¯s thigh for a short moment, he finally locked his shroom against the moist opening of her pussy.

    ¡®She is already trying to suck me inside,¡¯ the young man realized, bitting down on his tongue in hopes of using pain to calm down his lust.

    And then, Mathew pushed his hips forward, sliding his dick into the warm insides of Nadia¡¯s secret ce.

    ¡°Agh!¡± the girl moaned in Mathew¡¯s arms. Her body shook violently as her inner folds contracted, threatening to squeeze Mathew¡¯s thing into a dry stick.

    Yet, despite how strongly Nadia¡¯s insides coiled around Mathew¡¯s dick, it never ceased to bring him more and more pleasure.

    ¡°I¡¯m all in,¡± Mathew informed when he felt Nadia¡¯s crotch rub against his balls.

    An incredible smile appeared on the girl¡¯s face as she brought one of her hands to Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I know,¡± she uttered on half-breath. Her lips then moved up, turning her smile into a grin. ¡°I can feel it,¡± she added as she leaned her head forward and pressed her lips against Mathew¡¯s.

    ¡®Mhmm¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, immersing himself in the double pleasure of tasting the girl¡¯s tongue with his mouth while letting the girl caress his junior with her insides.

    Yet, right as Mathew was about to sink into the depths of pleasure and fully forget himself¡­

    Nadia suddenly jumped up with her other leg only to bring it up to Mathew¡¯s hips and then lock her feet behind his back.

    Not prepared for the sudden change of the center of the mass between the two of them, Mathew failed to control his position. He made a step forward in a desperate attempt to regain stability. He was also about to turn himself around to make sure he would be there to cushion Nadia from the fall in case he failed to stay on his feet¡­

    And then Nadia¡¯s back mmed into the wet wall of the shower, finally giving Mathew some space to regain control.

    ¡°That was scary,¡± Mathew revealed the state of his soul as he took a deep breath to calm himself down a bit.

    ¡°Here, here,¡± Nadia whispered, brushing her fingers through Mathew¡¯s hair. ¡°It¡¯s all good,¡± she continued to mutter in a low voice, a voice that prated deeply into Mathew¡¯s brain.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to pick up the pace, then,¡± Mathew informed, raising his eyes on the girl¡¯s face. ¡°Are you okay with that?¡±

    This wasn¡¯t the first time for the two of them to fuck. It wasn¡¯t even the first time for Mathew to take an active part in the fun.

    Yet, it was the first time for the young man to be not only in the prime of his strength but also in full control of the situation.

    ¡®It definitely feels great to have her submit to me like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, his sense of masculinity pleasantly tingling in the situation, only to then bite down on his bottom lip. ¡®But it¡¯s also pretty scary!¡¯

    Mathew didn¡¯t know how far he could go. He didn¡¯t know how rapidly he could swing his hips without turning the pleasure into an ordeal for the girl. He didn¡¯t know how much he could touch her for Nadia to keep enjoying the experience.

    ¡®Even though this was the true reason behind my wish from before,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to clench his teeth and push his entire body forward.

    Mathew pinned Nadia¡¯s soft flesh between his chest and the cold wall of the shower room. He then lowered his hands on her ass just to make sure she was safely locked in ce¡­ before starting to rapidly swing his hips to and fro.

    ¡®Whatever,¡¯ he thought, allowing the pleasure to get to his head. ¡®Right now, I need to show initiative!¡¯ he decided, pushing his dick as deep into the girl as her pussy allowed while leaning in for another kiss.

    Their rtionship progressed way faster than it would take ce in a normal world. Yet, Nadia never bothered to be shy about escting it, something that Mathew learned when she used her tongue during their very first kiss.

    As such, when his lips pressed against Nadia¡¯s mouth, she was quick to turn it into a sloppy reunion of their tongues.

    ¡°I¡¯m about to¡­¡± Mathew muttered when he felt a wave of weakness spreading down his spine and quickly reaching down towards his balls.

    The years of his hands-on experience allowed Mathew to recognize the sights.

    ¡®I want toe inside,¡¯ he thought, desperately pushing his hips forward as he inevitably approached his limit. ¡®But it would be unwise to do so,¡¯ he thought, trying his utmost to let his rationality prevail over his lust.

    ¡°You are not getting away,¡± Nadia said, seemingly sensing Mathew¡¯s hesitation. She then pulled her legs even closer together, making it nearly impossible for Mathew to swing his hips to the back.

    But the young man was already too far to stop.

    ¡®I think I came inside her back in the office already,¡¯ he recalled, only to give up and abandon thest bastion of reason.

    Mathew tore his lips apart from Nadia¡¯s mouth only to then lower his face and bury it into her soft bosom. And with onest, forced swing of his hips, his lower head knocked against the doors of Nadia¡¯s womb, only to then cover it with a stream of thick sperm.

    ¡°OH, GOD!¡± Nadia screamed out, her body twitching within Mathew¡¯s arms while her insides coiled around Mathew¡¯s dick as if in an attempt to consume it whole.

    The movement of her inner folds squeezed Mathew¡¯s dick from the bottom up, helping all the sperm stuck within his shaft to travel up and then soak into the girl¡¯s core.

    ¡°Haaa, haaa, haaa,¡± Nadia¡¯s heavy breathing served like a silver lining of the moment, sweetening Mathew¡¯s post-nut depression.

    For a few more moments, Nadia¡¯s body continued to convulse as if her pussy was set on milking everyst drop out of his dick.

    ¡®I just can¡¯t get enough of how soft she is,¡¯ Mathew thought, hiding himself in the girl¡¯s skin as if attempting to use her like a nket.

    Even though his hands continued to grip at her thighs, even though he didn¡¯t bother to pull himself even an inch to the back, now that he had satisfied his urge, Mathew simply enjoyed the intimate moment.

    ¡°That was insane,¡± Nadia whispered as her head fell down on Mathew¡¯s shoulder while her hands once again locked behind his neck.

    ¡°I¡¯m d you liked it,¡± Mathew replied in a soft voice, moving his hands down on Nadia¡¯s ass only to then slowly lower himself before striking the wet floor with his ass.

    With Nadia¡¯s pussy still tightly locking his dick inside the girl, he had no other choice but to keep her on hisp.

    ¡®This is not half-bad,¡¯ Mathew thought as he continued to hug Nadia while giving the girl some time to recover.

    Yet, before the girl could actually regain her usual vitality and energy, Nadia actually raised her head and looked towards the doors.

    ¡°How long are you going to wait there?¡± she asked in a stern voice, the changing expression on her face showcasing how quickly Nadia¡¯s mood shifted.

    ¡°So you knew,¡± Daria replied as she pushed the doors open.

    Just like back when Mathew first met her, she didn¡¯t bother with wearing any clothes, allowing the couple to watch how droplets of blood glistered over her bare skin.

    ¡®It seems like Le didn¡¯t bother to wait either,¡¯ Mathew thought when he noticed another naked girl following right behind Daria.

    Yet, it was the sight of the third naked girl that took him by surprise.

    ¡°It seems that she is really set on bing one of my wives,¡± Mathew muttered, just loud enough for Nadia and Nadia alone to hear him.

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Nadia shook her head only to then bite down on her lips. ¡°I can¡¯t really me her,¡± she said before hugging herself close to Mathew¡¯s chest. ¡°I never expected it¡­¡± Nadia muttered only to then raise her head and look directly into Mathew¡¯s eyes while raising her hand to caress his cheek.

    ¡°But you turned out really dependable,¡± she stated, gracing Mathew with a small, slightly sad smile. ¡°It¡¯s no wonder the girls flock to you now,¡± Nadia said, only to ce a quick peck on Mathew¡¯s forehead before resting her hands on top of his shoulders. ¡°And I guess I have no right to monopolize you.¡±

 Chapter 77 Unexpected source of blood

    ¡°I wish we could go back to the normal world,¡± Mathew whispered in a low voice. He then snuck his arms below Nadia¡¯s armpits and pulled her into a hug.

    ¡°How convenient it would be for some omnipotent entity to just snap its fingers and turn it all into just a bad dream,¡± Nadiamented, only to then release a light, nervous chuckle.

    The girl then turned her head up, locking her moist eyes on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Can you kiss me?¡± Nadia asked, her lips trembling a little.

    Even with Mathew¡¯s cum slowly trickling down the inner part of her thigh, Nadia managed to retain her innocence.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t even ask,¡± Mathew replied before grabbing Nadia¡¯s chin with three of his fingers and gently reuniting their lips.

    They just finished a round of intense fucking. And yet, rather than slurping each other¡¯s saliva as they would while doing the deed, their kiss turned out to be gentle, delicate, and extremely intimate.

    ¡°Your lips are so sweet and soft,¡± Mathew whispered when the two finally parted their mouths away.

    ¡°I¡¯m happy that you think so,¡± Nadia replied, her lips forming a small smile only for the girl to slide just the tip of her tongue across them.

    ¡°Are you done flirting already?¡± Le asked from the side.

    Mathew turned his head around to face her while talking¡­ Only for his eyes to lock on the charms of the girl¡¯s body.

    For Mathew, Nadia¡¯s body was perfect. Her boobs were just a bit too big for him to fully fit them in his hands, giving them the feel of toned abundance. Her stomach was perfectly t while her waist kept the clear outline of the girl¡¯s desired hourss figure.

    With all that said, thanks to Nadia¡¯s relentless training in martial arts, her skin remained perfectly springy, hiding well-developed muscles underneath.

    Compared to her, Le and Daria had a lot more meat both on their bones and on their chests.

    ¡®If I recall correctly, photos of them in bra were an unofficial currency of the school for a time,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to then swallow a gulp of saliva.

    The bodies of his second wives were soft even for one¡¯s eyes, yet, they remained well bnced. And while Nadia¡¯s body type was clearly different, more athletic, neither Le nor Daria could ever be called plump.

    ¡°You do realize what situation we are in?¡± Mathew asked coldly while seizing Le¡¯s body from her toes to the top of her head.

    And even though he had just released his seed into Nadia¡¯s womb, his dick couldn¡¯t help but tremble in reaction to the sight.

    ¡°I do,¡± Le replied, only to hang her head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I just¡­¡±

    For a moment, Le searched for some proper words to use¡­ Only to suddenly turn around and show Mathew her back.

    Yet, Le wasn¡¯t done there.

    She then lowered herself and kneeled down on the floor. Yet, as if this wasn¡¯t enough, she then pushed her upper body forward before pressing her sizeable bust against the cold, wet tiles of the floor.

    With her ass pointed directly at Mathew¡¯s face, Le showcased everyst detail of one of the few parts of her body that she would normally hide just a single day ago.

    ¡°Can you take me like that?¡± she asked, turning her head to the side to cast a nce to the back. She then brought her right hand to her ass, only to pull one of its cheeks away, inviting Mathew to fuck her.

    ¡°Nadia¡­¡± Mathew muttered, unable to tear his eyes away from the sight.

    Even though he felt bad about doing anything that would cause grief to his sweetheart¡­ This was no longer the kind of world where he could ignore everyone else and focus on his crush and his crush alone.

    Mathew then swallowed his saliva before closing his eyes. He took a deep breath as he gathered his courage. And then, just like that, the young man opened his eyes and turned them towards his beloved.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I think I owe them this much,¡± Mathew said before bitting down on his lips and taking a step towards the appetizing sight of Le¡¯s outstretched bottom.

    She then threw her hands forward before locking them at Mathew¡¯s chest and pulling herself up to his back.

    ¡°I won¡¯t stop you from fucking them,¡± Nadia whispered, just loud enough for everyone in the washroom to hear her. ¡°But I¡¯m not going to let you go while you get busy either,¡± she added before pressing her body against Mathew¡¯s back as if to encourage him to move forward.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Mathew hesitated, fighting off the desire to clutch at his heart.

    ¡®Is it really worth it?¡¯ he thought, calcting the situation in his mind for yet another time. ¡®Can we fend off for ourselves with just the two of us?¡¯ Mathew clenched his teeth.

    ¡®No, we can¡¯t,¡¯ Mathew quickly came to the same conclusion that he reached many times over in the recent past.

    His system wasn¡¯t called the wife system, but the wives system. And the greatest strength that allowed humanity to prosper for thousands of years before the zombie apocalypse struck¡­ was cooperation.

    In other words, both in terms of his personal source of strength and in terms of the racial trait that put human civilization where it was just a day before¡­

    Cooperating with Le¡¯s and Daria¡¯s wishes appeared to be of paramount importance.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this, then,¡± Mathew thought before moving forward the few steps that separated him from Le¡¯s outstretched ass. He then kneeled right behind the girl, bringing his hands down on the shapely buns of soft flesh.

    Nadia¡¯s hands suddenly tightened, sending a barely noticeable bout of pain along with the parts she had her arms over.

    ¡®If I just do it like that¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, hesitating even when he rested his penis right in the crack of Le¡¯s asscheeks.

    And then, Mathew¡¯s eyes twitched as a realization appeared on his face.

    ¡®Won¡¯t involving Nadia in this make it easier for her to bear it?¡¯

    ¡°Dear,¡± Mathew turned his head and looked to the side at the girl¡¯s face. ¡°Could you guide me inside her?¡± he asked, only to send a juicy p down on Le¡¯s shapely butt.

    ¡°Ah!''¡± the girl moaned when Mathew¡¯s hand left a red mark on her ass, only for her body to tense all over. Yet, even though her shout was filled with surprise, from the glister in Le¡¯s eyes, Mathew could tell that she actually enjoyed it.

    ¡®Could she be a masochist?¡¯ he thought, only to feel Nadia¡¯s fingers coiling around the shaft of his dick.

    ¡°Open her ass up,¡± Nadia ordered, only for her voice to turn weaker. ¡°I can¡¯t see anything from my perspective,¡± she added as if believing that some sort of exnation was due.

    ¡°Sure thing.¡± Mathew smiled.

    Having Naida discover the joy of sharing the pleasure of intimacy was the easiest way to make her forget about the loss of monopoly over Mathew¡¯s dick.

    As such, Mathew didn¡¯t hesitate when he brought both of his hands on top of Le¡¯s ass, only to pull its cheeks as far apart as he could.

    ¡°Come on!¡± Le moaned in protest, only to then wiggle her hips to the sides. ¡°I can¡¯t wait!¡± she admitted in a pained voice while tears appeared in her eyes.

    ¡°I get it, I get it,¡± Nadia replied in a slightly annoyed voice. And then, with a single decisive movement, she locked Mathew¡¯s dick against the moist and twitching opening that led to Le¡¯s insides.

    ¡°Are you ready?¡± Nadia asked, whispering her question directly into Mathew¡¯s brain. Yet, as if all of this wasn¡¯t enough, she then brought her lips down on his ear, lightly biting at his earlobe.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this,¡± Mathew replied with a determined voice.

    Nadia then pushed herself forward, forcing Mathew to move ahead as well.

    ¡°AH!¡± Le uttered a short shout when Mathew¡¯s dick suddenly forced its way into her pussy.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shook mentally when he felt a tingle of resistance for a moment, resistance that quickly gave up, allowing him to smash his crotch against the lips of Le¡¯s pussy.

    ¡°WAIT!¡± Le begged while her face covered in tears. ¡°Please, it hurts!¡± sheined as tears trickled down the sides of her cheeks.

    ¡°Wait, were you¡­¡± Mathew couldn¡¯t believe the sensation from before alone, opting to ask the girl the obvious question instead. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t expect¡­¡±

    He didn¡¯t need to wait for an answer. Even though he didn¡¯t pull out at all, Mathew could still see tiny droplets of blood oozing from the ce he had just prated!

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mathew¡¯s good-hearted nature took over instantly as he leaned forward and reached out with his hand for the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°Issh mkay,¡± Le muttered through her teeth while forcing a smile on her tear-covered face. ¡°I fill bee¡­¡± she snorted, attempting to clear her throat from snot, ¡°fine! Just keep going!¡± she requested once she regained control over her voice.

    ¡°No can do,¡± Mathew replied without even a moment of hesitation as his eyes moved around the room in search of something useful.

    And then, they fell on the concerned face of Daria, who used to be Le¡¯s sole partner.

    ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± he shouted, moving his hands down from Le¡¯s ass only to grab her by her thighs before pulling her up and on hisp.

    Mathew then left the stability of his back to Nadia behind while raising Le¡¯s legs only to then spread them wide open.

    ¡°Daria!¡± he shouted, turning his eyes towards his other second wife of his. ¡°I bet you can make her forget about the pain,¡± he said, only to shake his hips a tiny little bit.

    The look of concern vanished from Daria¡¯s face, only to be reced by ascivious smile as she glued her eyes to Le¡¯s filled-up pussy.

    ¡°On it!¡±

 Chapter 78 Daniels plan (Mental break fromsmut)

    ¡°What the hell is going on up there?¡± Daniel muttered under his nose as he watched his colleague dirty the floor with the content formerly belonging to his stomach.

    ¡°Fucking disgusting,¡± Norber said once he managed to catch a breath. He then brought his hand up and wiped his mouth clean from the filth before moving his hand on the handle of his gun. ¡°I will fucking kill those kids!¡±

    ¡®What the¡­¡¯ Daniel tightened his lips as he continued to stare at the man. He then shook his head. ¡®Whatever,¡¯ he thought before looking up the stairs.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Daniel asked¡­ only to distract his fellow policeman from what he saw and push him into following him.

    And before Norbert could even answer, Daniel already started to make his way up the stairs, low-key manipting his colleague to follow him.

    ¡°They took Relian¡¯s corpse and hung it on the wall,¡± Norbert said with a grim look on his face. ¡°And he didn¡¯t die to zombies. I could clearly see the trauma only fists could inflict,¡± Norber exined, his face fuming with wrath.

    ¡®That¡¯s it?¡¯ Daniel thought, freezing on the stairs when the surprise caused by the reveal proved to be too much.

    ¡®I could understand some newbie freaking out over a dead colleague, but a veteran like him?¡¯

    Every single officer that came to the school when Mathew pretended to be a terrorist was a trained soldier. Most of them went through the hell of an active warzone in the past, while the rest had several anti-terrorist actions behind their belt.

    ¡°And guess what those bastards are doing right below his mangled body,¡± Norbert muttered while clearly holding his fury back.

    ¡°Judging from how you reacted, are they raping the corpses or something?¡± Daniel attempted to make an educated guess.

    ¡°If it was only that,¡± Norbermented, only to shake his head a secondter. ¡°Some of the girls they are raping are zombies¡­ While the others are no different from fucking corpses at this point,¡± he added, his eyelids covering the upper half of his eyes.

    And it was precisely at this point when Norber passed by his colleague as he rushed up the stairs.

    ¡®That won¡¯t do,¡¯ Daniel thought, reaching out and grabbing his colleague¡¯s cor.

    ¡°Not so fast,¡± Daniel warned, thanking the fate that his ability didn¡¯t allow him to see the scenes Norbert experienced yet.

    It was better for his wrath to explode only once whoever was responsible for the sights capable of nearly breaking a war veteran would be within reach of his hands.

    ¡®I need to think of a song to which I will bash their heads and groins in,¡¯ Daniel thought coldly.

    ¡°Why the hell are you stopping me?!¡± Norbert shouted, swinging his body around and pping Daniel¡¯s hand aside. ¡°This is precisely what we trained and swore to stop from happening,¡± he said, staring daggers down Daniel¡¯s face.

    ¡°And what are you going to do about whatever happens up there?!¡± Daniel slightly lost his nerve. ¡°Are you going to jump over the gap, right into the loving hands of people capable of doing something that shook you to the core?!¡±

    Daniel shook his head.

    ¡°Whatever happens up there, we can¡¯t stop it right now,¡± he said before turning his eyes to the corridor they came from. And just like it was a few moments ago, it was currently filled with the corpses of zombies the two of them ughtered.

    ¡°What do you propose we do?¡± Norber snapped, looking at Daniel as if he was actually siding with the students on the topmost floor. ¡°Do you want to let them go free? Or maybe not do anything at all?!¡±

    ¡®The situation really has to be bad for him to act like that,¡¯ Daniel thought as he squinted his eyes despite not looking at his colleague. ¡®That, or he has some trauma that connects to the scenes he just saw.¡¯

    Daniel didn¡¯t bother to give his reply just yet. Instead, he walked down the stairs, only to stop above the nearest dead zombie.

    Then, without a second of thought, Daniel smashed his steel-reinforced shoe directly into a former student¡¯s head, crushing it with ease.

    ¡°What the fuck are you doing?!¡± Norber freaked out when the brain matter was sent flying from under Daniel¡¯s shoe. He then raised his hand and wiped a small strand of zombie¡¯s brain out of his sleeve.

    ¡°Did you forget already?¡± Daniel asked as he kneeled down on the bloody floor before pushing his hand right into the mess he had just made. And after a mere moment of moving his fingers around, he pulled his hand out with a small, shiny stone glistering between his fingers.

    ¡°Are those the cores that guy from before collected?¡± Norbert shook his head, his voice turning calm in an instant.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Daniel replied, nodding his head as he turned his eyes to another zombie. He then proceeded to extract another core. Only when he rose up to his feet again did he bother to turn his eyes towards his colleague.

    ¡°Even if not a single one of the students on the top floor received a system, they still have an insane advantage of both the numbers and position over us,¡± he pointed out.

    ¡°So we should just give up on saving those few girls that still remained sane despite what they did to them?¡± Norbert asked, his voice turning extremely cold as he stared nkly at the fellow officer.

    ¡°No,¡± Daniel shook his head. ¡°Not at all,¡± he added, only to kick his hand up, letting the cores jump out of his palm only to catch them mid-air a secondter. ¡°But didn¡¯t you notice a strange peculiarity over the things that Mathew brought from the merchant up there?¡±

    The existence of the merchant wasn¡¯t a secret. All of the survivors from back when Mathew summoned it could see that young man suddenly manifest crates full of vital resources seemingly out of nowhere.

    And it was pretty damn hard to miss a pendulum machine that towered over the edge of the floor before it ended up copsing.

    ¡°And what could that be?¡± Norbert asked, the ice behind his eyes melting down a tiny little bit.

    ¡°It¡¯s this obvious?¡± Daniel asked, opening his eyes wide as he looked over at his colleague¡¯s face. ¡°Weren¡¯t the things that he brought exactly the things people needed at the time?¡±

    Daniel turned silent. To the side, Norber followed in his example as he analyzed the stuff he had just learned.

    And then, Norbert¡¯s eyes opened wide.

    ¡°Do you mean to say that¡­¡±

    ¡°The merchant gave him exactly what he needed at that time,¡± Daniel didn¡¯t bother to y some sort of weird games, giving out his answers right away instead. ¡°And I do recall him dering the need to control three merchants at once in order to do something next,¡± Daniel revealed the one detail that stuck in his mind through all this time.

    ¡°So you want to take over the merchant to lure him there?¡± Norbert asked, leaning his head to the side in an expression of slight disbelief.

    ¡°Back then, the merchant took the cores to provide exactly what Mathew needed,¡± Daniel repeated. ¡°And judging from the determination I saw in his eyes, he seems to be our best bet for the moment!¡±

 Chapter 79 ls this a heaven? (Back to r18)

    ¡°Damn,¡± Mathew released a deep moan when Daria¡¯s tongue slid over the bottom of his shaft.

    Her task was to overshadow Le¡¯s pain of losing her virginity with nothing simpler but a pleasure. And once her tongue reached Le¡¯s clit¡­

    ¡±AH!¡± Le shouted, only for her pussy to contract all over Mathew¡¯s penis. While her slightly fleshier body made it so that she wasn¡¯t as tight as Nadia, this still wasn¡¯t something that Mathew could take lightly.

    ¡°You are so cute right now,¡± Daria said in a sweet voice as she looked up at Le¡¯s melting face. She then rested her hands against her friend¡¯s inner thighs before pushing her legs even further apart.

    ¡°Can you pull out for a moment?¡± Daria asked as she moved her eyes to Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Mathew replied, grabbing Le by her soft waist before raising her up from hisp.

    The young man¡¯s dick popped out of Le¡¯s pussy while giving off a wet, erotic sound. And despite tasting the man for the first time just a moment earlier, Le¡¯s sweet hole instantly started to contract and twitch in desperate attempts at luring Mathew¡¯s dick back inside.

    ¡°Let me get the taste,¡± Daria muttered, burying her face into Le¡¯s crotch.

    ¡°Are they¡­¡± Nadia suddenly whispered into Mathew¡¯s ear, only to then quickly run her tongue from the bottom to the top of it.

    ¡°Seems like it,¡± Mathew confirmed his girlfriend¡¯s thoughts. Then, despite how nice it felt to have her lick his ear, he turned his head around and brought his lips closer to Nadia¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°You are so hungry for it,¡± Nadiamented as a small smirk appeared on her lips, only for the girl to lean forward and join Mathew in a deep kiss.

    This time, however, she quickly gave Mathew the reason to call her a hypocrite. Because while he just wanted to put her back into his mind, she was the one to push her tongue inside and turn the kiss into a deep one.

    ¡°Haaa¡­¡± Daria released a deep breath when she finally pulled her face away.

    Alerted by the change, Mathew turned his eyes towards the girl within his arms¡­ Only to realize that Le had already lost it.

    Her face was nk, filled with nothing but lust.

    Even though his perspective didn¡¯t allow him to see it, Mathew could feel the thick drops of juice falling down on hisp, indicating that her pussy was already raring to go.

    ¡°All set to go,¡± Daria said with a smile as she grabbed Mathew¡¯s dick and rubbed her hand up and down. Yet, just as Mathew was about to lower Le down to pierce her¡­

    Daria¡¯s lips suddenly wrapped around the top of Mathew¡¯s dick, only for the girl to suck on it with all the might of her massive lungs.

    ¡°FUCK!¡± a curse escaped from Mathew¡¯s lips, forcing him to stop kissing Nadia.

    Le¡¯s hands suddenly moved. She lowered them on Mathew¡¯s hand, only to grab it and bring it up and then press it against her titty. She then weakly leaned her head to the side, only to then rest it on Mathew¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Cmon,¡± she urged the young man as her hand continued to move Mathew¡¯s fingers all over her chest. ¡°Fuck me,¡± she pleaded, her hips trembling with anticipation.

    ¡®For God¡¯s sake,¡¯ Mathew thought as he deployed all his willpower not to let his lust take over his actions.

    Nadia pressed her naked body against his back and either french-kissed him or munched at his ear as if it was the most precious candy in the world.

    For an ASMR freak like Mathew, that alone was more than enough to bring him to the brink of mental copse.

    Then, Daria¡¯s lips wrapped around his dick, only to move up and down as she grew more confident with her blowing skills.

    And to top it all off, an insanely sexy Le begged him for his dick while hardly able to resist her own desires.

    ¡®Is this how heaven looks like?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to clench his teeth when he could feel the back of Daria¡¯s throat pressing against the tip of his penis.

    Daria then wrapped her hands around Mathew¡¯s waist as if in an attempt to push his dick even deeper inside her mouth. Then, clearly because of something, Nadia suddenly rested all her weight over Mathew¡¯s back as she struggled to maintain her calm.

    ¡®Judging by everyone¡¯s position, this could only be Daria¡¯s fault,¡¯ Mathew thought as he looked down at the head stuck between his thighs.

    ¡°SLURP!¡± The sound of Daria sucking on Mathew¡¯s dick as she finally pulled her head back turned into yet another attack against Mathew¡¯s already weakened defenses.

    ¡°How was it?¡± Daria then asked as she allowed Mathew¡¯s dick to p down on her face. Yet, judging from a lovely smirk of satisfaction that decorated her lips, she didn¡¯t mind it at all.

    ¡°Pretty great,¡± Mathew uttered while fighting off the wave of pleasure caused by the wild movements of Nadia¡¯s tongue against his ear. ¡°But would you mind helping me out a little?¡± he then requested as he sank the fingers of his right hand into the soft flesh of Le¡¯s boob.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Daria happily replied as she pulled out her tongue and ran it from the bottom of Mathew¡¯s shaft all the way to the top.

    Yet, rather than following his request right away, she wrapped her lips against Mathew¡¯s shroom again, only to let them slide down as she kissed the very top of it.

    ¡°It will be my pleasure, master,¡± Daria said as sparks of amusement shed behind her eyes.

    She then firmly grabbed Mathew¡¯s dick and shook it a little.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready!¡± Daria announced as she ceased to move her hand.

    ¡°Here¡­¡± Mathew lowered Le a tiny little bit. ¡°We¡­¡± he whispered right into the half-conscious girl¡¯s ear as he dropped her even further.

    Thanks to Daria¡¯s help, the tip of his dick firmly lodged itself against the wet entrance to her insides.

    ¡°GO!¡± Mathew suddenly shouted, fully rxing his hands and allowing Le¡¯s own weight to impale the girl all the way down!

 Chapter 81 Daniels strategy (Daniels Pov)

    ¡°We have over a hundred cores,¡± Norbert reported in a tired voice.

    He wasn¡¯t physically tired from the fighting or,ter on, climbing the stairs. The activity of this sort was the daily bread for a veteran policeman and an anti-terrorist unit member.

    No, it wasn¡¯t his body that was tired. It was Norbert¡¯s mind.

    ¡°Won¡¯t this be enough already?¡± Norbert asked as he raised his eyes at Daniel with a pleading expression written all over his face.

    ¡®Robbing the brain matter of students and teachers alike from a stone that formed inside¡­¡¯ Daniel thought, looking down at the blood covering Nortbert arms all the way up to his elbows.

    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s hope it will be enough,¡± Daniel replied. He then nodded his head before moving his eyes towards the stairs leading up. ¡°How about the scout?¡± he then asked.

    ¡°I think I found two viable paths,¡± Norbert reported back without even a moment of hesitation. What¡¯s more, a look of relief appeared deep behind his eyes as a vitality started to return to his face. ¡°One leads through the drainpipes on the outer side of thepound¡¯s walls,¡± he said, only for his expression to sour right away.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Daniel asked when he noticed the small change happening on his colleague¡¯s face.

    ¡®Just a single day ago, I would likely ignore something so small,¡¯ Daniel thought, weirded out by the sudden change in his personality. ¡®Maybe it¡¯s the sense of danger and urgency that makes me so perceptive?¡¯ he guessed, only to shake his head as he dropped the topic out of his mind.

    Norbert cut his words short. In the end, he didn¡¯t need to finish his sentence to pass the message to his colleague.

    ¡°From your tone, I can guess that there is another way,¡± Daniel pressed on with his guess, trying to read beneath the lines of what hispanion actually said.

    ¡°There is one¡­ But I¡¯m not really sure about it either,¡± Norbert stated. He then brought his hand up to the side of his head and rubbed his scalp with his fingers.

    ¡°I could vaguely recall a shaft leading through the entire height of the building,¡± Norbert revealed what was going through his mind. ¡°It was on the ns we studied right before the action, and then the whole mess started,¡± he exined.

    ¡°Now that you said this, I think I can more or less recall the captain mentioning it,¡± Daniel admitted, only for his thoughts to turn sour.

    ¡®Right, captain,¡¯ he thought, clenching his hands. ¡®Is she okay, I wonder,¡¯ he thought, sending a short, nostalgic look towards the window.

    The captain herself, along with half of the team, ended up staying back, just in case Mathew¡¯s invitation from several hours ago would turn out to be a trap. And ever since Daniel stepped in to y the role of a negotiator, he hasn¡¯t heard from the woman.

    ¡°Still,¡± Daniel then shook his head before raising his hand and wiping some sort of trash from the side of his mustache. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be so hesitant if there weren¡¯t any problems,¡± he pointed out as he stared at his colleague.

    ¡°The thing is,¡± Norbert started, only to then gulp his saliva down his throat. ¡°The entire thing is sealed off behind a wall of reinforced concrete,¡± he said as he lowered his eyes and refused to look at Daniel¡¯s face.

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s some sort of sealed-off shaft for fire emergencies,¡± Daniel put forth an educated guess.

    It wasn¡¯t the first time when he was met with a situation like that. And it was all a courtesy of the messy buildingws of the city that liked to change whenever a new political group would take over.

    As a result of the political mess at the top, most of the buildings had to overgo several renovations. And the shaft that was on the topic right now was likely first added toply with new fire safety standards, only to be sealed off when the city deemed vertical movement systems like that to be more of a hazard than a help in case of a hazard.

    ¡®Thinking back, this was actually a good move,¡¯ Daniel thought, only to shake his head and look at his former subordinate. ¡°Where is that shaft, then?¡± he asked before pushing his hand out. ¡°Lead the way!¡±

    ¡®There are only one or two schools building nationwide per decade,¡¯ Daniel remembered as he followed after Norbert. ¡®Contrary to that, the number of kids that broke through the doors to those shafts and ended up dying or heavily injuring themselves due to the fall?¡¯

    Daniel shook his head, his soul filling with conflicted feelings about the situation.

    ¡®Anyway, what¡¯s important, is that we can make use of it now,¡¯ Daniel thought as he tightened his fists.

    ¡°We are here,¡± Norbert announced as he stood with his side to a seemingly the same kind of wall that they could find all over the ce. He then raised his hand and knocked two of his fingers against it.

    ¡®There is a hole behind it?¡¯ Daniel thought, involuntarily raising one of his eyebrows.

    The sound caused by Norbert¡¯s tapping wasn¡¯t anywhere close to what he would hear whenever looking for a fake wall.

    ¡°I told you it¡¯s a reinforced concrete,¡± Norbert said and released a deep, exhausted sight. ¡°The seal is actually thicker than the rest of the walls around,¡± he added before taking a step away and pointing with both of his hands at the wall.

    ¡°Either way, it¡¯s entirely up to you whether or not you want to try your best shot at it,¡± Norbert said, only to then shake his head and look beyond a nearby, broken window. ¡°Otherwise, we will need to prepare for a climb.¡±

    ¡®Climb?¡¯ Daniel thought, sending a nce to the world outside of the school¡¯s walls. The angle didn¡¯t allow him to look directly towards the courtyard beyond theyer of the walls, but what he saw was still enough for the middle-aged man to picture the potential fall.

    ¡°No, I think I will save us that bother,¡± Daniel said, approaching the wall and then stopping right before it.

    ¡®What songs should I go with?¡¯ he thought while staring at the nk face of the seemingly ordinary piece of wall. ¡®Maybe this one?¡¯ he thought as his feet started to tap an energetic rhythm against the floor.

    ¡®No, it¡¯s too rapid; I need something with a massive drop,¡¯ the middle-aged man thought. ¡®What about that Big-Room genre that Jean often rmended?¡¯ Daniel thought, his mind filling with the loving memory of his deceased son.

    Daniel¡¯s eyes filled with determination.

    Escaping to using the melody his son once rmended to him appeared like a valid way to pull himself by the bootstraps and move forward.

    ¡®Back in the days, I used it to move ahead with my life. And now,¡¯ Daniel thought as the song started to y out in his mind. ¡®I¡¯m going to use it to push forward my strategy instead!¡¯

    Daniels¡¯ arranged his thoughts perfectly along with the rhythm of the music ying out in his mind. And once the bass drop of the song approached, Daniel pulled his hand to the back¡­

    And then struck it forward the moment the music exploded within the frame of his imagination.

    THUD!

    A loud noise spread throughout the corridor, bouncing off the walls only for its volume to stack on top of each other. Thankfully, though, there was no echo in the school, preventing the noise fromsting for a long and unbearably noisy while.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe it¡­¡± Norbert muttered as he stared at the fist-sized hole in the concrete wall he pointed out before.

    ¡°It¡¯s not done yet,¡± Daniel pointed out as he reset the progress of the tune and allowed it to y all over from the beginning. ¡°In fact,¡± he added, taking a pause so that his speech wouldn¡¯t throw a wrench into the rhythm of the song in his mind. ¡°It¡¯s going to take a while,¡± the man revealed, only to strike with his fist, doubling the size of the hole in the wall.

    ¡°It¡¯s not going to work at all!¡± Norbert protested, only to point his hand out at the wall. ¡°Even if you get to break through thisyer, you will have to repeat it on the top level as well!¡± he soberly pointed out.

    ¡°It¡¯s not going to be a problem at all,¡± Daniel smiled as he replied and turned his face back to his friends. ¡°Because all I need to be is a distraction,¡± he said before pointing at a makeshift bag in which the two policemen stored all the cores they gathered from the zombies.

    ¡°What exactly could you mean?¡± Norbert asked as his face darkened, proving that he managed to somewhat guess Daniel¡¯s intention.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s quite simple,¡± Daniel smiled at his colleague, only to turn around and start smashing his fists against the wall again. ¡°While I will bang on the wall and make all of those monsters gather, I need you to climb the drainpipe, and once you see an opportunity with your ability, you will need to rush to the merchant,¡± Daniel exined his n.

    ¡°And what I¡¯m supposed to do even if I somehow manage to reach him?¡± Norbert asked while crossing his hands over his chest.

    ¡°It¡¯s pretty simple,¡± Daniel smiled even further. ¡°All you need to do is summon Mathew to help you out!¡±

 Chapter 82 Climbing to the top (Norbertsperspective)

    ¡°Good idea, my ass,¡± Norbert muttered to himself as he leaned out of the window.

    It was located in a ssroom nearest to the copsed floor, and as such, climbing from this specific location gave him the best chance at reaching a ce that would allow the policeman ess to the top floor.

    ¡®This doesn¡¯t look safe at all,¡¯ Norbert thought as he grabbed the drainpipe and shook his head.

    There were two sets of metal bolts keeping the drainpipe attached to the wall. And while a single shake of Northert¡¯s hand wasn¡¯t anywhere enough to dislodge them, they didn¡¯t look all that strong either.

    Norbert then closed his eyes for a second, seemingly pushing his consciousness out of his body.

    His vision suddenly turned blurry, as if two images had added up on top of each other. One of the images was the nice view that Norbert had from the window he was at. And the other image showcased the confines of the fire-emergency tunnel that Daniel broke into.

    ¡®He is still climbing,¡¯ Norbert thought as he took a deep breath and canceled the vision from his ability. ¡®But that doesn¡¯t mean I have a lot of time either,¡¯ he thought.

    ¡°Here goes nothing,¡± he muttered to himself before gritting his teeth and grabbing the drainpipe, only to put his foot against the outer side of the wall and press out as much as he could.

    ¡®Thankfully, this wall is quite easy to climb.¡¯ Norbert smiled when he realized how easily his shoes stuck to the grainy texture of the cheap paint used to turn thepound a little nicer to the eye.

    And so, Norbert started to climb, using the drain pipe as a climbing rope.

    Step by step, he continued to push himself a little bit higher than before. And in just a few minutes, Norbert managed to reach the outer rim of the topmost window.

    ¡®Should I try to enter from the roof?¡¯ the rtively young policeman thought, looking up towards the upper end of the building.

    Just like most of the brick-like buildings, the roof was only surrounded by a thin and insecure metal fence, something that a former soldier like Norbert could scale with his teeth and legs alone.

    ¡®The question is, can I scale thest floor fast enough?¡¯ Norbert thought before summoning his ability once again. And by closing his real eyes, he could now use his scout to its fullest potential.

    ¡®The stairs from the roof are too far,¡¯ Norbert realized after quickly flying with his ghost-like ability through the topmost floor of the building.

    Despite how against the physics this ability seemed to go, the vision it provided was perfectly normal, as if it wasn¡¯t a ghost created by some strange ability but a drone instead.

    And then, Norbert¡¯s ghost suddenly stopped.

    The first reason was exactly the same one that caused his convulsions before. It was the sight of the bloody mess that the surviving students organized on the floor.

    ¡®Poor girls,¡¯ Norbert thought as he could only watch the bigger students currently making use of their physical advantage to force themselves on the few girls that saved their lives.

    To the side, Norbert could see the clear second-ss students, left with nothing but bound corpses of active zombies that managed to get away without that many repulsive injuries.

    ¡®It¡¯s like they organized an entire society based on sex,¡¯ Norbert thought while his mood darkened.

    The girls that were currently bound and used near a pir of unburied corpses¡­ they were all the same age as his little sister!

    ¡®At this point, I can only hope she died the moments the zombies appeared,¡¯ he thought, trying not to imagine the possible fate of his beloved sibling.

    Norbert then shook his head before turning the vision of his ghost a little to the side.

    And there it was, the main prize of the mission. And also the only element within Norbert¡¯s ghost vision that looked different from how he saw it with his very own eyes.

    ¡®The merchant,¡¯ Norbert thought before pushing his ghost towards the area he believed the sealed entrance to the fire shaft was.

    And just when Norbert found the seal, a loud bang attracted everyone¡¯s attention to it.

    ¡°What was that?!¡± one of the burly students turned his head to the side, right to where the noise came from. He then pushed himself on his knees to the back, moving away from between the legs of some unlucky victim of this new, rotten society.

    ¡®At least she didn¡¯t need to suffer all that much,¡¯ Norbert thought coldly when he caught a glimpse of the punny dick that the rapist was cursed with. And given how he was just interrupted in the middle of the act¡­

    ¡®I bet he tries to raise his own self-worth by forcing himself on the girls,¡¯ Norbert thought.

    He threw only a single nce at the lifeless face of the girl.

    From her expression, it was clear that she was long broken, no longer able to ept the reality around her. Her eyes were empty, and she didn¡¯t even bother to cover herself up when her oppressor ceased his act.

    ¡®Poor girl,¡¯ Norbert thought before turning his attention back to observing how the students would react.

    THUD.

    This time, he could also hear the sound of Daniel¡¯s fist striking against the concrete of the seal.

    ¡°I heard it too!¡± More and more students moved away from their tasks or ill pleasures only to gather around the part of the wall that sealed off the shaft¡¯s exit.

    ¡®This is a perfect opportunity,¡¯ Norbert thought, pulling himself up to the edge of the window. And yet, right as he was about to jump inside and rush towards the merchant¡­

    Another student walked out of one of the few rooms on the topmost floor. Right behind him, a group of two girls and three men followed.

    Yet, while that spoke a lot about their hierarchy within the group of survivors, there was something else that made blood within Norbert¡¯s veins freeze.

    The man at the front didn¡¯t bother to look in the direction everyone else gathered up. Instead, he intentionally ignored it as his eyes scanned the area, only to then rest for a while on the location of the merchant.

    ¡°They finally came,¡± he said in a low voice, a voice that Norbert could only hear thanks to his ghost.

    The massive student then reached to his belt before pulling out the standard-issue handgun, exactly the same as the one Norbert had to leave back in the ssroom he climbed out from.

    ¡°Do you really need us?¡± one of the men from behind asked, only to reach out and directly grab at the chest of one of the girls. ¡°I really wanted to try the double pration!¡± he announced, quickly proving that even the upper echelons of this strange society they built over just a few hours weren¡¯t free from the sexual exploitation either.

    ¡®A bunch of horny monsters,¡¯ Norbert thought, his soul filling with rage.

    At this point, he didn¡¯t even need to picture his sister as one of their ves. Just the sight of the faces of the bastards responsible for such a sick den was enough to fire his soul up.

    ¡°This is likely a distraction,¡± the clear leader of the group announced. He then turned around and pointed his gun at one of the girls chained to the wall.

    ¡®Those handcuffs¡­¡¯ Norbert thought, gritting his teeth in mute fury.

    There was only one ce where that gun or those handcuffs coulde from. And this ce was the corpses of his colleagues!

    ¡°I need two guys at each staircase; the rest shall guard this wall,¡± the leader announced after a moment of hesitation. ¡°Just in case they want to make us think it is a distraction,¡± he ordered, only for an evil-looking smile to appear on his lips.

    THUD!

    The sound of Daniel¡¯s hit turned out to be far greater than any of the former ones.

    ¡®Now!¡¯ Norbert thought, pulling himself up over the ridge of the broken window.

    He managed to fall inside, rolling on the floor to soften hisnding and make himself harder to notice.

    The leader of the students turned his head around, most likely alerted by the noise Norbert made.

    But it was toote.

    As soon as Norbert finished his roll, he ended up curled on the ground, with his legs tensed up and face directed at the merchant¡¯s figure.

    And so, with one fluid motion, Norbert released his tensed-up muscles, springing up and leaping right towards the merchant.

    ¡°OVER THERE!¡± the leader of the students raised his hand and shouted.

    But it was too little toote.

    ¡®Got you!¡¯ Norbert thought when he grasped the darkness hiding underneath the veil of the merchant. And then, he brought his fingers together, only for a shadowy realm to explore and expand all around!

    ¡®What is this¡­?¡¯ Norbert thought, stunned by the sudden change in the situation.

    He could no longer feel the animosity of the students. He couldn¡¯t establish contact with his scouting ability either, as if something either cut the connection off or as if he ended up in a cepletely separated from the real world.

    Yet, for how fascinating this shadowy realm was¡­ it was also as empty as it could be. Besides the strange mist that hung low above the ground, there wasn¡¯t anything of interest there.

    ¡®If it¡¯s empty, how did he get those supplies out of here?¡¯ Norbert thought before gritting his teeth, pulling out his stashed cores, and throwing them in the air.

    ¡°I want to summon a system user named Mathew from the location within this school¡¯spound right to this ce!¡± he shouted, only for a crazed smile to appear on Norbert¡¯s lips. ¡°I offer all the cores that I brought!¡±

 Chapter 83 Two fresh corpses

    An explosion of light covered Mathew¡¯s vision. And when the momentary blindness caused by the excessive light finally subsided, he realized that he was no longer in the same shower room that he was in before.

    ¡®What the hell?¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around with a bewildered look on his face.

    To his right, he could see a policeman. It was one of the younger ones that Mathew saw enter the school with the second wave after the negotiator called for the reinforcements.

    ¡®I saw him before,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling the single thing that he noticed about this policeman before. It was his age, seemingly making him unfit to participate in high-stakes anti-terrorist action.

    ¡®How could he be a part of a task force for a situation like that when he is so damn young?¡¯ Mathew thought back then, allowing the current him to recognize the man by his side.

    ¡°Hello?¡± Mathew muttered, raising his eyebrows as he looked at the policeman¡¯s face.

    THUD!

    A loud bang forced Mathew right back into hisbat stance.

    He lowered himself to his knees and reached to the side¡­ Only to realize that his ax was nowhere to be seen.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ the young man shook as he looked down, only to realize that he somehow teleported¡­ But in the exact state that he was in when the light exploded all around.

    In other words, outside of the dried-up juices left on his skin by the girls he just fucked, he had nothing to cover his nakedness at all!

    ¡®What the hell is going on?!¡¯ Mathew quickly reached the peak of how disturbed he could be.

    And then, he finally turned his eyes in the direction the loud noise came from just a moment earlier.

    ¡®A gathering?¡¯ Mathew thought, noticing a huge group of people surrounding a piece of wall.

    And then, with another loud noise, a hand suddenly broke through the wall, emerging all the way to the half of its arms on the other side.

    ¡®The hell is going on?!¡¯ Mathew continued to freak out¡­ And then, his eyesnded on the drastic scene by the wall of themon area of the topmost floor of thepound.

    ¡®¡­¡¯

    Not a single thought surfaced in Mathew¡¯s mind. He simply stared at the pitiful state a few girls bound to the well were in; he then looked at the active zombies strapped to the floor.

    ¡®I knew someone would end up fucking zombies,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying his utmost tobat the disgust he felt just by seeing the scene. ¡®But to push the barrier and even go for surviving girls?¡¯

    A fire ignited behind the young man¡¯s eyes as he slowly ran his eyes through the entire area.

    There was a group of men to the side, all staring at the hand that emerged from the wall.

    To the front, a group of five stood, with three men and two women. And out of all of them, five looked at the hand in the wall, while one of them had his eyes glued to Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t he¡­?¡¯ Mathew thought, vaguely recalling the face of the man staring at him.

    Even though they were both third years, that guy was still Mathew¡¯s senior. As one of the very few students in the school that failed to pass the grade, he had no other choice but to repeat hisst year.

    The eyes of Mathew¡¯s senior twitched.

    To the side, the hand moved back inside its hole, only for a figure to suddenly burst through what seemed like a wall of solid damned concrete!

    And then, Mathew¡¯s senior¡¯s hand moved towards his belt.

    ¡®Is he¡­?¡¯ Mathew thought for a split of a second, only for his face to darken.

    ¡®I was teleported from the embrace of my wives into some sort of mess. That alone should exin enough about the situation,¡¯ he thought, springing up on his knees as he leaped forward, aiming straight for his senior¡¯s throat.

    ¡°KILL HIM!¡± The athletic guy shouted, pulling out a handgun from behind his belt. Yet, by the time he managed to raise it halfway to aim it at Mathew¡­

    Mathew¡¯s fingers coiled around the man¡¯s neck while his foot struck right into the man¡¯s elbow.

    ¡°Die, you say?!¡± Mathew groaned when he brought his kicking leg back to ax the backside of the man¡¯s knees. And with a hold over his throat, Mathew didn¡¯t even need to exert any strength to push the man down to the ground.

    THUD!

    Someone came from the hole in the wall. But Mathew couldn¡¯t be arsed to even look.

    ¡°Did you think that you were the boss after I left?¡± Mathew asked, pushing his hand hard against the man¡¯s throat, choking him in the process.

    ¡°LET HIM¡­¡± one of Mathew¡¯s senior colleagues attempted to back him out.

    He appeared in the location only a single moment earlier, but he could already tell who was behind the gruesome things he saw right away. He could also tell that the group most privileged by the situation consisted of the people right around him.

    ¡°Fucking animals,¡± Mathew uttered just two simple words, yet he filled them with all the wrath that red up in his soul.

    ¡®Do I dare to kill him?¡¯ A rationale somehow broke through theyer of hate that filled Mathew¡¯s brain.

    It was one thing to finish off his ssmates that turned into zombies. It was even something else to finish off the zombies that poured from outside of thepound and thus had no connection whatsoever to Mathew.

    ¡®But to kill another human?¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he clenched his fingers around the man¡¯s throat a bit harder.

    Mathew¡¯s senior¡¯s face turned violet as he desperately struggled to catch a breath.

    With Mathew¡¯s kick depriving the guy¡¯s hand of a gun, he now used both of his arms to w away at Mathew¡¯s hand, desperate to free himself from the choke.

    ¡®No,¡¯ a single word appeared all over Mathew¡¯s mind. ¡®I can¡¯t consider him a human anymore,¡¯ he thought as the image of what was behind him resurfaced in his mind.

    ¡°STOP!¡± one of the girls nearby shouted, pulling her hands ahead in a clear attempt to help her man.

    ¡®Hesitate and die,¡¯ Mathew thought while his emotions all flushed down the sink of his soul. ¡®Be decisive and survive,¡¯ he thought, closing his eyes as he pulled the fingers on his right hand together.

    The throat of Mathew¡¯s senior snapped. A bit of foam appeared on the man¡¯s lips before his eyes rolled to the back, and his body stopped its struggle.

    Everything and everyone stopped. It felt as if the world itself came to a pause in shock over the crime Mathewmitted.

    Yet, contrary to everyone around him, Mathew calmly let go of the corpse¡¯s neck before raising it up to his feet. He then raised his chin high and looked down at the rest of the students of the privileged group.

    ¡°Who wants to die next?¡± Mathew asked calmly as if he was trying to figure out tomorrow¡¯s weather.

    Not a single soul in the area dared to reply.

    ¡°And here we have a volunteer,¡± Mathewmented, jumping to the side before burying his feet into the back of the girl that tried to stop him before.

    After failing in her attempt at saving her man, she fell down on her chest. And now, after confirming the death of her man, she started to crawl to where the boy had dropped his gun before.

    ¡°I used to have a crush on you,¡± Mathew suddenly revealed when he finally recognized the girl. ¡°A pity,¡± he added, right as the girl turned her head around with new hope shing in her eyes.

    And right as he brought his leg down on the girl¡¯s spine, snapping it in half with ease.

    ¡°Is there anyone else?!¡± Mathew shouted from the bottom of his lungs as he kicked away the corpse of the girl before looking around the ce.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ the young man raised one of his eyebrows when he saw who emerged from the wall a moment ago. ¡®He is still alive?¡¯ he thought to himself, only to shake his head and move his eyes down the curvature of the area.

    ¡®There will be more than enough time to catch with him upter,¡¯ Mathew thought as his eyesnded on the filthy area where both the upper and the middle ss of the survivors of the floor would satisfy their carnal desires.

    ¡®Right now, there is something else that I need to do,¡¯ he thought, taking a step towards the nearest of the enved girls.

    ¡°Stay where you are, you freak!¡± the middle-aged police officer that Mathew was surprised to see alive raised his hands as he prepared tobat Mathew.

    Only for the young man to roll his eyes in response.

    ¡°Just go and grab that gun for me, please,¡± Mathew said in a calm tone, taking a quick stop by the corpse of the man he killed just a moment earlier.

    He grabbed the sides of his shirt before tearing them apart with one fluid move, raising up to his feet and approaching the girl again.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you fucking dare¡­¡± the officer attempted to warn Mathew about something else, but the young man simply couldn¡¯t care less.

    Instead, he took a knee before the mentally-broken girl, only to cover her naked and filth-covered body with the piece of cloth he had just organized.

    ¡°Everyone, face to the ground and hands-on your necks!¡± the younger of the policemen finally shook himself out of his daze, only to pull out a gun and start moving it around from one target to another.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew muttered as he wiped the face of one of the juniors he saved earlier from the filth before turning his head to the negotiator that was with him when everything went to shit. ¡°Care to tell me what the fuck am I doing here?¡±

 Chapter 84 Crushing jewels to prove a point

    ¡°Here,¡± Daniel stepped forward while taking his shirt off. He then threw it to the one particr young man that was responsible for both him and all the other police officers being in the school in the first ce.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Mathew nodded his head in gratitude as he caught the shirt in the air. Instead of putting it on, though, he tore a small part of the material away only to wrap it around his hips.

    ¡°I gave it to you so you can wear it,¡± Danielmented when he saw Mathew¡¯s actions. ¡°Why are you destroying it?¡± he asked, seemingly unfazed by the situation around them.

    ¡°Because there are others that need something to wear more than I do,¡± Mathew replied.

    ¡®I wonder why am I not feeling embarrassed in the slightest,¡¯ he thought, perfectly aware of how poor job did his makeshift loincloth do to cover his genitals.

    ¡®Normally, I would be too shy to go shirtless, so why am I calm right now?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as he moved over to the next girl bound by the wall. He then tore what was left of the shirt in half before throwing one part of it at the girl.

    ¡°T-thanks¡­¡± the girl muttered, quickly grabbing the cloth and covering her charms with it. Yet, even though it was now obvious that Mathew wasn¡¯t here to do her harm, she still couldn¡¯t find the courage to even look at his face.

    ¡®So much pain,¡¯ Mathew thought as he caught a glimpse of the girl¡¯s pupils. He then moved his eyes away, unwilling to make the girl any lessfortable than she already was.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew muttered as he moved up and stood up straight, only to send a cold gaze at the remaining members of the privileged group. ¡°Do I really need to spell out what you should do right now?¡±

    Mathew¡¯s tone was cold, devoid of any emotion. One had to look him directly in the eyes to see the distant echo of a fury that raged on in his soul.

    ¡°On it,¡± the remaining girl of the group said before standing up and quickly pulling her own clothes off. Left in nothing but her undies, she then brought her hand up with her freshly taken-off clothes in it.

    ¡°Why are you giving them to me?¡± Mathew asked while raising his right eyebrow and closing his arms over his chest. ¡°Do I look like I¡¯m some sort of fetishist to enjoy your just worn clothes?¡±

    The throat of the girl moved as she swallowed a gulp of saliva. Her hand trembled as she lowered her head.

    ¡°I understand; I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said before moving to the side and kneeling by the next victim of this locally formed society, helping her fellow girl to dress up.

    ¡®We will need to bring those girls down to the showers,¡¯ Mathew thought as his eyes passed by the sorry sight.

    ¡°Mathy¡­¡± a weak voice suddenly reached Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ He shook before turning his head all around. And then, his eyes locked on the girl on the far end of the wall.

    There was a pool of some filthy liquid right below her crotch, showcasing just how hard the students Mathew saved went on her.

    ¡°Cass?¡± Mathew asked while squinting his eyes, only for his eyelids to suddenly skyrocket up on his face. ¡°What in all hells,¡± the young man muttered as he took a step towards the girl.

    Cassandra was a transfer student that joined Mathew¡¯s ss a year prior.

    Back when she joined his ss, her exotic, brown beauty made her extremely popr. Yet, what was a positive attribute back before the apocalypse started was also likely the source of the torture she went through.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Mathew asked as he took a knee by the girl. He then quickly turned his head around, only to grit his teeth when he noticed that save for that one girl, the men of the privileged group still remained clothed.

    ¡°There are others¡­¡± Cassandra uttered in a weak voice. She was so exhausted that she couldn¡¯t even try to cover herself, left slumped on the ground with her hands pulled up by her bounds and legs open wide.

    ¡°You!¡± the older of the police officers noticed Mathew¡¯s earlier nce and now moved up closer to trash the formerly privileged group. ¡°Why the hell are you still wearing clothes?!¡±

    Maybe it was the policeman¡¯s voice, maybe it was the look behind his eyes. Or maybe it was the gun pointed at the guys¡¯ heads that made them finally burst into action and start stripping.

    ¡°What was it?¡± Mathew moved to the side of the girl before leaning his ear over her mouth.

    ¡°They locked a lot of people in the room¡­¡± Cassandra whispered, only to start coughing hard a momentter. Yet, before she could sessfully clear her throat, she forcefully restrained the convulsions of her body. ¡°It¡¯s in the back¡­¡± she added before her eyes rolled to the back as she lost consciousness.

    ¡°You,¡± Mathew raised up to his knees only to grab a set of clothes that the younger of the officers kicked towards him. He then looked toward the negotiator that he met at the very beginning of the apocalypse. ¡°Since you found a way to ess this floor, I need you to go back to the bottom floor,¡± he instructed.

    ¡°I think I¡¯m much more needed here,¡± Daniel replied, squinting his eyes.

    After what he saw on the topmost floor of the school, it was pretty natural for him to have issues trusting a random student.

    Even if that random student gave him no reason whatsoever to doubt his intentions.

    ¡°I need you to go to the shower area. The rest of my group should be out there,¡± Mathew informed before turning his head to the other police officer. ¡°Can you go check the room to the back of the corridor?¡±

    Norbert looked at Mathew¡¯s nk face. The two of them then entered a short period of contesting each other stares.

    A single moment passed.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Norbert said before turning around to hide the dark expression that appeared on his face.

    ¡®There has to be something wrong with that ce for that guy to act like that,¡¯ the policeman thought before shaking his head and moving away.

    ¡°One question before I go,¡± Daniel stepped up as he cast a look at Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be easier if you went to fetch the rest of your group?¡± he asked before crossing his arms on his chest. ¡°And how can I know that you simply don¡¯t want to take over the leading role in this rotten ce?¡±

    Mathew raised his eyes and looked at the policeman.

    ¡®Is he for real?¡¯ he thought, his face reflecting just how weirded out he was by the usations.

    Mathew then shook his head before bitting down on his lips. Yet, rather than answering the negotiator¡¯s allegations, he simply turned on the spot and walked towards a nearby piece of a broken wall.

    ¡°I¡¯m strong,¡± Mathew announced while raising the concrete-covered metal club in his hand. ¡°Stronger than you, that¡¯s for sure,¡± he added as he looked the older of the policemen in the eye.

    Once again, a contest of stares ensued. And then, for seemingly no reason, Mathew smiled.

    He stood just a few steps away from the group of the formerly privileged. And Mathew wasn¡¯t willing to let go of this opportunity.

    The young man then raised his arm with his makeshift club¡­ Only to swing it down. Yet, rather than stopping his hand once it reached the bottommost point of the swing, Mathew turned around on his heel only to continue the swing upwards.

    And it also just so happened that the path of Mathew¡¯s extended swing ended up crossing the crotch of a nearby student.

    SMACK!

    ¡°Thatnded nicely¡± was the first thing that went through Matthew¡¯s mind as he watched the student slowly copse. His knees buckled as the pain overwhelmed his mind.

    ¡°¡­¡± the guy opened his mouth wide despite not uttering a single sound. And then, the center of the weight of his body shifted, making him fall down on his face.

    Yet, before that could even happen, his cheeks suddenly bloated up, only for a surge of filth to spew out from his mouth, right as the former student crashed his face into the hard floor.

    ¡°For the awful stuff you did, this seems like a fitting end,¡± Mathew muttered, staring coldly at the twitching body of the rapist.

    For a moment, the young man allowed one of the injured bastards to writhe in agony. Yet, when silent screams started toe out of the man¡¯s throat, he swung his hand up only to bring his makeshift weapon down on the man¡¯s head, ending his torture.

    ¡°And I hope this is enough proof that I¡¯m not like them,¡± Mathew said as he turned his eyes back to the policeman.

    A contest of stares ensued for the third time in the recent past¡­ Only for Daniel to end up giving up.

    The officer raised his hands, admitting his defeat, before turning around. Yet, before he could enter the shaft he used to climb to the topmost floor, he turned his head to the back and looked at Mathew for onest time.

    ¡°Before I go,  I need to ask one thing,¡± Daniel said.

    ¡°Over here!¡± a new voice suddenly entered the fray, making both Mathew and Daniel freeze. ¡°There is some kind of shaft here!¡±

 Chapter 85 Shes my sister!

    ¡°People!¡± Daniel shouted. He then jumped away from the wall he broke just a few moments ago, only to kill his momentum, turn around and get into a fighting stance.

    ¡°No, not enemies,¡± Mathew said and shook his head before approaching the hole in the wall. ¡°Nadia?¡± he then called out into the emptiness of the vertical tunnel that he didn¡¯t know existed just a few moments ago.

    ¡°Matty?!¡± a familiar female voice came from the depths of the tunnel. It was then followed by a set of extremely strange sounds. It was as if someone threw a cat into a metal pipe while ying percussion at the other end of it.

    The noise got louder and louder. In reaction, the older of the policemen lowered his center of weight and brought his fist higher and closer to his face.

    ¡°Arty!¡± Mia shouted right as she reached the opening. She ced her foot on the floor and then used it as a springboard to jump out and leap right into Mathew¡¯s arms.

    ¡°Nadia,¡± Mathew whispered softly when the girl locked her arms behind his neck and hid her face in the corner between his shoulder and his own neck.

    And then, a moment of realization struck.

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Mathew cursed, instantly pinning Mia against the wall and using his own body to hide her features from the men on the floor.

    Yet, there were still a few men in the group of the seemingly innocent students who were forced into this situation just like the girls strapped to the wall. What¡¯s more, there were the two policemen on the floor, even if one of them was now gone.

    ¡°Bring me some clothes!¡± Mathew ordered as he turned his head around and threw a cold look at the older officer.

    ¡°I see,¡± Daniel released a long sigh before raising up and dropping his guard. He then turned around and approached the few men left from the privileged group.

    And contrary to Mathew before, Daniel didn¡¯t even need to say a word, as the students started to strip right away.

    ¡°They might be a little filthy, but they are better than nothing,¡± Daniel said as he grabbed two pairs of jeans and two shirts before approaching the couple by the shaft¡¯s entrance.

    As he got close, he then closed his eyes and extended his hand with the clothes out.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Mathew said as he reached out and grabbed the clothes, only to pass half of them to the girl before using the other half to form a makeshift screen to let Nadia change.

    ¡°You are so thoughtful,¡± Nadia whispered with a small smile on her lips as she grabbed the clothes and quickly pulled them on her body.

    Due to how insanely well-shaped she was, a keen eye could still make out most of the details of Nadia¡¯s beauty. Still, it was better than making her parade naked.

    ¡°I told you!¡± Le muttered as she crawled out from the shaft.

    Her body and mobility were heavily improved by Mathew¡¯s system¡­ but that didn¡¯t make climbing through narrow spaces any easier for her at all.

    ¡®That begs the question, how did Nadia manage to get here so quickly?¡¯ Mathew thought. He then shook his head, opting to drop this rtively meaningless topic.

    ¡°What did she tell you?¡± Mathew asked while looking down at Nadia¡¯s face.

    Only to see how a huge blush appeared on her cheeks. Yet, rather than answering Mathew¡¯s question, Nadia lowered her head and hid her face from Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°When you disappeared in that sh of light, she freaked out,¡± Le exined when she finally managed to climb out of the hole, only to then turn around, get to her knees and reach with her hand out to the nothingness of the insides of the shaft.

    ¡°She didn¡¯t even bother to dress herself up,¡± Daria added when she took Le¡¯s hand and used her partner¡¯s help to get out of the shaft as well.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Daniel opened his eyes when two more voices joined the talks with Mathew. And as soon as the policeman got his vision back, he was faced with two people that he had never seen before in his life. ¡°Who are they?¡± he asked, taking two steps to the side, taking a position to the side of Mathew¡¯s back.

    ¡°Ah, you know Nadia already,¡± Mathew said, pointing at the girl in his arms. He then shook his head and pointed with his chin at the two other girls. ¡°This is Le, and the one still on the floor is Daria. Girls, meet¡­.¡± Mathew was about to finish the introductions only to freeze.

    The words stoppeding out of his mouth.

    ¡®Right, I never got to learn his name,¡¯ the young man thought as he looked towards the policeman. ¡®I remember feeling pretty guilty about it. We don¡¯t know what might happen, so I might as well ask right now,¡¯ he thought before gulping down his saliva and raising his eyes at the officer¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to be asking this sote, but what¡¯s your name?¡±

    Hearing the question, Daniel didn¡¯t react. He stood in ce, carefully keeping both the couple and the two more girls well within his sight.

    It took a moment for the officer to react to Mathew¡¯s words. Yet, the changes that happened on his face didn¡¯t make it any brighter.

    ¡°It¡¯s Daniel,¡± the man spat out through his lips, clearly dissatisfied about something.

    ¡°Right, Daniel,¡± Mathew repeated after the office. The young man then finally took some time to dress up in the spare set of clothes organized by the officer. ¡°All three of those are my wives,¡± he exined.

    ¡°Right,¡± Mathew turned his head to the side when a certain thought popped out in his mind. ¡°Where are the others?¡± he asked as he brought his eyes back to Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Nadia replied while turning her head even further down. ¡°I didn¡¯t really bother to see what they were doing,¡± she admitted, only for her entire body to slump down.

    ¡®It¡¯s as if some sort of energy vanished from her flesh,¡¯ Mathew thought, as observant towards this particr girl as he always was.

    ¡°I told both Carol and that lecherous boyfriend of hers to stay in the showers,¡± Daria spoke up. ¡°Whether they will stay there or not¡­¡± she added, only to cut her sentence short and shake her shoulders.

    ¡°Wait!¡± a new voice entered the fray. Everyone turned their heads towards its source, only to see Norbert with a grim expression on his face¡­ yet a strange light behind his eyes. ¡°What did you just say?!¡± he rushed to the gathering from his ce deep into the floor¡¯s corridor.

    His movements were simple and rtively slow. Just as fast as an unevolved human without a system could get after training extensively for a long period of time.

    Yet, due to the strange aura that the younger of the officers produced, he somehow managed to approach the group and catch Daria by her shoulders before anyone could react.

    ¡°Did you say something about Carol?!¡± he shouted right in the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Daria attempted to back down, only to be stopped by Norbert¡¯s firm grasp over her shoulders. ¡°I did?¡± she replied, throwing a nce at Mathew¡¯s face to plead for some help.

    Sadly, in this particr situation, Mathew was just as confused as the troubled girl.

    ¡°I said that I advised Carol and her lecherous boyfriend to stay back and hide somewhere,¡± Daria repeated her earlier words once she saw that she couldn¡¯t look for help from Mathew¡¯s side.

    Or rather, after confirming that Norbert¡¯s sudden action didn¡¯t cause Mathew to go ballistic.

    ¡°Wait, boyfriend?¡± Norbert pulled his eyebrows together as he brought his eyes down and thought hard for a moment. ¡°That shouldn¡¯t¡­ No,¡± he stopped his words and shook his head.

    He then took a moment to calm down. Norbert took a deep breath, held it in his lungs for nearly a minute, and then finally released it in a long sigh.

    ¡°Can you tell me what that Carol of yours looks like?¡±

    ¡°Carol?¡± Daria repeated the name of the girl only to nce over at Mathew again.

    ¡°A petite girl with a bust not fit for her size. Cute, idol-like face, long golden hair,¡± Mathew spoke out about the details of Carol¡¯s features that he could remember.

    And just as anyone with a brain could expect, when he mentioned the girl¡¯s bust, he was graced with a sharp nudge to his side from Nadia and a cold stare from the younger of the police officers.

    ¡°That¡¯s her; I know it,¡±  Norbert muttered after he was done staring daggers at Mathew¡¯s face. He then shook his head and looked towards the shaft.

    ¡°Do you know her?¡± Mathew asked, eager to learn a little bit more about the clearly not that simple situation.

    Norbert then turned his head to the side and took a long look at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°She¡¯s my sister,¡± he said. He then grabbed the edge of the hole in the wall and jumped inside the shaft.

    Once again, the weird sound of something crashing into metal filled the area. Mathew then raised his eyes to Daniel¡­ Only for both of the men to shake their heads.

    ¡°I guess I should be happy I stalled taking her for a wife for as long as possible,¡± Mathew then muttered before turning his face back to Nadia.

    The girl still kept her eyes down, even though her twitching body was more than enough of a giveaway of just how curious she was.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you happy?¡± Mathew asked, cing his forefinger below Nadia¡¯s chin only to then gently bring her face up. ¡°Now that she has someone to take care of her, I will be able to refuse her request to be my wife!¡±

 Chapter 86 Lets erect a fortress

    ¡°Well, that certainly wasn¡¯t what I expected to happen,¡± Daniel muttered under his nose as he stared into the hole his colleague jumped into. He then tilted his head and looked at Mathew. ¡°Would you mind borating further on the situation?¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t need to put pressure on the young man. A slight smile and raised eyebrow were enough of a hint for Mathew to catch on.

    ¡°The story is simple,¡± the young man said as he shook his shoulder. ¡°You know that my system allows me to take wives to strengthen them,¡± Mathew said.

    ¡®I know it might not be wise to keep reminding him of that fact,¡¯ Mathew thought and bit his lips to the point his teeth cut them open. ¡®Still, humans are pack animals,¡¯ Mathew forced this truth to sink in.

    He took a deep breath before slowly letting it go. He then raised his eyes to the policeman.

    ¡®We can¡¯t survive in this world without allies.¡¯

    ¡°That girl came onto me, asking to be my wife,¡± Mathew said in a in voice he would use when describing the weather to a friend over a phone. ¡°I bet she wanted to contribute to our efforts. And while we came quite close to make her my wife¡­¡±

    Mathew stopped right in his track, biting himself in the tongue.

    An image of what happened back in the shower room resurfaced in his mind. His face then melted down a little in a mix of smugness and slight embarrassment.

    ¡®I guess it¡¯s better if I keep some facts out of the picture,¡¯ Mathew decided while hiding his emotions behind an uneasy smile.

    ¡°But you didn¡¯t do it?¡± Daniel asked. His eyes, although clear, oozed a strange aura of coldness.

    ¡°I did not,¡± Mathew replied without even a moment of hesitation and shook his head to add weight to his words. ¡°Let¡¯s say it was a close call, and your call for me was perfectly timed,¡± Mathew smiled.

    Then, his eyes twitched, putting a crack in the young man¡¯s smile.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he said, smacking his right fist into his left palm. ¡°How did you bring me here?¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t have a single moment to ask this question before. Too many things appeared on the agenda the moment he came to be on the topmost floor of the school.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really know,¡± Daniel said and shook his shoulders. ¡°I gave the other guy a bit over a hundred cores and asked him to summon you through the merchant,¡± the policeman said before putting on a small grin.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± Mathew muttered in response before shaking his head and then turning it towards the girls. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m d you are here,¡± he said as he raised his eyes. ¡°Could I ask you to take care of those poor souls?¡± Mathew asked and raised his right hand only to bend it in his elbow as he pointed behind his back.

    ¡°Oh my God,¡± Nadia muttered when she finally tore her eyes off Mathew¡¯s face and looked to where he pointed at.

    The young man didn¡¯t need to add a single word of encouragement.

    ¡°If you will excuse me,¡± Nadia stated in a cold voice as she pushed Mathew¡¯s shoulder aside and made her way towards the wall of filth and pity.

    ¡°We will help too,¡± Le added. It was a miracle how she could make any sound with how tightly she pressed her lips together.

    ¡°I need at least one of you to stand guard,¡± Mathew interrupted the girls just as they were about to leave. ¡°ording to the traditional firste, first serve rule¡­¡± he added before meaningfully raising and then moving his eyes over at Daria¡¯s face.

    ¡°It will be my pleasure,¡± the girl smiled from ear to ear, her white teeth showing in her cheerful grin. ¡°A zombie or a human, what¡¯s the difference?¡± she asked before shaking the bloodied machete in her hand as she looked across the floor.

    ¡°That¡¯s one thing out of the way,¡± Mathew muttered while he apanied the girls with his eyes as they left to help the victims. ¡°We still have that room left,¡± he then added and shook his head, using his chin to point at one of the three corridors on the top floor.

    ¡°The one you sent Norbert¡­ that other officer too?¡± Daniel sought confirmation of the exact meaning of Mathew¡¯s words.

    ¡®It¡¯s more and more things. Whenever I solve something, three more problems are already starting to pile up,¡¯ Mathewined in his thoughts. He then released an exhausted sigh.

    ¡°Well, no good wille from standing around,¡± Mathew said. He then pushed his back against the wall, forcing his body back into an upright position.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Daniel nodded his head only to then shake it sideways. ¡°But it¡¯s not your job to deal with whatever is in that room,¡± he added as he took a nce towards the mysterious ce.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mathew lowered his eyelids as he asked for rification. ¡®By what logic the affairs of this school do not involve me?¡¯

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have more important things to do?¡± Daniel asked and then leaned his head over his shoulder. Then, a small smirk crept up on his lips as he stared down at Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    The officer then shook his head before raising his hands to his head and rustling his hair in frustration.

    ¡°Out of everyone, you are the one most likely to have any idea about what¡¯s going on,¡± Daniel stated in his stance on the matter. ¡°You didn¡¯t try to make use of the situation here either,¡± he added, lowering his head and then shaking it to the sides as he rested his arms on his hips.

    ¡°We don¡¯t even know what exactly happened here,¡± Mathew pointed out as he sharply looked at the officer. Yet, after a moment of tense exchange of stares, Mathew ultimately lowered his eyes and bit his tongue. ¡°But making use of the situation here?¡± he asked before shaking his head. ¡°No, I¡¯m not that desperate yet.¡±

    ¡°And what could that mean?¡± Daniel asked as he crossed his arms over his chest and raised his left eyebrow up his forehead.

    ¡°If you believe that one will uphold their morals all the way to the end¡­¡± Mathew muttered in a weak voice. ¡°Tsk,¡± the young man then clicked his tongue before spitting on the ground. ¡°Well, then you are in for an unpleasant surprise down the line,¡± he added before stepping away from the wall he used as support.

    ¡°Are you trying to tell me something between the lines?¡± Daniel asked while putting a confused look on his face. ¡°If so, I don¡¯t really get it,¡± he admitted and shrugged his shoulders.

    ¡°I am not,¡± Mathew said as he shook his head. ¡°I survived two weeks into the apocalypse, don¡¯t you remember?¡± Mathew then asked. He then shook his head for a second time. ¡°I saw what kinds of things people did to other people when the push came to shove.¡±

    Only silence followed after Mathew¡¯s words. And for a brief moment, the two men stood in this silence, contemting the things that upied their minds.

    ¡°I will go check that room out, then,¡± Daniel said again before turning around on his feet. ¡°I hope leaving the reins to you will prove to be a good idea,¡± he added before hastening his steps and moving deeper into the corridor.

    ¡°Leaving the reins to me, huh?¡± Mathew muttered under his nose. He then cast a wide look at his surroundings.

    ¡®First, I need to know the situation I¡¯m in,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how his wives helped the victims of the local society to dress up. He didn¡¯t need to ask how they organized the clothes. ¡®It¡¯s not my problem,¡¯ Mathew thought before moving his eyes even further.

    He could see Daniel walking down the corridor and about to check out the one ce Mathew didn¡¯t really know much about. Yet, judging from the face the other police officer made after exiting it, there was nothing good in there.

    And then there was the hole in the wall to Mathew¡¯s back.

    He turned around and looked into its dark insides, contemting his thoughts for a moment.

    ¡°I guess there is no other choice,¡± he muttered before shaking his head. ¡°We should set this fortress up as soon as possible.¡±

    Mathew never changed his ns. Ever since the very beginning, all his actions were aimed at this exact development.

    Yet, this was thest step that he knew to take. It was an achievement he didn¡¯t obtain during his first run.

    ¡®As great as this fortress thing could be, I literally know nothing about whatys next,¡¯ the young man thought and then bit his lips.

    ¡°I guess I should listen to what that guy said,¡± Mathew admitted before releasing a deep sigh. He then rested his hands on his hips only to then stretch his back.

    Feeling the joints cracking under the sudden change of pressure, Mathew finally allowed himself a second of respite. A short moment when he didn¡¯t bother to think about the future.

    He took a deep breath.

    ¡°Nadia!¡± he then shouted as he shook his head to clean all his rxation out.

    ¡°Yes?¡± the girl, who was currently helping one of the victims to clean herself off, raised her head and looked at Mathew.

    ¡°I need you to go with me,¡± Mathew said before putting a small grin on his lips. ¡°We are going to erect a fortress!¡±

 Chapter 87 No one knows what the futureholds

    ¡®This is way harder than I expected it to be,¡¯ Mathew thought as he gripped the rails of thedder.

    His hands were all sweaty, making it hard for the young man to keep his grip on the old, rusted metal.

    The inside of the shaft waspletely dark. The only source of light came from the holes above and below the two of them, leaving the middle partpletely devoid of any light.

    ¡®To think that Daniel climbed up here without actually knowing whether or not he could create an exit¡­¡¯ Mathew thought only to then fight off his desire to shake his head.

    In the ustrophobic insides of the shaft, there was barely enough space for a man to fit in. Any unnecessary motions would only make Mathew¡¯s descend harder.

    ¡°Just a little bit more,¡± Nadia muttered just loud enough for the shaft¡¯s acoustics to carry her words to Mathew¡¯s ears. ¡°Don¡¯t stop now,¡± she spoke out again.

    ¡®Her voice¡­¡¯ Mathew thought as he sharply raised his head.

    It was too dark for him to see anything. He couldn¡¯t even sneak a nce up Nadia¡¯s skirt¡­ that¡¯s is, if the girl actually wore one.

    The reason why Mathew attempted to look up to Nadia was simple. The tense tone of her voice made him worried about her state.

    ¡°Are you tired?¡± the young man asked as he continued to move his hands and legs, climbing down a single step of adder at a time.

    At first, Nadia didn¡¯t reply.

    ¡°Only a little,¡± she finally admitted a few momentster. ¡°But you don¡¯t need to mind me. I went through worse,¡± the girl quickly added before turning silent again.

    ¡°I guess we all are exhausted,¡± Mathew kept the topic going, only to release a deep breath.

    It resonated within the confines of the shaft, turning into a weird, lengthy sound that didn¡¯t resemble the noise Mathew made in the first ce at all.

    ¡°It would be nice to get some rest,¡± Nadia whispered. ¡°Ah, I didn¡¯t mean to¡­¡± she then started to utter words in quick session.

    ¡°Shush,¡± Mathew silenced the girl with a quick order. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± he said. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to keep up a brave front for me. If something is not right, if you are worried about something, please, do tell,¡± Mathew finished.

    And right as he did, the insides of the shaft suddenly became visible, only to turn pretty bright after just two more steps down thedder.

    ¡°I¡¯m at the bottom!¡± Mathew shouted into the shaft, both for Nadia but also for the people at the top to hear.

    ¡°Thank God,¡± Nadia muttered when Mathew squeezed himself out of the hole in the wall. He then waited for the girl before offering her a helping hand.

    There was no terrace aligned with the floor of the level. The shaft was built way before the regtions enforcing those came to ce, leaving it as crude and inconvenient to get out from as it was designed in the distant past to be.

    ¡®I guess the people of old didn¡¯t want to make it attractive for kids to im it for their fun spot,¡¯ Mathew thought, putting some sort of rationale to what he just observed.

    ¡°I was beginning to really hate that ce,¡± Nadia admitted when she finally crawled out of the hole and stood on the solid floor for the first time in a few moments.

    She sped her hands against her clothes to dust them off before raising her eyes at Mathew.

    ¡°If we want to set this fortress up, we will need to get all the cores that we can,¡± Mathew exined. ¡°I will go to the merchant in the office area. Could you go and fetch the cores for me in the meantime?¡±

    ¡®Bringing the stones shouldn¡¯t be all that challenging, especially with how we cleared most of the zombies already,¡¯ Mathew thought as he kept looking at the girl, painfully aware of how tired she was.

    ¡®From her rampage when we fought at the ground floor, through our intimate activities, all the way to rushing up that shaft in just a few moments¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, counting all the deeds that Nadiamitted in the span of just a few hours.

    ¡®Even if I add the system and levels to the equation, she has to be approaching her limit,¡¯ he thought, only to close his eyes and take a deep breath.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Nadia asked right as Mathew released all the air from his lungs in a long sigh.

    ¡°I was just thinking how tired everyone has to be at this point,¡± Mathew said as he turned his eyes away, wary of alerting Nadia about his worries. ¡°While I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s the right choice, setting the fortress up seems like exactly the thing we should do right now.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s confidence in all his choices so far was nothing more but a mere front he showed to everyone. A pretense he kept up just for the sake of the morale of his wives and allies.

    In reality, though, Mathew was just the same kid that he was before he first went through the apocalypse. And while those two weeks of experience allowed him to carry the group so far, the same couldn¡¯t be said about the future beyond establishing the fortress.

    ¡°Am I safe to assume this fortress would stop all the zombies from entering its bounds?¡± Nadia asked.

    Even though Mathew had already given her his order, she didn¡¯t rush to fulfill it right away.

    Somehow, Nadia could sense that beyond the mask of self-confidence that Mathew wore, he actually needed her to stay by his site right now.

    Even if only for a little longer.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I hope so,¡± Mathew replied before he bit down on his lips and averted his eyes. ¡°Listen, back then, we never got that far,¡± he admitted to the fact even though it wasn¡¯t the first time he mentioned it. ¡°What this fortress will do for us, I myself have yet to learn.¡±

    ¡°What else could a fortress mean?¡± Nadia asked only to put her hand on her hips as she stared down at Mathew¡¯s lowered head.

    ¡°I have long abandoned any attempts at forcing our logic on whateveres out of this apocalypse,¡± Mathew countered and shook his head sideways. ¡°ording to what we know, zombies shouldn¡¯t exist. Evolved monsters all the more,¡± he added before lowering his eyes even further, all the way to the tips of his shoes.

    ¡°Matty,¡± Nadia called her partner out with the shortened name only she dared to use. ¡°Look at me,¡± the girl requested while remaining in the same position as before.

    ¡°What?¡± Mathew asked with a tired voice when he finally acknowledged just how exhausted he was.

    ¡°I don¡¯t expect you to know everything,¡± Nadia said as she raised her hands and ced them on both sides of Mathew¡¯s head.

    Unable to move his face now that it was locked between Nadia¡¯s palms, the young man had no other choice but to keep looking in her eyes.

    ¡°You believe that erecting a fortress will do us good, right?¡± Nadia asked while clearly knowing the answer already.

    Mathew did speak of his ns to her a few times already, after all.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew said and nodded his head. ¡°But it¡¯s not erecting the fortress that scares me,¡± he added, lowering his eyes.

    He still couldn¡¯t move his face¡­ but nothing forced the young man to look straight ahead.

    ¡°It¡¯s what wille after erecting the fortress, am I right?¡± Nadia asked. She then put a caring smile on her lips before pulling with her hands and pushing her face forward.

    Their lips united.

    ¡®Her mouth is so soft,¡¯ Mathew thought while immersing himself in the experience. ¡®So warm,¡¯ another thought passed through his head when Nadia moved even closer while actively moving her lips around.

    ¡°No one knows what the future holds,¡± Nadia whispered when she rested her forehead against Mathew¡¯s and pulled the bottom of her face away, stopping the kiss. ¡°And I don¡¯t expect you to know it either,¡± she added, only for her lips to twist in a meek smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m d to hear it,¡± Mathew said in a low voice.

    ¡®It feels strange to be open about it,¡¯ the young man thought, only to then swallow a gulp of his saliva.

    ¡°Here,¡± Nadia muttered as she leaned her head again and pressed her lips against Mathew¡¯s mouth for one more time. ¡°Are you all better now?¡± she then asked with sparks of cheekiness shing in her eyes.

    ¡°Yeah, thanks,¡± Mathew replied, only to bring his arms forward and pull the girl into a light hug. ¡°I¡¯m all better now,¡± he added while enjoying the softness of the girl within his grasp.

    Yet, before he could rx too much, Mathew pushed the girls away before shaking his head.

    ¡°Let¡¯s not waste any more of the time that we have,¡± he said, only to raise his hand and rustle Nadia¡¯s hair.

    ¡°I will go grab the cores, then,¡± the girl smiled when receiving the head pats. She then took a step back and turned around. ¡°See you back at the office!¡±

    ¡®And so she left,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the girl took off and ran towards the outer staircase at the end of the corridor.

    Since the exit of the shaft was located only two floors below the top floor, she still had to run down two sets of stairs to reach the ground level.

    ¡®I guess I should go too,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to raise his hands and p them both against his cheeks.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what erecting that fortress really means!¡±

 Chapter 88 Five hundred or less

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew muttered as he turned around. He cast a quick look at the state of the corridor before nodding his head with satisfaction.

    ¡°It seems they worked hard to clear it,¡± he talked to himself as he moved up the path to inspect the bloody results of the policemen¡¯s rampage.

    ¡°That leaves us with only one side of thepound,¡± the young man added as he raised his eyes to the ss that separated the corridor itself from the sses on its sides.

    Thanks to this ss partition that started roughly at the height of one¡¯s belt and reached nearly all the way up to the ceiling, Mathew could look to the outside without stepping inside any of the sses.

    ¡°I guess we will need to clear it out before establishing the fortress,¡± he continued to talk to himself. Yet, rather than staying on the topic, Mathew shook his head and threw one more look at the defeated zombies filling the corridor.

    ¡®Why am I so sure about it, though?¡¯ the young man noticed thepse in his logic. ¡®Who said that we need to kill all the zombies before the ce would be safe?¡¯

    Mathew shook his head only to then turn around and follow in Nadia¡¯s footsteps.

    He, too, had to get to the bottom floor to reach his destination. And since the main staircase of the school was gone, the side-stairs were his only viable choice.

    Mathew moved up and reached the stairs in a single moment. Now that his thoughts cleared out and he could see a simple path ahead, all Mathew had to do was to follow it.

    He moved down the stairs and then to the rubble-filled central part of the school.

    ¡®We will need to barricade this opening,¡¯ the young man thought as he looked towards the copsed wing of thepound.

    It was a miracle that the entire thing still stood even with this kind of devastating damage to its integrity. Sadly, though, the copsed wing actually defeated the entire purpose of picking this ce as a fortress.

    ¡®Plugging up this hole in any reasonable way would take way too much manpower and resources, both of which we don¡¯t have,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then pressed his teeth together to the point they nearly started to crack.

    ¡®This is the sunk investment facy, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ he asked himself, rolling his eyes over his very own naivete.

    In theory, with how damaged thepound was, it would be better to find another ce to turn into their fortress. And there were two reasons for that.

    First, plugging up the hole left by the copsed wing was practically impossible. And even if it was, the costs of doing so would greatly outweigh the benefits.

    And then came the worse part, one that was less likely toe up but would have much more devastating effects.

    ¡®If a strong, evolved monster managed to get a few good hits at the building, it might simply copse,¡¯ Mathew thought as he looked a the cracks all over the walls of thepound.

    ¡®Well, I can only hope it won¡¯t alle down today.¡¯ Mathew shook his head and turned around to head towards the autonomous office area. ¡®We are too damn tired to go look for a new safehouse,¡¯ he thought as he caught a nce of the sky outside.

    It was still bright¡­ but the first hints of the sun setting had already started to appear.

    The sky wasn¡¯t sullied with a single, tiniest cloud. As such, it was extremely easy to notice the red hue that started to brighten up on the horizon.

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s already toote to even think about any kind of expeditions,¡± Mathew muttered to himself as he stared into the gentle darkness at the edge of the sky.

    ¡°What expedition¡± Nadia asked when she suddenly appeared behind Mathew¡¯s back. She could¡¯ve used this opportunity to catch him by surprise, but even she knew that getting embraced by someone whose hands were covered in blood, filth, and brain matter wasn¡¯t the most enjoyable experience.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Mathew smiled gently as he shook his head to the sides. ¡°It¡¯s nothing that we need to worry about, not yet,¡± he added as he turned around on his feet.

    ¡°I gathered most of the cores that we left before,¡± Nadia reported and raised her hand with a sizeable bag in it.

    Just like all the times before, the bag was made from some severed cloth. The bloodstains all over it only proved both where it came from and what was inside.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go back to the office, then,¡± Mathewmanded before making a move first.

    ¡®With all the cores we left at the office, we should have way more than enough to erect this damned fortress,¡¯ Mathew thought as he hurried into the autonomous area within the school¡¯spound.

    And soon enough, the young couple reached exactly the same ce where the two of them had their first time.

    ¡®Thinking back, I kinda used some fun abilities back then, didn¡¯t I?¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling the events that he pushed to the side of his brain. ¡®And there is still this wife development system,¡¯ he thought as he sent a quick nce at Nadia¡¯s face.

    For something that his system announced with great fanfare, this particr skill of his was pretty much a disappointment.

    ¡®It¡¯s either useless, or I just didn¡¯t figure out how to use it yet,¡¯ Mathew thought before shaking his head and stepping deeper into the office.

    This was the ce where he summoned thest of the three merchants and, as such, the most obvious choice as to where Mathew should raise the fortress.

    ¡°Pass me the stones, please,¡± Mathew asked while stretching his hand out.

    ¡°Here,¡± Nadia passed the bag over before taking a step back.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shook a little when he noticed the girl¡¯s movement. ¡®Is she wary of something? Or maybe does she wants to guard the doors while I¡¯m out at the merchant?¡¯ he thought, only to shake his head and move away.

    Mathew then reached the corner where he formerly hid the cores they had left over from before. And with all the cores that his group had to offer, Mathew approached the still figure of the merchant before reaching out and grasping at the darkness below its hood.

    Swish!

    The foggy darkness of the merchant¡¯s domain shoot past Mathew¡¯s ears, surrounding him and then separating from the rest of the world. And before the young man could as much as blink, he now stood in the strange world he was slowly getting familiar with.

    ¡°I wish to erect the fortress,¡± Mathew announced, raising up both bags with the life cores before throwing them at the merchant¡¯s altar.

    ¡°A thousand cores, fortress establishment epted,¡± the mechanical voice of the merchant answered, proving Mathew¡¯s information to be correct.

    ¡°The number of zombies inside the big, reduce to five hundred.¡± a new sentence appeared a momentter, instantly crushing down on Mathew¡¯s shoulders.

    And before he could as much as say another word, the merchant¡¯s domain dissipated into the air, forcing the young man right back into the real world.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew muttered as he raised his palms only to look at the two bags that he held in his hands.

    Even without checking their insides, Mathew could tell that roughly half of their cores disappeared by weight alone.

    ¡°What did just happen?¡± Mathew asked himself, raising his eyes at the merchant before him.

    But the free-floating blob of dark fog that would usually be under the merchant¡¯s hood¡­ It was now nowhere the be seen.

    Instead, Mathew could see the same dark fog now forming a three-digit number.

    517.

    ¡®Is this the number of the zombies left in the area?¡¯ Mathew quickly drew a connection between what had just happened and what he could see right now.

    ¡°Nadia, dear, can you go and kill eighteen zombies for me?¡± Mathew turned his eyes to the girl as he requested.

    ¡°Why the specific number?¡± Nadia asked while raising one of her eyebrows as her curiosity mixed with surprise.

    ¡°We need to get the number of zombies inside thepound below five hundred,¡± Mathew exined. He then raised his hand and pointed at the merchant¡¯s former face. ¡°If I¡¯m not wrong, this number here is the count of the zombies left.

    ¡°I don¡¯t see anything, though?¡± Nadia said, leaning her head to the side as she threw a side-nce at Mathew. Yet, before the young man could say anything, the girl shook her head and smiled. ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter,¡± she added before turning around and shing her machete. ¡°I will get it done in a moment; just wait for a second,¡± she said with a smile before hurrying outside.

    ¡®And here I am, using Nadia again,¡¯ Mathew thought as he ridiculed his own efforts.

    Mathew¡¯s thoughts stopped when the number on the merchant¡¯s face started to tick down. Five hundred sixteen, thirteen, nine¡­

    In just a few moments, the number reached clean five hundred. And when it changed again, the merchant¡¯s face returned to how it usually was.

    ¡°I guess I can proceed now,¡± Mathew muttered before hurrying towards the doors.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine!¡± he shouted, hoping the girl would hear him as he couldn¡¯t see her at all. ¡°You can go back now!¡± he added another shout before moving back into the autonomous office and casting a long look at the merchant.

    Mathew then swallowed a gulp of saliva and reached out with his hand.

    ¡®Now or never, I guess.¡¯

 Chapter 89 You do not control the merchants

    ¡°It already feels familiar in here,¡± Mathew muttered to himself as the shadows surged forth.

    It was truly a wonder how quick the human brain could be to adapt to new experiences or situations. Mathew only visited this ce a few times, and he no longer felt weirded out by the shadowy interior of this strange space.

    ¡®I don¡¯t really consider this ce weird if I were to be honest with myself,¡¯ Mathew thought as he observed the usual session of events.

    The mist-like shadows surged, veiling him away from the normal world. And as their density increased, the world outside dimmed away.

    The space just a hand-reach away now turned into an imprablend of shadowy fog.

    ¡°You¡¯ve sessfully established a seed of fortress in this location,¡± the merchant announced with its usual voice the moment the space stabilized.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shrugged when nothing followed that sentence.

    ¡°Is that it?¡± he asked, painfully aware of how tricky the merchants liked to be.

    For the briefest of moments, Mathew could see a half-transparent face all over the area. A face¡­ that smirked.

    Pop!

    A set of several screens appeared before Mathew¡¯s eyes. They were pretty simr to the windows disyed by his system. They would be identical¡­ if not for everything besides the rough semnce.

    ¡°Pick the location of the fortress core,¡± Mathew read out the title of the set of three windows that appeared at the very top.

    [First merchant]

    [Effect: Due to its high elevation, the core set in the first location of choice will give a bonus to detection and system alert for major events in the vincity. Increases the area of influence of the fortress.]

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew trembled when the meaning behind those words reached his brain. ¡®I didn¡¯t expect the ces where I summoned the merchants to affect anything,¡¯ he thought.

    Mathew¡¯s lips twisted in an unhappy grimace as he had no other choice but to ept the depressing reality.

    ¡®I wonder if that¡¯s what this random smirk was all about,¡¯ Mathew thought before shaking his head and finally approaching the one thing he realized.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t this description practically screaming the gamenguage?¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s blood first turned cold, only to start to boil a mere momentter.

    Reading the new content presented by the merchant Mathew felt no different than reading a description of an in-game event!

    ¡®Am I in a game or something?¡¯ Mathew had no other choice but to face this question. ¡®Is it all an borate simtion?¡¯

    For a moment, the young man could only ponder while staring motionlessly at the wall of text and images from the merchant.

    ¡°Argh,¡± Mathew released a pained moan before coupling it with an exhausted sigh. ¡°The core idea behind the simtion hypothesis is centered around one¡¯s inability to verify it,¡± he muttered, ditching his recent worries.

    ¡®There is no way that someone capable of putting me into a game and stealing my memory of the fact not to take precautions,¡¯ the young man thought as he made his decision. ¡®Let¡¯s not waste time on these pointless, philosophical questions,¡¯ Mathew lectured himself and raised his hands to his cheeks.

    Pac!

    His hands stroking his cheeks made a meaty noise. A sign of a proper, sobering self-p.

    ¡®Let¡¯s move ahead,¡¯ Mathew directed himself as he moved his eyes back to his other options. ¡®If I move at my current rate, everyone will be long a meal for zombies before I finish!¡¯

    [Upgradeable Merchant]

    [Effects: By locating the core of the fortress at the location of the most sophisticated merchant, the host can ensure better quality and quantity of products offered in the fortress-wide shop]

    ¡®That¡¯s theoretically not bad¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, only to then shake his head. ¡®But isn¡¯t it practically just an upgrade to the merchant¡­.¡¯ he hesitated for a bit, ¡®merchant that I can upgrade in other means?¡¯

    Mathew raised his hand and rubbed his chin. He looked at the description of the second possibility for a long time, worried that he was missing something.

    ¡°The first option has two kinds of bonuses,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose. ¡®Maybe whispering stuff like that would spur the merchant to give me some clues?

    Mathew could vividly remember the face that he saw just a few moments earlier. And for how sudden and, to a degree, scary experience it was, it still gave the young man a hint.

    Whoosh.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew froze in ce when the experience from before returned. This time, however, the expression on the shadowy face that appeared before his eyes was different.

    ¡®Was it¡­ curiosity?¡¯ Mathew thought as he moved his eyes back on the description. ¡®Maybe there is some catch that I¡¯m missing?¡¯ he thought as he started to read everything from the very beginning.

    ¡®It feels like deciphering some kind of secret,¡¯ Mathew thought as he energetically shook his head and blinked his eyes a few times. And then, refusing to give up, he started to read the text all over again.

    ¡®I think I get it.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s eyes twitched.

    First, he noticed that both of the secondary bonuses were kept to the end of the description. And then, he noticed another anomaly.

    ¡®Why should I assume that a fortress-wide shop is a default setting?¡¯

    The realization struck the young man like a hammer.

    ¡®Being able to buy everything from anywhere around the fortress¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, imagining the potential uses of such ability.

    And then, his lips twisted in an ugly grimace.

    ¡®Wait, isn¡¯t this the worst option possible?¡¯ Mathew thought, his thoughts freezing when he recalled a simple yet extremely important detail he had discovered earlier.

    The young man tightened his fists and closed his eyes. He took a few deep breaths, slowly filling his lungs to their brim¡­ And then he released all the air out in a sigh.

    Mathew didn¡¯t have any proof for his theory, only a number of coincidences. It was all nothing more but his belief based on his limited observations.

    Yet, if his experience in the world of apocalypse taught Mathew anything, it was to trust his instincts.

    And on that one point, he could feel his entire body trembling.

    ¡®Let¡¯s check the third option, then,¡¯ Mathew thought as he opened his eyes only to turn them slightly to the right.

    [Third merchant]

    [Effects:  An autonomous area of thepound that has thicker walls than any other part of the school. Its centralized position allows for greater governance of the area. Increases development and upgrades the fortress barrier by a single grade]

    ¡®You can¡¯t be serious now,¡¯ Mathew thought after he took some time to analyze the content. ¡®What¡¯s development? What¡¯s the barrier? Why does it have grades instead of levels?¡¯

    A flurry of questions stormed Mathews¡¯s mind as soon as he opened it up to think about the problem.

    He couldn¡¯t answer any of those¡­ But the fact of them appearing was alone a reason good enough to make his pick.

    ¡®There is no doubt that the third option is the best, but¡­¡¯ Mathew hesitated.

    No good thinges without a prize. It was one of the few quotes in Mathew¡¯s life that guided him through his turbulent past.

    ¡®If this sounds too good to be true, it¡¯s likely not,¡± the young man muttered, once again curious to see if he could invoke the merchant¡¯s reaction.

    He then raised his eyes on the third option in the search for the hook and bait.

    ¡®It really does sound attractive,¡¯ Mathew thought as he brought his hand up while considering his options.

    ¡®Well, I¡¯m too tired to think about it right now,¡¯ Mathew decided before shaking his head and bringing his hand down.

    And then, the few windows that Mathew could see suddenly moved up, just like a phone would scroll up.

    ¡®Warning, establishing the fortress will exterminate all the zombies left inside along with their cores!¡¯

    ¡®Warning, insufficient cores for necessary progress.¡¯

    ¡®Warning¡­¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s hand moved up and down. The text before his eyes moved fast and faster, only allowing the young man to nce through the options.

    [Warning, the user does not control all three merchants necessary to establish the fortress!]

    Thest warning was different from the others as it appeared as an added window by the ¡®confirm¡¯ button at the very bottom of the list of options.

    ¡°What the hell?¡± Mathew nearly screamed out. ¡°How? What?¡± he asked out loud, hisck of understanding pushing him into an abyss of panic.

    ¡®What does it mean I do not control the merchants?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, desperate to find the answer.

    ¡®I¡¯m so damn close,¡¯ hemented in his insides. ¡®Why the hell do more problems need to appear right now?!¡¯ Mathew screamed inwardly out.

    And so Mathew used his internal scream to burn through all his annoyance and grief.

    ¡®There is no use whining,¡¯ Mathew thought. Deprived of all the anger, Mathew¡¯s thoughts suddenly calmed down. ¡®I just visited one of the three merchants I established. I can return to one of them any time I want, so that leaves me with only one ce to check out,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    The merchant he established soon after meeting with Le and Daria. And the merchant that now refused to cooperate in Mathew¡¯s fortress-building ns!

    ¡®Still, that¡¯s weird,¡¯ Mathew thought as he mentally pushed himself out of the merchant.

    For a moment, the sights of the space enclosing him reversed, only for Mathew to return to the real world with confusion written all over his face.

    ¡®I no longer control the second merchant. And that means someone else does. But given how only people with the system can interact with merchants¡­¡¯

 Chapter 90 Lets hope it will work

    ¡°Unless someone else that I do not know about obtained a system, it could only be Daniel, Norbert, or¡­¡± Mathew muttered under his nose.

    And then, his eyes opened wide.

    ¡®Only a single person managed to stay below my radar despite likely having a system,¡¯ Mathew thought as he swallowed a gulp of his saliva.

    She didn¡¯t need to ask if Mathew was okay. She could easily see he wasn¡¯t.

    ¡°I hope this is just me overreacting,¡± Mathew started, only to then shake his head. ¡°But there is a chance that Carol¡¯s boyfriend¡­¡± he said, only for his facial expression to freeze.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Nadia asked again while taking another step toward her partner. This time, however, the curiosity on her face vanished and ended up being reced by worry.

    ¡°Do you even know the name of Carol¡¯s boyfriend?¡± Mathew asked.

    Ever since he realized the point of not knowing Daniel¡¯s name despite interacting with him a lot, Mathew grew sensitive to the topic of people¡¯s names.

    And yet, throughout the entire day, he failed to even ask the guy for his name!

    ¡®Was it me justbeling him as Carol¡¯s boyfriend?¡¯ Mathew attempted to guess a neutral reason for the blunder.

    And then, he shook his head.

    ¡®No, assuming things that are convenient for the moment won¡¯t get me far,¡¯ he thought while he raised his hand to his mouth only to start bitting down on his thumb¡¯s nail.

    ¡°Stop it,¡± Nadia took another step, bringing herself well within Mathew¡¯sfort zone. She then raised her hand and pped Mathew¡¯s fingers out of his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s not a good habit to develop,¡± she lectured with a stern expression on her face.

    ¡°Hah?¡± Mathew looked at the girl with his eyes wide open.

    Her small scolding was so unexpected and sudden that it left the young man in a state of simplistic shock.

    ¡°I need you to take care of yourself, your fingers included!¡± Nadia said as she crossed her arms on her chest. ¡°Don¡¯t you know how ufortable it can get when you are fingered by someone with unkempt nails?¡±

    Nadia¡¯s question stunned Mathew even further. And then, a small smirk appeared on his face.

    ¡°You are right,¡± Mathew admitted and lowered his head in apology. ¡°I will pay extra attention not to sumb to this bad temptation,¡± he added.

    Mathew then reached out and ced his hand on Nadia¡¯s head.

    ¡°Just in case, I¡¯m really happy when you correct me like that,¡± the young man said as he rustled Nadia¡¯s hair.

    ¡°Mhmm¡­¡± the girl only hummed in response, closing her eyes while she enjoyed the head pat. ¡°I will be sure to scold you lots, then,¡± she added, her lips forming a little, shy smile.

    ¡°That¡¯s my girl.¡± Mathew¡¯s lips formed a smile on their own, reflecting the state of his soul.

    This simple interaction was exactly what the young man needed to break through the stalemate his mind entered a moment earlier. Be it patting his crush¡¯s head, having her worry over him, or suggesting interesting events toeter, Nadia did everything as perfectly as if she was following a script with exploits to Mathew¡¯s soul.

    ¡°What is the problem, then?¡± Nadia asked when her therapeutic job reached its conclusion. ¡°Do we need to kill more zombies?¡±

    ¡°Not this time, dear,¡± Mathew replied. He then reached out with both of his hands before pulling the girl into his chest. ¡°For now, just let me think, okay?¡± he asked as he moved his hands down beforeying them down on the girl¡¯s waist.

    ¡®This is sofortable,¡¯ Mathew thought when he rested his head on the girl¡¯s shoulder.

    Theforting from the warmth of her body gave him the peace of mind Mathew needed to focus.

    ¡®I doubt Daniel or even Norbert would do something to intentionally bother me. Still, they used the merchant to summon me to the top floor,¡¯ Mathew thought, analyzing the situation.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s not worry too much,¡± he finally said as he raised his head and looked Nadia directly in the eyes. ¡°Thanks for the help; I doubt you have an idea how much it helped,¡± he added.

    ¡°Sure thing?¡± Nadia replied in a reluctant voice, clearly not sure what exactly did she do to deserve such praise. ¡°If it¡¯s a hug you want, you cane to me anytime,¡± she added when she gave up on attempting to understand Mathew¡¯s way of thinking and decided to just go with the flow.

    ¡°I¡¯m d to hear it,¡± Mathew replied before patting Nadia¡¯s head onest time and then moving towards the doors. ¡°We need to go back to the top floor. Hopefully, doing that will solve the problem,¡± he exined as he got on the move.

    ¡°The problem?¡± Nadia asked, leaning her head to the side as she followed in her partner¡¯s steps. ¡°Do we have one?¡±

    ¡°Hopefully, we do not,¡± Mathew replied, only to bite himself in the tongue. ¡°But in the world of apocalypse, things hardly go the way one would want them to,¡± he added before turning silent.

    ¡®Assuming that everything is okay and I only need to use the first merchant once, which of the options I should choose?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as he climbed the stairs up to the floor, where Daniel created an entrance to the deste shaft.

    ¡®I don¡¯t even need to consider the second option. And that leaves me with the first or the third ones¡­¡¯ Mathew thought as he stepped inside the shaft and started to climb his way up thedder.

    ¡®I guess the third option sounds too good to be true,¡¯ Mathew decided after a few moments, right as he reached the opening to the topmost floor of the school. ¡®I guess I should go with the first one, then?¡¯ he thought while crawling out of the small hole in the wall.

    ¡°You are already back?¡± Daniel asked when he noticed the couple returning.

    ¡°Just for a moment,¡± Mathew replied in just a few words before hurrying towards the merchant located right at the edge of the broken floor. He then gulped down his saliva and reached out with his hand.

    ¡®Let¡¯s hope it will work,¡¯ he thought before grasping at the darkness hidden underneath the merchant¡¯s hood.

 Chapter 91 The mystery behind the room

    ¡®It¡¯s starting to get boring,¡¯ Mathew thought when the shadows surged all around him.

    What used to be a magnificent disy of the power that Mathew didn¡¯t understand now turned into nothing more than an annoying cutscene the young man couldn¡¯t skip.

    ¡®If controlling the merchants refers to being thest one to use their service, that should be enough,¡¯ Mathew thought right as the merchant¡¯s subspace finalized its forming-up process.

    Then the shadows of the realm suddenly pulled out, revealing the exact same space that Mathew experienced near the beginning of the apocalypse.

    ¡°It didn¡¯t change at all, huh?¡± he muttered as he shook his head, ready to return to the real world right away.

    Yet, contrary to the second or even third merchant that had some stuff in their subspace, this particr merchant had no wares on disy at all.

    ¡®If I do recall, I simply needed to call out what I need for it to appear,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He experienced it all only a few hours in the past. Yet, the intensity of all the events he went through in the day made it actually challenging to remember such minute details.

    ¡°Machine gun!¡± Mathew shouted.

    And nothing happened.

    ¡°Oh right, I don¡¯t have a single core on me,¡± Mathew muttered, only to shake his head and exit the subspace.

    ¡°Nadia, dear, could you go and fetch me five cores?¡± the young man asked the moment he returned to the real world.

    ¡°Do you need to buy something?¡± the girl asked, leaning her head to the side as her eyes filled to the brim with curiosity.

    ¡°I¡¯m just trying to cover all the bases,¡± Mathew announced before putting a small smile on his lips. ¡°I don¡¯t really know what control means, but maybe it has something to do with being thest one to purchase anything?¡± Mathew exined before shaking his head and looking down.

    ¡®Maybe announcing that I have no idea what to do in public wasn¡¯t the smartest thing to do,¡¯ he thought as he threw a nce around the area.

    It was only then that Mathew finally noticed a few changes to its interior.

    ¡°Damn, girls,¡± he muttered when he noticed a bunch of bleeding corpses hanging outside of the window. And even without paying much attention, Mathew could tell who they were. ¡°That¡¯s pretty brutal!¡±

    ¡°Do you have a problem with that?¡± Daria approached her husband with a nk expression on her face.

    Her hands were covered with blood, from the tip of her fingers all the way to her elbows. As such, it didn¡¯t take a genius to guess just who dolled out the punishment to the privileged bastards that attempted to rule the floor.

    ¡°Not really.¡± Mathew shook his shoulders. He was more than ustomed to the sight of death. The gruesome sights of devastated bodies didn¡¯t bother him either. After all, any zombie that was born out of a victim rather than the initial wave would have its body in a pretty terrible shape.

    Mathew¡¯s words clearly had some sort of influence over the girl as her cold expression melted down.

    ¡°What do you need, then?¡± Daria asked, cing her bloodied hands on her hips as she stared directly at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Five cores,¡± Mathew exined while raising his hand to stop Nadia from moving out.

    ¡®It will be better if I keep her by my side at all times,¡¯ he thought.

    They were both tired. All the fighting, struggling, and running around started to take a toll on the young man¡¯s flesh, even with all the support his system offered.

    ¡®If either of us were to face an enemy with a system alone, things could go south pretty quickly,¡¯ the young man thought, already worried about the future.

    The options and problems that establishing the fortress brought forth gave the young man peace of mind. With a clear route ahead, he didn¡¯t need to worry about what to do.

    Yet, the perspective of finishing his current tasks was looming, constantly weighing down on Mathew¡¯s mood.

    ¡°Give me a moment,¡± Daria replied, forcing Mathew out of his pondering state.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ the young man shook a little when he noticed a change that came to the girl¡¯s face.

    Just a moment ago, she smiled. It was a small smile, but a smile nevertheless. And now that he mentioned the cores¡­

    The girl turned around on her heel and walked away.

    ¡®Don¡¯t tell me,¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes opening wide when he followed the girl¡¯s movements with them.

    And there was no denying it. Rather than going towards any of the possible paths to leave the top floor, she directed herself towards the mysterious room that Mathew had heard about before.

    ¡®Well, that would exin a lot of things,¡¯ Mathew thought as his expression darkened.

    There was only a single possible exnation for Daria heading to the mysterious room when requested to organize some cores. Save for the girl sneaking some cores on her in advance, that could only mean there were zombies in there!

    ¡®With their numbers and even the guns, those poor bastards wouldn¡¯t have any problem dealing with a few zombies,¡¯ Mathew thought while sending a nce to the still bleeding bodies by the window. ¡®And that can only mean they kept those zombies alive and kicking for a reason.¡¯

    Mathew didn¡¯t show a single sign of surprise. Rather than that, he took a step to the side and hunted for Nadia¡¯s hand.

    He didn¡¯t go anywhere further with that either, opting to just hold her hand for the time being.

    ¡°Matty,¡± Nadia raised her eyes on her partner¡¯s face, only to then purse her lips and move her eyes away.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Mathew said in a low voice as he squeezed Nadia¡¯s hand with his fingers.

    ¡°What are you thanking me for?¡± Nadia asked while keeping her face straight and eyes directed right to the front. ¡°I didn¡¯t do or say anything,¡± she pointed out.

    ¡°And that¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m thanking you for,¡± Mathew turned his face and looked into the girl¡¯s eyes. ¡°Thank you for being here for me.¡±

 Chapter 92 l might be cute, but Im not anidiot!

    ¡°There you go,¡± Daria said while reaching her bloodied hand out.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Mathew said when the girl dropped the blood-covered cores on his open palm. ¡°And with that said,¡± Mathew added, only to turn around and head right back towards the merchant.

    ¡®Let¡¯s get this over with,¡¯ he thought as he reached for the blob of darkness.

    A moment of shadowy theatricster, Mathew appeared right back in the merchant¡¯s realm.

    ¡°I wish to buy basic supplies,¡± he said before throwing the five cores in his hand.

    The process of purchasing the items from the merchant didn¡¯t change at all. The cores first exploded with brightness, only for the light to then disappear, leaving behind a box of food, water, and basic medicine.

    ¡®With that, there shouldn¡¯t be any further problems,¡¯ Mathew thought when he grabbed the box.

    ¡°I¡¯m leaving; see you soon!¡± he said out loud, not directing his words at anyone or anything specific.

    It wasn¡¯t a mark of Mathew¡¯s rudeness. There simply wasn¡¯t anyone in that space for him to direct his words at.

    And just like that, the shadows that made up the subspace all pulled towards Mathew¡¯s hand, only to condense into the same blob of darkness he grasped.

    ¡°How did it go?¡± Nadia asked only to move her eyes towards the box in Mathew¡¯s hand. ¡°I see it went well,¡± she added, answering her own question.

    ¡°Yeah. As for those¡­¡± Mathew muttered, only to raise his hand and look at the box himself. ¡°Daniel!¡±

    ¡°Yeah?¡± the policeman answered right away. Yet it took him an actual moment to leave the room he was in and appear in the main area of the floor. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he then asked.

    ¡°Distribute those to everyone,¡± Mathew ordered while shaking the box in his hand before cing it on the ground. ¡°Oh right, while I¡¯m away, don¡¯t let anyone use the merchant,¡± the young man added before turning around on his spot and leaving for the hole in the wall.

    ¡°Are we going now?¡± Nadia asked despite already following after Mathew¡¯s back.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the young man nodded his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it will be enough or if we will have to visit thest merchant as well,¡± he revealed, only to then shrug his shoulders. ¡°Oh, but that reminds me,¡± Mathew added, only to turn his head to the back.

    ¡°Before I forget, if you hear me pping three times in the shaft, that means I need both of you toe with me,¡± Mathew said when he locked his eyes on Daria¡¯s silhouette.

    ¡°Some fighting up?¡± Daria asked while raising one of her eyebrows.

    ¡°A fight?!¡± Le shouted, bursting out of one of the rooms. ¡°When? Where?¡± she asked with her eyes brimming with excitement.

    ¡®Foolish girl,¡¯ Mathew thought, his expression darkening a little. ¡®What¡¯s there in the fight for you to get so excited over?¡¯ he asked himself, only to then shake his head.

    ¡°It¡¯s possible. But before that, I have one question,¡± Mathew suddenly announced despite having no ns to keep the talk. He even turned around on his heel, dropping the idea of going back to the bottom floor right away. ¡°Do you guys know the name of Carol¡¯s boyfriend?¡±

    It was a simple question. And given how popr Le and Daria used to be in the pre-apocalypse world, there was a small chance they had heard about the guy before.

    ¡°That guy?¡± Daria asked, her eyes opening wide in surprise. ¡°I don¡¯t really know him, so I¡­¡±

    ¡°I know!¡± Le shouted, raising her hand like a child eager to be called out to the ckboard. ¡°He tried to court me in the past, and I just happened to remember his name,¡± she added as a wide smile decorated her lips. ¡°His name is¡­¡±

    Le¡¯s words stopped right as she was about to reveal the name. Her face then tensed up only to take on a look of confusion.

    ¡°Huh?¡± the girl shrugged and lowered her eyes to the floor. ¡°That¡¯s weird,¡± she added, only to then raise her eyes on Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°I can¡¯t recall his name at all!¡±

    ¡®So I was right,¡¯ Mathew thought, his expression darkening once again.

    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Le asked, raising her confusion-filled eyes at her husband¡¯s face. ¡°Why can I remember his name at all?¡±

    Her voice changed as tones of panic started to settle in. Her shoulders started to shake. She then brought her hands up only to cover the sides of her head, clearly trying to fight off a sudden headache that struck her.

    ¡°Forget it,¡± Mathew ordered in a cold tone. Yet, seeing how his words bore no fruit, he dashed forward.

    Mathew was tired, but not to the point of being unable to move. He reached Le¡¯s side in a single leap¡­

    Only to send a juicy p right at her cheek.

    ¡°Auch!¡± Le cried out in protest, moving her hands from her temple to her burning cheek. ¡°What was that for?!¡± she screamed out, more surprised than she was angry.

    ¡°Don¡¯t try to recall his name,¡± Mathew ordered as he grabbed Le¡¯s face between his hands and forced the girl to look him directly in the eyes. ¡°I have no proof, but I believe his system might be somehow rted to that,¡±  Mathew exined.

    ¡®And that means we will likely have to check the other merchant out,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth over the annoyance that just surfaced.

    ¡®Whatever his system enables him to do, it shouldn¡¯t be better than what I received up to this point,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to bring his hands down from Le¡¯s face and stand up.

    ¡°Do we have a problem?¡± Nadia asked, already standing by Mathew¡¯s side.

    ¡®I didn¡¯t even notice when she moved¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, stopping himself from rolling his eyes. ¡®I knew she could move both silently and quickly, but this right now?¡¯

    Mathew shook his head again, only to force a smile on his lips.

    ¡°Nadia¡­¡± Mathew muttered while refusing to look at the girl.

    ¡°Okay,¡± the girl epted the request that Mathew didn¡¯t even voice. And when the young man turned his head around to look at the girl¡¯s face, Nadia simply shook her shoulders and smiled. ¡°What? You dropped all those hints, and now you are surprised I saw through them?¡±

    Nadia¡¯s face changed to house a look of disbelief¡­ that the girl then quickly chased away only to giggle.

    ¡°I might be the cutest girl around, but don¡¯t think that makes me an idiot!¡±

 Chapter 93 Not yet

    ¡°Never have I thought of you as stupid; I swear on my life,¡± Mathew said, stopping in his tracks to turn around and look at Nadia. His eyes were all serious, despite the joking tone the girl used a moment earlier.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Nadiaughed out, only to reach out and pat Mathew¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I was just joking around; you don¡¯t need to take it so seriously,¡± she added with a smile before catching Mathew¡¯s hand with her own and leading him towards the hole.

    ¡°Sorry about that, then,¡± Mathew whispered while hanging his head low. ¡°I just have so much on my head¡­ I didn¡¯t want to spare even a single chance of you taking it seriously,¡± he added despite his voice weakening with every word he said.

    Mathew then trembled on his lips, nearly slipping while making a simple step.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ the young man shrugged, shocked by the sudden development of his exhaustion. ¡®No, it¡¯s not development,¡¯ he thought as he swallowed a gulp of saliva. ¡®I guess all my exhaustion is truly catching up with me.¡¯

    It was the worst timing possible. Or rather, it would be as long as Mathew¡¯s negative guess would end up correct.

    ¡°Something wrong?¡± Nadia asked when she turned around to slip into the hole in the wall, allowing her to steal a nce at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯m just a little tired, that¡¯s all,¡± Mathew replied while putting a small smile on his lips, hoping to hide the real state of his body.

    ¡®I need to push myself just a little bit harder,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he forced his body to stabilize and then followed after the girl.

    ¡®If we really end up fighting¡­ this might prove to be pretty troublesome,¡¯ Mathew thought as he moved down thedder.

    His arms grew hotter and hotter to the point where his muscles felt as if they were on fire. Holding his own weight quickly turned out to be quite a challenge, especially when he had to constantly move down only to then kill his momentum to grab another step of thedder.

    ¡°Just a little bit further, dear,¡± Nadia called out, somehow noticing Mathew¡¯s state in theplete darkness of the shaft.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Mathew gave a weak response, focusing all of his remaining strength on his movements instead.

    ¡°We are here,¡± Nadia said a momentter, only to squeeze herself out of the hole before helping her partner do the same.

    ¡°What do we do now?¡± the girl asked when Mathew finally got out of the hole and rested his back against the wall.

    ¡°For now, I need a short rest,¡± the young man announced.

    ¡®There is no point in ying tough,¡¯ Mathew realized when the true weight of his exhaustion finally struck. ¡®Even breathing is fucking hard right now,¡¯ he thought while trying to calm himself down.

    ¡°Now I¡¯m sure,¡± Nadia said, her voice turning surprisingly cold.

    Mathew raised his eyes to look at the girl, confused by the sudden change in her mood.

    ¡®Wasn¡¯t she yful just a moment ago?¡¯ he thought, unable to see through the unexpected development.

    ¡°You don¡¯t even know why I¡¯m mad,¡± shemented, only to then lock her arms over her shoulder. Her eyes were now fully cold as she seized Mathew from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet.

    ¡°How could I know?¡± Mathew slowly raised his head up to look Nadia directly on the face, hoping to find some clues there.

    Yet, even when he did just like he nned, he couldn¡¯t see a thing besides the coldness in the girl¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Aaah, this is going to be damn bothersome,¡± Nadia whined before taking a step forward¡­ And then mmed her hands against the wall on both sides of Mathew¡¯s head.

    ¡®Is this the legendary kabedon?¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling the scenes from anime and manga alike where a thing like this happened. He could only vaguely recall it given how female romances weren¡¯t Mathew¡¯s forte.

    Nadia mmed her hands against the wall, pinning Mathew in ce. Due to the extremely short distance between the two, the young man could now fully appreciate both the girl¡¯s faint fragrance and her loosely covered curves¡­

    Mathew¡¯s desperate plea¡­ Actually worked. Or rather, his body was so tired that outside of the little tingle, it could not fork out the energy necessary to put him in the mood.

    ¡°I¡¯m extremely disappointed with you, Mathew,¡± Nadia slowly uttered her words while making sure to put a huge emphasis on her husband¡¯s name.

    ¡°Can you at least tell me what did I do wrong?¡± Mathew asked weakly. ¡®This isn¡¯t the time nor the ce for a couple¡¯s quarrel!¡¯ he thought, desperate to find a way to cate the girl.

    They didn¡¯t know whether Mathew¡¯s n regarding merchants worked. And right now, it was of utmost importance.

    ¡°You are pushing yourself too damn hard!¡± Nadia finally exined what bothered her. She then lowered her head and rested her forehead against Mathew¡¯s sr plexus. ¡°It pains me to watch it; I don¡¯t want you to overexert yourself!¡± she said, raising her face and looking Mathew directly in the eyes.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew gulped down his saliva as he looked in the girl¡¯s teary eyes, ¡®she is going to squeeze my heart out!¡¯

    The extreme exhaustion mixed with sensory overdose caused by the girl now both assaulted Mathews¡¯s mind and body alike.

    He pressed his back against the wall a bit harder, unable to keep himself on his feet.

    ¡°I understand,¡± Mathew finally whispered, hardly able to make his voice any louder. ¡°And I¡¯m sorry for making you worry,¡± he added, raising his hand to the girl¡¯s cheek only to wipe a single tear off her face with his thumb.

    Mathew took a deep breath while hanging his head to the back. He closed his eyes for a moment, holding the breath in, only to then release it in a long sigh.

    ¡°But we can¡¯t stop. Not now,¡± Mathew said and shook his head. ¡°Not yet. Not when we are just a step away from creating that damned fortress!¡±

 Chapter 94 One merchant left to control

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that this might turn moreplicated than you initially expected?¡± Nadia asked, leaning her head to the side to showcase the doubt behind her words.

    ¡°We won¡¯t know it until we check the merchant in the office,¡± Mathew countered. ¡°And trust me, nothing would make me happier than everything going smoothly right now,¡± Mathew countered.

    He then took another deep breath before bravely pushing his body forward.

    At first, keeping his stability proved to be a challenge Mathew couldn¡¯t really face. Yet, as he pushed himself further and further, his body finally managed to adapt to Mathew¡¯s current level of exhaustion, allowing him to keep his posture straight.

    ¡°I can¡¯t say that I¡¯m convinced,¡± Nadia informed while bringing her hands up to support Mathew from the side. She let go only after making sure that Mathew could actually hold his own. ¡°What if it won¡¯t work?¡± she then asked. ¡°What if you still won¡¯t be able to establish that fortress?¡±

    Mathew only smiled before pushing Nadia¡¯s hands away and patting her shoulder.

    ¡°And why do you think I asked the girls on the top floor to wait for the sound of pping?¡±

    ¡°Ah!¡± Nadia released a small, shocked moan. ¡°So that¡¯s what you meant back then!¡±

    Her eyes widened up a little, only for the girl to then shake her head.

    ¡°I know the two of them are bound to be tired as well,¡± Mathew brought up the point that he felt Nadia was about to speak about. ¡°But if my worries are on point, then we willpensate for our exhaustion with our numbers,¡± Mathew exined, only to send his arms towards the girl when his knees trembled.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really see you contributing anything if a fight were to actually happen,¡± Nadiamented despite eagerly offering Mathew her shoulder.

    ¡°You might actually be right,¡± Mathew admitted, unable to avoid resting a part of his weight on the girl.

    The young man managed to force himself to keep going for now, but that didn¡¯t mean his exhaustion went away. And even though they were out of the vertical shaft now, each step that Mathew took made his body scream out in the pain of burning muscles.

    ¡®But there is still one more thing that I can do to make such fight easier for you, guys,¡¯ Mathew thought as he called forth and took a nce at a single, particr line of his system.

    [umted Levels ¨C 11/14]

    This single line was significant not because of what it portrayed but because of the meaning hidden behind this number.

    ¡®In other words, I can still give away three more levels,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to fight off his desire to do so right away.

    The times when he was desperate to raise the strength of his group were now over. With no evolved monsters left on the school grounds and the zombies themselves no longer posing any significant threat, Mathew saw no point in rushing to use those levels.

    But now, the situation has potentially changed.

    ¡®It all rides on whether I will be able to set this fortress up or not,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth when the hard part of his ongoing journey started.

    ¡°The stairs¡­¡± Mathew whispered silently.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia turned her head around, stopping right before taking the first step down. ¡°Did you say something?¡± she asked, ncing over at her partner¡¯s face.

    Mathew shook his head sideways, unwilling to waste his energy on spouting pointless words.

    ¡®If I can get the message through with just a shake of my head, there is no point to speak, is there?¡¯ he thought, pursing his lips and preparing for the hell that was ahead of him.

    Nadia turned her eyes back to the front as soon as she registered Mathew¡¯s reply. And without any further hesitation, she started to descend the stairs while still helping Mathew to move down with her.

    ¡®I¡¯m nothing but a burden right now,¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling his soul stifling with the guilt that the situation caused him to experience.

    ¡®Wasn¡¯t I supposed to be her strength? If so, how can I ept the current state of things?¡¯

    Mathew continued to bombard his consciousness with the dark thoughts while Nadia continued her fight to help him all the way to the ground floor.

    ¡°We are almost there,¡± she uttered her first words when they finally reached the bottom of thepound. ¡°Just hand on for a little longer,¡± she added, moving Mathew¡¯s arm so that it would lock over her shoulders.

    ¡°You are not the one to speak like that,¡± Mathew whispered softly, perfectly aware of all the sweat that the girl shed. He could see the fat drops appearing on her forehead only to then trickle down her face and then her cheeks. It would then hang down on her chin before finally dropping to the ground, marking their path with small drops of water.

    ¡°Just shut it,¡± Nadia replied.

    Yet, due to Nadia¡¯s constant effort, the young man didn¡¯t have much time to contemte her behavior. Right as he was about to pass out from both his exhaustion and all the efforts he expended to carry himself down, Nadia finally took a stop and helped to prompt him up.

    ¡°Look,¡± she said as a wide smile brightened up her face. ¡°We are here,¡± she added, only to falter on her legs and use her hands to support herself against the nearby wall.

    ¡°Good,¡± Mathew nodded his head only to then raise his hand and pat Nadia¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Thanks for helping me up here,¡± he said, only to then waste the tiny bit of energy he had left to shake his head. ¡°No, I shouldn¡¯t thank you for helping me,¡± Mathew suddenly announced.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia shook a little. The curiosity in her eyes then mixed with a slight disappointment.

    ¡°I should thank you for practically carrying me here,¡± Mathew fixed his praise. He then offered the girl onest smile before pushing himself against the wall of the office and then sliding on it towards the entrance.

    Reaching the merchant turned out to be a surprisingly easy task. The time that Nadia spent reaching past her limits to bring him down allowed Mathew to actually rest a little.

    And so he reached out and grasped at the merchant¡¯s darkness¡­

    Mathew returned back to reality in what appeared like an instant.

    Yet, Nadia could tell how everything went with just a single look on his face.

    ¡°We need to get back to the shaft,¡± Mathew announced as he stumbled on his legs only to fall towards the wall. He then raised his eyes at the girl. ¡°It seems that I still need to regain control over the one merchant we left.¡±

 Chapter 95 Whats wrong with that?

    ¡°Just to be sure,¡± Nadia raised her eyes to the office¡¯s ceiling before biting down on her lips. ¡°Does that mean we need to kill that guy?¡±

    Nadia¡¯s question was as simple as it was valid. She already admitted to seeing through the hints Mathew dropped before. And right now, what she looked out for wasn¡¯t an exnation but confirmation of her assumptions.

    ¡°That might be the case,¡± Mathew replied, only to then twist his lips in an ugly grimace. ¡°What worries me, though, is howplicated this situation is likely to be,¡± he said before shaking his head and then hanging it low on his chest.

    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Nadia asked as her back slid against the wall when she plummeted down to the ground.

    Now that the two of them knew what situation they were in, taking a rest whenever possible was of utmost importance.

    Even if it was something as simple as sitting down instead of standing up for no reason whatsoever.

    ¡°Norbert,¡± Mathew replied with just a single word. A single name that held a singr meaning.

    ¡°That policeman?¡± Nadia leaned her head to the side as she looked at Mathew with curiosity brimming in her eyes. ¡°What about him?¡±

    ¡°Wait, didn¡¯t you hear what he said before hurrying away?¡± Mathew turned his head to the side to look at Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t hear,¡± Nadia shook her shoulders before hanging her head to the back to rest it against the wall. ¡°I simply didn¡¯t care,¡± she exined before averting her face slightly to the side.

    ¡°There is no need to be ashamed of that,¡± Mathew said while a small smile crept up on his lips.

    ¡®I never imagined hearing something so simple could make me so happy,¡¯ he thought, unable to believe in just how damn simple his soul was.

    Mathew felt no jealousy towards Norbert whatsoever. He didn¡¯t even know the younger policeman all that well. In fact, outside of a few asional exchanges, there was hardly any grounds for the young man to even im he knew the man!

    Still, when Nadia said that she didn¡¯t care about what Norbert uttered before disappearing, Mathew heard something a bit different.

    ¡®I know I might be projecting here, but doesn¡¯t that mean she does not care about other men now that she has me?¡¯

    A part of Mathew¡¯s soul trembled with excitement when he internally voiced out his beliefs.

    ¡®It feels like admitting to that took a massive burden off my shoulders,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    ¡°That Carol girl,¡± Mathew uttered once he organized his thoughts. ¡°It seems that she¡¯s Norbert¡¯s sister.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Nadia uttered a small shout of surprise and turned her head around to look at Mathew. She then pushed her upper body forward to fall on all fours before crawling up to where Mathew sat down. ¡°Are you for real?¡± she asked when she pushed her head nearly all the way towards Mathew¡¯s chest.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know whether it¡¯s true or whether it was just that guy projecting his wishes upon the real world,¡± Mathew said and shook his head. ¡°Whether or not that guy¡¯s hopes were true or not, it doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Mathew pointed out, only to reach out for Nadia¡¯s shoulders and then bring her on top of hisp. ¡°What matters is that since Norbert believes in that, he will do whatever it takes to find her.¡±

    ¡°That makes sense,¡± Nadia muttered as she moved around on Mathew¡¯sp to find a perfectlyfortable spot. ¡°But I don¡¯t see why that guy matters,¡± she added without any time for herself to hesitate.

    ¡°Because it¡¯s Daniel¡¯s colleague,¡± Mathew replied, not needing to think over the answer either. ¡°And that guy is not only the only real adult around, he is also an adult with a system,¡± he exined.

    ¡°So we need to keep him on our side, huh?¡± Nadia suggested only to shake her head. ¡°Are you really sure we should keep someone like him around, though?¡±

    Hearing those words, Mathew turned silent. Then, the pictures that he saw on the top floor of the school appeared before his eyes, only for the young man to close them and rest his forehead against Nadia¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Ah, don¡¯t get me wrong,¡± Nadia must¡¯ve realized that she had stepped on andmine, quickly scrambling to exin her words. ¡°It¡¯s not like I have anything against him or something,¡± she borated, ¡°but don¡¯t you think he might end up putting a wrench in your ns in the future?¡±

    ¡°And what exactly could you mean by that?¡± Mathew asked, ignoring the shbacks and focusing on his talk with the girl.

    ¡®I know we should hurry up and deal with thest merchant, but if we don¡¯t rest a bit, we might just all go to our deaths,¡¯ he thought, finding a justification for his moment ofziness.

    ¡°Listen, you said it yourself.¡± Nadia brought her hand up only to ce it on top of Mathew¡¯s head. And as her hand started to slowlyb through the young man¡¯s hair, she opened her mouth again. ¡°He is the only real adult around,¡± she brought Mathew¡¯s words up. ¡°Don¡¯t you think a time mighte when he will try to use that as a source of his authority? A legitimization to be the one calling the shots?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Mathew attempted to answer, only to end up closing his mouth after a single word.

    ¡®I can¡¯t really deny that possibility,¡¯ he thought as his face darkened.

    ¡°Matty, listen,¡± Nadia started as she brought her hand down only to coil her arms around Mathew¡¯s neck as she hugged herself into his chest. ¡°I don¡¯t care about group politics. All I care about is you,¡± she whispered while rubbing her forehead against Mathew¡¯s chest. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m willing to do anything it takes to prevent anyone from putting even a greater burden on you,¡± she exined.

    Then, a viin-fitting smile appeared on his lips as he analyzed his own ideas and turned them into potential strategies.

    ¡°And secondly, what would be wrong with letting Daniel take the reins of the situation?¡±

 Chapter 96 l wish we could just enjoy eachother in peace

    ¡°Are you for real right now?¡± Nadia asked as she pushed herself off Mathew¡¯s chest to look him directly in the eyes. ¡°Are you seriously asking that?¡±

    There was no anger in her voice nor any disappointment or negative feelings. She was simply surprised to the end of her wits, something signified by how wide her eyes opened up as she stared at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I never really cared about being the one to call the shots,¡± Mathew admitted. He then shook his head and bit his lips. ¡°The only reason why I was so pushy before was that I had the knowledge that others didn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡®And now it¡¯s the time for her to get disillusioned with me,¡¯ Mathew thought grimly. ¡®But isn¡¯t it better to be honest? I don¡¯t want to build anything on a lie¡­¡¯ he thought, fighting with his own thoughts as he analyzed whether to push through with the topic or to change it.

    ¡°To be perfectly honest, I found it pretty weird when you suddenly took so much initiative,¡± Nadia admitted as she moved her body back to the position she was in before. Sheid her head down on Mathew¡¯s chest only to grab one of his hands and put it on her waist. ¡°It¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t like it. I was just surprised,¡± she added, squirming to stop Mathew from taking her words in the wrong way.

    ¡®So you did like it when I took the lead, huh?¡¯ Mathew thought while ying it off by putting a small smile on his face.

    ¡°Going back to the topic, once this fortress is properly standing, I wouldn¡¯t really mind giving Daniel the right to call the shots,¡± Mathew repeated his statement from before after expanding on it a little.

    ¡°Is there any particr reason behind it?¡± Nadia asked.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the young man replied while nodding his head. ¡°I don¡¯t really enjoy all the mental burden that taking responsibility for everyone¡¯s lives ces on my shoulders,¡± he admitted.

    Mathew then shook his body a little, only to wrap his hands around the girl¡¯s waist, pulling her even closer into an embrace.

    ¡°When ites to you, I¡¯m ready to do whatever it takes to help you out. When ites to the other girls in our group, I¡¯m willing to put forth an effort to help them,¡± Mathew exined his stance, only to then turn silent rather than finish the topic.

    ¡°And when ites to others?¡± Nadia leaned her head to the side despite having a serious expression all over her face. ¡°When ites to the others, what are you willing to do?¡± she asked while yfully moving her forefinger on top of Mathew¡¯s chest.

    ¡°To be frank, I don¡¯t give two shits about them personally,¡± Mathew revealed, only to shrug his shoulders as he averted his eyes up. ¡°Sure, they could be useful for us as humans can do wonders when they work together¡­¡±

    Once again, Mathew took a short break. This time, however, he didn¡¯t do it for the sake of building the tension but rather to think over what he should say next.

    ¡°The others could be of great help for us. That¡¯s the only reason why I even bothered to save them,¡± Mathew exined, only to then lower his eyes and press his head against Nadia¡¯s shoulder. ¡°And I simply did what the tiny part of humanity that¡¯s left in me desired.¡±

    Saving others was a human¡¯s natural instinct. A drive developed in the times when decreasing number of tribe members could have devastating results.

    ¡®I can remember a certain study that pointed out selflessness and helpfulness as an evolutionary trait of our species,¡¯ he thought while images ofputer simtions of blobs ced in different scenarios appeared before his eyes.

    ¡°I don¡¯t find anything wrong with that,¡± Nadia said in a calm voice. She then raised her hand and slowly patted Mathew¡¯s head. ¡°And I¡¯m extremely happy that I¡¯m at the top of your list of priorities,¡± she stated.

    Nadia then moved around on Mathew¡¯s up a little bit, only to end up straddling him like a horse. She then moved her hands up, locking them behind her husband¡¯s neck.

    ¡°What?¡± Mathew asked when the girl did nothing but simply stare right into his eyes despite taking a pretty risque position.

    Even sitting like that was something normal for couples. Ultimately, Mathew was official with the girl for only a few hours. And even the extremely nice memories of what they did in the shower rooms weren¡¯t enough to suddenly cull Mathew¡¯s libido down.

    ¡°Nothing important,¡± Nadia replied with a smile as she leaned forward and ced a gentle kiss on top of Mathew¡¯s forehead. ¡°I just wanted to look at your face for a moment,¡± she added, leaning forward again and cing a kiss on the very tip of Mathew¡¯s nose.

    ¡°That was a sudden change,¡± Mathew pointed out, only for his lips to curve upwards into a smile.

    Nadia lowered her head again, clearly going for another kiss. But this time, Mathew was prepared.

    Instead of letting the girl do whatever she wanted, he brought one of his hands to her chin before pushing his lips to her mouth.

    ¡°Mhmm¡­¡± the girl made a small noise when their lips connected. Yet, rather than pushing herself away, she tightened the lock formed by her arms as she immersed herself in the kiss.

    ¡°Hmph?¡± the girl squirmed on hisp when the young man pushed his tongue out, slipping it between the girl¡¯s lips. Yet, rather than pulling away, Nadia quickly epted the new form of the kiss, rubbing her own tongue against Mathew¡¯s as their kiss continued.

    ¡°Haaa¡­¡± Mathew released a small sigh when their lips finally parted. ¡°Damn it all!¡± he then shouted, only to m his fist into the ground in a sudden bout of frustration.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?!¡± Nadia reacted without any hesitation, almost jumping up from Mathew¡¯sp to stand guard against anything and anyone that dared to make Mathew have a reaction like that.

    ¡°I¡¯m just extremely salty, don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Mathew brushed the topic off only to wrap his hands around the girl¡¯s back and pull her into yet another hug. ¡°I just wish we could get this fortress over with so that we could enjoy each other in peace.¡±

 Chapter 97 Playing games

    ¡°Is that why you were pushing yourself so hard all this time?¡± Nadia asked as her lips trembled and formed a small smirk.

    ¡°Amongst other things, yeah,¡± Mathew replied and nodded his head, painfully aware of how Nadia¡¯s small smirk grew into a wide grin.

    ¡°Oh, you little,¡± Nadia muttered in a flirty tone as she pushed her boobs out and pressed them against Mathew¡¯s chest. ¡°If you wanted to have some fun with me, you only needed to say a word, you know?¡± she added with a smile brighter than the sun itself.

    ¡°No can do.¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°Sure, I would love to just sleep with you until the judgment dayes¡­ But how could we enjoy ourselves without making sure we are safe first?¡±

    This was the truth behind Mathew¡¯s determination to establish the fortress.

    ¡®With our food and drinks secured through merchants, we no longer need to worry about the first level of human needs ording to Maslow¡¯s hierarchy of needs,¡¯ Mathew thought. ¡®And the next level isn¡¯t about socializing, but about security.¡¯

    ¡°That¡¯s a valid point,¡± Nadia nodded her head only to then lean herself forward and rest her forehead against Mathew¡¯s. ¡°But once we get this over with, can I count on some private time with you?¡±

    Her voice was meek, only serving to showcase the insecurity Nadia felt a the moment.

    ¡®I guess bringing Le and Daria to the picture, something that she epted on the surface, still does pain her a bit,¡¯ Mathew thought as he bit his lips.

    Securing morepanions to his group was essential for Mathew¡¯s survival. As such, he didn¡¯t really have much of a choice when it came to that bisexual pair. And while fucking around with a group of girls that were all consenting to the act was nice¡­

    Seeing the pained look deep behind Nadia¡¯s eyes made Mathew question whether it was actually worth it.

    ¡°Once we get this fortress established, I will make sure to spend the entire night with you,¡± Mathew leaned forward and whispered directly into the girl¡¯s ear. ¡°And during that night, I will both make you learn all my kinks,¡± he continued to whisper as he ced his hands on the girl¡¯s waist, ¡°and will dly learn about all of yours too.¡±

    Due to Nadia straddling Mathew, they could both feel the reactions of the other. As such, Mathew could feel how Nadia¡¯s hips trembled, making her panties-covered crotch rub against the small tent he ended up pitching.

    And reversely, Nadia had to be aware of Mathew¡¯s natural reaction as well!

    ¡°Yosh!¡± Nadia suddenly shouted as she brought both of her hands and pped both of her cheeks.

    Before the redness could even appear in the parts of her face she had just struck, Nadia suddenly stood up.

    For a moment, she bnced on her weak knees to keep her stability. And once she was done, she reached out with her hand.

    ¡°Come,¡± she said in a voice that didn¡¯t allow for any refusal. ¡°Don¡¯t we have a fortress to establish?¡± she asked with a small smirk, only to grab Mathew¡¯s hand on her own and leverage her body to the back, helping the young man stand up.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Mathew smiled when he realized just how much he managed to rest in just those few minutes they spent talking. ¡°But there is one more thing that I want to do before that,¡± he added before peeling his eyes away from the girl and then closing them shut.

    Mathew remained frozen in ce for a moment. And then, he opened his mouth only to utter a short sentence.

    ¡°Donate three levels to my first wife,¡± he ordered, repeating the very samemand he had used in the background so far.

    The main difference was obvious. Contrary to all the former times Mathew used those words, this time, he had someone to actually hear them.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia shrugged, surprised by Mathew¡¯s sudden words. Yet, her shock was nothing whenpared to the ordeal Mathew¡¯s own words put him through.

    ¡®What the hell?¡¯ he thought when his system window finally showed some differences.

    ¡®Is this the wives development mechanic I received a way back?¡¯ he thought while staring at the new set of data he didn¡¯t expect to see.

    [Wife #1]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 13+12]

    [Race: Half-zombie]

    [ss: First Wife ¨C ss 1]

    [Status: Exhausted]

    [Level ¨C 24]

    [Vitality ¨C 73]

    [Brawn ¨C 70]

    [Agility ¨C 64]

    [Mind ¨C 10]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 242(90 gifted)(30 free)]

    The first obvious change was in the girl¡¯s level. Back a second ago, when Mathew took a nce, it was still abined twenty-one with nine levels added from him gifting them in the past.

    But now¡­

    Not only did Nadia¡¯s level raise, but Mathew could now see her precise statistics, the same ones he could see about himself!

    ¡°Dear, I¡¯m going to need to ask you several questions now,¡± Mathew said in a serious tone as he ced his hands on the girl¡¯s shoulder¡­ Only to drop his own ass back to the ground while pulling the girl back on hisp.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Nadia asked while worry shed behind her eyes.

    ¡°It would take a while to exin¡­ Or maybe not?¡± Mathew hesitated. He thought for a moment while burying his eyes in the sight of Nadia¡¯s perfect cleavage, only to then raise his face and look the girl in her eyes.

    ¡°Right now, I can see not only your level but also all your statistics,¡± he exined.

    ¡°Statistics?¡± Nadia repeated the keyword she caught from what Mathew just said. ¡°Like in those games you used to y?¡± she then asked for rification.

    ¡°The RPG ones?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyebrows high up his forehead when he suddenly understood a deeper meaning behind what the girl just said. ¡°Didn¡¯t you im you would never waste your time on games?¡± he asked. ¡°How could you know what those stats are if you never did y them?¡±

    It was just a casual question, not something to be excessively worried about.

    Or so, Mathew thought to the point when the girl suddenly turned her face away to the side and used both of her hands to hide it. Yet, Nadia was just a tad too slow. Too slow to hide the blush that appeared on her cheeks.

    ¡°So you did y them,¡± Mathew summed the situation up and allowed a small smile to appear on his lips.

    ¡°I just wanted to understand the things you like,¡± Nadia exined as if she was trying to excuse herself. ¡°And when I thought about the possibility of the two of us ying together¡­¡±

    The girl gulped her saliva down only to then raise her eyes and bravely establish eye contact with her husband.

    ¡°I was ted when I found out your in-game name. And if not for this apocalypse, I was going to ask if we could y together today,¡± she added, admitting to something that Mathew had no idea about.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pity it all went down this way, then,¡± he replied in the only way he could somehowe up with. And then, just as Mathew¡¯s confusion was about to settle in his soul, a small smirk appeared on his lips.

    ¡°If anything, there is one good thing about this entire situation,¡± Mathew said with a yful smile dancing on his lips. Lips that trembled due to the sheer amount ofughter that the young man had to hold back right now.

    ¡°And what could that be?¡± Nadia asked, still hiding her face in the palms of her hands.

    ¡°The fact that rather than nerding behind the screen, we ended up ying in ways I only ever dared to dream off!¡±

 Chapter 98 Developing Nadia

    ¡°Why do I have the feeling that you want to have a go right now?¡± Nadia asked in a flirty tone while moving her hips just the tiny little bit necessary to teasingly rub her crotch against Mathew¡¯s tent. ¡°Do you want me to blow you before we go?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s one hell of a tempting offer,¡± Mathew admitted, only to then press his lips together and grit his teeth. ¡°But I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a wise thing to do,¡± he added, turning his head away to hide just how much he had to struggle against the desires of his body to shoot the offer down.

    ¡°Not wise?¡± Nadia asked, leaning her head to the side in confusion. ¡°Is it unhealthy or something?¡± she added, trying to rify herck of understanding.

    ¡°Maybe it works different for girls, but there is a reason why jerking off is also called blowing off some steam,¡± Mathew pointed out while shaking his head. ¡°Sure, getting one out would clear my mind by a whole lot¡­¡±

    The young man pursed his lips once again, only to end up shaking his head.

    ¡°But it¡¯s the steam that we are alreadycking. I can¡¯t afford to lose the little energy that I managed to regain on pleasure,¡± Mathew exined, only to grab Nadia¡¯s waist and pull her up from hisp.

    ¡°Okay, I understand why you don¡¯t want me to suck you off,¡± Nadia said while doing a poor job at hiding her disappointment. ¡°But is it really necessary for me to move out of yourp?¡± she asked when she stubbornly refused to move, easily overpowering Mathew¡¯s attempts to bring her up.

    ¡°You are sitting right on my tent,¡± Mathew said. He then raised his eyes to the girl¡¯s face. ¡°And you don¡¯t have even a shred of idea just how distracting¡­¡±

    Mathew stopped speaking when he noticed just how much fun the girl was having while teasing him like that.

    ¡°Fine, stay on me like that, then,¡± the young man quickly gave up. ¡°But we need to get back to the topic. And since you know what statistics are, then I need to ask an extremely important question,¡± Mathew announced as he looked directly into his first wife¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Hah?¡± Nadia uttered a small shock. Her eyes opened wide while her eyebrows skyrocketed on her forehead. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you can see my statistics?!¡±

    Nadia freaked out.

    At first, she raised her hands to her face to hide the massive blush that appeared. Yet, before the notion of being embarrassed could sink in, she suddenly moved her hands away and threw Mathew a murderous stare.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me before?!¡± sheined while striking at Mathew¡¯s chest with her fists in quick session.

    ¡°Because I just discovered that I¡¯m able to do so,¡± Mathew exined without even a second of thought. ¡°And right now, save for mind and arcane, all your statistics oscite around seventy. Just in case you wanted to know,¡± he added with a small smile.

    ¡°And you want me to decide which one of them I want to improve?¡± Nadia asked only to lean her head to the side and then bring her hand to her chin to slowly rub it. ¡°Can you tell me what that mind and arcane stats refer to?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t say I know this for sure,¡± Mathew started with a cautious statement. ¡°But it seems that they refer to using some sort of special abilities. My own arcane statistic only grew when I first did something that I shouldn¡¯t be able to do,¡± Mathew exined. ¡°As for the mind, I believe it¡¯s something akin to mana?¡± he suggested and then shook his head to the sides. ¡°Keep in mind, it¡¯s just my guess, so don¡¯t take it for granted.¡±

    ¡°Special abilities, you say¡­¡± Nadia muttered as she squinted her eyes. Even though a part of her eyes was still visible, Mathew could tell she couldn¡¯t see anything in front or around her now.

    The focus written all over her face was the greatest Mathew had ever seen in his life!

    ¡°Well, as much as I am interested in that arcane stuff, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s worth the biscuit to risk it,¡± she imed before opening her eyes properly and looking right at Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°If vitality refers to our health, brawn to our strength, and agility to our speed, then I don¡¯t need to think much.¡±

    ¡°You know I can¡¯t confirm that,¡± Mathew pointed out before the girl could get ahead of herself.

    ¡°I¡¯m aware,¡± Nadia nodded her head. ¡°Can you invest in the agility, then?¡± she requested.

    ¡°All of the points?¡± Mathew asked for confirmation.

    ¡°Damn, now I¡¯m going to hesitate¡­¡± Nadiamented, only for a wide grin to surface on her lips. ¡°But you are right. How many points can you invest in my stats?¡±

    ¡°Thirty.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this, then,¡± Nadia finally stood up from Mathew¡¯sp, freeing the poor man from the torture of feeling the treasure he knew himself he couldn¡¯t im for the time being. ¡°How about investing five points in each statistic and then five more in agility?¡± Nadia suggested.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to ignore the mind and arcane?¡± Mathew asked, hoping to get a clear, precise answer. ¡®It wouldn¡¯t be good if I raised her stats in a different way than she wants me to,¡¯ he thought.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Nadia nodded her head only to then shake it sideways. ¡°I changed my mind. While I believe it would benefit us the most to just stack a single of my stats, I¡¯m worried that it would hamper my growth in the long term,¡± she exined her way of thinking.

    ¡°I understand,¡± Mathew said. He couldn¡¯t help but smile when hearing the girl¡¯s reasoning as it was something that only the real gamers knew about. ¡°Five points in each stat and then five more into agility it is!¡±

 Chapter 99 Wives system

    ¡°There it goes,¡± Mathew muttered when his system somehow read his intentions and applied them to the girl¡¯s statistics.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia muttered, only to raise her hands and look down at her palms. ¡°I don¡¯t feel any different, though?¡± she informed, only to turn around and throw a punch against the air. ¡°Or maybe?¡±

    Mathew could only smile.

    ¡®I better not tell her she is basically twice as strong statistics-wise as me,¡¯ he thought before shaking his head and standing up as well.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s get moving,¡± he ordered before grabbing Nadia¡¯s free hand and pulling her along.

    ¡°Move to where?¡± the girl asked with a confused expression on her face. ¡°Ah!¡± She quickly shook her head. ¡°Sorry, I just had a brainfart,¡± she admitted and made a funny face.

    ¡°Not a problem,¡± Mathew replied before forcing himself to move.

    Despite Mathew¡¯s initial fears, he managed to reach the staircase just fine.

    The young man then looked at the stairs, already imagining all the pain of exhaustion returning to his flesh the moment he would raise his leg to conquer the first of the steps.

    ¡®Well, there goes nothing,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he moved up¡­ Only to realize that what he had feared did note.

    ¡®Did I receive some sort of super regeneration skill of something?¡¯ the young man thought, confused about how quickly he managed to recover from his overwhelming exhaustion. ¡®Or maybe my body reacts only when I reach my absolute limit?¡¯ he thought before shaking his head and ditching all those thoughts.

    ¡°Can you slow down a little,¡± Nadia suddenly requested.

    ¡°Ah, sorry,¡± Mathew apologized as he came to aplete stop roughly halfway up to the floor with the entrance to the shaft. ¡°I was so surprised I didn¡¯t feel as tired as I felt before that I didn¡¯t realize I pushed you a bit too much,¡± he exined before lowering his head in yet another bout of apology.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like that,¡± Nadia said as she shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to push yourself too far,¡± she said, only to then turn her face away. Yet, before Mathew could react in any way, she moved her head back and looked him in the face with a look of determination behind her eyes.

    ¡°Actually, Matty, I have an important request for you,¡± Nadia said and lowered her head. She then started to y with her hands as if uncertain if she should voice her wish or not.

    ¡°Go on,¡± Mathew took a step back and raised his head only to rustle the girl¡¯s hair. ¡°Whatever you wish for, I will do my best to fulfill,¡± he imed.

    ¡°Then, I want you to stay and wait here while I go call for the girls,¡± Nadia raised her eyes and revealed what was going on in her head.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Mathew instantly hesitated despite how much he wanted to humor the girl. ¡°That¡¯s cheating¡­¡± he finally uttered his response while pinning his eyes to the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯m aware,¡± Nadia revealed while keeping her determination-filled eyes on her husband¡¯s face. ¡°But didn¡¯t I just get stronger?¡± she then pointed out. ¡°You raised my stats yourself. And since that happened, doesn¡¯t that mean my limits are now at least a bit bigger than before?¡± she asked while raising one of her eyebrows and locking her arms over her chest.

    ¡°That¡¯s the thing, babe,¡± Mathew pressed his lips together. ¡°That strength of yours¡­ I would rather conserve it for the fight that looms over us,¡± he exined his point of view.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you stronger than me?¡± Nadia asked, her left eyebrow moving even further up on her forehead. ¡°Isn¡¯t it better if it¡¯s you¡­¡±

    Nadia¡¯s words continued to turn weaker and weaker when she noticed the one gesture Mathew did when she imed him to be stronger.

    ¡°I¡¯m not stronger than you,¡± Mathew said, slightly changing the topic. ¡°Going by the statistics alone, you are nearly twice as strong as I am,¡± he revealed what he was aware of ever since he first got the chance to see Nadia¡¯s stats.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia shook her head in disbelief. ¡°Didn¡¯t you kill more zombies than me?¡± she asked, confused by the sudden reveal.

    ¡°It¡¯s a quirk of my system,¡± Mathew said before revealing a helpless smile. ¡°Once again, going by statistics alone, I¡¯m level fourteen,¡± the young man said. ¡°Just a small step away from level fifteen, to be exact,¡± he added before raising his eyes to the girl. ¡°But guess what my real level is.¡±

    ¡°I give up,¡± she said. ¡°A hundred?¡± she then pushed out a random guess.

    ¡°I¡¯m on my second level,¡± Mathew revealed the bitter truth.

    For a former gamer like him, levels were the very foundation of one¡¯s strength. And as if to spite at his experiences, his own system made him stuck on this low level even when his statistics properly grew!

    ¡°But if your system stops you from leveling up, then howe you have a second level instead of being stuck at the first one?¡± Nadia asked, pointing out something that Mathew didn¡¯t really pay much attention to.

    ¡°It happened back in the shower rooms¡­¡± The young man then revealed, despite not really knowing what to take out from this statement himself.

    ¡°Wives system, huh?¡± Nadia muttered under her nose, clearly onto something.

    Yet, instead of revealing what was going through her head, the girl bit her lips before shaking her head and looking Mathew directly in the eyes.

    ¡°Either way, we strayed from the topic by a whole damn lot,¡± she pointed out before locking her arms on her chest. ¡°But the question still stands. Can you humor me and wait while I call for our allies?¡±

    For one more moment, Mathew hesitated. The perspective of confronting another system user-made him extremely wary of every tiniest detail that he could control.

    But right, it wasn¡¯t about winning or losing such a fight. It was about keeping or losing Nadia¡¯s trust.

    ¡°Fine, I will wait here,¡± Mathew finally gave up, only to take a step back and rest his back against the wall. ¡°Just don¡¯t push yourself too hard,¡± he added.

    ¡°Sure thing, see you in a moment,¡± Nadia said with a bright smile before turning around on her heel and hurrying up the stairs.

    ¡°I really hope I won¡¯te to regret this,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose before closing his eyes.

    ¡°I beg you, tell me that you can hear me!¡±

 Chapter 100 Norberts soul

    ¡°I beg you, tell me that you can hear me!¡±

    A desperate voice reached Mathew¡¯s ears just as he was about to rx while waiting for Nadia to return.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew uttered a small moan of surprise only to rapidly open his eyes and look around.

    But there wasn¡¯t a single living soul for him to see anywhere around.

    ¡°Was it a hallucination or something?¡± Mathew silently uttered the first thing that came to his mind. He then sharpened his ears and even made sure not to breathe too often, hoping to hear something again¡­ But to no avail.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m just tired,¡± Mathew muttered before shrugging his shoulders, resting his back against the wall, and closing his eyes.

    ¡°HEY!¡±

    The instant Mathew¡¯s vision turned ck, the voice returned. But what was even worse, this voice was extremely familiar.

    ¡°Norbert?¡± Mathew asked while opening his eyes again. Yet, no matter how long did he wait, he didn¡¯t receive a single word of answer.

    ¡®Is it something about having my eyes closed?¡¯ Mathew thought, instantly moving in to check its validity¡­ by simply lowering his eyelids.

    ¡°DON¡¯T CLOSE YOUR FUCKING EYES!¡± A desperate scream instantly filled Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡°Yeah, figured it out myself already,¡± Mathew replied, only to shake his head a little. ¡°Still, I didn¡¯t expect you to improve your ability so quickly,¡± Mathew said with a smile, only to then shrug his shoulders. ¡°Or maybe Daniel didn¡¯t bother to tell me that you could do it?¡± he pondered.

    ¡°I wish that was the case,¡± Norbert replied, his voice turning sour.

    ¡°What happened, then?¡± Mathew asked. After the initial shock of finding out that he could somehowmunicate with Norbert despite him not being here, the young man¡¯s rationality struck back. ¡°Wait, didn¡¯t you go to check on that assumed sister of yours?¡± Mathew asked, his soul firing up.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t this the perfect opportunity to check out the waters before we attempt to take over thest of the merchants?¡¯ he thought as another n hatched in his head.

    ¡°Who are you talking with?¡± a new voice reached Mathew¡¯s ears. A voice that was clearly worried.

    ¡°Wait for a second,¡± Mathew said before opening his eyes.

    To Mathew¡¯sck of surprise, it was Nadia that asked him the recent question.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me how, but I can somehow talk with Norbert,¡± he exined. ¡°I believe this is some sort of his ability or something,¡± he added. ¡°But I need to close my eyes to do so, so give me a moment,¡± he requested before pushing his eyelids down again.

    ¡°Close your eyes?¡± Nadia¡¯s voice turned even more worried than it already was. ¡°Let me try it too,¡± she said.

    ¡°Guys, you really don¡¯t have the time for this,¡± Norbert stated while his voice filled with desperation.

    ¡°Wait, I can hear him too!¡± Nadia said out loud, the worry in her voice turning into a shock. ¡°So, what¡¯s the case?¡± she then asked, her voice once again changing to an amused one.

    ¡°I basically died,¡± Norbert revealed.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew couldn¡¯t really put his shock into words. ¡®What the hell does that mean?¡¯ he thought. Yet, rather than asking for rification, he opted to just wait for Norbert to exin his case.

    ¡°That bastard killed me the second I came out to check whether that girl was really my sister,¡± Norber revealed while his voice turned dark. ¡°And yes, the Carol that you spoke off is actually my sister,¡± he added.

    ¡°Wait for a second, let me process that,¡± Mathew requested as he raised his hands in a stop sign even though the other party wasn¡¯t actually there to see him.

    ¡°Did you just say that this guy actually killed you?¡± Mathew asked after taking some time to organize his thoughts.

    ¡°How else do you think I managed to improve this strange ability?¡± Norbert asked what clearly appeared as a rhetorical question to him. ¡°Didn¡¯t you im to go through two weeks of apocalypse before?¡±

    ¡°I did,¡± Mathew didn¡¯t hesitate to confirm his statement. ¡°But I guess you didn¡¯t hear the entire story,¡± the young man rolled his eyes. Then, without opening his eyes, Mathew raised his hands and pped both sides of his face.

    ¡°Anyway, what do you want us to do, then?¡± Mathew finally asked, forcing the topic to move back to what was actually important. ¡°Do you want revenge? Do you want to save your sister? Or maybe there is a chance to stop you from dying?¡± Mathew asked while tightening his hands a little.

    ¡®And it¡¯s all under the assumption that he is actually telling the truth,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    There were only five people in the whole world that he was willing to trust unconditionally. His parents, his sister, Nadia, and himself. Yet, there were many times when Mathew doubted the validity of trust in thest person he thought of.

    ¡°I want to save Carol; that¡¯s obvious,¡± Norber said. ¡°Even though I found a lot about her and how she ensured her¡­ rtive safety in the school,¡± he added as his tone darkened to the levels when a shiver moved down Mathew¡¯s spine.

    ¡®So my gut feeling about that guy was correct all along,¡¯ he thought, rolling his eyes underneath his eyelids.

    ¡®How strong is that guy?¡± Mathew asked as he shook his head and stood up from the ground.

    The few moments that he spent resting allowed him to return to a perfectly normal state. Coupled with the rest he had at the office with Nadia, Mathew finally could say his goodbyes to the insane pain of exhaustion he had felt before.

    ¡°Because if he didn¡¯t, he wouldn¡¯t know you are approaching,¡± Mathew added a few words of his own, just to voice his thoughts out.

    ¡°Guys?¡± a new voice suddenly entered the fray.

    ¡°Close your eyes,¡± Mathew replied.

    There were only two people that could invade their blind discussion right now.

    ¡°Sure?¡± Le said, her voice full of doubt.

    ¡°Can you hear me now?¡± Norbert asked.

    ¡°WHAT THE HELL?!¡± the girl screamed out. A noise of someone falling down followed, indicating that she tripped on her legs as she attempted to back off.

    ¡°It¡¯s that guy¡¯s ability,¡± Mathew exined before Le could freak out any further. ¡°Give me a moment,¡± he said before opening his eyes.

    Mathew¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t betray him. Le did actually trip on her legs.

    ¡®It¡¯s good that she didn¡¯t fall down the stairs,¡¯ he thought.

    In the current world, where medical care likely ceased to exist, something as simple as a broken leg or a small infection could very easily turn into lethal conditions.

    ¡°Calm down,¡± Mathew said as he approached the girl and helped her get back to her legs. ¡°Do you remember Norbert?¡± he then asked. ¡°The other, younger policeman,¡± he added to make sure the girl could know who he was talking about.

    ¡°Vaguely, but yeah,¡± Le nodded her head before casting a quick nce towards Nadia, who continued to sit down with her eyes closed.

    ¡°He can speak to us when we keep our eyes shut,¡± Mathew exined before moving back to his prime wife and tapping her on her shoulder.

    ¡°We need to go,¡± he said as he closed his eyes. ¡°Can you tell us where that fucker is?¡± Mathew asked.

    ¡°He is on the floor below the ce where you have that other merchant,¡± Norbert replied without even a second of hestiation.

    ¡°ANd how can you tell that even though your soul is here, with us?¡± Mathew asked, his suspicions raising through the roof.

    ¡°I can still perceive everything around my body,¡± Norbert replied. ¡°It seems like Carol forced him to attempt to save my life,¡± he added, only for his tone to turn even darker than it already was.

    ¡°For the specific kind of favor, I guess,¡± Mathewmented, only to shake his head.

    ¡°Guys?¡± yet another voice entered the fray. ¡°What the hell are you all doing?¡± she asked. ¡°And you, can you please stop flying all over the ce?¡± she added.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew uttered a small, shocked moan when he opened his eyes and looked at Daria¡¯s face. ¡°You can see him?¡± he asked, his eyes opening up wide.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the girl shook her shoulders. ¡°He is flying in circles above you,¡± she exined, only for her face to turn still as she looked at the rest of the group. ¡°What, you guys can¡¯t see him?¡± she then asked, her face filling with surprise.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew confirmed the girl¡¯s guess before shaking his head, pping his hands against his cheeks again, and then closing his eyes.

    ¡°I will need you to guide us,¡± he said while moving his eyes in the direction Daria pointed out. ¡°And warn us before we will encounter him,¡± he added before opening his eyes. ¡°It will be your job to keep track of his warnings,¡± Mathew said as he looked towards Daria, only to then p his hands together.

    ¡°And with that said, let¡¯s go and kill that bastard!¡±

 Chapter 101 No strategy

    ¡°Can you hold my arm and lead me for a while?¡± Mathew turned his head to Nadia and asked a few moments after the group got on the move.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Nadia replied without even a second of hesitation, reaching out and wrapping her hands around Mathew¡¯s arm. ¡°But is there something wrong?¡± She asked and leaned her head to the side, showcasing her curiosity.

    ¡°Do I need some kind of trouble to ask for some help?¡± Mathew asked with a small smirk blossoming on his lips. ¡°Or maybe you don¡¯t find it manly enough?¡±

    Rather than just showering the girl withpliments like he would usually do in moments like that, Mathew opted to act a little yful.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Nadia protested only tough out. ¡°I don¡¯t really mind it. It was my curiosity speaking,¡± she exined before rubbing her cheek against the side of Mathew¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Okay then,¡± Mathew muttered before closing his eyes. ¡°You still here?¡± he then asked.

    There was no need to name who was the recipient of Mathew¡¯s words. After all, there was only a single entity that Mathew couldn¡¯t see with his very own eyes to confirm their presence.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Norbert didn¡¯t hold his reply back. ¡°What do you need?¡±

    There was only one reason for Mathew to call out for Norbert. They weren¡¯t buddies to just chat the time away, so there had to be some sort of business hidden behind that quesiton.

    ¡°Can you tell me what kind of ability Norbert has?¡± Mathew asked. ¡°I mean, I know he shot you with a gun, so you didn¡¯t experience his abilities head-on, but with your own ability¡­.¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t need to finish his words.

    Norbert¡¯s system didn¡¯t give him any benefits inbat. Yet, his scouting ability was unparalleled.

    ¡°To be frank, I have no idea,¡± Norbert shook the shoulders of his ghostly apparition. ¡°How about I go and try to find him out?¡± he then suggested.

    ¡°We still need to know where exactly he is,¡± Mathew pointed out before nodding his head. ¡°So yeah, if you could, that would be awesome.¡±

    ¡°Keep someone on the lookout for me,¡± Norbert advised. ¡°I will try to hit you up once I find him, so it would be nice if I didn¡¯t need to spend several minutes trying to time my voice to your blinking,¡± he added.

    And just like that, Norbert¡¯s presence disappeared from the area.

    ¡°Did he leave?¡± Mathew asked as he opened his eyes and turned them towards Daria. In their whole group, she was the only one somehow capable of seeing his ghost.

    ¡®Maybe it has something to do with their arcane or mind stats?¡¯ Mathew attempted to guess only to then shake his head. ¡®No, until I can level her up, I won¡¯t even be able to check her stats. There is no point in assuming anything.¡¯

    ¡°He did,¡± Daria said as she nodded her head. ¡°Watch out!¡± she then shouted, only for Nadia to heavily pull on Mathew¡¯s arm.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew shook as if waking up from a daze, only to realize that he nearly tripped at thest step of the stairs.

    ¡°Where to, now?¡± Nadia quickly asked, a small blush appearing on her face due to the mistake she had nearlymitted. Even though Mathew had already opened his eyes, she was still snuggled up to his side. As such, it was obvious Mathew still relied on his prime wife to guide him.

    ¡®It¡¯s not like it¡¯s her fault of anything,¡¯ Mathew thought when he realized Nadia simply hoped to change the topic before her mistake would be the agenda in the group. ¡®I don¡¯t think she¡¯s the one to me either, but I don¡¯t think I¡±m capable of exining it to the girls,¡¯ he thought while casting a quick nce at Daria and Le.

    So far, Mathew has managed to keep his weird rtionship stable. There were some points that made this rtionship a tough challenge for all of them. Thankfully, though, it was still way too early for those problems to surface and strike hard enough to put this fragile cooperation at risk.

    ¡°Still the same ce,¡± Mathew said. ¡°Back to the second merchant,¡± he added before turning his eyes to Le. ¡°Can I ask you to lead the way?¡±

    ¡°Not a problem,¡± Le replied, and a smug smile appeared on her lips. ¡°Right, since I¡¯m at the front right now, it won¡¯t be a problem if Ish out at that guy the moment I notice him, right?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Mathew muttered only to lower his head and set his eyes on the floor. ¡°Actually, let¡¯s take a stop here,¡± he said as the group reached the staircase that would lead them back to the path Mathew and his second wives took to reach the ground floor before.

    ¡°Did you realize something?¡± Nadia asked, pushing her upper body forward only to turn her head to the side and take a peek at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Not this time,¡± Mathew bit his lips as he shook his head sideways. ¡°I simply noticed I have yet toe up with a valid strategy for this encounter,¡± he exined before freeing his arm from the girl¡¯s clutches and taking a step to the side only to rest his back against the wall.

    Mathew then turned silent as he shut himself off from the world around him.

    ¡®There is no way to know what his abilities are, not unless Norbert proves to be more capable than I¡¯m expecting him,¡¯ Mathew thought while scouring his mind for some hints.

    Yet, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn¡¯te up with any trick that would make their looming fight easier.

    ¡°I¡¯m empty,¡± he finally revealed the state of his mind, refusing to look up at hispanions out of shame. ¡°I have no idea what we should do to safely take him down,¡± he admitted before turning silent once again.

    ¡°Why not just rush him down, then?¡± Le suggested while ying with the knife in her hand. Then, a strange glint of excitement appeared in her eyes. ¡°After all the leveling up we did, he shouldn¡¯t be a threat to us, no matter what his system is,¡± she pointed out.

    ¡°While that might be true, I¡¯m tempted to just ignore him and rush for the merchant,¡± Mathew revealed the only strategy he managed toe up with. ¡°After all, the only reason why we need to fight him is to get to the merchant. And that guy would benefit from the establishment of the fortress just as much as we would,¡± he added.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case,¡± Nadia started to speak.

    Mathew closed his eyes.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if that will help, but I heard him saying some weird stuff,¡± Norbert said as soon as Mathew was able to hear him.

    ¡®Weird stuff?¡¯ Mathew thought as a bad premonition appeared in his mind and made his entire body shake.

    ¡°borate,¡± he ordered shortly while raising his head even though he couldn¡¯t see Norbert¡¯s ghost at all.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t dare toe too close in fear that he would somehow notice me,¡± Norbert excused himself before taking a short pause as if to mentally prepare himself for what he was about to say. ¡°What I heard was him saying something about sacrificing his lung if necessary.¡±

 Chapter 102 He fucked my sister!

    ¡°All I heard was him saying something about sacrificing his lungs if necessary.¡±

    A single sentence out of Norbert¡¯s ghost mouth was enough to send Mathew¡¯s thoughts into disarray.

    At first, all his thoughts ceased as if his very mind refused to acknowledge what he had just heard. This statested only for a few seconds, after which all the thoughts that Mathew¡¯s mind held back during the moment of shock came crumbling down.

    ¡®How is this fucking possible?!¡¯ Mathew screamed out while making sure to keep his mouth closed and his voice to himself.

    His eyes widened. His hands started to tremble.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Nadia rushed forward, once again grabbing Mathew¡¯s arm¡­ Only to slide down the wall with him when Mahtew¡¯s knees gave up.

    ¡°What¡¯s happening?!¡± Le freaked out a little when she noticed Mathew¡¯s reactions¡­ to nothing.

    From her perspective, as someone who had to keep her eyes open at all times, Mathew just asked some questions and then ended up in a state of borderline panic.

    ¡°Judging from your reaction, you know what¡¯s going on,¡± Daria said in a calm voice as she approached the couple and crouched beside them. ¡°You can take your time, but can you tell us what¡¯s going on?¡±

    Mathew couldn¡¯t open his mouth at all.

    His mind was too busy processing a thousand different thoughts every second.

    ¡®Does he know the full extent of how to use it?¡¯

    ¡®If the nature of the system we receive is somehow rted to who we are, then how could I fight with someone who is like former me?¡¯

    Those and a thousand other questions continued to barrage Mathew¡¯s thoughts, stopping him from using his usual calm reasoning.

    p!

    Seeing that her cuddling didn¡¯t do anything, Nadia sent her hand flying only to bring it down on Mathew¡¯s cheek.

    ¡°Auch!¡± the young man protested when a sudden bout of sharp pain forced him out of his stunned state. He then raised his eyes at the girl with resentment boiling behind his pupils.

    Mathew¡¯s eyes quickly cleared up when his instinctual reaction gave way to his rationality. And once his brain started to work like usual, a strange sort of motivation filled Mathew¡¯s veins, pushing nutrients right to the parts of his brain that needed them the most.

    ¡°First off, that guy¡¯s system is t,¡± Mathew said as he shook his head. He then turned his face to Nadia before nodding. ¡°Thanks for waking me up,¡± he added before moving his eyes back to the others. ¡°That means, no matter how many zombies you kill, it won¡¯t improve.¡±

    ¡°How¡­¡± Le was the first one to ask the question, even if she cut her voice after uttering a single word.

    ¡°How do I know this?¡± Mathew looked at the girl, only for a smile to appear on his face. ¡°You all know that this is not my first time to live through this apocalypse,¡± he pointed out. His smile then soured. ¡°And in my first attempt, the sacrifice system was the one I was rocking.¡±

    This time, no one dared to utter a word to disturb the young man.

    ¡®They are all curious,¡¯ Mathew thought, something propelling the corners of his mouth to go up.

    ¡°Sacrifice system basically allows you to give up on something about yourself in exchange for fulfilling a wish,¡± Mathew exined. ¡°It can be something metaphysical like emotions or something physical like parts of your body.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a pretty shitty system, then,¡± Le cut in and rolled her eyes. ¡°How could it be of any use if actually using it would kill you?¡± she asked while crossing her hands over her chest while tapping the side of her de against her shoulder.

    ¡°Humans can go with a lot fewer organs than they do have,¡± Mathew pointed out. ¡°You can live without one lung, one kidney, or what peoplemonly know, appendix,¡± Mathew corrected the girl. ¡°Oh, and the system makes sure you won¡¯t die after losing that organ. Don¡¯t ask me how it happens, though. I didn¡¯t really have the option to go to the hospital and check back in my past life.¡±

    ¡°So you used to give up on your organs in your previous time,¡± Nadia muttered while her hands tightened over Mathew¡¯s arm. ¡°

    ¡°So I did,¡± Mathew nodded his head only to then shake it. He then freed his hand from Nadia¡¯s grasp and used it to prompt himself back to his feet. ¡°But now I also know, more or less, what we can expect from that guy,¡± he added.

    ¡°What should we look out for, then?¡± Daria asked, remaining the mostposed in the entire group throughout the entire event.

    ¡°Absolutely everything,¡± Mathew said as he spread his arms around and then shrugged his shoulders. ¡°While the sacrifice system can¡¯t really grow, its uses are only limited by one¡¯s creativity and how much are they willing or capable of sacrificing,¡± he pointed out. ¡°The fact that not a single one of us can recall that guy¡¯s name is likely one of that guy¡¯s wishes,¡± he added and released a small chuckle. ¡°Not like I can find a single valid reason to waste a wish on something like that!¡±

    Mathew couldn¡¯t help himself any longer.

    The encounter that he feared over how little did he know about his potential opponent¡­

    Well, it didn¡¯t stop being a potential threat. But now, Mathew could at the very least predict the degree of the potential enemy¡¯s ability.

    ¡°He wanted us to forget about him,¡± Le suddenly pointed out. Yet, when everyone¡¯s eyes turned on her, she suddenly blushed and averted her eyes to the side. ¡°I mean, his name and the fact that he has a system are the only things that we can remember about him,¡± she finally gathered the courage to exin her thoughts. ¡°So he just eliminated one of the two things that could make us remember him!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a pretty¡­ valid point,¡± Mathew admitted after taking a moment to swallow the fact that he missed this kind of detail. ¡°And by bringing it further, doesn¡¯t it mean he doesn¡¯t wish for any confrontation?¡±

    This was the perfect opportunity.

    ¡®We want to establish the fortress, not to establish some kind of authoritarian regime,¡¯ Mathew thought, closing his eyes to figure out the best way to go about solving the current issue.

    ¡°No fucking way,¡± Norbert said as soon as Mathew attempted to get some time to think. ¡°Did you already forget that he shot me?¡± he pointed out as his voice turned darker and darker.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you just forgive him this?¡± Mathew asked with his eyes closed. ¡°I know it might not be easy¡­¡± the young man suddenly stopped his words as a certain question appeared in his mind. ¡°Wait, why did he shoot you in the first ce?¡±

    For the first time, Norbert didn¡¯t reply right away.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to let you go away without answering this question,¡± Mathew warned as a feeling of suspicion filled every corner of his soul.

    And after a few more moments of waiting, Norbert finally replied.

    ¡°I can¡¯t say for sure, but I think I know the reason,¡± he said before clearing his throat even though he had no throat to clear in the first ce. ¡°When I first spotted them through my ghost¡­ that bastard was actually screwing my sister!¡±

 Chapter 103 Sun sets

    ¡°He was¡­¡± Mathew attempted to repeat what he had just heard out loud so that he could process it better. He then opened his eyes, unwilling to listen to Norbert¡¯s voice while thinking.

    ¡®Are you fucking serious?¡¯ he whined in his mind, this single sentence putting even more mental burden on the young man¡¯s mind.

    ¡°Are you disappointed?¡± Nadia asked in a slightly colder tone than usual.

    ¡°Why would I be?¡± Mathew asked and rolled his eyes. ¡°Do you really think I¡¯m craving more pussy than I already have?¡± he asked, his own voice matching the coldness of Nadia¡¯s.

    ¡°That was rude and uncalled for,¡± Lemented, joining in on Nadia¡¯s side.

    ¡°Yeah, I know.¡± Mathew didn¡¯t bother trying to skip on the responsibility for his own words. ¡°But can you two be silent for a moment?¡± he asked harshly and closed his eyes.

    ¡°What the hell do you¡­¡± Norbert rushed to use the opportunity of Mathew being able to hear him.

    ¡°Shut the fuck up and let me think,¡± Mathew shouted and swung his arm to the side, smashing his fists against the wall he was resting his back against.

    The surroundings of the group turned silent for the very first time since they all ventured to get the second merchant secured. And for the first time, Mathew found some space for himself to think.

    ¡®If that guy is screwing Norbert¡¯s sister, there are only two possible scenarios,¡¯ he thought. Mathew then leaned his head to the back as far as the wall behind him allowed.

    ¡®He either knew who Norbert was, or he didn¡¯t. If he didn¡¯t, then he had to consider every stranger a threat to his situation, something that would make any sense only if Carol wasn¡¯t willing to sleep with him.¡¯

    Mathew liked to analyze the situation from the ground up. Only by figuring out the reasons behind one¡¯s behavior could he get deep enough into their mind to get a rtively urate assessment of how they could react down the line.

    And against someone with a sacrifice system that was limited only by one¡¯s determination and creativity, understanding how that guy¡¯s mind worked was of utmost priority.

    ¡®The other option is that he knew who Norbert was and considered him a threat to whatever he could care about,¡¯ Mathew continued to analyze the options¡­

    But just like in most of the times where he would try to think ahead like that, it took the young man only a while to reach a wall.

    Mathew then opened his eyes.

    ¡°First off, I¡¯m sorry Ished out like that,¡± he said as he alternated his eyes between Nadia and Le. ¡°Norbert¡¯s words put me in a spot, making it hard to gather my thoughts not to speak about figuring the situation out,¡± he said.

    Mathew then took a step forward, finally moving away from the wall he was resting his back against. And then, without any shame in it, he lowered his head before the girls.

    ¡°I hope you can forgive and forget my words,¡± he apologized.

    ¡°No biggie,¡± Nadia shook her shoulders and cast a quick nce at the other girl. ¡°Aren¡¯t we all stressed out?¡± she asked before shaking her head and moving her eyes back to Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°It¡¯s obvious we would start shing sooner orter, given how we need to be on the lookout for danger for the entire damned day,¡± she added before sending a nce towards one of the nearby windows.

    The day outside¡­  was practically over. The brightness normally offered by the sun now turned into a palette of different shades of grey, indicating that it was only a matter of moments before the sun would fully set.

    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s the darkness that this guy is waiting for?¡¯ Mathew suddenly thought when several points of what he thought about before all clicked together.

    ¡®He doesn¡¯t want us to remember about him, yet he didn¡¯t wish for us to forget about his system, the only other thing we could remember him by,¡¯ Mathew lowered his chin on his hand. ¡®He is willing to turn us into enemies by attacking Norbert, a policeman. What he couldn¡¯t expect, though, was that his ghost would pass the information about this event to us. We were likely supposed to learn about his situation farter.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s fingers rubbed his chin while he continued to draw lines between the disconnected dots of what his group had learned before.

    ¡°The one thing that eludes me is what the heck does he want?¡± Mathew muttered, unaware of the fact that his thoughts spilled over through his mouth.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it pretty damn obvious?¡± Daria said, interrupting the nearly perfect silence that allowed the young man to gather his thoughts.

    Shaken awake by the sudden interruption of his peace of mind, Mathew raised his eyes to the girl.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the one thing any man would love to secure in a crumbling world?¡± Daria asked, crossing her hands over her chest as she graced Mathew with a small smirk. ¡°What was the first thing you rushed to do once you could afford to think about anything but your own immediate survival?¡±

    Mathew kept his eyes on Daria¡¯s smiling face as he pushed his mind to look for the answer. He then moved his eyes around the ce, scanning the faces of all the girls in his tiny harem.

    And then it struck him.

    ¡°Pu¡­¡± the rude version of the answer almost escaped Mathew¡¯s mouth. But after the small sh from before, the young man knew better than to be brutally direct with his girls. Especially given how it could change their perception of Mathew¡¯s motives during the early hours of the day. ¡°He likely wanted to keep Carol by his side.¡±

    ¡°Ding dong!¡± Daria smiled even wider while making a cringing sound. ¡°You did everything in your power to save your girl because you loved her,¡± Daria said, helping Mathew¡¯s case a little. ¡°On the other hand, given how eager Carol was to join us rather than to stick with her boyfriend, it¡¯s likely that he wanted to keep his pussy by his side,¡± she exined her line of thought, not minding the brutality of the approach.

    ¡°That makes sense,¡± Nadia muttered under her nose. ¡°I¡¯m kinda aware of the lengths some guys could go just to get their dick wet,¡± she stated, only for panic to appear on her face as she turned her eyes to Mathew. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean that I slept with someone else¡­¡±

    ¡°Calm down,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°I know you gave me your first time, so how could you sleep with someone else before that?¡± he asked, pointing out the obvious.

    Mathew then shook his head and took a step towards the stairs, resuming their march towards the inevitable.

    ¡°We know that he wants to keep Carol by his side. We also know that Carol doesn¡¯t like this idea very much. This means we are in the great position of being able to choose whether to help her or not,¡± Mathew pointed out as he started to climb the stairs.

    ¡°Is this even a question?¡± Daria suddenly asked, grabbing Mathew by his shoulder and forcibly turning him around.

    She was five levels weaker than Nadia; her ss also didn¡¯t appear to have much to do with physical prowess. Yet,pared to Mathew, whosebined statistics only made him as strong as a fourteen-level system holder, she was still easily able to overpower him.

    ¡°Mathew, I know that you dislike the idea of expanding your harem,¡± she pointed out with a stern look on her face. Daria then nced over her arm to the two girls behind her. ¡°I¡¯m also aware that neither of you likes the idea,¡± she added, only to turn her eyes back on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°But you think that I don¡¯t really have any choice when ites to Carol,¡± Mathew finished what Daria wanted to say right as she opened her mouth to say so. And seeing the shock appearing on her face, the young man could only smile. ¡°Out of all of us, you are the one following reason and cold logic the most. That¡¯s how I knew what you wanted to say,¡± he added.

    Adding girls to the rooster of Mathew¡¯s wives was the easiest and the most straightforward way of increasing the strength of their group. Even if it was only to be a superficial rtion on an emotional level, as long as his system would acknowledge them as wives, they would get an avenue to obtain strength to survive in this new, changed world.

    ¡®And with how little humans will survive theing days, every girl that¡¯s not mentally broken means a valuable opportunity to obtain a new asset,¡¯ Mathew thought, allowing the cold-hearted logic to guide his thoughts for a moment.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to ask you to add some random and ugly girls,¡± Daria said before pulling her hand off Mathew¡¯s shoulder and taking a step back. She then crossed her arms over her chest and looked directly into Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°But Carol?¡± Daria shook her head. ¡°She is likely thest girl in the entire school that you could turn into your wife capable of fighting. And there is no way we will be able to survive in this world with just the four of us.¡±

    Daria¡¯s reasoning was simple. The more people capable of fighting and growing their strength, the better. It struck right into the greatest strength of humans that allowed them to grow from an endangered species way in the past to fully dominate their home.

    ¡°What¡¯s important right now is for us to deal with this matter,¡± Mathew stated as he slightly increased the pace of his steps, hoping to pull the rest of the group along.

    ¡®Because contrary to that guy who can just wish for night-vision, once the true night begins, we will be all at his mercy!¡¯

 Chapter 104 Bloody act

    ¡°So this is the floor,¡± Mathew muttered in a low voice while looking up the stairs.

    With the help of Norbert¡¯s ghost, Mathew¡¯s group didn¡¯t need to look for the guy they were hunting for. Even before they approached anywhere near him, they were perfectly aware of his location.

    But that didn¡¯t mean the other party was aware of that fact.

    ¡°Shall we?¡± Le asked, turning her head over her shoulder to look at Mathew.

    She was the vanguard of the group, ready to jump into action at the first sign of trouble. Yet, she still had enough reason in her head to check with others before actually invading the floor.

    ¡°Just remember what I said before,¡± Mathew pointed out before gently shaking his head from one side to the other.

    ¡°I know,¡± Le muttered while rolling her eyes in annoyance. ¡°But don¡¯t you think it¡¯s Daria who you should be telling that?¡± she pointed out as a small smile quivered in the corner of her lips.

    ¡°That¡¯s a good point,¡± Mathew admitted as he turned his head to the left, where the other party of his second wife stood. ¡°Are you ready?¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t be any more ready.¡± There was no hesitation in Daria¡¯s voice.

    To the outsiders, she would appear too focused on hogging Mathew¡¯s left arm all to herself to consider her a threat. Yet, for Mathew¡¯s group, she was actually a hidden triumph card.

    ¡®If she can see Norbert¡¯s ghost, maybe she will be able to see through that guy¡¯s cover as well?¡¯ Mathew thought, unwilling to waste even the tiniest opportunity to make the looming fight easier.

    And right now, there are only three possibilities.

    First, the guy regretted shooting Norbert as it was something he didn¡¯t really mean to do. It was the best possible scenario assuming that he was willing to cooperate.

    The second option was the most realistic one that Mathew derived from what they guessed about their opponent so far. In this scenario, that bastard would simply use his wish to hide, hoping that Mathew¡¯s group wouldn¡¯t notice him.

    ¡®That¡¯s exactly what I would do if I were to be in the same ce he is in right now,¡¯ Mathew thought, perfectly aware of the overwhelming feelings of distrust that all the survivors felt back in the early days of the apocalypse.

    Yet, there was the third possibility. The one that Mathew hoped wouldn¡¯te true. It was the chance that upon seeing them, that guy would simply attack.

    ¡®As much as I don¡¯t want that to happen, it would lead to the quickest solution to the situation,¡¯ the young man thought when he took ced his foot on the first step of the stairs.

    ¡°He is on the move,¡± Norbert reported when Mathew blinked and kept his eyes closed for a little longer than one would usually do.

    ¡°He hid in the third ssroom to the left.¡±

    ¡°He hid my body in the lockers at the back of the ssroom.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t see Carol anywhere; I¡¯m still looking.¡±

    The reports from Norbert flooded Mathew¡¯s ears whenever he would close his eyes.

    ¡°Here we go,¡± Le muttered and tightened the grasp over the handle of her machete right before setting her foot on the floor of the level they were aiming to conquer. ¡°Are you sure this is the right floor?¡± she then asked, casually asking.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew nodded his head, not bothering to keep his voice low at all. ¡°The fact that we had a close call before doesn¡¯t mean I would forget where I summoned him,¡± he added before theatrically rolling his eyes.

    ¡°You really should put some more trust in him,¡± Daria said as she wrapped her hands tighter around Mathew¡¯s arm.

    ¡°And you should learn how to keep your dirty paws away from my man,¡± Nadia quickly joined in, reciting the lines the group came up with like a born actress.

    Her voice was oozing hate and disgust. If her eyes could kill, then not a single other girls on the floor would be left alive at this point.

    ¡°Girls, calm the heck down,¡± Mathew said, pretending to meditate between hispanions. ¡°What if we missed a zombie while clearing this floor before? It should be your ears and eyes that are wide open, not your mouths!¡± he said, turning his meditation into a lecture.

    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t need to worry about it if I was the one to clear that floor with you,¡± Nadia muttered silently and averted her eyes to the side.

    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s fucking it,¡± Mathew uttered, an ugly grin appearing on his lips as he swung his right arm to the front. As she was wrapped all around Mathew¡¯s right side, Nadia had no other choice but to struggle to stay on her feet by suddenly running a few steps forward. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you lot to focus?!¡±

    Mathew¡¯s scream caused the entire group to stop¡­ Right in front of the doors to the ssroom their prey was hiding at.

    ¡®If he wishes to attack, he will do it now,¡¯ Mathew thought before swallowing and continuing the act.

    ¡°I found Carol,¡± Norbert reported when Mathew blinked.

    ¡°I understand that this entire situation is weird for you,¡± Mathew stated as he pushed Daria away from his side, only to rest his hands on the sides of his hips while standing in a confrontational pose. ¡°But right now, I don¡¯t give two shits about your jealousy and conflicts,¡± Mathew uttered through his teeth before raising his hands only to cross them over his chest.

    ¡°What will happen if we don¡¯t raise the fortress?¡± the young man suddenly asked, his voice as stern as it was loud.

    ¡°We will likely die when a stray zombie finds us while we sleep,¡± Le replied without even a moment of hesitation.

    In the scenario that Mathew prepared, she was the one with the coldest blood and reason dictating her actions.

    In theory,plicating the situation like that had no meaning at all. Yet, if the push were toe to shove, the more unexpected their approach to the fight would be, the better.

    ¡°Is that the oue that you wish for?¡± Mathew asked, his eyes glossing over Le¡¯s face as if he was certain of her response, only to lock on Daria¡¯s and Nadia¡¯s faces.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± Nadia was the first one to apologize. This part of her role was something that she actually refused to give up. ¡°I just can¡¯t handle the idea of this bitchying her dirty hands on you!¡± she uttered in a trembling voice.

    ¡®Damn, she is an insane actress,¡¯ Mathew thought, genuinely surprised by the insane talent of the girl.

    ¡®If I didn¡¯t know any better, I would really think that¡¯s what she thinks!¡¯ he thought. Yet, his real thoughts aside, Mathew¡¯s face only reflected his anger growing.

    Mathew then turned silent while staring at the two girls before him. Both Nadia and Daria had an apologetic look on their face, and both of them refused to look Mathew in the eyes, as if too ashamed to establish eye contact.

    ¡°We ghi?¡± Mathew then asked in a stern tone before taking a moment to blink.

    ¡°He is right by the doors,¡± Norbert hastily reported.

    ¡°We¡­ we are,¡± this time, it was Daria¡¯s turn to speak first.

    ¡°Nadia?¡± Mathew moved his eyes to the right, seemingly putting his attention away from the doors. And then, he blinked again.

    ¡°¡­UCK!¡±

    Mathew swung both of his legs forward, ignoring the instinctual resistance to lose his footing just like that. His body fell to the back, only for a thin de to slide right past his nose and embed itself into the wall.

    ¡°What the¡­¡± he only managed to utter a single word of surprise.

    ¡°DIE!¡± Nadia shouted, both her voice and her eyes filling with intense hatred.

    And then she swung her own machete at the doors where the attack came from.

    Swish!

    The de of the girl¡¯s weapon cut through the air as easily as it did cut through the thin wood the doors of the ssroom were made off.

    By the time Nadia¡¯s de reached the bottom of the doors, Daria kicked one of its parts inside, allowing Le to leap inside.

    She swung her de sideways at what appeared like a shadow¡­ Only for an average-looking guy to suddenly appear in everyone¡¯s vision.

    His face was filled with a mix of disappointment, surprise, and panic. Yet, rather than pressing their advantage, the girls stopped as soon as the guy revealed himself.

    ¡°So you woke up and chose violence, huh?¡± Mathew muttered silently, shaking his head as he looked at his schoolmate¡¯s face.

    The guy didn¡¯t bother to reply. Instead, he brought up a metal leg of a chair with a sharpened end. He then pulled his arm to the back.

    ¡°Left eye,¡± he uttered, taking an aim with his improvised spear.

    ¡°Stop him,¡± Mathew gave only two words. And before their enemy could as much as throw his makeshift projectile, Le rushed in and sliced the fingers of his hand off.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t killing him be easier?¡± Le asked when shended behind their schoolmate as she sent Mathew a curious nce.

    ¡°It would be,¡± Mathew admitted as he took a step forward, grasping the handle of his fireman¡¯s ax that he didn¡¯t use in a long while already. ¡°But that¡¯s not your burden to bear.¡±

 Chapter 105 Name of the enemy

    Mathew looked down at the bloody face of their opponent.

    ¡®Wasn¡¯t this too easy?¡¯ he thought, clenching his fingers over the handle of his ax.

    It didn¡¯t sit well with Mathew how easily his group managed to solve the problem.

    ¡®After all the nning and worrying¡­ is that all there is to this guy?¡¯ He thought. Mathew then slowly swung his ax forward, only to use the dull front of the de to lift the guy¡¯s face.

    Then, Mathew¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡®Didn¡¯t he offer his left eye?¡¯ he thought while putting a furious expression on his face.

    ¡°Still, it¡¯s not me who lost the most because of him,¡± Mathew said before shaking his head.

    ¡®How should I tell them?¡¯ the thoughts of the young man went into disarray. And it was all because of the fact that the face he just lifted had both of its eyes right where they should be.

    ¡®If he offered his vision, it would make some sense. But since he offered his eye, it should be gone by now!¡¯ Mathew gritted his teeth. ¡®He fucking bamboozled me!¡¯

    Mathew then turned around and closed his eyes as he lowered his neck. Yet, even with his eyes closed, he didn¡¯t hear Norbert giving out a report.

    ¡®If I call his trick out loud, he will lose the surprise advantage, but so will we,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to clench his jaws.

    He then swung his body around while allowing his ax to get dragged by the motion.

    And in a single swoop, Mathew¡¯s ax cut right through the doll¡¯s neck, sending its head flying towards the far end of the ssroom.

    ¡°Huh?¡± All three girls of Mathew¡¯s group jumped when he suddenly decapitated their enemy.

    ¡°Why did you kill him?¡± Nadia asked, turning her eyes towards the back of Mathew¡¯s head.

    ¡°I wanted to kill him too!¡± Le protested while bringing both of her hands to her head while staring at how the doll¡¯s body fell to the ground.

    ¡°¡­¡± Mathew didn¡¯t bother to utter a single word of response. Instead, he raised his vignce to its limits, hoping to notice anything that would give away the position of the holder of his former system.

    ¡°What are you¡­¡± Nadia muttered silently. Yet, when Mathew turned around while scanning his surroundings, the girl¡¯s eyes twitched a little.

    Nadia then lowered herself to her knees. She knew Mathew long enough to recognize what the look of vignce on his face meant.

    ¡°What the hell are you guys doing?¡± Le asked, allowing her emotions to get the better of her. ¡°Isn¡¯t it over already? Let¡¯s get this merchant secured and establish the fortress alre¡­¡±

    ¡°BEHIND YOU!¡± Daria shouted.

    Both Mathew and Nadia spun on their feet, swinging their weapons to the back.

    Ting!

    A sound of metal hitting metal filled the room, only for Le¡¯s machete to fly, rolling through the room and embedding itself into the wall.

    ¡°Stand your ground!¡± the enemy finally revealed himself, appearing behind Le¡¯s back while holding a sharpened metal stick to her throat.

    ¡®Wait, isn¡¯t he¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, shocked to finally recognize the face of their enemy.

    ¡®I guess I robbed him of his opportunity,¡¯ the young man thought, turning himself towards the danger.

    ¡°Le!¡± Daria shouted, taking a step towards the duo¡­

    ¡°Make another step, I fucking dare you!¡± the guy shouted, pressing the sharpened stick of his into Le¡¯s throat so hard it actually prated through the skin.

    ¡°Stephen, was it?¡± Mathew suddenly said, resting the de of his ax against his shoulder.

    Despite how tense the situation was supposed to be, there was no sign of hesitation or worry in his eyes. Contrary to him, the guy holding Le hostage couldn¡¯t be called calm at all.

    His hands were trembling. His one remaining eye was oozing blood, just like his nose.

    ¡°The fuck do you want!¡± Stephen shouted, drilling his stick even deeper into Le¡¯s throat. At the same time, his hand moved down.

    It was likely just a slip, an attempt to ensure he had a firm grasp over her. Yet, in the process of doing so, his fingers fell down on Le¡¯s breast¡­ and dug in.

    ¡°That¡¯s it,¡± Le sighed. She then tensed up, only to suddenly drop herself to the ground as if she wanted to get away from the stick.

    Not expecting the resistance toe from the hostage herself, Stephen was caught off guard.

    Right as she neared the ground, Le brought her hands up and pressed them against Stephens¡¯s arms, keeping him as close as she would hold her lover. And then, she bent herself forward, throwing Stephen over her arm before mming him right against the floor!

    ¡°HAAAA¡­¡± Stephen made a noise when the air escaped from his lungs.

    ¡°This fucking mosquito stung me!¡± Leined and raised her hand to her neck, massaging the part of her skin where the bastard dared to injure her.

    ¡®At least she doesn¡¯t seem to be bothered by it,¡¯ Mathew thought before taking a step forward. He then grabbed his ax near its de before striking with the bottom of its handle right into Stephan¡¯s spine.

    ¡°Was it worth it, you little fucker?¡± he asked, kneeling before the guy¡¯s face. ¡°You could have a nice life under my protection, yet you choose violence instead,¡± Mathew muttered, pping Stephen¡¯s back with the handle of his weapon every other word.

    ¡°Fuck you!¡± Stephen proved his eloquence by responding with nothing more but amon curse.

    ¡°I guess there is no point in talking to him at all,¡± Mathew said and shook his head before standing up.

    ¡°What are we going to do with him?¡± Nadia asked as she moved over Stephen¡¯s body before mming her foot on his spine.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t she going to break it?¡¯ Mathew thought, worried about doing more than necessary. And while inflicting pain over someone who dared to stand against them was perfectly fine in this new, changing world, breaking one¡¯s spine was a whole different matter.

    ¡°For now, knock him unconscious,¡± Mathew ordered. ¡°We still need to look for Carol,¡± Mathew ordered before moving towards the locker where Norbert¡¯s body was stoved away.

    He then opened the doors, and just like one could expect, Norbert¡¯s lifeless body fell out of the shelf.

    ¡°Is he still alive?¡± Le asked from across the ssroom, too busy kicking at Stephen on the floor to bother checking the lockers out with Mat.

    ¡°No idea,¡± Mathew replied before bringing Norbert¡¯s flesh down on the floor and checking for his vitals.

    His heart was still beating. His chest, albeit slowly, continued to move up and down.

    ¡®So he didn¡¯t die,¡¯ Mathew thought before finally moving his eyes towards the policeman¡¯s head.

    The shot cleaved out a part of the man¡¯s skull but didn¡¯t seem to prate his head at all.

    ¡°This sure looks bad but likely isn¡¯t lethal,¡± Mathew muttered once he cleaned the wound out and got a clean look at it.

    The young man then tore a part of his dress out before closing his eyes.

    ¡°You here?¡± He asked the only person in the vincity that needed Mathew to close his eyes to talk.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Norbert replied despite failing to do so when Mathew first realized Stephen¡¯s trick. ¡°From the looks of things, I just got stunned when the shock hit my brain. Wrap it up with some bandage and leave me be; that should be enough,¡± the policeman instructed.

    ¡°Will do,¡± Mathew nodded his head before opening his eyes up and focusing on treating the man¡¯s wound.

    ¡°He is out!¡± Nadia shouted once their one-sided beating of Stephen finally rendered him unconscious. ¡°What are you going to do with him now?¡± she then asked.

    ¡°For now, bind him,¡± Mathew ordered. He then finished his Norbert-rted task before standing up and approaching the lifeless body of their enemy. ¡°Given how he dared to stand up to us, I don¡¯t feel like letting him die without tormenting him a little first,¡± he then added, only for his eyes to move up to the small wound on Le¡¯s neck.

    Mathew¡¯s hate towards this specific person was actually deeper than he allowed others to know. Outside of Stephen¡¯s faults in this world, he also earned quite a lot of hate from all the system-less people in the school that survived the apocalypse in Mathew¡¯s original life.

    After all, he was the one responsible for breaking the outer wall of the school just to flex his newfound ability! And as a result of breaking that wall, once all the system users departed from thepound, new zombies continued to pour inside.

    ¡®In a sense, he is the one directly responsible for my death back then,¡¯ Mathew thought, fighting off the desire to kill Stephen.

    ¡°For now, we need to find Carol,¡± Mathew said. ¡®If we want to ensure Norbert¡¯s and, by extension, Daniel¡¯s cooperation, that is.¡¯

 Chapter 106 Merchant secured

    ¡°Le,¡± Mathew called out once he stood up from Norbert¡¯s unconscious body.

    ¡°Yeah?¡± the girl raised her head. Yet, even when she prepared to listen to Mathew, she didn¡¯t stop digging her heel into Stephen¡¯s back.

    ¡°His system only allows him to empower himself,¡± Mathew revealed. ¡°That and influence the things that are seemingly random,¡± he exined.

    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Le asked while leaning her head to the side. It was only a small change of her head¡¯s position, yet it ented the confusion that shed behind her eyes. ¡°The second part, I mean,¡± she specified.

    ¡°He might be able to influence things that are up to chance,¡± Mathew borated a little. ¡°I only used that ability once, so I can¡¯t be sure about its scope. I wouldn¡¯t be personally too worried about it too much¡­ But be aware that he might somehow call for the surviving zombies to swarm this ce,¡± Mathew pointed out.

    ¡°So it can influence things that don¡¯t have intelligence?¡± Le scratched the side of her head with the same hand she was holding her weapon in.

    Mathew gulped down his saliva when the de of Le¡¯s machete waved dangerously close to the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew suddenly shrugged when he noticed his own feelings. ¡®Do I actually care about her?¡¯ he asked himself, puzzled by this sudden discovery.

    Save for Nadia, Mathew¡¯s rtionship with the other girls was pretty ambiguous.

    Sure, they slept together and cooperated¡­ but that was basically the end of it. In a sense, friends with benefits would be the most fitting name for who they were to each other, and even the friends part could be disputed given how little they knew themselves.

    ¡®There is no denying it. I was worried about her,¡¯ Mathew thought. He then shook his head and forcefully put his mind on another track.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if the scope of what he can do is limited to just other beings. Just like he made us forget his name, there is a chance he might influence our own actions again,¡± Mathew pointed out once his mind focused on the topic at hand.

    ¡°So, what do you want me to do?¡± Le asked, confusion recing all the other emotions on her face. ¡°Can¡¯t we just kill him?¡± she suggested while shrugging her shoulders.

    ¡°We can,¡± Daria suddenly joined the conversation, ¡°but we shouldn¡¯t,¡± she added.

    ¡°And why is that?¡± Le leaned her head to the other side. This time, however, her raised right eyebrow made it clear she wasn¡¯t just confused.

    Right now, Le was in confrontation mode.

    ¡°Because we will turn killing into something normal,¡± Daria replied in a low, shaky voice.

    ¡°Weren¡¯t we killing zombies left and right already?¡± Le asked while crossing her hands over her chest.

    ¡°It¡¯s not the same,¡± Nadia joined the discussion after she could no longer hold herself back. ¡°Zombies are already dead. You could say we are doing them a favor by putting them down,¡± she stated. Her eyes then moved to the back of Stephen¡¯s head. ¡°This guy, on the other hand, as despicable as he might be¡­¡± she took a moment to fight off her hesitation, ¡°he is still alive.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t really think he values his life all that much,¡± Mathew finally joined in on the discussion as well. ¡°Assuming my belief of the kind of system one receives depending on their personality or wish, he doesn¡¯t really see any real value in his life. That¡¯s why killing him wouldn¡¯t be that much of a punishment,¡± Mathew stated.

    ¡°Dear¡­¡± Nadia muttered, only to take a step forward and grab Mathew¡¯s hand. She then wrapped her arms around his arm, pressing her chest against his shoulder. ¡°Do you want to say that back in your first life¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew replied before the girl could even finish voicing her guess. ¡°All I cared about, back then, was keeping you alive. Well, I was in a pretty dark spot then, so I would rather not talk about it too much.¡±

    ¡®There is no point in talking about how little I cared about myself in the past. While exining how I only saw any value in my own being when I could use it to help Nadia could make her value herself, even more, it¡¯s not something that she would be happy to hear,¡¯ the young man thought.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Nadia whispered, only to rub her face against the side of Mathew¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Well then, if you don¡¯t want to kill him, how do you want to make him suffer?¡± she then asked in a tone befitting someone asking for tomorrow¡¯s weather. ¡°Or no, don¡¯t tell me,¡± Nadia added as she averted her eyes. ¡°I think I can guess it.¡±

    ¡®And so we are stepping on the minefield,¡¯ Mathew thought, opting to ignore the topic rather than taking his chances on it. ¡®Still, I can only push it away for so long. Sooner orter, we will have to talk about Carol,¡¯ Mathew thought before shaking his head and pulling away from the corner of the room.

    ¡°Daria, I will leave observing this fucker to you,¡± Mathew said before turning his eyes to Daria¡¯s partner. ¡°As for you, just in case he attempts to escape, feel free to cut his throat or something,¡± he added when his eyes locked on Le.

    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± Le said while a smile returned to her lips. She then raised her hand and put the side of her de to her forehead in some kind of weird salute.

    ¡°Where did you get that gesture from, dune movie?¡± Mathew asked, recalling one of the old cinema ssics.

    ¡°Does it matter?¡± the girl smiled yfully. ¡°It¡¯s cool, isn¡¯t it?¡± she added as she openly grinned.

    ¡°And we will leave it at that,¡± Mathew replied, raising his hand to hide his chuckle.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t give me any orders,¡± Nadia pointed out when the two of them moved out of the ssroom and headed deeper into the corridor.

    ¡°That¡¯s because I want you by my side,¡± Mathew revealed without even a moment of hesitation.

    ¡°As a bodyguard?¡± Nadia asked, pressing the topic while a flirty smile appeared on her cute face.

    ¡°As a lover, to experience something that we strived to do throughout the day,¡± Mathew corrected the girl¡¯s guess. Yet, before Nadia could enjoy the acknowledgment for long, Mathew raised his hand and rubbed his cheek with his finger. ¡°And well, I¡¯m going to use a merchant to I need someone to keep me safe while at it,¡± he added.

    ¡°Figures,¡± Nadiamented softly, only to rub herself closer to Mathew¡¯s side anyway. ¡°So we are going to get the merchant and then set this fortress that you were speaking about up?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew replied, only to put a stop to their journey when he finally reached the location of the merchant.

    Yet, contrary to his previous experiences with all the merchants, there wasn¡¯t any in the spot where Mathew summoned his second one several hours prior.

    ¡°Did he move it?¡± Mathew muttered, looking around. ¡®Should I call Daria here?¡¯ he then thought, acknowledging the possibility that Stephen simply hid the merchant instead of somehow changing its location.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Nadia asked, confused about why they suddenly took a stop in apletely random spot of the corridor.

    ¡°There should be a merchant here,¡± Mathew exined. He then freed his right arm from the girl¡¯s grasp and waved it in front of him. ¡°Like, right he¡­¡±

    The shadows surged all over the young man, throwing him to the familiar shadowy realm of the second merchant. Yet, contrary to theplex and information-oriented interface he could experience in the third merchant or theplete emptiness of the first one, the realm of the second merchant was actually filled with stuff.

    ¡°Wee back,¡± a mechanical voice sounded as soon as the world around the young man stabilized and gained colors.

    And just like several hours ago, Mathew appeared in the middle of what could only be exined as a massive shopping floor of some kind of a mall.

    ¡°Hello,¡± Mathew said as a small smile surfaced on his lips. ¡°Since I¡¯m here,  am I safe to assume I now control you again?¡± Mathew asked.

    Sadly, the wee was the only part of the process that was extraordinary. And just like Mathew could expect, the merchant was clearly unwilling to give him any answers¡­ That is, as long as Mathew wasn¡¯t going to pay for them with cores!

    ¡°I guess I can only assume I am right now,¡± Mathew finally waved his hand once he was done waiting for the answer. ¡°I wish to leave, then,¡± he added, only for the shadows to surge again and then recede from the young man¡¯s proximity.

    ¡°¡­ere¡­¡± Mathew¡¯s voice finished the very word he uttered before stumbling upon the merchant.

    ¡°Is it done?¡± Nadia asked, slightly bewildered by the weird pause in Mathew¡¯s voice.

    ¡°It is done,¡± Mathew replied, only to turn around and look Nadia in the face. ¡°And now, we shall go back to the ground floor to finally raise this damned fortress!¡±

    ¡°It feels kind of surreal,¡± Nadia admitted as she once again wrapped herself against Mathew¡¯s arm, shamelessly pushing her soft attributes against his shoulder.

    ¡°To be done with this job?¡± Mathew asked, not really sure what the girl was talking about.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Nadia nodded her head. ¡°It was supposed to take only a moment, but then more and more troubles continued to appear¡­¡± she exined, only to cut her words short and shake her head. ¡°And now that we are about to get it done, I don¡¯t feel like anything will change,¡± she revealed and turned her head to the side, refusing to look Mathew in the face.

    ¡°That¡¯s perfectly normal,¡± Mathew replied, ignoring Nadia¡¯s hesitation and pulling her towards the staircase instead. ¡°And there is only one way to fight this weird feeling,¡± he added, only to purse his lips and put a mysterious smile on his face.

    ¡°And what might that be?¡± Nadia inquired while raising her eyes on Mathew once again.

    ¡°It¡¯s to actually do it,¡± Mathew revealed, only to focus on descending the stairs, heading straight for the merchant where he could raise his desired fortress at.

 Chapter 107 Establishing the fortress

    ¡°Are you going to do it?¡± Nadia asked.

    The two of them stood right within the hands reach of the third merchant. And yet, Mathew didn¡¯t reach out to establish the fortress.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Mathew hesitated.

    He brought his arm up, aiming his hand at the bundle of shadows hidden underneath the merchant¡¯s robe. But he didn¡¯t grasp at it.

    ¡°It just feels slightly overwhelming,¡± Mathew muttered, closing his fist. ¡°Like, this moment marks the end of my knowledge,¡± he added and gulped his saliva down.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it a good thing?¡± Nadia asked, turning her face away from the merchant and towards Mathew. She then locked her arms on her chest and looked at her partner. ¡°I know you might feel uncertain about what wille next,¡± she said, only to shake her head and move it back towards the merchant. ¡°Ultimately, though, waiting won¡¯t change a thing, would it?¡±

    Mathew allowed Nadia¡¯s words to sound out in the air.

    Maybe it was the enclosure of the office area. Maybe it was the feeling of uncertainty regarding the future.

    ¡®Or maybe I¡¯m scared of the future where I won¡¯t know anything more than others,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping his saliva down again.

    The young man stared at the shadows of the merchant for the next few moments.

    ¡®Pam,¡¯ a soft sound filled Mathew¡¯s ears when Naida suddenly hugged herself to his side.

    ¡°I understand that you are worried,¡± she said in a seemingly casual tone. She then locked her hands on the other side of Mathew¡¯s waist and pulled herself even tighter to his side.

    ¡®I can feel them,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping his saliva down for the third time, although this time due to another reason.

    ¡°And I¡¯m here to support you through it,¡± Nadia stated, raising her eyes and locking them on Mathew¡¯s face.

    The young man sank into Nadia¡¯s pupils. Her earnest look, endless faith, and wholesome support all struck Mathew¡¯s soul to its core.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± the young man uttered while allowing the corner of his mouth to quiver up a little.

    Mathew then opened his hand and reached out just a little bit further, grasping at the merchant¡¯s core.

    ¡®The shadows will surge, then the space will form,¡¯ Mathew thought as he observed the usual process all around him. Yet, before he could observe any details, the phenomena would always end up eluding his eyes.

    ¡®What?¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes widening while he attempted to make sense of the small detail he had just noticed. ¡®What was that feeling?¡¯ he thought, raising his hands to his eyes, analyzing the memory of what happened.

    The young man then shook his head and looked up, right at the interface he had seen back when hest visited this merchant.

    ¡°Outside of the number of zombies falling within quota, nothing appears to have changed,¡± Mathew muttered, raising a hand to rub his chin.

    His eyes then moved down, scanning everyst detail of the screens that formed along with the shadowy world around them.

    ¡°The question now is, which option should I choose?¡± Mathew muttered while moving his eyes between the three windows outlining his picks.

    ¡®Better scouting area, easier merchants or general benefits,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning the sizeable windows of text into the generalized benefits each of them provided.

    ¡®I can cut the merchant-rted merchant option right away. Increasing the spending of the stones would be counterproductive in the long term,¡¯ Mathew thought, mentally erasing one of the options.

    ¡°Now, should I go with the first or with thest one?¡± Mathew muttered, unable to decide.

    He then turned on his feet and started to pace around the shadowy realm, hoping that this movement would refresh his mind.

    This stalematested for what seemed like an hour yet could very well be a minute or even a handful of seconds.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go with the first option,¡± Mathew said, raising his head when he finally made his decision.

    ¡®Assuming that the merchants will work rtively the same way one step above as they do right now, I will have to establish a few more fortresses anyway.¡¯ Mathew raised his hand to make his choice.

    [First merchant]

    [Effect: Due to its high elevation, the core set in the first location of choice will give a bonus to detection and system alert for major events in the vincity. Increases the area of influence of the fortress.]

    The second Mathew touched the semi-existing panel, it lit up a little at the expense of the brightness of the two other options. Yet, besides this small change, nothing else happened.

    ¡°Ah, my bad,¡± Mathew muttered, only to bring his hand to the bottom of all the screens that he could see before slowly scrolling it up.

    ¡®Set the range to the maximum, the details to the maximum,¡¯ Mathew thought as he yed around with some of the settings of the fortress that he found interesting.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it works,¡± the young man whispered under his nose once he concluded all the minute changes to the fortress settings.

    Mathew could manipte only a few aspects. Each of them was somehow rted to the main nature of the fortress, allowing him to bnce its potential in one or the other way.

    ¡®I guess I will be able to y around with other elements once I set up the two others kind of fortress,¡¯ Mathew concluded right as his hand scrolled the list of the system windows all the way to the bottom, where a ¡®confirm¡¯ button was hidden.

    And right now, it was shing in rhythmic intervals, edging Mathew to just press it.

    ¡°I should look forward to the times when I¡¯m not the smartest person in the room, huh?¡± Mathew spoke to himself, reiterating the words that Nadia offered him.

    ¡°I¡¯m jumping into unknown waters,¡± Mathew then said in a determined tone before bringing his finger down over the shing button and confirming all the details of the sect. ¡°But I will never grow if I remain stuck in ce!¡±

    All the shadows around Mathew suddenly started to recede, all gathering up in the central point of the shadowy domain. Yet, rather than disappearing into thin air, they congregated into a single entity that then formed itself into a whirlpool of shadows.

    The whirlpool then started to spin around at an ever-increasing rate. Soon, the fabric of the shadowy domain started to bend, relenting under the pressure of the whirlpool¡¯s momentum.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew only managed to utter a small moan of shock when he was suddenly kicked out of the shadowy domain.

    ¡°What the hell did just happen?¡± he asked in a shocked voice while his eyes widened up to their physical limits.

    ¡°Matt¡­¡± Nadia attempted to call the young man out, only for Mathew to shoot his outer arm around the girl¡¯s shoulders before dropping himself to the ground and pinning the girl below his own body.

    BOOM!

    The merchant exploded¡­ or it didn¡¯t.

    A surge of strange power filled the entire area with force easily capable of toppling the entire building that Mathew worked so hard to preserve.

    And yet, not a single speck of dust changed its ce.

    ¡®What the¡­¡¯ Mathew couldn¡¯t even form a proper sentence in his mind to express his shock caused by the dissonance.

    From one side, he could feel his body being torn apart by the powerful, spinning current¡­ Yet, there wasn¡¯t any wind in the area nor any other force capable of influencing the physical world at all.

    And so it ended.

    ¡°Mathew, what happened?!¡± Nadia mmed her hands against Mathew¡¯s cheeks without any mercy. She didn¡¯t bother trying to stand up or push the young man of her, opting to focus on his mental state instead. ¡°TALK TO ME!¡± she shouted as worry exploded in her eyes.

    ¡°It¡¯s over¡­¡± Mathew whispered in a weak voice.

    ¡°¡­¡± Nadia was at a loss for words. Whatever she wanted to say ended up stuck in her throat, unable to reach her lips. ¡°Hug me,¡± she then quickly ordered, fixing her grasp over Mathew¡¯s waist only to pull him deeper into her embrace.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s not it,¡± Mathew shook his head, realizing the mistake he had made. ¡°The formation of the fortress is over,¡± he quickly exined. The young man then lowered his head, resting it against Nadia¡¯s soft bosom. ¡°But before we talk about the obvious, tell me,¡± he muttered, his voice muffled by Nadia¡¯s flesh blocking his mouth. ¡°You didn¡¯t feel it?¡±

    Nadia¡¯s questions and misunderstanding madeplete sense¡­ Only within the frame of an assumption that she didn¡¯t go through the experience that shook Mathew to the core.

    ¡°Feel what?¡± the girl asked, moving her hands up to rustle Mathew¡¯s hair while taking a deep breath to calm herself down.

    Whether the misunderstanding was Mathew¡¯s fault or not didn¡¯t matter. The scare that the girl went through was real.

    ¡°So you didn¡¯t¡­¡± Mathew muttered. He then took a few moments to rx while resting atop Nadia¡¯s breast, his head lulled within the most divine pillow a man could ask for. ¡°Well, let¡¯s stop just lying around,¡± he then suddenly announced, pushing his hands to the side and resting them against the floor.

    With a single push, Mathew forced his upper body up, pulling the girl wrapped around his chest along. He then forced his legs to move, quickly standing back up¡­ with Nadia still hanging from his neck and glued to his torso.

    ¡°Why did you move?¡± Nadia protested, only to move her lips towards Mathew¡¯s earlobe and enclose them around it. ¡°Didn¡¯t we fight through the entire day just so we could rx a bit?¡± she asked, clearly hinting at the specific way of celebrating the long-awaited sess.

    ¡°We did,¡± Mathew nodded his head while helping the girl get down on her own two feet. ¡°But there is still one more thing left for us to do,¡± he imed before moving his eyes up to the ceiling. ¡°And now that we established the fortress, it¡¯s onest thing we need to do before we can finally go and get some well-deserved rest!¡±

    [End of the arc]

 Chapter 108 No man would give up on his balls (slight gore?)

    ¡°Close the door, please,¡± Mathew requested as soon as he stepped into the ssroom.

    Le and Daria were well awake. Yet, one didn¡¯t need to be a genius to see that it was Daria who was far more perturbed by the situation than her partner.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Le replied after throwing a quick nce at her female partner before pulling away from Stephen and moving towards the doors.

    ¡°Is it done?¡± Daria whispered her question when Mathew passed right by her.

    ¡°It is done,¡± Mathew didn¡¯t hold back his answer at all. ¡°And from the look on your face, you saw something,¡± he pointed out, stopping in his tracks and turning around to take a good look at the girl¡¯s eyes. ¡°Right?¡±

    Daria averted her eyes to the side.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± she replied. Her arms then rested on her waist as if she was attempting to hug herself. Yet, even when in this defensive stance, she didn¡¯t move her eyes back on his face.

    ¡°How bad was it?¡± Mathew asked, pressing the topic despite how clearly ufortable the girl was with it.

    ¡°It felt as if I jumped out of a car, only to smash into a road sign,¡± Daria revealed. A shudder shook her body from the core. ¡°Listen, this power¡­¡± she raised her eyes at Mathew but failed to finish her sentence.

    ¡°It ultimatelyes from those who caused this entire apocalypse,¡± Mathew said. ¡°I learned some things¡­ I¡¯m actually not even sure if you could call it learning,¡± Mathew¡¯s revtion quickly turned into an expression of his own doubts.

    ¡°So I guess I¡¯m not the only one worried about it all,¡± Daria said and shook her head.

    ¡°We are all worried,¡± Le rejoined the discussion once she pushed the doors of the ssroom shut. She kept her chin rested on her sr plexus for a moment before slowly raising her face up. ¡°But that shouldn¡¯t stop us from doing what we need to do.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s right,¡± Nadia said, tightening her fingers over Mathew¡¯s hand. ¡°Dealing with this guy is thest thing on our list,¡± she pointed out, forcing Mathew to move his attention back to the topic at hand.

    ¡°And we all deserve some rest, don¡¯t we?¡± Le added before a small smirk took over her lips. She then rested her back against the doors she had just shut before sending a meaningful look toward Stephen¡¯s unconscious body.

    ¡°I guess we need to deal with that kid first,¡± Mathew admitted, not seeing any benefit to stubbornly refusing when the girls were fully right.

    He then approached the lifeless body of his former enemy, only to wake him up with a solid kick to the stomach.

    ¡°Ghaaa¡­¡±

    The first thing Stephan did when he came back to his senses was to desperately struggle for his breath.

    ¡®Did I go a bit too far?¡¯ Mathew thought, looking at the back of his former schoolmate¡¯s head.

    And so, he kicked the guy on the ground again. This time, however, he directed his foot to Stephen¡¯s back just so that he would be beaten up evenly.

    ¡°Wakey wakey,¡± Mathew called out, taking two steps to change his position¡­

    Only to send yet another kick, this time straight towards Stephen¡¯s face.

    ¡°The fuck!¡± Stephen uttered when the kick sent him roughly a meter away from where hey before.

    The tight bounds on his wrists and ankles prevented him from moving up, keeping the guy in a weird, curled-up position.

    ¡°Shut your crap,¡± Mathew ordered and brandished his ax. ¡°Now then,¡± he added, lowering his weapon and putting the sharp edge of the de right on top of Stephen¡¯s neck.

    ¡®All I need is to press it down,¡¯ Mathew thought coldly while a strange feeling of power filled his soul.

    ¡°What do you want?!¡± Stephen barked, struggling to push any words out of his mouth with how his lips were basically pressed against the floor. Unable to change his clearly ufortable position, his ability to retaliate was now limited to just sending cold nces at Mathew and the girls.

    ¡°First off, I know exactly what you can do with that system of yours,¡± Mathew said as he leaned down on his knees over the man¡¯s face. His hand slid down the handle of his weapon so that he could still control the man¡¯s life with as much as a twitch of his hand. ¡°And I want you to give it up,¡± Mathew added with a smile growing on his lips.

    ¡°Fuck you!¡± Stephen called out. He then started to move his lips and jaw around. A momentter, he turned his head to the limits only to gather his saliva and¡­

    ¡°No, you don¡¯t,¡± Nadia stomped down on the side of Stephen¡¯s face, breaking his momentary stability.

    But for the phlegm that Mathew¡¯s enemy had already gathered and set in motion, it was already way toote. As a result, with his attempt to spit stopped in the middle, Stephen ended up dirtying up his very own face.

    ¡°Let me exin, then,¡± Mathew smiled, hiding the disgust that filled his mind. ¡°You can eitherply with my orders and stay alive,¡± Mathew stated, instantly raising his hand to stop the girls from voicing out theirints.

    ¡°Or you can keep acting up, in which case, I will simply press on my ax¡¯s handle,¡± Mathew exined Stephen¡¯s options. He then gently pressed his weapon down just to make the guy understand how real the threat was.

    The de dug into Stephen¡¯s skin, allowing the blood to decorate Mathew¡¯s schoolmate¡¯s throat.

    ¡°I know your system,¡± Mathew announced again. ¡°The moment you attempt to use it, I will cut your head off,¡± he imed before pressing the weapon down a little bit harder.

    The de dug even deeper into Stephen¡¯s neck.

    ¡°Tic Toc, it¡¯s time to make your choice,¡± Mathew hurried his adversary up. Yet, rather than focusing all his attention on Stephen, he turned his eyes to the girls. ¡°Could you hold him up for me, just in case?¡±

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Le was the first one to react, rushing to pin down Stephen¡¯s legs to the ground. Yet, it was Nadia who reached out of her target first, standing above the man and grabbing his hair, ready to pull his neck up, right against the de of Mathew¡¯s weapon.

    ¡°Wh-what do you want?¡± Stephen uttered through his tightened lips. Due to his throat being stretched to the back, he could hardly gather enough air to utter those few simple words.

    ¡°I wish to sacrifice my system and¡­¡± Mathew nced over the man¡¯s back, right where Daria caught his hands and pressed them against the young man¡¯s back. ¡°My system and my pinky to get rid of my own system,¡± Mathew gave his adversary the form. ¡°Now, say it yourself.¡±

    ¡°I-I wish to sacrifice my system¡­ cough, and my pinky,¡± Stephen slowly uttered the words through his tightened throat.

    Noticing his earnest attempts, Nadia rxed her pull on his hair a little, allowing his throat to return to a more natural position.

    ¡°to get rid of THAT GUY¡¯S¡­¡±

    Stephen didn¡¯t get to finish his words. Before he could do so, Nadia let go of his hair¡­ Only to smash her fists into the back of Stephen¡¯s head.

    And this girl¡¯s power wasn¡¯t to be trifled with.

    Stephan¡¯s head bounced off Nadia¡¯s fist only to strike the floor and bounce right back.

    ¡°That was quite shrewd of you,¡± Mathew imed, his eyes darkening. He then raised his face and looked at the girls. ¡°Turn him around,¡± he ordered.

    ¡°Nadia, stuff his mouth with something,¡± Mathew ordered, only to see the girl tear away a small part of her own cloth, only to then force it into Stephen¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Now then, do you want to castrate him?¡± Mathew then asked, standing up and bringing his ax up to his shoulder. ¡°Or should I do the honors?¡±

    ¡°Feel free to do it,¡± Le said, only to shake her shoulders. ¡°But I would prefer if you didn¡¯t try to touch his parts, they must be disgusting,¡± she added before spitting on the floor, right by Stephen¡¯s face.

    ¡°The brutal way, then,¡± Mathew muttered.

    ¡°MHHHMM!¡± Stephen attempted to shout something, only for his words to end up muffled by the makeshift gag.

    Mathew then changed his position to stand in front of his enemy. He then brought his ax down, cutting through the bounds on Stephen¡¯s legs in a single strike.

    ¡°Let¡¯s open him up a little,¡± he said before kicking both of his legs open.

    Reading Mathew¡¯s intention, Le and Daria both rushed to hold Stephen¡¯s legs as far apart as possible, allowing Mathew to get into his position.

    ¡°Now, then,¡± Mathew muttered as he stood sideways between Stephen¡¯s knees, slowly swinging the butt of his ax as if it was a golf¡¯s club. ¡°There¡­ we¡­¡± he muttered, using his words to time his wings as he took aim¡­

    ¡°MHHAHAMAHMMHMH!¡± the sound of desperate cries came from Stephen¡¯s mouth as he realized what was actually going to happen right now. Yet, thanks to the makeshift gag, Mathew¡¯s group didn¡¯t need to hear his pleas.

    ¡°GO!¡± Mathew shouted happily, finally using some force when swinging his ax, smashing its butt right into Stephen¡¯s balls!

    ¡°MAHAHAMHHMMH!!!¡±

    Stephen¡¯s entire body tensed up, and his back formed an arch.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought as a shiver moved through his body. ¡®I felt that too,¡¯ he thought.

    The insane pain visible in Stephen¡¯s eyes somehow transferred to Mathew¡¯s brain, making him aware of the scale of the torture he put his enemy through.

    ¡®Fucking solidarity of balls,¡¯ the young man thought before bringing his ax to the throat of the tortured enemy.

    ¡°I sacrifice my system and pinky to recover my testicles,¡± Mathew said as he took aim at Stephen¡¯s neck. ¡°Nadia, pull it out,¡± he then ordered.

    ¡®It¡¯s better if I give him a reason to be obedient,¡¯ Mathew thought, ready to push his de and cut Stephen¡¯s throat the moment his words would derive from what Mathew dictated.

    ¡°I-I¡­¡± Stephen attempted to speak, only for a bout of pain to block his words in his throat. ¡°I sacrifice my system and my pinky to recover my testicles!¡± he finally shouted.

    ¡°It¡¯s happening again,¡± Daria suddenly announced as her eyes turned wide.

    And then Mathew felt it.

    The same kind of power that he noticed when the fortress came online. At least, this time, the scale of the event was far smaller. In fact, the young man could barely notice it.

    Yet, regardless of what this strange power was, it suddenly invaded the ssroom and rushed into Stephen¡¯s body, congregating on his balls.

    Stephen suddenly rxed, as if all the pain that Mathew inflicted on him a moment earlier finally disappeared.

    And then, with a strange ¡®Plop,¡¯ the power disappeared.

 Chapter 109 Lights out

    ¡°Is it done?¡± Nadia asked, raising her eyes to Mathew¡¯s face. Even though she only looked for confirmation, she didn¡¯t remove her shoe from Stephen¡¯s face.

    ¡°Lemme check,¡± Mathew said. ¡°Stay away for a moment,¡± he then asked while moving his eyes to Le and Daria.

    The girls moved away. And as soon as he was free to do it, Mathew kicked Stephen in his stomach, forcing him to roll around on the floor.

    Mathew then got down to his knees only to grab the bounds that kept Stephen¡¯s hands together and raise them a little.

    ¡°Yeah, he is missing his pinky,¡± the young man announced.

    The finger was cleanly cut off from Stephen¡¯s hand. Yet, even though it went missing just a moment earlier, the wound was perfectly closed, making it seem as if he had lost his fingers years ago.

    ¡°I think we are in the safe,¡± Mathew then announced. He stood up from his half-kneeling pose and rested his hands on his hips¡­ Only to take a deep breath and then release it along with all the tension in his body.

    ¡°So it¡¯s all over now?¡± Nadia asked, quickly jumping forward and tugging at Mathew¡¯s cloth. ¡°Are we safe?¡±

    ¡°For now, we are,¡± Mathew replied, keeping his doubts to himself. ¡°Unless the monsters will evolve above the level that this fortress can protect us from, the entirepound should now be a safe zone.¡±

    This was the very reason why Mathew was willing to try so hard and extend so much effort right at the beginning of the apocalypse. The experiences of his former attempts at surviving it made the young man terribly aware of a simple truth.

    In order for humans to thrive, they needed a safe ce to fall back into. And the fortress that Mathew and his group finally managed to establish was exactly that.

    ¡°Then, isn¡¯t this the best time to take some rest?¡± Nadia pushed forth with her agenda.

    ¡°Why do I have the feeling that yours and my concepts of what rest entails are not the same?¡± Mathew pointed out while bringing up the corners of his lips in a small smirk.

    ¡°Are you against the idea?¡± Nadia asked in a flirty tone while snuggling up to Mathew¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Hey, that¡¯s not fair!¡± Le protested, standing up and leaving her post at Stephen¡¯s hand. Yet, before finally moving on from securing him, she made sure to send a kick to his side.

    ¡°Aaghg¡­¡± their former enemy could barely find the strength to utter a moan of pain. After all the torture and then sacrificing his very own system, he no longer posed any threat to them. ¡°Still, we can¡¯t rest easy yet,¡± she said as she stepped over Stephen¡¯s powerless body.

    ¡°We need to confine him somewhere,¡± Mathew judged, sparing the man only a single, short nce. ¡°He fought with us; he lost. He then tried to trick us into killing all of us by stealing my system¡­¡± Mathew¡¯s tone turned darker and darker the more he spoke about the man. ¡°But no, I don¡¯t think we should kill him,¡± he added after a few more moments of hesitation.

    ¡°Are you going to forgive him?¡± Le asked, raising her eyebrows as high on her forehead as her psychique allowed. ¡°This isn¡¯t the kind world where you can offer such leniency!¡± she protested.

    ¡°Calm down.¡± Mathew rolled his eyes. ¡°Killing him would be akin to letting him off easy,¡± he pointed out. ¡°A moment of pain, and then it¡¯s all over,¡± Mathew said and shook his head. ¡°With how the world is outside of thepound, I believe we would be getting the worse end of the deal than him,¡± he added in a slightly more silent tone.

    ¡°What should we do with him, then?¡± Daria asked as she stepped up and ced her hand on Le¡¯s shoulder. To Mathew¡¯s surprise, this simple gesture managed to rein in the anger that appeared on Le¡¯s face when she spoke before.

    ¡°For now, let¡¯s just lock him down somewhere,¡± Mathew ordered. Strap him to the window or something, I don¡¯t know,¡± he added while shrugging his shoulders. ¡°We have more important things to take care of than dealing with a powerless bastard like him.¡±

    Mathew meant exactly what he said. He took onest look at the miserable state of his first major opponent in this new, changing world before turning around and heading for the door of the ssroom.

    ¡°Let me guess,¡± Nadia stuck to Mathew¡¯s side, ¡°we are going to the top floor?¡±

    ¡°Yup.¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°The system said something about expanding the scouting area, but I do not feel any presence, neither within thepound nor around it,¡± he exined. ¡°It¡¯s nothing more but my guess, but I believe I will only be able to ess those features by that merchant.¡±

    ¡°That makes sense,¡± Nadia admitted before turning silent and simply enjoying her walk through the corridor.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think you are going without us!¡± Le shouted once she emerged from the ssroom, right as the couple was about to climb the stairs.

    ¡°Did you secure him?¡± Mathew asked once the girl ran up to them, followed by a calmer Daria.

    ¡°You can fuck me in the ass if he manages to free himself and escape,¡± Le said with a small smile while she leaned forward and grabbed Mathew¡¯s left arm.

    ¡°Am I supposed to climb on your back now?¡± Daria asked in a joking manner when she joined the rest of the group.

    ¡°What for?¡± Mathew shrugged, dumbfounded by the question.

    ¡°You don¡¯t seem to have a third arm that I could snuggle up to,¡± Daria pointed out while spreading her arms to the sides. She then allowed a small giggle to escape from her mouth before shaking her head.

    ¡°Girls, Daria is right,¡± Mathew admitted, despite how nice it was to feel two cute and sexy girlspeting for his attention. ¡°We can y around after we get a good night of sleep,¡± he added as the group started to climb the stairs.

    And then, the entire corridor suddenly turned dark.

    ¡°Wha!¡± someone cried out, surprised by the unexpected darkness.

    ¡°I guess the power finally went out,¡± Mathew muttered, only to press his lips together into a thin line, desperately hoping to hide his dissatisfaction.

    ¡®Back then, it took three days for the electricity to go belly up,¡¯ the young man thought. ¡®I guess rushing for this fortress affected the entire city,¡¯ he realized, once again reminded of how devious whoever came up with this apocalypse was.

    ¡°As if killing innumerable humans wasn¡¯t enough, actually trying to survive only makes it harder to, well, survive,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth in a powerless fury directed at the beings responsible for this entire apocalypse.

    ¡°Did you say something?¡± Nadia whispered directly to Mathew¡¯s ear, using the fact that her hands were still wrapped around his arm to locate him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mind it,¡± Mathew shrugged the question off. ¡°I¡¯m just happy we got to defeat Stephen before we lost the light,¡± he used a random thought to mask the words that slipped out of his mouth a moment earlier.

    ¡®There is no point in making her worry,¡¯ Mathew thought as he led the group ahead just with his touch and memories alone.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know the world could get so dark,¡± Daria suddenly muttered as she grabbed the back of Mathew¡¯s shirt, most likely worried about losing the rest of her group in the total darkness.

    ¡°I ac¡­¡±

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shook his head when he suddenly heard a voice in his head. For a moment, he was confused about the situation, only realizing what was going on nearly a minuteter.

    And so, he closed his eyes.

    In theplete darkness that covered the school, keeping his eyes open didn¡¯t matter at all.

    ¡°I can actually see perfectly well, even without the light,¡± Norbert pointed out, still moving around in his ghost¡¯s form.

    ¡°Then you can lead us to the entry-hole to the shaft,¡± Mathew pointed out.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need to,¡± Norbert replied, his voice indicating he shrugged his shoulders, even if he didn¡¯t have any. ¡°It¡¯s to your right,¡± he announced a secondter.

    ¡°We are here,¡± Mathew quickly brought the news to the rest of his group. He then turned to his right and slowly walked forward, only stopping when his leg didn¡¯t find any surface toy down on. ¡°Okay, guys, I will go first, just in case¡­¡±

    ¡°I will go first,¡± Le quickly volunteered. She then gently pushed Mathew to the back before touching the wall all over before she figured out the exact location of the hole in it. ¡°Without you and your system, we are just like everyone else. We can¡¯t risk you getting hurt,¡± she exined before getting into the hole.

    ¡°I will go next,¡± Daria reported, quickly moving past the couple and stuffing herself into the hole the moment Le climbed high enough to free some space inside.

    ¡°After you,¡± Nadia announced a momentter. Yet, rather than letting go of Mathew¡¯s arm, she climbed up on it, leaning over his ear. ¡°I will take care of your back now,¡± she whispered before suddenly pushing her tongue out and driving it up Mathew¡¯s earlobe. ¡°You can pay me back the same wayter.¡±

    ¡®This girl¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, shaking his head as he stuffed himself into the hole and grabbed the rails of thedder. Yet, just as he was about to start climbing up, Mathew turned around and reached out.

    His hand quickly stumbled upon Nadia¡¯s body, only to climb all the way up to the area of her corbone, only for the young man to grab the girl by the top of her shift and pull her closer to his mouth.

    ¡°I guess I have no other choice but to discipline youter, do I?¡±

 Chapter 110 Fortress Core

    ¡°Who is this?!¡±

    Mathew heard a familiar voice even before he reached anywhere near the top of the tunnel.

    ¡®My exhaustion is really ramping up,¡¯ the young man thought as he pursed his lips.

    In the darkness of the shaft, no one could notice his sour expression.

    ¡°It¡¯s us!¡± Le called out in response, nearly making Mahtew drop his grasp over thedder just to smack his own face.

    ¡°Fine,e in,¡± Daniel called out.

    ¡®It¡¯s a wonder how natural it is,¡¯ Mathew thought, shaking his head before climbing up thedder once again.

    ¡°How did it go?¡± Daniel asked when Mathew¡¯s girls started to climb out of the shaft.

    ¡°We caught the bastard,¡± Le reported while crawling out of the hole. She then stood up to his feet, only to tap on her knees to dust them out.

    ¡°Where is he, then?¡± Daniel asked right away. He then shook his head. ¡°No, where is Norbert?¡± he changed his question while trying to move his eyes in Le¡¯s direction.

    The topmost floor, just like the rest of the school, didn¡¯t have any light working. Coupled with nearplete darkness outside caused by the general power outage, one could barely make out the shapes of objects.

    ¡°We found him, but he is injured,¡± Daria replied when it was her turn to crawl out. ¡°We left your friend in the same ssroom as the guy we caught,¡± she then said, only to suddenly cut her words short when she noticed the circumstances of her own words.

    ¡°Wait for a second,¡± Daniel slowly uttered his words. ¡°Did you just say that you left heavily injured Norbert in the same ce as the guy that brought us so many problems?¡± the officer reiterated Daria¡¯s words to show how he understood them.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Mathew finally reached the hole in the wall allowing him to speak clearly. ¡°I took care of Norbert¡¯s wounds, and that bastard is tightly bound. We also deprived him of his system,¡± Mathew exined while crawling out. Yet, as he attempted to stand up, his face struck something extremely soft.

    ¡°Wah!¡± Le moaned lightly, only to jump away, taking her plump ass out of the way of Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°Sorry, it¡¯s so dark I didn¡¯t think to move,¡± she quickly jumped to apologize, even though she wasn¡¯t at fault at all.

    ¡®Is it her tender side?¡¯ Mathew thought, allowing a small smirk to appear on his lips. It was in a moment when one reacted by the instincts that their true self would surface. And with this small interaction, Le gave Mathew an insight into who hid beneath the mask of her haughtiness.

    In the dark interior of the school, he was safe from the prying eyes of the other girls.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mathew said after a short moment of self-gloating. He then rose up to a standing position before throwing a look around the scene. He then turned his eyes to the shape that likely represented Daniel¡¯s position.

    ¡°Can you lead me to the merchant?¡± Mathew requested. ¡°I know neither of us can see shit, but at least you know theyout of all the obstacles on the way.¡±

    ¡°Sure thing?¡± Daniel replied with slight hesitation. ¡°I¡¯m going to reach out, so if I touch any of your girls, I¡¯m sorry in advance,¡± the officer then announced.

    ¡°Here, it¡¯s me,¡± Daria reported a momentter. ¡°Mathew?¡± she then called out, the changing tone of her voice indicating she turned her head around.

    ¡°I¡¯m here,¡± Mathew said out loud, helping the girl locate his position with the sound of his voice.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ve got you,¡± Daniel finally announced after Daria helped the two of them join hands. ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Mathew could vaguely remember the outline of the top floor. Save for the very shape of the still-standing floor, he could even recall the location of several obstacles on which he could trip in the dark.

    ¡®Hmm?¡¯ Mathew thought when Daniel led him on a slightly different path that he would walk if guided by nothing but his own memories. ¡®Is his space perception faulty, or maybe things changed around here?¡¯

    Mathew allowed his curiosity to get better of him, thinking over the different possibilities as the officer led him deeper into the location.

    ¡°Careful now,¡± Daniel warned. ¡°We should be somewhere near the edge,¡± he exined his worries.

    ¡°Figures,¡± Mathew shortly replied, too focused on containing his own excitement to pay any mind to the danger of falling down all the way to the ground floor.

    Sure, establishing a fortress was akin to taking a step out of the young man¡¯s rtivefort zone. It means invasion of thends, events, and opponents he has yet to encounter in both of his lives.

    And for all the worries that this new beginning of sorts brought upon Mathew¡¯s shoulders, he couldn¡¯t help but look forward to seeing what this entire fortress was all about!

    ¡°Here he is,¡± Daniel reported a second before Mathew noticed the merchant with his own two eyes.

    The top floor of thepound was fully dark, darker than humanity¡¯s future in this new world, darker even than Mathew¡¯s thoughts right before he sacrificed his life back in his first run.

    And yet, right in the middle of this darkness, Mathew could easily make out the coiling shape of the shadows that he always grasped to enter the merchant¡¯s domain.

    ¡°Well, here goes nothing,¡± Mathew muttered, unable to contain his expectations any longer.

    Whoosh!

    The shadows surged all around the young man like usual, cutting him off from the real world.

    [Registering the fortress master]

    [Checking for the ownership conditions]

    [Conditions confirmed positive]

    [Activating the fortress management]

    [Fortress managementplete]

    A string of systemmunication shed before Mathew¡¯s eyes, only to burn right through their short lifespan before fading away into the darkness.

    [Wee to the fortress core]

    A new pop-up window appeared, shedding some light on Mathew¡¯s shadowy surroundings.

    ¡®It seems that the darker it is in the real world, the darker it gets in those shadowy realms,¡¯ Mathew thought when the weing message appeared to be the only source of light. And for how dim it was,  it only allowed the young man to make out the general shapes of the objects around him.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ One of the new elements of the shadowy domain caught Mathew¡¯s attention. He stepped forward, pushing the light of the weing message a bit further¡­

    And there it was. A massive map of the entirepound.

    ¡®Just how big is it?¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes opening wide as he attempted to judge the map¡¯s size.

    The young man approached the disyed map, only to realize that his head reached barely above the middle-point of the map¡¯s height.

    ¡®Given its square shape, it should have somewhere around ten square meters of surface,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his hand to the map.

    The map itself was split into a diagonal side-view, allowing him to inspect the situation on everyst floor of thepound at once. And with just a single look, Mathew managed to find one of thest pieces of information to finally close up the former phase of his survival.

    ¡°So that¡¯s where you are hiding,¡± Mathew muttered as he brought his finger to a small, blue dot hidden in one of the ssrooms in the same school¡¯s wing as the one where his group defeated Stephan.

    Just a single level below the blue dot, Mathew could see green and red dots, both several meters to scale apart.

    ¡°That¡¯s Norbert and Stephen, aren¡¯t they?¡± Mathew whispered as he continued to y with the map.

    It took a considerable amount of time before the young man finally peeled his eyes away from the only object he had inspected so far. Yet, as he removed himself from in front of the map, he finally realized what the bonus he picked was all about.

    ¡°What a swarm,¡± Mathew said before whistling in shock.

    Within thepound, every dot represented a person. And outside of two congested ces, Mathew could make out the borders of every marker.

    Outside of thepound, though, was different. On the other side of thepound¡¯s walls, the ck dots turned into a single block of dark color, something that Mathew would fail to see in the darkness if not for a mere chance.

    ¡®I guess this is all just a beginning,¡¯ he thought before gritting his teeth and turning his head to the left.

    There were three pirs erected roughly to the heigh of Mathew¡¯s hips there. Each of them bore a striking resemnce to the sacrificial altar Mathew encountered at the evolving merchant before. And each of them had a number ¡¯10¡¯ written right on top of their altar.

    ¡°A pipe, a coiling wire, and what, a gas bottle?¡± Mathew muttered as he attempted to make out the decals painted on the side of those columns. He then leaned back before stretching his back. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t take a genius to figure out what those are,¡± he muttered.

    Mathen took a deep breath before waving his hand.

    ¡°I want out,¡± he said, only for the space around him to copse.

    ¡°How did it go?¡± Daria was the first one to ask when Mathew returned to reality.

    ¡°How do you know I¡¯m back?¡± the young man asked, puzzled by how instant Daria¡¯s question was.

    ¡°You never took longer than a second at the merchant,¡± she revealed only for a vague shape of her body to shrug its arms. ¡°I figured it wouldn¡¯t be any different now.¡±

    ¡°That makes sense,¡± Mathew admitted before shaking his head for yet another time. ¡°I know that might sound weird, but do we have any cores left on us?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Did you fail to raise the fortress or something?¡± Daria asked, her voice slowly filling with tones of panic.

    ¡°No, it all works as it should,¡± Mathew quickly fixed the girl¡¯s misunderstanding. ¡°I asked because I might¡¯ve just found a way to get electricity back!¡±

 Chapter 111 What that makes them to be

    ¡°Let me reiterate what just happened,¡± Daria spoke in a cold voice and a slow manner. ¡°You visited the merchant that also serves as the control hub for the fortress, right?¡± she asked.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head, even though it was too dark for the girl to see it.

    ¡°And after visiting said hub, you suddenly found a way to bring back electricity to thepound.¡± Daria finished what she wanted to say before taking a short break. ¡°Do you see what I struggle to ept?¡± she then asked.

    ¡°Not really?¡± Mathew denied. But he wasn¡¯t an idiot. The way in which the girl put this topic made it clear that there was something wrong. Something wrong that Mathew simply failed to take notice of.

    ¡°Aaah¡­¡± Daria released a long sigh. ¡°There is some kind of entity that caused this entire zombie outbreak. That I can ept,¡± she stated, only to take a step forward. ¡°I can ept the idea that a group or faction exists capable of denying our biological knowledge,¡± she borated on her statement. And then, once again, she stopped herself from exining any further.

    Mathew scoured his brain, trying to figure out what the girl was hinting at. ¡®It won¡¯t be a problem if I don¡¯t catch it, but it would surely uproot a bit of my authority in the group,¡¯ he thought, only to try even harder.

    ¡°I give up,¡± Mathew finally admitted after a few more moments had passed. ¡°What are you hitting at?¡± he then asked, eager to figure out what Daria had a problem with.

    ¡°A group possessing an otherwordly knowledge of biology, I can ept,¡± the girl repeated. ¡°But them being capable of manipting the physics?¡± the girl said before shaking her head. ¡°It¡¯s impossible for anyone on earth to be capable of that!¡±

    ¡®Dang, she has a point,¡¯ Mathew thought when he finally made the connection. His face then darkened. ¡®I wonder what she would say if I were to tell her about the shadowy realm,¡¯ he thought before pursing his lips.

    ¡°My question is,¡± Daria said before swallowing her saliva so hard Mathew could actually hear it. ¡°What do those abilities make them be?¡±

    Mathew turned silent, taking his sweet time to think about the reply.

    ¡°Back in the day, I didn¡¯t really want to think about it,¡± he finally admitted while taking a step away from the merchant, unwilling to stand right on the edge of the already crumbled floor. ¡°And to be honest, I think it¡¯s better to keep it that way,¡± he added.

    ¡°¡­¡± This time, Daria didn¡¯t reply. Instead of keeping the topic going, she simply stood there in silence, showing her dissatisfaction with Mathew¡¯s approach in this creative way.

    ¡°It¡¯s best if you just think of it as a game,¡± Mathew said, unwilling to just let Daria go with her clearly unsolved problem. ¡°Wait, now that I think about it, doesn¡¯t everything apocalypse-rted work a little too much like a game?¡± Mathew said, astounded by how this simple fact could elude him for so long.

    ¡°I never really yed any games, so I don¡¯t really know what you are talking about,¡± Daria replied with a shrug. ¡°I guess I have no other choice but to just trust you on that point,¡± she then added.

    ¡°Anyway, I think we did enough for today,¡± Mathew pointed out, happily changing the topic. ¡°Still, before we all go to sleep, one question.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Do we have any leftover cores?¡± Mathew asked.

    ¡®I know I should¡¯ve kept the count, but simply too many things happened for me to bother,¡¯ Mathew excused himself in his thoughts.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± Daria replied. ¡°We gathered all those that we had before, so I doubt there are any left,¡± she exined. ¡°But if you want, we can go look for some zombies to grab a new batch,¡± Daria added.

    ¡°No, we all need to rest first,¡± Mathew countered. ¡°There are no more zombies left within thepound, so we would have to venture outside the wall to get some,¡± Mathew exined before turning his eyes in the direction of the merchant.

    ¡°And I don¡¯t think it¡¯s going to be as cheap as it appeared to be,¡± he added, his voice so silent there was no realistic chance for anyone to hear him.

    ¡°What did you say?¡± Daria asked, proving that Mathew¡¯s effort to keep his words to himself worked out.

    ¡°Nothing much,¡± Mathew waved the question off, only to realize that in the darkness, the girl wouldn¡¯t see shit anyway. ¡°Let¡¯s go rejoin the rest and then go get some sleep,¡± he decided.

    ¡°I second that,¡± Daniel suddenly said, reminding the pair that he was the one who actually guided them towards the merchant. ¡°I will keep watch by the shaft so that we won¡¯t be caught off-guard by a zombie¡¯s bite,¡± he then offered.

    ¡°There is no need for that,¡± Mathew shook his head, too used to his small gestures to suddenly give them up only because others couldn¡¯t see them anyway. ¡°All the zombies within thepound are gone,¡± he pointed out at what he assumed was obvious to anyone aware of the raising of the fortress.

    ¡°Still, I wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep in this ce without someone on the watch,¡± Daniel insisted.

    ¡°You just want us to share the duty, don¡¯t you?¡± Mathew pointed out, unwilling to give up on the full eight hours of sleep that he already envisioned himself getting.

    ¡°Is that wrong to expect you to help me out?¡± Daniel asked, his tone turning slightly colder. ¡°Don¡¯t you know the saying, those with power¡­¡±

    ¡°Do not hit me with that bullshit,¡± Mathew cut in Daniel¡¯s words before he could finish his sentence. ¡°Strong should protect the weak?¡± he asked, only to shake his head.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ he then cursed in his thoughts. ¡®Thisck of light is really annoying,¡¯ he thought before rposing himself.

    ¡°The only reason why I bothered to save others today was that it didn¡¯t cost me anything,¡± Mathew revealed. ¡°Even though I already have some experience with the apocalypse, I don¡¯t know shit about what its creators will expect from meter on,¡± he added, leading to a pretty cold statement. ¡°For me, the people I saved are nothing more but a potential investment into the future.¡±

    ¡®Or so I want you to believe,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    Despite the tough front he ended up putting, Mathew was still a normal guy. The only thing that set him apart from others, besides his system, was his prior experience of the apocalypse.

    Sure, it taught him how to value his own life and safety over the health of strangers, but it didn¡¯t turn him into a cold-blooded monster.

    ¡®Knowing the cliche, saving anyone will end up biting me in the ass,¡¯ Mathew thought while gritting his teeth.

    ¡°I really thought you were a bigger man,¡± Daniel said, no longer bothering to hide the coldness in his face. ¡°I guess there is no need for us to talk anymore. I hope you will enjoy your rest,¡± he added before turning around and leaving.

    ¡°You won¡¯t even offer to guide us back, huh?¡± Mathewmented in the direction he could hear Daniel¡¯s footsteps. Yet, he didn¡¯t bother to chase after him.

    ¡°It¡¯s not perfect, but I can somehow make out the shape of things,¡± Daria informed. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s some sort of skill or the improvement caused by my level¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s natural,¡± Mathew cut into Daria¡¯s words. His mood was too shitty to endorse the small talk. ¡°It takes time, but human eyes can adapt to way more than you would expect,¡± he exined what he had once learned when he picked up a stargazing hobby back in the middle-school.

    ¡°So you can see?¡± Daria asked, leaning her head to the side in an expression of curiosity.

    ¡°More or less. Nothing more but general shapes, just like you,¡± the young man replied before grabbing the girl¡¯s hand and moving back to the rest of their group.

    ¡®I better follow the same path that Daniel took to get us to the merchant,¡¯ he thought, carefully stepping over anything that even remotely appeared like an obstacle.

    Tripping in itself wasn¡¯t something that Mathew would be scared off. Yet, the perspective of falling several stories into rubble full of pointy and hard edges was enough to raise his carefulness to its limits.

    ¡°Right, before we join with the others,¡± Daria suddenly said, pulling herself up closer to the young man¡¯s side. ¡°Is there any chance for us to¡­ you know¡­¡±

    ¡°y around?¡± Mathew asked. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯m up to the task now,¡± he cut the girl¡¯s hopes before she could even fully voice them out.

    ¡°And will that answer be the same for Nadia?¡± Daria then asked, clearly set on pushing the topic as far as she could.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Mathew replied without even a moment of hesitation. ¡°Establishing the fortress gave us some leeway. But that doesn¡¯t mean we can get careless.¡±

 Chapter 112 Stuck in the soft (soft r18)

    ¡°This was a really long day,¡± Mathew muttered.

    Heid down on some mattress Daniel organized for them while they were away. Nadiaid down on top of his right side. Her body coiled around his arm while the girl stuffed his hand right between her warm thighs.

    Daria upied Mathew¡¯s left arm. Even though they allid down a while ago, she was still wiggling around in search of a morefortable position. And with how she hugged herself into Mathew¡¯s shoulder, she continued to rub her soft curves against his arm.

    Ultimately, Mathew only had two sides. As such, after quite the conflict earlier on, Le ended up snuggling to Daria¡¯s back. Even then, though, she reached out over Daria¡¯s hip and snuck her hand into Mathew¡¯s pants.

    ¡®Even though they all know how tired we are,¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyebrow twitching as he continued to endure Le¡¯s teasing.

    ¡°But we can finally get some rest,¡± Nadia muttered softly before snuggling up even higher on Mathew¡¯s chest.

    She seemingly deted the moment sheid her head down and wrapped her hands around Mathew¡¯s neck.

    ¡®It¡¯s as if all her energy from before never existed,¡¯ Mathew thought, lowering his eyes on the girl¡¯s peaceful face.

    At this exact moment, Mathew recalled everyst reason why he fell in love with this girl all over again. The calm manner of her breathing coupled with the gentle rustling of her chest moving to the rhythm of her heartbeat were too cute for Mathew to bear.<sub>.</sub>

    And her weing softness that wrapped itself all around Mathew¡¯s skin.

    ¡®She smells insane,¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes rolling back under the cover of his eyelids.

    This was the moment Mathew waited for throughout the entire day. The time when he couldy back and let his body get some rest.

    In the world of apocalypse, one had to adjust to the day and night cycle. And Mathew could tell he was already digging far into the nighttime hours.

    ¡®But how the heck am I supposed to go to sleep?¡¯ the young man thought, holding his breath to keep his senses together.

    Nadia¡¯s soft curves ttened against Mathew¡¯s body. Her breath brushed past Mathew¡¯s ear, sending a chill down his spine whenever her lips moved even a little.

    Daria didn¡¯t even bother to pretend at this point, openly guiding Mathew¡¯s fingers towards her crotch. And throughout all this, Le¡¯s hand continued to rub up and down, spreading Mathew¡¯s precum all over his long erect junior.

    ¡°You girls really won¡¯t give me any rest, will you?¡± Mathew whined a little.<sub></sub>

    Because for how many reasons he had to lose his rationality and throw himself over the girls like some kind of rabbit in heat, his body just couldn¡¯t move.

    ¡®Not again,¡¯ Mathew thought when he suddenly realized a connection that was in in sight. ¡®Howe most of my sexual experienceses from the times when I¡¯m too exhausted to move?¡¯ he thought. Mathew then gritted his teeth in frustration as another possible corrtion spurred out in his mind.

    ¡®Or could it be,¡¯ Mathew thought, dramatically swallowing his saliva. ¡°Am I some sort of M?¡±

    Mathew unknowingly allowed hisst thought to slip out of his mouth.

    ¡°Haap,¡± a weird, wet sound filled Mathew¡¯s right ear, only for the warm sensation to follow right through.

    Instead of replying to the words that Mathew allowed to slip, Nadia brought her lips to the side of his face only to enclose them over Mathew¡¯s earlobe.

    Nadia held Mathew¡¯s hand firmly between her thighs. And right as she started to snack on his ear, her legs started to move as well.

    ¡®Oh my god,¡¯ Mathew thought, holding to his sanity only due to some sort of miracle.

    It was already insane to keep his hand stuck between Nadia¡¯s fleshy thighs. And now that she started to wiggle, Mathew¡¯s hand simply melted into the softness of the girl¡¯s body.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Daria let out a small moan when she finally pushed Mathew¡¯s fingers into her pants. Just by rubbing his middle finger against her clit while she pushed his hand lower and lower, Mathew got to make Daria¡¯s body twitch.

    ¡®She¡¯s so wet,¡¯ the young man thought when his fingers reached the girl¡¯s squirming hole.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get him out already,¡± Le muttered, breaking the strange pact of silence within the group. She then moved her hand around, pulling Mathew¡¯s dick out of his pants.

    ¡°Mine,¡± Nadia purred softly in a low tone. She then opened up her legs and pushed her hips above Mathew¡¯s crotch.

    Nadia¡¯s lips continued to suck at Mathew¡¯s ears even when the girl changed her position. She didn¡¯t allow Mathew¡¯s hand go either, opting to bring it down her t stomach and into her panties.

    Nadia let go of Mathew¡¯s ear only to move her head over his face. She brought her hand up to chase away a stray strand of hair that fell down on her face.

    Her eyes glistered with a strange light as she stared down at Mathew¡¯s pupils.

    Mathew¡¯s fingers reached Nadia¡¯s wet insides.

    ¡°Look how wet I am,¡± Nadia whispered before pushing her head down a bit and cing a gentle peck over his lips. She then dropped her hips down, just an inch away from Mathew¡¯s erection.

    ¡°Look at her go,¡± Le said in a lustful tone, her eyes glued to Nadia¡¯s wet panties. She then moved her wrist around, sending Mathew¡¯s dick flying.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Nadia released a small moan when Mathew¡¯s shroom struck her panties-covered pussy. Her body trembled, only for the girl to lose her strength and fall down on Mathew¡¯s chest.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Mathew finally managed to utter a word through his lips as he looked down at the girl with worry.

    But Nadia didn¡¯t give up

    She reached with her hands out, locking them behind Mathew¡¯s head. She then used it as a support as she pulled her chest up to Mathew¡¯s face, enclosing his head within her soft embrace.

    Nadia secured Mathew in this specific position before freeing one of her hands and reaching to the back.

    ¡°Could you?¡± She asked, pulling her eyes to their infatuated face of Le.

    Nadia then hooked her finger against the middle of her panties before pulling them away and exposing her twitching hole.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Le replied, her amazed smile only growing as she started to p Nadia¡¯s pussy with the tip of Mathew¡¯s dick.

    Nadia then turned her eyes back to Mathew¡¯s head within her embrace. With just a little push, she turned his head to the side, only to love her head and start snacking at his other ear.

    ¡°Just rx,¡± she whispered when her tongue traced the edge of Mathew¡¯s earlobe.

    Le stopped ying around and instead kept Mathew¡¯s shroom on top of Nadia¡¯s wet insides, allowing them to rub against each other while still keeping them apart.

    ¡°You will sleep better if you exhaust yourself first, won¡¯t you?¡± Daria chimed in as she let her tongue run wild over Mathew¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°You girls¡­¡± Mathew muttered, clenching his teeth.

    He didn¡¯t want to admit it. He refused to acknowledge the situation. Yet, for how much in denial he was, lying on the bed while surrounded by sexy, yful girls, all of whom passionately awaited his touch¡­?

    Then, Le finally stopped ying around. Her hand froze, keeping Mathew¡¯s dick in ce.

    Nadia used this opportunity to push her hips lower, finally taking control of the situation.

    And then, the real deal began.

 Chapter 113 Exhausting out (r18)

    ¡°Aaah¡­¡± Nadia released a long, silent moan as her hips moved down.

    Her insides parted, forced open by the tip of Mathew¡¯s penis. His shroom rubbed his way out into Nadia¡¯s depths, all the while her inner folds continued to tightly push against it.

    ¡°It¡¯s so hot!¡± Mathew spat through his tightened lips as his head jerked to the back. The sudden bout of extreme pleasure was simply too much for the young man to handle.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia twitched a little when Mathew¡¯s body started convulsing. Yet, the moment she understood what was going on, Nadia dropped her hips hard, squeezing herself into Mathew¡¯s chest.

    Mathew¡¯s dick exploded with cum.

    He had to endure the teasing of all three girls at once for quite a long while. And while he managed to brave through that challenge, it brought him right to the edge of his endurance.

    And then, Nadia nailed herself down on his dick, shoving it deeper and deeper without any hesitation.

    ¡°Hah!¡± Nadia moaned, strongly pulling on the back of Mathew¡¯s head and pressing it against her soft bosom. She bit down on her bottom lip while her arms dug into Mathew¡¯s back.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡®I can feel her muscles twitching,¡¯ Mathew thought, his mind nking in the storm of pleasure.

    Nadia¡¯s pussy adapted to the twitching of Mathew¡¯s dick. Her folds would rx and then tighten, all in tandem for the sake of sucking all the cum from Mathew¡¯s balls.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Nadia whispered softly while choking Mathew with her chest. Unable to tear his face away from the girl¡¯s breasts, Mathew only rolled his eyes before allowing himself to finally enjoy the moment.

    His body twitched. It was a calm before the storm.

    Mathew suddenly raised his back from the bedding. He pushed Nadia up as he raised his torso. He then freed up his hand from Daria¡¯s care only to grab down at Nadia¡¯s ass.

    ¡°I hope you are ready,¡± he said, looking up into the girl¡¯s moist eyes.

    Nadia didn¡¯t reply. She lowered her head instead and united their lips together. Before Mathew could as much as move, her tongue made its way inside his mouth.<sub></sub>

    ¡®God damn it!¡¯ Mathew screamed out in his mind. ¡®Her taste, her warmth, her softness, her cuteness, her smell,¡¯ a list of all the different factors appeared in Mathew¡¯s mind, only to explode and turn into another bout of passion.

    The passion which fueled the muscles in Mathew¡¯s arms, making him dig his fingers deeper into Nadia¡¯s ass before raising her up over hisp.

    ¡°Hit me,¡± Nadia uttered, her eyes glued to Mathew¡¯s pupils.

    Mathew dly obeyed the girl¡¯s wishes, rxing his arms and allowing her weight to pull her down, nailing the girl all the way to the point her ass smacked against his balls.

    ¡°Agh!¡± Nadia released a stifled moan, her voice struggling to get out of her throat.

    Mathew clenched his jaws, burying his fingers even deeper into Nadia¡¯s soft ass. He then raised her again, only to drop her down a momentter.

    ¡°Here,¡± Le suddenly muttered, only for a new sensation to strike Mathew¡¯s brain.

    The girl positioned herself between his legs. And while he was busy stirring Nadia¡¯s insides, she brought her lips to his balls. She then brought her hands forward only to lock them behind Mathew¡¯s hips.

    ¡°Lay down,¡± Daria joined in as well, grabbing Mathew¡¯s shoulders only to pull him back down on the bed.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Nadia moaned when Mathew¡¯s shroom stirred the cum that was stuck inside her since a moment earlier.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Mathew uttered a curse, gritting his teeth while his back arched up. Yet, before he could as much as move, Nadia suddenly mounted his face.

    ¡°I can¡¯t hold myself back any longer,¡± she announced when she pressed her crotch against Mathew¡¯s lips.

    ¡°Uhmhp,¡± Mathew couldn¡¯t utter a single proper word now that Daria¡¯s pussy blocked his mouth. And with no other choice, he started to help the girl out.

    Mathew let go of Nadia¡¯s buttocks. In this new position, he had to strain not only his arms but also his shoulders just to reach her ass. And so he brought his hands closer, resting them on Daria¡¯s waist.

    ¡®She is trembling,¡¯ Mathew thought with satisfaction, enjoying the validation that came from the girl reacting to the movements of his tongue.

    ¡°More!¡± Daria shouted, no longer bothering to keep her voice low.

    So far, everyone did their best to follow this silent agreement. Even though they got their own room, they were only a thin wall away from the girls who went through sexual hell.

    But when Mathew suddenly caught Daria¡¯s swollen clit between his lips and sucked on it, the girl could hold herself back any longer.

    Daria arched her back, leaning it behind. Mathew¡¯s eyes involuntarily raised only to stare at Daria¡¯s impressive chest from the best possible perspective.

    And then, unable to hold herself within any frame of reason, Daria pushed her head out and reached with her lips for Nadia¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°MHPMH?!¡± Mathew heard Nadia¡¯s muffled moan of surprise only to then feel her insides tense over his dick.

    ¡®This is bad,¡¯ he thought, unable to hold himself back.

    The taste of Daria above him coupled with the sight of her stomach and underboob mixed with the simple carnal pleasure of drilling a girl and then the sight of two of his girls kissing.

    ¡®In this situation, it¡¯s not a shame to lose,¡¯ Mathew thought before finally giving up and allowing nature to take its course.

    The young man¡¯s body arched up a little. Nadia¡¯s insides reacted to his motions, tensing even harder than before as if in an attempt to squeeze all the life out of Mathew¡¯s dick. Nadia herself fell forward, unable to keep herself straight any longer.

    And right as she felt on Daria¡¯s back and wrapped her hands around the girl¡¯s waist to keep herself straight, Daria twitched as well before grinding down with her hips on Mathew¡¯s lips.

    Everyone froze in ce, simply enjoying the moment. Yet, right when Mathew started toe back to his senses, Nadia suddenly pulled out before moving down from hisp.

    ¡°Hmph?¡± he attempted to ask, but both his mouth and his vision were blocked by Daria.

    And then, right as Mathew thought it was finally over¡­

    ¡°Now it¡¯s my turn,¡± Le announced before mounting Mathew¡¯s hips and then nailing herself down on his dick.

 Chapter 114 What do you plan to do? (r18)

    ¡°You girls are really too feisty,¡± Mathew muttered when Le finally reached her climax before softly falling down on his chest.

    ¡°We are right at the age when it¡¯s no shame to be like that,¡± Nadia countered with amusement while she kept ying with Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡°I¡¯m not trying to shame you guys nor am I protesting against this treatment,¡± Mathew announced just in case before shaking his head. ¡°But we really do need to get some rest,¡± he added, revealing what was bothering him.

    ¡°Why are you in such a hurry?¡± Daria asked. She has long vacated the spot on his face, fully satisfied with going at it just once. Right now sheid down by Mathew¡¯s side and fiddled around with the fingers of his left hand. ¡°We all aimed to get this fortress done. We did it. So what¡¯s the rush now?¡±

    ¡°Before I answer that, I need you all to understand one thing,¡± Mathew said. He then leaned his head up and to the back only to rest his eyes on Nadia¡¯s face. ¡°Nadia already heard me out on this point, but this is too important for me to keep you in the dark.¡±

    There was a reason why Mathew made such a long introduction. And while neither Daria nor Le knew said reason, they could very well feel that Mathew was about to drop some sort of bomb.

    ¡°As of this moment right now, I don¡¯t know anything,¡± Mathew revealed.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Le muttered, using her hands to form a small bridge on top of Mathew¡¯s chest upon which sheid down her chin. ¡°Did something change?¡± she then asked, angling her head to the side.

    ¡°Outside of the raising of the fortress?¡± Mathew asked, his voice filled with irony. ¡°But what I mean to say, I no longer know what we should aim for. So everything that you will hear from me¡­¡± Mathew took a short break, taking a deep breath to calm himself down. ¡°Well, just take it with a grain of salt, okay?¡±<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°So, in essence,¡± Nadia muttered, adjusting her position behind Mathew¡¯s back. She then prompted his head up a little only to then rest it on top of her chest. ¡°You have some ideas for the future but they are no longer backed off by something that you knew in advance,¡± Nadia said, putting Mathew¡¯s words in a way that was simpler to understand.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew admitted and then nodded his head. ¡°I don¡¯t want you guys to think that I¡¯m going to be always correct from now on,¡± Mathew added.

    ¡°So?¡± Le suddenly asked, angling her head to the other side of her hands. ¡°What¡¯s the n?¡± she asked, covering all Mathew¡¯s hesitations and doubts behind a cute smile as she led the conversation directly to its next logical step.

    ¡°How could you know if I have one?¡± Mathew asked, deciding to y with his girl a little.

    ¡®She might not be my long-time crush but it won¡¯t do our group any good if I keep treating them with a distance,¡¯ Mathew thought, deciding to take a slightly more frivolous path.

    ¡°You are restless,¡± Le raised her head up from her hands only to pull out one of her fingers as she started to count. ¡°You want us all to get some rest, or rather you want us to prepare for the efforts of tomorrow,¡± Le straightened out another finger of hers. ¡°And now you even spoke about having some ns,¡± she finished only to then dangle her three fingers before Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Or maybe I just wanted to have a highly active day with all three of you tomorrow, so that we could rx after this traumatic day?¡± Mathew countered, opting to go with the flow he already decided on.

    ¡°I would be ttered,¡± Le raised up from Mathew¡¯s chest and pulled herself up to his head. She then ced a small peck on his lips, only to giggle when Mat¡¯s exhausted dick slipped out of her pussy.<sub></sub>

    As if it was all part of her n, Le then pressed herself down, locking Mathew¡¯s dick between the two of them.

    ¡°But if you can stay soft now, I doubt that you would be looking forward to a day¡¯s worth of sex,¡± she added mercilessly.

    For a moment, Le stared down Mathew¡¯s eyes, the look of satisfaction behind her pupils showcasing just how much she reveled in her small victory.

    And then, ignoring everything that she just said, Le started to move her torso up and back, rubbing the back of Mathew¡¯s dick with her soft stomach.

    ¡°You are cuddling him too much!¡± Nadia suddenly protested. She then slipped her legs over Mathew¡¯s shoulders only to rest her feet on Le¡¯s shoulders before pushing her off. ¡°Now it¡¯s my turn!¡± she added.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Leughed out, giving Mathew¡¯s dick a sloppy lick as she moved down. ¡°But how about we change the positions a bit?¡± she then suggested right as she moved down from above Mathew.

    ¡°That¡¯s actually a good idea,¡± Mathew joined in on the discussion. ¡°I really appreciate your wish to let me rest, but I can¡¯t hold myself back any longer,¡± he admitted with no shame.

    Mathew then turned himself around only to drop a gentle peck on top of Nadia¡¯s forehead.

    ¡°How would you like me to take you?¡± he asked, trying to be as suave as possible.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Nadia¡¯s lips curved up while her eyelids moved down. For a moment, she simply kept her mysterious stare at Mathew¡¯s face, only to suddenly push herself away.

    Yet, instead of escaping, Nadia simply turned around and then on all fours before stretching her ass towards Mathew¡¯s face. She then bent her upper body to the side and looked back while reaching out with her hand to pull on her buttcheek.

    ¡°From the back?¡± Nadia whispered in an extremely tiny voice as if the shamefulness of her position finally reached her brain.

    ¡°If that¡¯s what you want,¡± Mathew said while putting on a gentle smile. He then properly turned around before grabbing his dick and moving on his knees towards Nadia¡¯s erected butt.

    ¡°I will try to be gentle,¡± Mathew informed when he noticed a hint of anxiety in the girl¡¯s eyes.

    ¡®This is going to be the first time for us to do it this way,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva as he rested the tip of his penis on the twitching entrance of Nadia¡¯s pussy.

    ¡°Too long!¡± Daria suddenly shouted, only to jump at Mathew¡¯s back.

    Pushed from behind, Mathew had no other choice but to move forward, forcing his dick down Nadia¡¯s hole in the process.

    ¡°Augh!¡± Nadia moaned. She failed to keep her shoulder on the floor, falling down on her face. Only due to the desperate throw of her hand did she manage to ward off the potential damage.

    ¡°Grab her!¡± Dariamanded, catching Mathew¡¯s arms and running her hands down all the way to his wrists. And then, she pushed her upper body forward, digging her nipples into Mathew¡¯s back as she forced him to lean in and reach for Nadia¡¯s breasts.

    ¡°AAAH!¡± Nadia cried out when the two of them squeezed each other.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Daria whispered right into Mathew¡¯s ear as she moved her own hands down on Nadia¡¯s hips and then started to ordain the rhythm of their moves. ¡°What is your n?¡± she asked right after giving Mathew some room to back out, only to m his hips forward and against Nadia¡¯s crotch again.

    ¡°This is¡­¡± Mathew attempted to answer while toughening through the waves of insane pleasure caused by his dick scrapping against Nadia¡¯s soft and weing insides.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t¡­¡± Every time Daria would push him, he could not only feel her naked flesh stering against his backside, but he would then fuck Nadia¡¯s ass all the way to his physical limits.

    ¡°I wanna join too!¡± Le protested only to climb above Nadia and rest her hands on her ass while she leaned in for a kiss.

    ¡°Necessary¡­.!¡± Mathew attempted to excuse himself, only for the girl to close his mouth with her sloppy lips and tongue.

    ¡®Fuck me,¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes rolling back when he could feel Nadia¡¯s insides sucking at his dick.

    Combined with the two other girls seeing to his every need and possible desire, it would be stupid to assume he couldst long.

    ¡°Right, you have yet to fuck any of us in this hole,¡± Le suddenly pointed out as her fingers slipped towards Nadia¡¯s anus.

    ¡°Hmph?!¡± Nadia suddenly freaked out, her inner folds clenching harder than Mathew could survive through.

    Le pushed one of her fingers into Nadia¡¯s wrong hole.

    ¡®FUCK!¡± Mathew cursed through his soul when a wave of indescribable pleasure coursed through his flesh.

    For but a moment, he felt his entire body working in tandem to fulfill one of its main evolutionary purposes. And with Nadia¡¯s insides greedily epting the seed he flushed her with, a sense of fulfillment exploded in Mathew¡¯s soul.

    ¡°I followed my own advice,¡± Mathew muttered once his orgasm slowly started to fade away. He then leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Nadia¡¯s waist, only to pull her up on hisp and hug her tightly from behind. ¡°If you think about all the changes to the world as if it was a game, then the same procedures should apply on the higher level,¡± Mathew exined the foundation behind the n he came up with.

    ¡°So if you think of it all as a game,¡± Daria paraphrased Mathew¡¯s words. She was still stuck to his back, supporting him in ce while he cuddled Nadia who still relieved the pleasure of her body reaching its peak.

    ¡°Then what we need to do next, is establish two more fortresses,¡± Mathew revealed before turning silent.

    Nadia finally lived through the entirety of her powerful orgasm. And as her head fell down on Mathew¡¯s shoulder, the young man couldn¡¯t help himself but reach out and kiss those trembling lips of his crush.

 Chapter 115 Drowsy morning

    ¡°Wakey, wakey!¡± Nadia shook Mathew¡¯s shoulder with a smug grin on her face. ¡°Where did all that energy of yours go?¡± she asked while poking Mathew¡¯s side.

    ¡°Leave me alone,¡± Mathew protested, pulling up his pillow over his ears.

    For how eager he was to wake up early when nning the next day, Mathew sure struggled with that waking up part.

    ¡°No can do!¡± Nadia happily rejected Mathew¡¯s offer. She then changed her objective, grabbing at the sheets instead. ¡°The sun is already out. You need to start the day the right way!¡±

    ¡°Do you want us to help?¡± Le sensed the opportunity through her sleep, waking up on the spot.

    Her eyes glistered. She pushed her upper body up, not shamed by her nakedness whatsoever.

    ¡°Sure,¡± Nadia said as she earnestly epted the offer.

    ¡®So even if she isn¡¯t all that happy with our strange situation, she is happy to have more people bully me?¡¯ Mathew thought with his desperation growing.

    ¡°Fine,¡± he said.<sub>.</sub>

    It was a  sudden idea, yet a brilliant one.

    ¡®Instead of letting them bully me, I can just wake up,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then forced his eyes open before pushing himself up from the bedding.

    ¡°Uuuh?¡± Nadia let out a long whine. ¡°What did you do that for?¡± she asked in a disappointed voice.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shrugged a little. ¡®Something¡¯s not right,¡¯ he thought.

    Nadia swung her head as if she was drunk. And for a moment, Mathew could nce at the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡®She¡¯s still half asleep?¡¯ he thought, noticing the drowsy look behind Nadia¡¯s eyes.

    Mathew then raised his hand and clutched at his chest.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Damn,¡± he whispered, unable to tear his eyes away from the cuteness of his crush.

    Her messy hair coated her fair face. Nadia¡¯s half-lowered eyelids added strange matureness and spice to her eyes.

    And there was this warm look that she gave him when their eyes meet.

    ¡°You woke up!¡± Nadia happily proimed before throwing her arms around Mathew¡¯s neck.

    ¡®What the¡­¡¯ the young man froze in ce, startled to the end of his wits.

    ¡°Hehehe,¡± Nadia giggled while pressing her face against Mat¡¯s chest.

    ¡°I see,¡± Mathew sighed heavily before grabbing the girl by her shoulders and giving her a gentle shake.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia looked around, still slightly drowsy. She slowly moved her head around, taking in all the details of the situation. Her head moved then back to its natural position only for Nadia¡¯s eyes to turn cloudy as she thought hard to make sense of what she saw.

    Nadia¡¯s eyes suddenly turned clear and widened to the limits.

    ¡°What did I¡­¡± she anxiously shouted, only to raise her eyes and end up staring right into Mathew¡¯s face.

    Nadia¡¯s words got stuck in her throat. She continued to stare into Mathew¡¯s eyes, unable to move an inch, frozen at the moment.

    ¡°Can you stop with this lovebird¡¯s act?¡± Daria suddenly spoke out, making both Nadia and Mathew turn their heads towards her.

    The girl herself gracefully raised from the bed. She pushed her arms to the side, allowing the sheets to slide down her chest right as she started to stretch.

    Daria pushed her boobs out and took a deep breath of fresh air. She then pushed her arms to the back, reaching the climax of her long yawn.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva.

    The show Daria just gave him could easily rival the cuteness of Nadia¡¯s sleepy adorableness.

    ¡°It makes me horny,¡± Daria added after a while, looking at the rest with a smug smile of superiority.

    ¡®She is perfectly aware how insane was that,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping his saliva again, this time in slight fear.

    ¡°Guys, I know we would all love to y,¡± Le spoke for the first time in a while. ¡°But aren¡¯t we going to hunt?¡±

    Le¡¯s point was perfectly valid. It was Mathew¡¯s refusal to wake up properly that led to all this.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m at fault here,¡± he admitted before raising to his knees and then standing up. ¡°Come on girls, we can y once we are done,¡± the young man added as he offered his hands to the girls.

    The group managed to turn from a bunch of flirty sleepyheads into a cohesive fighting force in a manner of a few minutes. Once everything was said and done, the determination to stay safe through another day prompted them to act quickly.

    ¡°It looks like this fortress or whatever is working,¡± Le pointed out when they finished their preparations and reached the edge of the school¡¯spound.

    ¡°Magnificent,¡± Mathew muttered as he looked closely at a strange barrier of more intense light that covered the school¡¯s fence and extended up to the skies.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this something made by those who created the apocalypse in the first ce?¡± Daria pointed out. She then leaned her head to the side. ¡°What could be so amazing about it?¡±

    Daria then stomped her leg angrily before turning her face away.

    ¡°How it recognizes the patterns in the world,¡± Mathew exined as he raised his eyes from the barrier. ¡°If we want to fight the cause of it all, we need to understand it first,¡± he countered without mercy.

    ¡°Are we going through or not?¡± Nadia intervened, stopping the exchange before it could fully transform into an argument.

    Mathew sighed. He then turned his face back to the wall of light stered all over the school¡¯s fence. ¡°We are going,¡± he replied before starting to climb up.

    Before they went down, Mathew took a closer look at the map. Thanks to the bonus from picking the top floor merchant he could peer a bit into thends beyond the school¡¯spound.

    And what he found out turned out to be pretty obvious.

    Most of the zombies in the direct vincity of the school were gathered at two points. One of them was the main entrance as it was best connected to the rest of the city while the other was the fixed breach in the school¡¯s wall.

    But it wasn¡¯t those two points that caught Mathew¡¯s interest.

    ¡®If most of the zombies are out there, it¡¯s best to start our first mission in the opposite direction,¡¯ Mathew decided back then. And now, by climbing the fence himself, he was going to prove his decision was right.

 Chapter 116 Where to, now

    ¡°It¡¯s safe,¡± Mathew shouted roughly half a minute after dropping down on the other side of the fence himself.

    The thirty seconds that he kept the girls in dark, Mathew spent looking around and scanning for any zombie presence.

    ¡°We areing over!¡± Nadia shouted before her hands appeared on the railing.

    ¡°Heavy¡­ hop!¡± Le shouted joyfully when she jumped over the fence, easilynding right by Mathew¡¯s side.

    ¡°Stop showing off,¡± Mathew killed the girl¡¯s enthusiasm. ¡°We all know that you are agile, but save your movies for when you need them,¡± he added, taking a conservative stance on how they should proceed.

    ¡°Come on,¡± Le ran around a little only to end up standing in front of Mathew. She then leaned forward, as if wanting to show her cleavage, only to stare up at Mathew¡¯s eyes with a huge pout all over her own face.

    ¡°Buzzkill,¡± Le muttered, right when the two other girls jumped down. She then backed off and regained her posture. ¡°Where are we going first?¡± she then asked, turning her head to look at Mat¡¯s face while crossing her arms behind her back.

    ¡°I want to check the radio station,¡± Mathew informed. ¡°This seems like the most promising building out in this general direction,¡± he added.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°What¡¯s so special about it?¡± Nadia asked, her eyes running over everyst detail of their surrounding. She was already armed with her machete, ready to take action at any moment.

    ¡®At least there is someone withmon sense,¡¯ Mathew held back his sigh as he conveyed his gratitude to the girl through his eyes. The young man then shook his head and looked ahead.

    ¡°It¡¯s a postmie building. For how sloppy those prefab buildings can be when ites to details, they are practically bunkers in general,¡± Mathew exined.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t they susceptible to the damage?¡± Daria asked, jumping in on a topic. ¡°They reced most of them by now, so I¡¯m surprised to hear that there is one, right near the city¡¯s center,¡± she added. ¡°And speaking of the recements, wouldn¡¯t a megablock be a better option?¡±

    ¡°Over a hundred floors high, practically an autonomous unit with production areas, food supply, andplex logistic chain keeping the ce running,¡± Mathew summed up, pretending to be in awe of the girl¡¯s idea.

    He then lowered his eyes and shook his head.

    ¡°First off, we don¡¯t have the means to keep the supply of the megablock. Even assuming that there is anything left in the shops inside, we are only talking about their warehouses,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°There will be no magical deliveries of stuff from the outside.¡±<sub></sub>

    ¡°But isn¡¯t it sturdy?¡± Daria didn¡¯t want to give up on the idea, for some reason. ¡°I mean, any material that can hold the weight of a hundred floors would be practically impossible to destroy, wouldn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°Sure, that¡¯s a valid point,¡± Mathew admitted easily, taking the girl by a surprise. ¡°But right now, weck the means to take over one,¡± he then added as he turned around and started to move down the road.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand!¡± Daria protested.

    ¡®Why is she getting so passionate about this matter?¡¯ Mathew thought. He moved barely a few steps when he froze in ce and turned around to look at the girl.

    ¡°Why are you so interested in the megablock?¡± Mathew asked outright instead of keeping some sort of shadowy game going.

    Daria blushed and lowered her eyes to the ground. She then cupped her hands together, only to end up hiding them behind her back a bitter.

    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ My family lives in the megablock nearby,¡± Daria revealed, averting her eyes to the side.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the thing,¡± Mathew muttered.

    He had long gotten used to the idea of his family being long gone. It was a shocking truth that he had no other choice but to ept in his previous life.

    ¡®But is it really the same of us right now?¡¯ Mathew asked himself.

    He then raised his head to the sky as a flurry of ideas moved through his head.

    ¡°First off, we need to keep growing,¡± Mathew suddenly announced while putting on a solemn tone. ¡°Only if we are growing faster than the zombies and evolved monsters in the area can we believe to be somewhat safe,¡± he exined the very first founding idea behind what he just decided on.

    ¡°Secondly, we will aim to bring everyone to the fortress. But while in the process of doing so, we will try to progress on this point as well,¡± Mathew stated before taking a look at the faces of his girls.

    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Nadia asked, her face all serious as she stopped and looked Mathew directly in the eyes.

    ¡°Just like we ourselves can¡¯t stop growing, we have to keep improving the fortress as well,¡± Mathew revealed his point of concern. ¡°I have no proof or even any stable reasoning, but I believe we need to establish two more fortresses to upgrade all three of them into something better,¡± Mathew borated a bit more over his idea.

    ¡°To level the fortress up,¡± Daria said as she nodded her head. Yet, instead of simply nodding to everything Mathew said, she then looked at him sharply. ¡°And whose family should we now prioritize, then?¡±

    The silence covered the entire group. From the troubled looks that appeared on everyone¡¯s faces, one could guess what they were all thinking about.

    For everyst one of them, their family shoulde first. But now, unless they were willing to fully split out, they had to decide.

    ¡°I think¡­¡± Nadia opened her mouth.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go find Mathew¡¯s family first,¡± Le suddenly proposed, only for both of the girls and Mathew to look at her.

    ¡°There is no point,¡± Mathew quickly shook his head and raised his hands. ¡°My parents are out of the city so there is no way I can help them,¡± he exined only to end up bitting down on his lips. ¡°But my cousin¡­¡± Mathew¡¯s expression suddenly turned sour.

    ¡°What is that another girl?¡± Le jumped up, ready to pounce on Mathew despite being the one who assumed everything that could be possibly taken wrong from Mathew¡¯s recent words.

    ¡°No,¡± the young man replied while shaking his head. He then rolled his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s a boy. Or rather, a young man, a year below me,¡± Mathew exined before a look of concern appeared in his eyes.

    ¡°He is everything that I always strived to be,¡± Mathew admitted as the look behind his eyes softened. He then raised them and looked at the girls. ¡°And that means, he will easily be able to figure a way out of the apocalypse himself,¡± Mathew revealed with a big smile appearing on his lips.

    ¡°Then, who should we go to look for first?¡± Nadia asked as a small, knowing smile appeared on her lips.

    Being the old friend of Mathews, she obviously met his cousin before.

    ¡°First, we go to the radio station,¡± Mathew announced. ¡°And once we clear it out, we are going to look for the family that should be the closest to us,¡± Mathew then decided.

    ¡°That would be Daria¡¯s family, then,¡± Le said with a sad look behind her eyes. ¡°My family¡­¡± she took a deep breath before raising her eyes and looking into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°My family lives on the other end of the city.¡±

 Chapter 117 Strange fight

    ¡°Guys, let¡¯s focus,¡± Mathew ordered in a hushed tone while raising his hand up.

    The young man didn¡¯t need to tell the girls to stop. The meaning behind his gesture was obvious enough for the rest of his group to fall into the line and slow down beforeing to aplete stop.

    ¡°Enemy?¡± Nadia asked after slowly making her way to Mathew¡¯s side.

    ¡°I can see a small group of them ahead,¡± Mathew whispered before pointing in the direction of the enemy with his hand. ¡°There isn¡¯t enough of them in that group to get any real number of cores,¡± he thenmented, judging every possible scenario through the perspective of their objectives.

    This was a scouting mission for a reason. A reconnaissance, one could say, as its greatest aim was for Mathew¡¯s group to see for themselves how dangerous it was to wander outside the boundary of the fortress.

    ¡°I say we take them on,¡± Le took her time to reach the head of the group. Even though she would usually disy a pretty rowdy behavior when on a mission, she knew how to behave.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°I¡¯m tempted to do just that,¡± Mathew admitted only to then bite down on his lips.

    ¡°But?¡± Le asked, turning her eyes to Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°The way you said it, you have some doubts. What kind of doubts do you have?¡± she asked, only to turn her eyes to Nadia, confronting her disapproving look. ¡°What, he asked us himself to not take his leadership for granted,¡± Le pointed out before shrugging her shoulders.

    ¡°I¡¯m worried that fighting them will attract more zombies,¡± Mathew exined the reason behind his hesitation before the small conflict between the girls could turn into a real argument.

    ¡®Dealing with how not everyone within my group might like everyone else is a part of being the leader of the group, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ Mathew thought to himself before moving his focus back on the zombies ahead.

    ¡°Well, we won¡¯t achieve anything by doing nothing,¡± Daria finally joined with the others after making sure the backside of the group was rtively safe. ¡°Right now we can only pass by them, take some path around or just confront them,¡± she listed out the three absolute options they had.<sub></sub>

    ¡°To move around them, we would have to make a huge arc,¡± Nadia pointed out. ¡°That would only mean a risk of encountering other groups in less favorable areas, further away from the fortress.¡±

    ¡°And I don¡¯t think we can move past them unnoticed,¡±  Le added while sparks of excitement appeared in her eyes.

    ¡®She clearly wants to go in,¡¯ Mathew thought, bitting on his lips even harder than before.

    And then, his teeth cut right through the delicate skin of his lips, making a single drop of blood ooze out of his mouth.

    ¡°They started to move,¡± Nadia took a point.

    ¡®Is it my blood that attracted them?¡¯ Mathew instantly connected the dots only to then swallow a gulp of his saliva. ¡°I guess that forces our hand,¡± he said, standing up to his feet while raising his ax on his shoulder.

    The zombies saw him. And while one could hardly call them fast, they appeared to now move faster in their direction than when they simply sensed the blood.

    ¡°Take the sides, I will push the center,¡± Mathew ordered as he rushed ahead.

    There was no telling how the zombiesmunicated. Did theymunicate at all? Or did they all start to move because they all felt the scent of Mathew¡¯s blood?

    This and many more questions rushed through Mathew¡¯s mind as he calmly walked in the direction of the approaching group of zombies.

    Mathew pushed his left leg out once he got close enough. But instead of stepping on it, he used his extended leg to bnce out the weight of his weapon pulling him to the back.

    And from this extremely unstable position, Mathew took a wide swing from his shoulder, bringing the de of his weapon down on the nearest zombie¡¯s head.

    ¡°I already forgot,¡± Le said while swinging her machete and freeing one of the zombies of the burden of carrying its head on its neck.

    ¡°Forgot what?¡± Nadia asked while kicking away a zombie that got too close to her, making its ws reach her fair skin by the hair width. She then used the momentum of her kick to turn around on her other leg before decapitating another zombie.

    ¡°I forgot how easy they are to kill,¡± Le finished, shing yet another head off a zombie¡¯s neck.

    ¡°If you keep that speed up, you girls will make me inferior as a man,¡± Mathew jokingly pointed out. He then swirled in ce with his ax only to cut right through a zombie¡¯s chest, splitting it in half.

    ¡®And I need to kill some of those zombies to level up,¡¯ he thought, painfully aware that at the current moment, levelwise, he was the weakest in the whole group.

    ¡°As long as you are not tired by the nighttime, you will be okay,¡± Dariamented with a tiny smirk on her lips. She then swung her hand, only to im another zombie¡¯s head without even looking.

    ¡°That¡¯s pretty sexist of you,¡± Mathew replied, unable to hold himself back from smiling.

    This entire situation was insanely weird. They were in the middle of thebat with beings that were dead-set on killing them¡­ And yet, they still had both the time and the freedom of mind to just chat and joke around.

    ¡°To think a day woulde when someone would call me sexist!¡± Daria eximed in a faked act of exasperation. And at the same time, she swung her hand, cutting the throat of another zombie. ¡°Fuck, I missed,¡± she then cursed, only to pounce on the injured zombie before smashing its head off its neck with a single m of her fist.

    ¡°And now you got all dirty,¡± Nadiamented as she rolled her eyes. She then brought her machete down, mming it right down the middle of the skull of a zombie she stepped on. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to lecture you, but if you act that recklesster on, won¡¯t it be quite ufortable in the longer missions?¡±

 Chapter 118 Evolved one

    ¡°And that makes thest one,¡± Mathewmented. He then took a step back to take a better look at the whole scene.

    There was something that bothered him to no end. An element of the picture that didn¡¯t fit the rest.

    ¡®I see,¡¯ Mathew thought when he stepped back far enough to grasp the whole picture at once.

    The young man¡¯s face soured as his cautiousness returned to his eyes.

    ¡®There are more corpses than there were zombies in that group,¡¯ he thought, warily looking around in search of another potential source of zombies.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Nadia asked from the middle of the former battlefield when she took a break from harvesting the cores.

    Mathew didn¡¯t bother to reply. He directed his eyes to the nearby houses instead, only to see a group of a few more zombies slowly breaking through all sorts of natural obstacles on their way.

    ¡°Look at the houses!¡± Mathew shouted.<sub>.</sub>

    There were up to five or six zombies in a single house. Yet, while there were only single-family houses on the street they were on, a mass-residential district was just two streets ahead.

    ¡®If there are a few zombies per housing unit, then we might stumble into a massive horde on our way to that building,¡¯ he thought. Mathew then jumped to the nearest yard¡¯s fence only to break it in pieces with just a few swings of his ax.

    ¡°AaaaAAa¡­¡± a strange screech came out of the nearest zombie¡¯s throat as it stopped banging itself at the fence, opting to take the route Mathew had just cleared.

    ¡®So they have some sort of spatial perception,¡¯ Mathew thought as he finished that particr zombie¡¯s existence, finally letting the former owner of the body rest in peace.

    ¡®Looking at the corpse, rest in pieces seems like a more fitting call,¡¯ Mathew thought, using his broken humor to ward off the thoughts of killing former humans.

    ughtering zombies in the school was a bit different than doing the same outside of its bounds. Mathew was long used to treating anyone unresponsive and wearing his school outfit as a mindless enemy. On the other hand, ying the zombies that still wore theirfortable clothes¡­

    ¡°This leaves a bad taste in my mouth,¡± Mathew muttered as he closed his eyes for a second, only to open them and look at the corpse below his feet from a rtively fresh perspective.<sub></sub>

    The young man then gritted his teeth.

    The corpse that he just created belonged to a middle-aged woman, dressed in sweatpants and a sweatshirt.

    ¡®A housewife? Or maybe a stay-at-home mother?¡¯ Mathew thought, unable to tear his eyes away from the gruesome sight.

    ¡°Stop thinking too much about it,¡± Nadia said as she appeared by Mat¡¯s side. ¡°There is nothing you can do to help them anymore. Right now, we need to think about ourselves, not about those who already met their end,¡± she said, urately guessing what troubled her man.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t make it any easier,¡± Mathew replied, still looking down at the corpse of his own making.

    ¡°Then look,¡± Nadia rolled her eyes before taking a step forward. She then brought her machete down, splitting the head of the zombie open. Then, without any regard for her own cleanliness, she reached down and plucked the core out of the corpse¡¯s head.

    ¡°Look,¡± Nadia repeated as she raised the core to Mathew¡¯s eye level. ¡°That¡¯s all they are right now. Robots moving on some sort of energy contained within this stone,¡± she exined her own take at what zombies were.

    ¡°You know that¡¯s not the truth,¡± Mathew said, denying Nadia¡¯s approach to exining the situation. Still, his lip curved up a little, forming a shy smile. ¡°But I guess you are right about one thing,¡± he added as he turned around and took a look at the situation on the street.

    ¡°I¡¯m always right,¡± Nadia replied with a smile on her own. ¡°And if I¡¯m not, then you should check rule number one,¡± she added with an open grin.

    Neither of them was bothered by the fact that the seemingly empty street was now starting to fill up with zombies.

    Even though there were only a few of them in each of the residential units on the streets, once they all started to converge in a single point, the street quickly became quite congested.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s just kill as many as we can before the situation will turn truly bad,¡± Mathew decided. He then swung his ax around by his right side, letting the inertia clean all the blood and gore remains from its de.

    The times when Mathew would feel scared upon seeing a small crowd of zombies all belonged to his former self. To the Mathew that died, sacrificing his life for Nadia¡¯s safety.

    Right now, the only thing that Mathew saw in the street was a free opportunity to raise his strength and protect Nadia without giving his life for it!

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Nadia urged her man before the two of them rushed back into the fray.

    There wasn¡¯t anything special about this fight, just like there wasn¡¯t anything worth a note about their earlier engagement.

    ¡®With our level of strength it almost feels like bullying,¡¯ Mathew thought as he continued to cleave through zombies one by one. As he quickly reached the very front of the formation, he could just leave the half-finished ones to the girls behind, giving them even more opportunities to grow stronger.

    ¡°It¡¯s slowly starting to get cramped,¡± Daria shouted several minutester, after a huge chunk of the street ended up covered with zombie corpses.

    ¡°Can you tell where they are alling from?¡± Mathew called out his question over the noise made by all the zombies moving, stretching, and dying.

    ¡°A huge group approaching from the south!¡± Daria reported a momentter that she climbed up a nearbymp-post to get a better look at their surroundings.

    ¡°Okay then, Daria, I¡¯m leaving the front to you!¡± Mathew shouted before turning his eyes to the two other girls that fought right by his side. ¡°I need you two to start collecting the cores now. I will make sure you two are safe,¡± Mathew added before fixing his grip on his ax and looking up.

    He then braced himself against the ground as he prepared for the inherent struggle.

    The horde that Daria noticed took only a moment to reach the street. And right in the middle of all of them, there was a single zombie that stood apart from the rest.

    ¡®An evolved one?¡¯ Mathew thought, tightening his grip over his weapon even more as he analyzed the situation.

    Then, the zombie raised its hand toward Mathew¡¯s group¡­

    Only for roughly a third of the zombies surrounding it to rush ahead at a speed Mathew never saw a zombie move at!

    ¡°GO BACK!¡± Mathew shouted, realizing that the situation wasn¡¯t asfortable as he expected it to be.

    The two girls near him instantly dropped the cores in their hands and raised their weapons.

    Sadly, Mathew couldn¡¯t see past the mass of zombies ahead to check whether Daria even heard his order.

    ¡°Nadia, I will clear the way for you,¡± Mathew ordered as he leaned his upper body forward and took a few breaths to elerate the rate his heart beat at. ¡°Le, I¡¯m leaving our backs to you,¡± he added.

    And then, without giving the girls even a second to prepare, Mathew rushed ahead.

 Chapter 119 - Stacking injuries

    ¡®This one doesn¡¯t look all that stronger than the others. Yet, it¡¯s a no-brainer that it¡¯s an evolved one,¡¯ Mathew thought as he rushed right into the group of zombies where he spotted the strange one.

    The strange zombie moved. It waved its arm and a third of all the zombies that surrounded it rushed ahead, ready to intercept Mathew¡¯s charge.

    ¡®So it¡¯s amanding type,¡¯ Mathew thought as he brought his ax to his shoulder before bracing himself for the impact.

    ¡®If I want to clear the way for Nadia, I can¡¯t really bother too much with my safety,¡¯ Mathew decided before gritting his teeth and then speeding up.

    sk!

    The feeling of crashing into a sizeable group of zombies was disgusting. Their bodies, already on the verge of rotting, would simply dissolve away upon impact, covering Mathew¡¯s body with the odor and the filth of their insides.

    ¡®I can¡¯t stop!¡¯ Mathew decided, ignoring the displeasureing from his situation as he finally brought his ax down from his shoulder. In order to do that, he used his own shoulder as the supporting point for leverage while pulling down on the far end of the ax¡¯s handle.

    With the momentum Mathew managed to squeeze out of the leverage he came up with, Mathew swung his weapon around, more pushing the zombies away than trying to cut at them.

    And yet, the desperately bad state of the zombie¡¯s decaying bodies made it so that even the more blunt nature of Mathew¡¯s strike still worked like a sh, cutting their bodies in half.

    Mathew took two more swings before raising his left hand from the handle of the weapon and raising it to his face to clear it out from the gore filth.

    ¡°Push, now!¡± Mathew ordered right as he broke through the siege of zombies all around.

    ¡°On it!¡± Nadia replied happily.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew involuntarily shrugged when a strange feeling coursed through his veins. He had to resist his innate desire to turn around and face the looming aura that appeared behind his back¡­

    Only for the aura to disperse a momentter, as Nadia rushed past Mathew¡¯s side and leaped in the direction of the evolved monsters.

    ¡®It¡¯s like there is no fear in her,¡¯ Mathew thought when he took a nce at the girl¡¯s back before she dropped right into the group of zombies ahead.

    For a moment, Mathew limited himself just to warding off the attacks of the zombies nearest to him. And as his second wives joined, they managed to clean out the small group in a matter of a single minute.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t we going to help her?¡± Le asked when she knocked the head off the shoulders of thest zombie.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew shook, his mind too messy to form a single thought.

    It appeared that a single activation of whatever aura Nadia had somehow pushed Mathew into this weird, immovable state of mind.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Le was the first one to notice that there was something wrong with their collective husband. Her high perception could be the reason for that¡­

    Or maybe it was just because she was the only one left by Mathew¡¯s side with Daria bound in a fight at the very front of their group and Nadia messing around in the main crowd of the zombie.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew turned his eyes to the girl, curious about what she had to say.

    Le was the first one to notice that there was something wrong with Mathew. And she was also the first one to take real action to fix it.

    SLAP!

    Le didn¡¯t hold her strength back when she pped Mathew across his face.

    ¡°Are you awake again?¡± she asked while grabbing his head between her hands and looking deep down into his eyes.

    ¡°I am,¡± Mathew replied, pulling his head to the back to free it from Le¡¯s hands. He then raised his own arms before pping himself on both his cheeks. ¡°Let¡¯s go help her,¡± Mathew ordered the moment he managed to sober himself up somewhat.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I wanted to hear,¡± Le replied, a small smile of relief appearing on her lips.

    But Mathew could see it anymore.

    Ignoring the plight of the reasonable part of his soul that wished to discover just what the hell made him stop in the middle of his tracks right now, Mathew focused on the simple task of reaching Nadia¡¯s side.

    PLACK!

    Once again, Mathew¡¯s body was covered in filth when he mmed right into the crowd of zombies.

    Nails bruised his skin. Broken bones cut wounds into his flesh. A single zombie even managed to sink its teeth into Mathew¡¯s meat!

    And then, Mathew dropped his ax again, clearing the area immediately around him with wide swings.

    ¡®Normal zombies are no match for my attacks anymore,¡¯ Mathew thought, finally experiencing the real effects of his growing strength first-hand.

    The number of injuries he received when mming into the wall of zombies would be more than enough to make him turn into another screeching corpse. And yet, he didn¡¯t feel any symptoms of turning, something that he well-documented thanks to thest bit of help from his fallenpanions in his first run of the apocalypse.

    His attacks themselves could also use as a great measurement. Back in yesterday¡¯s morning, Mathew still had to put considerable strength behind his strikes, even when using his high-leveled weapon, to split a zombie in half. And now, he could do so en masse without slowing his hand down even for the tiniest bit!

    ¡®But all this growth will be meaningless if Nadia ends up hurt,¡¯ Mathew thought as he ramped up both the speed and the strength behind his strikes, culling zombies left and right in his mad dash towards Nadia.

    ¡°Matty!¡± Nadia called out joyfully when her man joined her side in the fight.

    ¡°Are you okay?!¡± Mathew had to fight off the desire to drop everything and grab the girl into his arms. As such, it was already a showcase of his mental strength when he managed to limit the reaction to his worry to just a simple question.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia shrugged a little. ¡°I¡¯m perfectly fine, why would you ask?¡± she asked while a look of surprise filled her face.

    ¡°There was something wrong with me,¡± Mathew replied shortly as he swung his ax again. He then allowed the de to fall down by his side as he froze in ce and took a deep breath. ¡°I couldn¡¯t move at all, as if something charmed me to stay in ce,¡± the young man randomlymented, only to realize that the scale of the truth behind his words was actually too big forfort.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ he thought when he came to understand that the symptoms that he described just now, could be applied to his situation¡­ once again.

    ¡°What the hell¡­¡± Mathew muttered under his breath, pushing himself further and further¡­ But no matter how hard he tried, Mathew¡¯s body simply refused to react to his orders.

    ¡°Matty?¡± Nadia turned her eyes to the young man¡¯s body, sensing that something wasn¡¯t right there.

    ¡®Don¡¯t lose your goddamn focus!¡¯ Mathew wished to scream, unable to do anything but watch how Nadia¡¯s moments of carelessness nearly resulted in a zombie daring to scratch her fair skin.

    He continued to try to free himself from the strange state he found himself in. Yet, as his efforts proved futile, Mathew then looked around to at least assess the situation.

    Several zombies were nearing him, ready to pounce the moment they would reach close enough.

    Some of them would fall halfway under relentless attacks of Le¡¯s machete¡­ but three of them managed to slip through.

    Mathew continued to move his eyes, a movement that now had a lot more meaning ever since this became the only thing he could actually do.

    And then he saw it.

    The very same zombie that caught Mathew¡¯s attention before currently had its eyes glued to his head.

    ¡®So you are the culprit, huh?¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He could tell with just a single look that the weird cohesion of this particr group of zombies that initially caught his attention was now back to how zombies would normally act.

    ¡®So you can¡¯tmand while you are rooting me in ce, can you?¡¯ Mathew thought, happy that he managed to figure out his opponent¡­ And desperate because he couldn¡¯t do shit to even tell others about it.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Le shouted. Yet, this time, she was too busy with all the zombies around to rush to his aid.

    The three zombies that managed to slip past Le reached out their decaying hands, two of them aiming for Mathew¡¯s face, one of them aiming for his juicy waist.

    ¡°ENOUGH!¡±

    Mathew screamed from the bottom of his lungs. He pushed his body to its limits¡­ And he managed to break through the invisible chains of inactivity. He swung his ax in the air, killing the two zombies that reached out for his head.

    ¡®Fuck!¡¯ Mathew had no other choice but to grit his teeth when the thrid zombie¡¯s teeth sank into the flesh of his waist.

    The young man got rid of the pest with a single swing of his fist¡­ Only to then fall down on one knee as a sudden wave of weakness messed up his stability.

    ¡°Matty?¡± Nadia turned her head, once again noticing that there was something wrong with her lover.

    Yet, just as the girl was about to do something stupid, Mathew sparked out thest bit of energy he could control in his now pretty dangerous state¡­

    Only to grab the end of his ax and send it flying towards the evolved zombie!

 Chapter 120 - If its stupid and it works, its not stupid

    ¡®I hope it will work,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching after the ax he just threw while his vision started to turn blurry.

    He could see his ax flying through the air, perfectly aimed for the evolved zombie¡¯s head¡­

    Only for the de to miss just by an inch, cutting into the zombie¡¯s shoulder instead of its skull.

    ¡®It¡¯s over.¡¯ Mathew thought, closing his eyes to give himself some rest.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Nadia shouted, ignoring the fight and danger all around her to back out and reach Mathew¡¯s side right as the young man could no longer hold himself upright. ¡°You are injured all over!¡±

    ¡®How the hell did this happen?¡¯ Mathew thought. His consciousness continued to fade away as his body entered a desperate struggle to ward the zombie virus off. ¡®Judging from how we can¡¯t see a lot of people with zombie marks walking around, I¡¯m likely to lose this fight,¡¯ Mathew thought, clenching his teeth.

    ¡®What will happen to them?¡¯

    Only a single thought remained in Mathew¡¯s mind when he realized that he likely reached the end of his road.

    ¡®To die during a simple, scouting mission, how anticlimatic,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth while having no other choice but to let Nadia support him from the side.

    ¡°We need to get you out of here,¡± Nadia whispered only to raise up and turn around, ready to run back towards the safety of the fortress.

    ¡®Will they keep their abilities and powers even if I turn?¡¯ Mathew continued to analyze his options. ¡®What¡¯s important is that they will still be able to ess the merchants with Daniel¡¯s help.¡¯

    In theory, even if the girls were to lose the strength they gained from Mathew¡¯s system, they should still be able to make it in this new, brutal world.

    ¡®I don¡¯t like it,¡¯ Mathew thought as Nadia started to drag him away from the fight.

    During his first attempt at surviving the apocalypse, Mathew achieved a pyrrhic victory. He managed to keep Nadia safe even though it came at the cost of his own life.

    Right now, though, his result would be even worse. Because while Nadia would still be able to survive, Mathew would practically waste his life for nothing.

    ¡®If only there was some way to revert the situation¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes falling down as he could no longer control his eyeballs.

    And in the tiny window of time between his eyes looking ahead and his eyes not seeing anything at all, Mathew saw one of the several zombies that he cut into pieces but didn¡¯t finish.

    ¡°Just die already,¡± Nadia thought when she stomped on the zombie¡¯s skull, stopping it from grabbing her leg.

    ¡®Wait, didn¡¯t I survive a lot more zombie attacks than I should?¡¯ Mathew thought.

    In this moment of desperation, Mathew¡¯s mind reached the absolute peak of how quickly it could spin. Or rather, it reached past Mathew¡¯s usual limits, analyzing the information at a rate that Mathew never expected his own brain to be capable of.

    ¡®I need to level up.¡¯

    It was a simple realization but it struck Mathew like a truck. And then, for the very first time since the morning came, Mathew checked his system out.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 35]

    [Brawn ¨C 42]

    [Agility ¨C 42]

    [Mind ¨C 5]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 149]

    [umted Levels ¨C 14/14]

    ¡®I¡¯m just a single stat point from what would normally be a level-up,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then gritted his teeth before pushing his weakened flesh to its limits.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 35]

    [Brawn ¨C 42]

    [Agility ¨C 42]

    [Mind ¨C 5]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 149]

    [umted Levels ¨C 14/14]

    [Overdrive skill activated]

    His system changed a tiny little bit. But while the change in what Mathew could see was minuscule, limited to just a single line, the reality turned itself on its head.

    ¡°No!¡± Mathew shouted, forcibly freeing himself from Nadia¡¯s help.

    Strength brimmed in Mathew¡¯s muscles, making it surprisingly hard to make any fine adjustments to his movements.

    He fell down to the ground, only having his hands to thank for saving his face from striking the concrete pavement.

    ¡°Mathy!¡± Nadia screamed out in shock and worry, only to lean down and instantly reach out for her man¡¯s shoulders, eager to help him raise.

    ¡°No, I can¡¯t leave yet,¡± Mathew muttered, using all the patience that he had left in himself to slowly raise up from the ground.

    ¡°Stop overexerting yourself!¡± Nadia protested loudly and stomped her foot against the ground. ¡°I thought a good night of rest would allow you to regain your strength, I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t realize how tired you still were!¡±

    Tears appeared in Nadia¡¯s eyes as she could only see how Mathew ignored her calls of worry.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like that,¡± Mathew managed to squeeze those few words through his mouth. ¡°If I leave now, I will die,¡± he added only to slip on the bloody asphalt and almost knock himself out by striking the asphalt road with his head.

    ¡°Wait, what?¡± Nadia¡¯s eyes widened as the meaning behind Mathew¡¯s words slowly made its way to her mind. She then looked down at all Mathew¡¯s injuries and then twitched. ¡°I understand,¡± her tone turned surprisingly calm as she grabbed Mathew¡¯s shoulders and helped him to stand up. ¡°How can I help?¡±

    There was no fear in the girl¡¯s eyes. And after eliminating the possibility that she didn¡¯t care about Mathew in the slightest, only a single exnation for this phenomenon remained.

    ¡®She trusts that I have some sort of n,¡¯ Mathew thought, too scared to bring the de of truth and cut down Nadia¡¯s hopes.

    He allowed the girl to help him raise up. He even managed to make a few steps forward in a rtively autonomous manner¡­ Only to stomp his foot at the head of one of the zombies that he left behind before.

    Then, Mathew nced at this system again. ¡®Not enough,¡¯ he thought, moving his eyes to another target.

    ¡°Okay, I see,¡± Nadia stated, leaving Mathew to his own devices as she hurried away. ¡°Le!¡± Mathew could hear Nadia shouting before her voice disappeared into the noise made by all the zombies remaining in the area.

    Mathew couldn¡¯t keep himself standing. And when he slipped again, at the very least he used the momentum of his fall to smash his fist into the head of yet another zombie.

    [Host can now donate a level!]

    An announcement appeared before Mathew¡¯s eyes right as he looked to check his system.

    And for the very first time, instead of his points getting added to his statistics on their own, he could see the option to choose which statistic he would want to use that point on.

    [umted Levels ¨C 14/15]

    [Avaible points: 1]

    This time, two lines of Mathew¡¯s system changed. But while the aspect of donating his level could wait, Mathew didn¡¯t hesitate even for a second over what to spend his free statistic point on!

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 36]

    [Brawn ¨C 42]

    [Agility ¨C 42]

    [Mind ¨C 5]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 150]

    [umted Levels ¨C 14/15]

    The moment Mathew¡¯s mental order brought a small change to his system, the young man could feel his sickness alleviating.

    It was only a small change, a tiny dent in the prowess of the zombie¡¯s virus¡­ But it was enough, as it proved that Mathew¡¯s idea was correct.

    ¡®We need to keep Daria alive, stop this evolved zombie from growing even stronger and then let mest hit some of the zombies to bring my vitality high enough to stop the sickness,¡¯ Mathew counted all the current objectives for their group.

    ¡®Donate a level to Daria!¡¯ Mathew thought, instantly acting on his earlier realization.

    And just like would develop a character in a game to y to its strengths, Mathew dumped all ten statistics points offered by his donated level into Daria¡¯s arcane.

    BOOM!

    Right when Mathew confirmed the changes he wanted to bring, a huge explosion shook the air and all the buildings in the vincity.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ the young man thought. ¡®Now there will be no end to them!¡¯

    The zombies reacted to all sorts of stimuli. But the sound was historically their greatest strength when it came to detecting the enemies.

    ¡®No matter what that explosion was, a horde will soon form and storm this ce,¡¯ Mathew thought while crawling forward to smash his fist through the skull of another zombie.

    Nadia was nowhere to be seen. Mathew¡¯s two other wives didn¡¯t appear to be anywhere close either. And in the short time since Nadia left, quite a few zombies managed to start gathering around Mathew¡¯s nearly powerless body.

    ¡®I don¡¯t think I have a lot of options left,¡¯ he thought, opting to stay by the corpse he just made instead of looking for another zombie to finish.

    Mathew plunged his hand into the disgusting brain matter of the zombie he just finished before plucking out the core that he was after.

    ¡®Come, you fuckers,¡¯ he thought, getting ready to squeeze the stone in his hand before smashing it against the ground in hopes of activating one of his few abilities.

    ¡°Here!¡± Nadia suddenly shouted, right as shended by Mathew¡¯s side before dropping a bundle of severed yet still moving heads by her man¡¯s hand.

    Nadia then lowered herself to her knees before sneaking the handle of her own de into Mathew¡¯s palm.

    ¡°Here, let me help you,¡± she stated before raising Mathew¡¯s arm with her hands only to then drop it down on the nearest head.

    ¡®That can actually work,¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling how his momentary boost of strength quickly vanished.

    Yet, bit by bit, head after head, his killing continued, quickly bringing a few more points for the young man to distribute.

    ¡®Dump it all into vitality,¡¯ Mathew muttered in his mind, doing his best to stay awake

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 36] [Vitality ¨C 39]

    [Brawn ¨C 42]

    [Agility ¨C 42]

    [Mind ¨C 5]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 153]

    [umted Levels ¨C 15/15]

    [Avaible points: 3] [Avaible points: 0]

    A massive wave of relief washed through Mahtew¡¯s body, finally freeing him from the overwhelming burden of the sickness.

    ¡®I¡¯m still slightly sluggish,¡¯ the young man thought as he took a deep breath. He then prompted himself off the ground and stood up only to turn his head to the side and take a deep look into Nadia¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± he said, refusing to move his eyes away. ¡°You literally just saved my life,¡± he added.

    ¡°Here, finish this one!¡± Le burst the bubble of intimacy that appeared around the couple, only to throw the head of the only zombie that Mathew could remember right at his legs. ¡°It¡¯s an evolved one so it¡¯s bound to make you even stronger,¡± she exined her way of thinking before bringing one of her hands from behind her back¡­

    Only to present Mathew his very own ax.

 Chapter 121 - I shave my pussy clean (not r18)

    ¡°Are you sure?¡± Mathew asked, raising his head and taking a look at Le¡¯s face. ¡°You could grow a lot stronger by finishing it,¡± he added.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the point?¡± Le replied while turning her head to the side while a surprise appeared behind her widened eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t you need to level up urgently?¡±

    ¡®I didn¡¯t expect her to care about me so much,¡¯ Mathew thought. ¡®Or maybe she doesn¡¯t mind because she doesn¡¯t have the gamer¡¯s mindset? Or maybe it¡¯s all a cold calction?¡¯

    Several ways of exining Le¡¯s actions appeared in Mathew¡¯s mind. The young man kept his eyes on the girl¡¯s face as he analyzed the options his mind came up with¡­

    Only to shake his head and then forget about it.

    ¡°Thanks, then,¡± Mathew said, opting to just go with the flow instead of overthinking everyst thing that he would encounter.

    He then epted the ax that the girl passed to him. Mathew¡¯s body seemingly reinforced when he grasped the weapon¡¯s handle as if the weapon itself could raise his personal statistics.

    ¡°I¡¯m feeling much better now,¡± Mathew muttered while looking down on the de of his weapon.

    He then jumped away a bit as the head of the evolved zombie¡¯s leader rolled as it attempted to bite at Mathew¡¯s ankle.

    ¡®Well then,¡¯ the young man thought to himself, forcibly severing this line of thinking focused on the weapon. ¡®I just decided not to overthink things,¡¯ he thought, raising his weapon above his head like some sort of an executioner. ¡®So let¡¯s just go with the flow!¡¯

    sk.

    Mathew¡¯s hands turned to be weaker than the young man himself assessed them to be. And because of this sickness-caused weakness, he failed to control his weapon properly, smashing the head below his legs with the side of the ax.

    [Host can now donate a level!]

    [Host can now donate a level!]

    [Host can now donate a level!]

    A set of messages appeared before Mathew¡¯s eyes, blending in nicely with the morning sight of the bloodied street.

    They were clearly a foreign element in the picture¡­ Yet, for some reason, they felt perfectly in ce.

    ¡®Wait, a second, three entire levels?¡¯ Mathew thought, stunned by the results. And as he looked toward his system, his consciousness wavered.

    And it wasn¡¯t because of Mathew¡¯s sickness this time.

    He looked at his system¡­ And in the true fashion of every gamer struggling toplete a stage, Mathew dumped all the statistic points right away.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 36] [Vitality ¨C 50]

    [Brawn ¨C 42] [Brawn ¨C 50]

    [Agility ¨C 42] [Agility ¨C 50]

    [Mind ¨C 5] [Mind ¨C 7]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 150] [Total ¨C 182]

    [umted Levels ¨C 15/15] [umted Levels ¨C 15/18]

    [Avaible points: 32] [Avaible points: 0]

    ¡°Haaaaa¡­..¡± a long sigh escaped from Mathew¡¯s mouth when his raised vitality finally allowed him topletely conquer the side-effects of all the injuries he received so far.

    ¡°Did it help?¡± Le asked, her eyes dropping a little while she attempted to hide her nervousness by looking away.

    ¡°It helped a lot,¡± Mathew replied with a smile. ¡°Thank you,¡± he then added, properly bowing his head to the girl. ¡°It helped even more than I expected,¡± Mathew added before shaking his head and standing up.

    ¡®Okay, now that my OCD is cated, I can actually start thinking about what statistics to develop next,¡¯ Mathew thought¡­ Only to roll his eyes and follow the ord he agreed on several moments earlier.

    ¡°For now, let¡¯s gather as many cores as we can before retreating,¡± Mathew ordered while walking toward the nearest zombie.

    This time, he didn¡¯t even need to put any strength behind the swing of his weapon.

    The ax itself felt like it had an anorexia struggle for some weeks, effectively losing half its weight.

    ¡®I guess it¡¯s me getting stronger, not this item getting lighter,¡¯ Mathew thought, swinging his ax to the other side and casually pushing his de through the entire width of another zombie¡¯s chest.

    ¡°Do we need some quota that we need to fill?¡± Nadia asked as she crouched by the heads that she provided Mathew with before. She then plunged her hand into the broken skulls of the zombie¡¯s heads without any hesitation only to pull it out while holding a small core between her slim and bloodied fingers.

    ¡°Not really,¡± Mathew shook his head while he continued to clear all the zombies that could potentially endanger the girls behind him. ¡°Or actually, let¡¯s do itter,¡± he added as his face darkened.

    ¡®I might havemitted a massive blunder just now,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his head to confirm the girls moved their attention back to the dangers around.

    And the moment Mathew saw both Nadia and Le rising back to their feet, he leaped forward.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to help Daria!¡± he shouted only to plunge right back into the crowd of zombies ahead.

    Crush. sh. Smack. Kick.

    It took Mathew only a moment to end up stuck in the middle of the crowd of zombies. He theoretically made exactly the same mistake as before, reaching a state where there wasn¡¯t enough space for him to move around freely enough to bring forth the full power of his weapon.

    ¡®So easy.¡¯

    Not a single scratch added to Mathew¡¯s injuries this time. Even though he could still vaguely feel the weakness of his sickness when coupled with the newfound strength of his improved statistics¡­

    Mathew turned out to be too fast for most of the attacks to reach him. Whenever a zombie would attempt to grab him to nullify his agility, Mathew¡¯s strength would easily allow the young man to escape from the clutches of immobility.

    Mathew wasn¡¯t used to his new prowess, though, making him stumble here and there, giving the ever-increasing mass of zombies some windows to actually attack him.

    Yet, this wasn¡¯t enough either.

    The vitality that Mathew brought to fifty points made his skin so tough, the sharp edges of broken nails, teeth, or even bones of the zombies could no longer pierce through it!

    ¡®This feels simply wrong,¡¯ Mathew thought as he continued to ughter zombies left and right, all in an attempt to cut himself a path to where Daria was.

    ¡°Oh, hello there,¡± Daria said when Mathew suddenly emerged right before her.

    ¡°General Kenobi,¡± Mathew replied on an instinct alone. He then shook his head, realizing just how weird that callback was in this situation.

    Yet, seeing the scene ying out before his eyes, Mathew couldn¡¯t utter a single word that would then turn into a part of a proper sentence.

    Because Daria wasn¡¯t fighting the zombies. Or rather, she was killing them, while not a single zombie bothered to react to her attacks in any way or form!

    ¡°What the hell¡­¡± Mathew muttered while his eyes widened.

    The zombies around all rushed to attack him, yet his improved body now didn¡¯t need to bother with them at all.

    ¡®But they are attacking me,¡¯ Mathew thought while casually killing the zombies that got close enough to assault his nostrils with the disgustingly sweet aroma of decaying flesh. He then pushed several zombies that blocked his vision away, only to reconfirm what he saw before.

    Not a single zombie bothered to attack Daria. It was as if she was invisible to them.

    ¡®Or maybe it¡¯s because they are treating her as one of their own?¡¯ Mathew attempted to guess, grasping the handle of his ax even stronger than before.

    ¡°Are you still Daria?¡± Mathew suddenly asked, too unsettled by thest option he thought about not to confirm it.

    ¡®I¡¯ve zombies that evolved into powerful monsters. We defeated a zombie that evolved into a leader today. I doubt that¡¯s all this world of apocalypse has in store, so there is a chance this is not Daria at all!¡¯

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Daria or an impostor acting like her asked. ¡°Who else could I be?¡± she asked, only for the look behind her eyes to sharpen as she aimed her Macheete at Mathew. ¡°Who are you?!¡±

    Mathew released a deep breath and swung his ax to cut through the nearest zombie that dared to interrupt this tense moment.

    ¡°It seems that we both had the same idea,¡± Mathew pointed out. ¡°But just to be sure,¡± Mathew added only for a small smile to appear on his lips. ¡°What hairstyle are you rocking down there?¡±

    Daria at first turned her head to the side, confusion taking over her eyes. She then blushed as she realized what Mathew¡¯s content was all about. The girl then shook her head before looking Mathew directly in the eyes.

    ¡°As you saw it closer than anyone else, excluding what grew down there yesterday, I shave my pussy clean.¡±

    Mathew slowly nodded his head before raising his eyes at the girl.

    ¡°So it¡¯s really you,¡± Mathew finally breathed a sigh of relief while kicking away a zombie that attempted to crawl up to his legs. ¡°Would you mind exining howe the zombies are not attacking you at all, then?¡±

 Chapter 122 - Core detonation

    ¡°Howe zombies are not attacking me, huh?¡± Daria repeated Mathew¡¯s question only to shake her head to the sides before shrugging her shoulders. ¡°I have no idea. I was fighting them as usual until a few moments ago, they suddenly lost all interest in me.¡±

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew thought, shocked by the revtion. ¡®I know there had to be some point when the situation suddenly changed¡­ but when?¡¯

    Mathew swung his hand to the side, killing a zombie that dared to interrupt his thinking time.

    ¡°Was it when Le killed the evolved one?¡± Mathew muttered, stopping his hand seconds before he would use it to rub his chin.

    On its own, this gesture wasn¡¯t anything wrong. But with how much zombie virus Mathew already received, putting zombie blood anywhere near his mouth didn¡¯t seem like something smart to do.

    ¡°Or was it when I raised your statistics?¡± Mathew then mumbled under his nose, ready to consider the other option that he could think of.

    ¡°Wait, evolved one?¡± Daria caught on to Mathew¡¯s whispers. ¡°And Le killed it?¡± she gasped. ¡°On her own?!¡±

    Matthew¡¯s lips curled up and formed a small smile.

    ¡°I understand why you are so shocked,¡± he said. Yet, rather than exining, Mathew brought his hands closer to the de of his ax before lurching into a group of fresh zombies that once again were ready to interrupt the talk.

    As there wasn¡¯t enough space for Mathew to swing his hammer, he brought his hand all the way to the point when it squeezed against the bottom of the de before using the weapon more like a knife than a long ax.

    ¡®This,¡¯ Mathew thought, cutting the throat of a zombie only to turn around, and smash his elbow to knock the head off the head while already cutting another zombie. ¡®Is,¡¯ he kicked a zombie in front of him, opening up just enough space to allow the weapon to almost slip out of his hands. He then tightened his grasp over its handle before making a wide swing and cutting three heads in a single attack. ¡°ANNOYING!¡±

    Mathew couldn¡¯t be bothered to keep on fighting with the zombies. Sure, it was something that they would likely need to do, but no one said they had to keep on doing it all the time.

    ¡°Daria!¡± Mathew shouted, already forgetting about the topic they were talking about before. ¡°Run to the rest. You need to gather the cores while the girls will hold the zombies off!¡±

    ¡°Yes sir!¡± Daria shouted back with amusement only to use the space that Mathew opened up before rushing back towards the rest of the group.

    ¡®I guess we won¡¯t get to check that building out,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he slowly started to make his way back.

    Contrary to Daria, Mathew couldn¡¯t just rush into a group of zombies and pass by them. In the short amount of time that he took to first reach Daria, check if it was really her, and then arrive at the conclusion of retreating, the zombies from all over the ce already managed to cut off his path of retreat.

    ¡®This is going to be tiring,¡¯ Mathew thought, cutting himself a path through the refilled crowd of zombies.

    ¡®We are leaving so many cores behind,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth once again. ¡®I really need toe up with a way that allows people without a system to help us with that,¡¯ he decided within the confines of his mind before focusing back on the current task.

    ¡®Strategizing can wait, saving the skin of our group not really,¡¯ Mathew decided, speeding up the rate at which he continued to cut the zombies down.

    Sadly, it wasn¡¯t enough.

    ¡°Matty!¡± Nadia shouted from a distance.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t she even further than before?¡¯ Mathew thought, only able to hear the girl butpletely unable to see her¡­ even though the spot where he left Nadia and Le was well within his sights.

    ¡°Don¡¯t try to get to us! An entire horde struck us from the west!¡±

    ¡®That¡¯s¡­¡¯ Mathew hesitated. ¡®I expected this to happen, but shouldn¡¯t they appear from the north?¡¯ he thought, looking up towards the residential area that he was already wary of.

    ¡°Sure! Return on your own!¡± Mathew shouted back.

    ¡®There is no denying the facts,¡¯ the young man thought as he dropped the idea of moving down the street and started to cut his path to the sidewalk. ¡®And if there is an entire horde on the street already, it¡¯s better to just avoid it instead,¡¯ Mathew decided.

    But even then, reaching the sidestreets wasn¡¯t an easy task when tens if not hundreds of zombies all rushed at Mathew, eager to turn him into a meal at all times.

    ¡®Fuck, there is no end to them,¡¯ he thought, shing his ax left and right, trying to clean enough of the enemies to give himself an opportunity to flee.

    And then, Mathew suddenly stopped.

    ¡®Why am I so fucking stupid?¡¯ he thought.

    In this one second, several zombies managed to close their distance to him. They all reached out with their hands, teeth, and whatever else they could use to grab at him.

    Mathew raised his ax¡­ and then turned it around. And by swinging it around like a pole instead of a cutting weapon he managed to achieve the first part of his new, refreshed n.

    The zombies that Mathew didn¡¯t kill but simply pushed away blocked the path for the zombies behind them. Sure, it only bought the young man a few seconds at most, before the natural squeeze and push of the horde would simply carry those zombies forward anyway.

    But those few seconds were all that Mathew needed.

    He shed the head of the nearest zombie in half. But instead of moving to another target, Mathew lurched forward and pushed his hand into the still hot brain matter of his current target.

    ¡°Auch,¡± a voice ofint raised from the depths of Mathew¡¯s guts when this little distraction caused several zombies to finally reach him. ¡®I know it¡¯s risky¡­¡¯ he thought.

    Sure, the zombies could no longer prate through his skin¡­ But once enough of them would swarm him, Mathew would lose his ability to do anything about it.

    And then, it would be only a matter of time before his increased vitality would show its boundaries.

    ¡®Got it,¡¯ Mathew thought when he felt a strangely tough element with his fingers.

    More and more zombies continued to swarm him. There were already seven different ones that caught on to him with at least thirty more ready to do it in the next few seconds.

    ¡®I hope it will work,¡¯ Mathew thought, pulling his hand out while securing the core within his fist.

    Mathew then raised his hand as if he wanted to punch the sky.

    ¡®Core detonation,¡¯ he thought, bringing his hand down and mming it into the asphalt below his feet.

    BOOM!

    A powerful shockwave knocked away all the zombies that attached themselves to Mathew¡¯s body. Two zombies grabbed him so hard, that while the shockwave forced the main part of their bodies away, their hands still kept hugging Mathew¡¯s body even long after they could no longer move at all.

    ¡®That¡¯s what I wanted,¡¯ Mathew thought with satisfaction. And without any further ado, he turned around and rushed into the smaller side street hidden between the residential buildings.

    ¡®But it¡¯s not over yet,¡¯ Mathew thought when after barely a few seconds the zombies started to stand up and pick the chase.

    For a normal person, a shockwave throwing one several meters away would be devastating. Just the shock alone would be enough to keep them in ce for several minutes at the very least.

    But this kind of logic didn¡¯t apply to the zombies at all. Sure, they have all knocked away from Mathew¡­ But they didn¡¯t showcase any signs of shock or injury-rted trauma.

    ¡®They are already here,¡¯ Mathew thought when he had no other choice but to raise his ax and push it into action again. ¡®Or maybe those are the zombies that were kicked away in this direction?¡¯

    Whatever was the case, Mathew couldn¡¯t really care less. Yet, after experiencing the potency of one of the very few skills that he had, he made a proper point to cut at least one of the zombie¡¯s heads open before plucking the core out and keeping it in his hand as he continued his retreat.

    Roughly a minuteter Mathew finally reached the point where all the zombies in the vincity were behind him, madly entranced in their chase.

    ¡®I moved east for three streets. The longer I wait before making the turn¡­¡¯ Mathew thought as he looked around, hesitating about his next moves.

    He moved so far away from the original street that his only way to return now lead directly through the horde that wasying siege to the barrier of his fortress.

    ¡®I would love to farm them for their cores¡­¡¯ Mathew hesitated. He then shook his head, gritted his teeth, and finally ensured that he still kept a fresh core in his right palm.

    And then, he rushed right into the middle of the horde.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Nadia¡¯s shout reached Mathew¡¯s ears the moment he emerged from the small street and appeared right before the main entrance of the building.

    ¡®How did she know I would approach from this direction?¡¯ Mathew thought, surprised by such development.

    But just like with Daria¡¯s problem, this wasn¡¯t the topic that he was in ce to discuss.

    ¡°Stay away from the wall!¡± Mathew shouted right as he leaped into the fresh horde of the zombies.

    At this particr moment, he had the pursuing horde to his back and the stationary horde to his front. Any attempt at avoiding both would only cause the other group to lock him in ce.

    So rather than trying to be sneaky, Mathew plunged himself right into the middle of the zombie¡¯s crowd only to then raise his hand up¡­

    ¡®Core detonation,¡¯ a single thought appeared in his mind before the young man mmed his fist into the ground for the second time.

 Chapter 123 - How did I do and observe all of that?

    ¡®I¡¯m going to abuse this bullshit to the limits,¡¯ Mathew thought when a second shockwave for the day turned the crowd of the zombies into a stter.

    The zombies behind and to Mathew¡¯s sides had it the easiest. The moment the wave ofpressed air struck them at a great speed, some would be simply knocked away. A lot of the zombies that already bore the injuries from the earlier fights or even from when the original owners of the bodies died would fall apart under the condensed gust of wind.

    The zombies that had it the worst, were those that were within a certain range and at a certain angle towards Mathew.

    Tsssz!

    At least a hundred zombies happened to stand in the kill zone. It was marked by painting a huge circle on the ground with Mathew in the middle and designed by a radius of how far his skill could push the zombies away.

    Mathew stood near enough to the wall of his fortress for such a circle to intrude upon the protectednd. And whenever a zombie would end up attempting to force its way through the barrier, it would simply light up a little before consuming the zombie-like some sort of godly acid.

    ¡®Wha¡­¡¯ Mathew opened his eyes wide, a mere fraction of a second after casting his skill. Because in this precise yet extremely tiny fraction of a second, the barrier of the fortress started to pulsate.

    Normally, the barrier appeared like a see-through veil of a gentle, aqua hue. But as more and more zombies struck the barrier only to instantly dissolve in it, the color of the barrier would suddenly spike in intensity.

    ¡®Heads!¡¯ A single thought passed through Mathew¡¯s mind.

    FLASH!

    A sudden explosion of light somehow caused Mathew¡¯s ears to ring so loudly that it became painful.

    ¡®What the hell?!¡¯ Mathew freaked out.

    He could handle standing in the middle of a zombie horde. He could manage the idea of using some sort of energy contained in their cores to invoke powerful spells.

    But how could a mere wave of light leave him stunned?

    ¡®It¡¯s not a fucking shbang!¡¯ Mathew protested in his mind once he realized just how this weird feeling could be familiar.

    As the true gamer of his years, he went through this experience over and over again in the past, albeit from the safety of his chair and while only controlling the character appearing on his screen!

    Mathew could ept all the things that would freak out any normal person because of a simple, singr reason.

    He could somehow improvise an exnation that connected all the dots and, to a degree, could make sense. As long as his assumptions and guesses were correct, Mathew could find the rule behind everything that went on.

    But this particr, rtively small event?

    The bright light disappeared. In fact, it was long gone, Mathew¡¯s eyes simply took several seconds to heal the damage caused by the sh.

    And then and only then, Mathew could even analyze the stray thought that appeared in his mind when the sh happened.

    ¡®Heads?¡¯ Mathew thought, blinking his eyes to speed up the process of their healing. He then raised them at the barrier, only to turn his head around as he scouted his immediate surroundings.

    His brain desperately needed its feed. Mathew¡¯s synapses demanded information that they could process to let him make sense of what was going on.

    The barrier still stood, now back to its usual, semi-transparent state.

    And there were no zombies between Mathew and the rtively low wall that served as the support for the magical part of the barrier.

    ¡°Gulp,¡± Mathew swallowed his saliva as he raised his eyes towards the top of the walls.

    Following his earlier ord, he opted not to think about everything too much. There would be a suitable time for him to sort through his observations and experiences. And standing several meters away from the horde that started to regain their mobility didn¡¯t encourage stalling for time.

    ¡®I can only hope it won¡¯t work the same way on me,¡¯ Mathew raised his prayer before moving ahead.

    The zombies that managed to survive Mathew¡¯s idental culling just by an inch gave chase. They were the closest and marked the time limit that Mathew had to organize his escape.

    And yet, the young man walked at a slow pace, as if not bothered by the danger at all.

    ¡°Run!¡± Nadia shouted from the top of the wall once she regained her sight.

    Mathew raised his eyes only to see fright written all over the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°I know you are resilient, but if they catch you, they will keep you down!¡±

    Mathew shook his head to the sides just as he took one more step before fully stopping.

    He waited for a second to take a healthy breath and close his eyes.

    The young man then allowed his body to lean forward. And it continued to do so even after reaching the point where he could no longer move it back upright. Yet, even then, Mathew¡¯s continued to fall forward without a single attempt to save his face from a painful lesson.

    And then, Mathew raised his right leg, climbing the floor as he would climb a steep side of a mountain.

    Mathew kicked the ground. The strength of his leap ahead and the speed he would achieve were all calcted.

    Obviously, the young man didn¡¯t do any calctions. He simply acted on his instincts.

    Mathew made a second step. The tough mass of the air hit him in the chest, fighting off the gravity trying to smash his head into the sidewalk on the outer side of the school¡¯s wall.

    The young man¡¯s body reached as low as thirty degrees in rtion to the ground before his jump stabilized his weird position.

    Mathew then kicked the ground again. A fresh wave of squeezed air pushed against Mathew¡¯s chest with increased strength, bringing him back to roughly forty-five degrees over the ground.

    His third step raised Mathew¡¯s chest for his body to make a whooping seventy-five degrees, only fifteen away from a perfectly straight position.

    And then, Mathew made hisst, fourth step.

    Following the pattern of the air pushing against Mathew¡¯s upper body harder with every step he made, his body now started to lean to the back.

    And using the kick from his fourth leap, Mathew allowed his momentum to carry him up as he raised and then ced his foot on the wall for onest step.

    In this single moment, three forces acted on Mathew¡¯s body.

    His forward momentum tried to squeeze him against the wall. The spinning move introduced by the air resistance made his body bend backward, making his body perpendicr to the wall he stepped on.

    And the momentum from hisst step allowed Mathew to momentarily oppose gravity.

    Without the force pressing him towards the wall, he wouldn¡¯t get the friction necessary to walk up on it. The spinning momentum of his body pressed to turn into simpler linear force with only the forward momentum allowing Mathew to counteract it.

    So he took a step off the wall¡­

    And then, the one force that bnced all the others and allowed Mathew to walk upright on the wall¡­ Disappeared.

    Thebined vector of strength affecting Mathew¡¯s flesh suddenly rearranged, sending his body forward despite the young man somersaulting backward.

    ¡®Wha¡­?¡¯ Mathew¡¯s moan of shock never left his lips.

    Paff!

    If anything, the young man was lucky. After making one and a half of a roll in the air more, he fell down right on the upper part of his neck.

    Several degrees of mid-air turn more and he would likely snap his own neck off.

    ¡°Haaaaa¡­.¡± Mathew exhaled all the air from his lungs. Once his bodyid t on the ground and absorbed the kic energy of this unfortunate yet luckynding, it squeezed his lungs so hard, that there was no space left for a single molecule of air in it.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Nadia shouted, gracefully jumping down from the wall and rushing to her temporary motionless partner of hers.

    ¡°I¡¯m alive!¡± Mathew slowly raised his hand and waved it to save the girl some unnecessary worries. ¡°Pretty damned pained and struggling to breathe, but alive,¡± he added as his hand fell down and rested on the grassy ground.

    ¡°What the hell was that?!¡± Nadia screamed out in Mathew¡¯s face as soon as she confirmed that he didn¡¯t appear to be in immediate danger. ¡°Why did you waste so much time only to thenpensate by taking such a huge risk?!¡±

    Mathew pursed his lips together, slightly annoyed by the girl¡¯s nagging.

    ¡®Stop it, man, she only says that because she is worried,¡¯ Mathew thought to himself, taking a moment to stabilize his breathing. Only once he made sure he wasn¡¯t going to get any worse, did Mathew open his mouth.

    ¡°It was really weird,¡± he admitted. ¡°It felt like if I calcted everything. I knew I couldn¡¯t make it over the wall in the normal way. But I¡¯m sure I didn¡¯t figure it out myself,¡± Mathew attempted to exin the weird state he was in just a moment earlier.

    ¡°The hell are you talking about?¡± Nadia asked, her tone tuning down as her wrath and dissatisfaction turned into surprise and fledgling curiosity.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know myself,¡± Mathew added before shaking his head. ¡°You saw that jump,¡± he then pointed out. ¡°If anything were to go wrong, if I made even the slightest miscalction, it was bound to end up as aplete fail!¡±

    Mathew got so passionate that he even powered up, sitting on the ground.

    He would stand up if not for Nadia instantly putting her hands on his shoulders and keeping him at least sitting.

    ¡°And I hope you don¡¯t expect me to have experience in this sort of acrobatics,¡± Mathew muttered, unable to get the topic out of his head.

    ¡®And then there is that thought. Heads¡­¡¯ Mathew turned silent as he remembered his earlier observation that he opted to leave forter.

    ¡®How did I do and observe all of that?¡¯

 Chapter 124 - Touching grass

    ¡°How is he?¡± Daniel fell to his knees and leaned over Mathew¡¯s body.

    He reached out and grabbed his face, using his thumbs to lower the skin around the young man¡¯s eyes. He then looked deeply into Mathew¡¯s pupils, looking for any sign of shock or brain trauma.

    ¡°I will manage,¡± Mathew said in a weak voice.

    Despite Nadia¡¯s immediate assistance, he felt the consequences of his unfortunatending. Even now, several momentster, Mathew¡¯s sight was blurry and his thoughts slow.

    ¡°It¡¯s not good, he is in a shock,¡± Daniel ignored Mathew¡¯s assurance. He turned his head up and to the side, sending a nce at the girls¡¯ faces. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not something lethal so he should get better after some rest,¡± the officer then gave his diagnosis.

    For someone in Daniel¡¯s line of work, the ability to perform first-response medical treatment was a must.

    ¡°Did you check on Norbert?¡± Mathew fidgeted. ¡®I can¡¯t think straight yet,¡¯ the young man observed.

    He wasn¡¯t going to y tough and pretend he was all right. It would be a sign of hisck of responsibility rather than his courage and endurance.

    ¡®I should gather the information, then,¡¯ Mathew decided, struggling to raise his eyes at Daniel.

    ¡°Yeah, I checked up on him,¡± the officer nodded his head before releasing a deep sigh. He then stood up and crossed his arms over his chest. Hie fingers then started to tap against his elbows. ¡°He still needs some time to recover,¡± Daniel finally said what Mathew was interested in. ¡°That prisoner of yours is stuck to the wall, just like you hoped he would be,¡± Daniel then added, concluding his quick report.

    He then averted his eyes and looked away from Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Good,¡± Mathew replied while closing his eyes.

    ¡®Howe I end up at the limit of what I can survive all the time?¡¯ he asked himself, heaving a deep sigh.

    ¡®I¡¯ve been dead tired, nearly dead from the virus, nearly dead from mynding¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, pressing his eyelids harder than usual. ¡®And up until this point, whenever I reached my absolute limit in something, one thing would follow,¡¯ Mathew thought, resting his head against the wall before slowly opening his eyes.

    And sure enough, his entire harem stood by his side, ready to cater to his every wish.

    ¡°Can you move that guy somewhere else?¡± Mathew asked, turning his eyes to the officer. ¡°You should know better how to make him easier to manage and keep locked.¡±

    Mathew had no intention of doing everything himself. And when it came to handling prisoners, the police officer had a world of experience more than Mathew could ever hope to get.

    As such, leaving the job to the person mostpetent in doing so was Mathew¡¯s obvious decision.

    ¡°I actually wanted to request the same,¡± a look on Daniel¡¯s face changed a little. He still looked right into Mathew¡¯s eyes¡­

    But the young man could tell that officer¡¯s eyes were now somewhat distant.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that great?¡± Mathew asked with just the tiniest bit of irony. He then closed his eyes and hung his head low.

    ¡®It¡¯s still hard to think straight,¡¯ the young man took notice, gritting his teeth over how powerless he was to solve his own affliction.

    ¡°Anyway, can you pass me the cores we gathered?¡± Mathew took a deep breath and asked. He then jerked his shoulders against the wall and raised up. ¡°The sooner we get the media back and running the better.¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Daria jumped from her spot only to return with a sizeable bag of cores. The brown piece of skin likely came from some sort of backpack and now was tearing apart under the weight of the haul.

    ¡°How many did we get?¡± Mathew asked, grabbing the bag and raising his eyes to the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°Around three hundred, I would say?¡± Daria clearly hesitated. ¡°Can¡¯t give you the exact number,¡± she admitted as a tiny frown appeared on her lips.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Mathew encouraged the girl. ¡°This entire event was pretty hectic,¡± the young man held nothing back against himself. ¡°And we didn¡¯t really get toplete our mission either,¡± he added.

    Mathew then reached out and ced his hand on Daria¡¯s head.

    ¡°We did a good job, okay?¡± He asked, rustling Daria¡¯s hair. ¡°And I never expected you to know the exact number either,¡± Mathew added before shrugging his shoulders and sending Daria an amused wink.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Daria whimpered, her shoulders slumped as she brought her head down only to look up. Her eyes were sparkling with some sort of passion.

    ¡®Is this how it¡¯s going to start today?¡¯ Mathew suddenly realized.

    His hand twitched. But before any of the girls could react, he retracted his arm and turned towards the merchant nearby.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to see what I can do with this fortress,¡± Mathew quickly said and rushed towards the merchant.

    Given Mathew¡¯s state, he wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything else if the girls were to upy him right now. And in spite of all his injuries, working more turned out to be salvation rather than a punishment.

    The shadows surged all around the young man, separating him from the dangers of the real world.

    ¡®To think that I would ever seek refuge in this subspace,¡¯ Mathew thought, shaking his head as he marched through the half-formed realm as it continued to manifest.

    The second the altar appeared, Mathew opened up the bag and threw his cores into the air. He then grabbed both of his hands full of the tiny shinies before counting them down and cing ten on each of the small pedestals he observed before.

    ¡°Water, gas, and heating,¡± Mathew muttered, taking a step back right as the cores turned white before exploding in a wave of light.

    The young man couldn¡¯t tell if anything changed in the real world. He couldn¡¯t tell if what he bought was what he expected.

    But he could see that the three pedestals from before now turned into a set of five.

    ¡®Three of them are the same,¡¯ Mathew noticed as he took a closer look at the changed side of the merchant¡¯s space. He then turned his eyes to examine the two new pedestals.

    ¡°A warehouse and¡­ what?¡± Mathew mumbled. His pupils went wide as he stared at an extremely simple picture on thest of the pedestals.

    It consisted of only three elements.

    First, the price of fifty marked at its top. Then, a human hand. And finally, a patch of grass.

    ¡°Touch grass?¡± Mathew muttered, his entire body starting to tremble.

    The young man tightened his hands and gritted his teeth.

    He then raised his eyes and directed them towards the area where the presence of the merchant was the strongest.

    ¡°Is this some sort of a game for you?!¡± Mathew shouted, demanding the answers from this strange being.

    So far, he simply relied on its services only because of how desperate he was. But now, Mathew was quickly losing his patience.

    Yet, his raging did nothing. This time, the merchant simply didn¡¯t react to his outburst.

    ¡®I shouldn¡¯t act like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, tuning down and then ending his rant within a single second. ¡®I should avoid antagonizing whatever this being is,¡¯ he thought, sending onest grudgingly look towards the merchant¡¯s presence before turning his eyes back towards the pedestals.

    ¡®At least I think what this might do,¡¯ Mathew thought, cing further fifty stones on the pedestal.

    ¡°I want to go back,¡± the young man requested.

    ¡®I know I should¡¯ve checked the media before getting another thing,¡¯ Mathew thought as the shadowy realm copsed all around. ¡®But the temptation was simply too great,¡¯ the young man added in his thoughts as he returned to reality and opened his eyes.

    Mathew could see one change in the real world right away. And it was a small bundle of pure, white light that floated roughly a meter above the ground.

    ¡®What a rip-off,¡¯ Mathew thought, burrowing his furrows. ¡®Whoever came up with this should get sued for copyright!¡¯

    His soul protested. But knowing the use of the light, Mathew couldn¡¯t stop himself from reaching out.

    Mathew¡¯s hand grasped at the white bundle. And as the young man squeezed, strange energy surged through his flesh.

    All the haziness from his earlier fall disappeared. All the pain deeply rooted in his over-exhausted body vanished.

    ¡®It¡¯s as if this light itself was healing me¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, stunned by how quickly he returned to his peak state.

    The white light surrounded him for a moment¡­ only to then recede and revert back to its original form.

    Yet, the moment Mathew returned to his senses, the look on his face darkened.

    ¡®It¡¯s great to know that it works and all¡­¡¯ he thought, pursing his lips into a thin line as another realization came to him. Then, his face darkened as he felt the presence of the three predators behind his back. ¡®But I think I know what will make me use this feature in the near future!¡¯

 Chapter 125 - Testing the Limits

    ¡°Mat¡­¡± one of the girls had to notice the change in Mathew as she called out before the young man had a chance to even say something.

    ¡°No,¡± Mathew was quick to cut the hopes of hispanions. ¡°I¡¯m not done yet,¡± he said while shaking his head. He then reached out for the bundle of shadows of the merchant¡­ Only to hold his hand back right as he was about to enter the shadowy subspace again.

    ¡°Actually,¡± Mathew said as he turned his head and took a quick nce at the girls. ¡°Could you run around and test whether we have the energy, water, and heating back?¡±

    ¡®I should¡¯ve done it before I bought anything else,¡¯ Mathew thought to himself, aware of his own mistakes.

    At least, the gamble with this rejuvenating feature ended up paying off, something that Mathew had nothing but luck to thank for.

    ¡°I will check the water!¡± Nadia jumped up. ¡°I will test the electricity,¡± Le jumped second, ready to be of use.

    ¡°How exactly am I supposed to check the heating?¡± Nadia then asked while putting a troubled expression on her face.

    ¡°For now, it¡¯s best to not delve too deep into it,¡± Mathew replied while putting a troubled smile on his own face. ¡°Just check whether you can turn on the heaters in the ssrooms,¡± he pointed out.

    ¡®Because once we have the time to look into it more seriously, I would like to be the one checking the stove on the basement floor of the school.¡¯

    Mathew used merchant to restore the media to the school. Yet, for how convenient it would be to use them without much of a worry, the young man wasn¡¯t all that sure that interfering with the inner workings of the altered systems wouldn¡¯t fuck up the entire thing altogether.

    After all, for heat to be in the heaters, the furnace had to be burning fuel. And if it could work without the furnace or fuel element¡­

    Then just how would that heate to be?

    ¡®I guess this is just another element for me to add to the list of what I need to check and think aboutter,¡¯ Mathew thought while waiting for the girls to finish their rounds.

    ¡°I checked the toilets. There is water in the tap and you can flush,¡± Nadia reported as soon as she returned to themon space on the top floor of the school.

    ¡°Did you stress-test it?¡± Mathew then asked.

    There was the option of paying fifty stones to improve the media that Mathew already bought. And this implied that there was some sort of limitation to the use of those elements.

    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s a time, maybe it¡¯s the throughput¡­ Without testing, we won¡¯t know,¡¯ Mathew thought as he raised his eyes on the girl.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Nadia hesitated only to shake her head sideways and then hang her face low. ¡°I didn¡¯t,¡± she informed before raising her head and sending Mathew a quick nce. ¡°I will be right back!¡± Nadia called before turning around on her feet and leaving once again.

    ¡°The heaters are all working,¡± Daria was the second to return to themon area. ¡°I didn¡¯t even need to change anything about them, they are actively heating up,¡± she added.

    ¡°And that opens a fresh lot of questionable things. Is it going to work only for some time? Or maybe only bring the temperature high enough?¡± Mathew muttered under his nose.

    ¡°What?¡± Daria asked, leaning her head to the side. Yet, from the rtively empty look on her face, she didn¡¯t really hear Mathew¡¯sints, only the distant muttering that alerted her in the first ce.

    ¡°Nothing,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s nothing that we should bother ourselves with for now,¡± he added before turning his eyes back to the entry hole of the floor.

    And soon enough, Le crawled out of the shaft before raising her dirtied face at Mathew.

    ¡°I need to show you something,¡± the girl said instead of giving a full report.

    She then took a single step to the side before changing the light switch for the main hall of the top floor.

    But nothing happened.

    ¡®A fluke?¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    So far, all two reports of the other girls made him expect some-positive results from Le as well.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not what I wanted to show,¡± Le nodded her head before turning around and jumping right back into the hole.

    ¡°Hey!¡± she then shouted from within the shaft. ¡°Try to light it up now!¡± she called.

    ¡°Sure?¡± Mathew mumbled under his nose as he approached the light switch. And by the time he reached the location, he could already tell what Le was trying to showcase.

    Because when Mathew¡¯s pressed the switch, the light turned on and worked perfectly fine.

    ¡°If you lit it up, don¡¯t change it yet!¡± Le called out from the floor below. And a short momentter, the lights on the top floor all went out.

    ¡°It stopped,¡± Mathew muttered while raising his hand to slowly rub his chin.

    A momentter, Le crawled out from the hole for thest time before looking up at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Do you get it?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°There is a limit to how much energy we can use. If we exceed the limit, the energy disappears and will only work under an eptable load,¡± Mathew borated a little before raising his eyes at his whole group. ¡°In other words, it works like some sort of a fuse,¡± Mathew continued to rub his chin as he walked around the ce.

    There were a lot of things to think about. But right now, Mathew knew exactly what to do.

    ¡°Okay then, I will be going back to the merchant,¡± Mathew informed before moving away and reaching for the shadowy realm once again.

    A short moment of intermissionter Mathew was back in the merchant¡¯s realm with the same five pirs standing to his left. Five pirs, out of which, one was already locked.

    ¡°So we have improvements to the media and then the warehouse, huh?¡± Mathew muttered under his nose before grabbing the cores he left floating in the merchant¡¯s space and stacking them orderly at the four remaining pirs.

    ¡°And I even have some left,¡± Mathew thought, looking down at roughly thirty cores left in his hand before cing the fiftieth core on the storage-marked pir to the extreme left.

    Mathew¡¯s vision went out for but a brief moment. It felt as if the shadows that created this strange space suddenly intensified, stopping all the light from traveling across the distance. And once the shadows returned to their usual self, a new pir appeared on each side of the row of pedestals.

    ¡°What¡¯s next?¡± Mathew mumbled as he moved to one end of the colonnade before leaning over the markings.

    ¡°A hundred cores now, huh?¡± he let out a smallment as the cost of activating the pir came into his eyes.

    A quick nce to the side and Mathew confirmed that all the pirs now bore this increased price.

    ¡°But just what the hell does this pir do?¡±

    For the first time, Mathew was confused. He could see the picture on the leftmost pir and he could vaguely understand what it was supposed to portray¡­

    But the young man was simply unable to make any sense out of it.

    ¡°What, does this pir let me restore the entirepound to how it looked before one of the wings copsed?¡± the young man joked under his nose before standing up and moving to the other end of the line of pedestals.

    This time, however, there mark slot on the pedestal¡­ Was empty.

    ¡®No, that¡¯s not it,¡¯ Mathew thought as he leaned over the pir before bringing his thumb to the marking slot on it. He then wiped his finger against the small square only to stand back and shake his head.

    ¡®To think that I would have to find a way to unlock the information about it first¡­¡¯ he thought, shaking his head as he heaved a heavy sigh.

    ¡°But I guess I don¡¯t really have a choice,¡± Mathew whispered under his nose before grabbing all the leftover cores and waving his hand. ¡°I want to move back to the real world.¡±

    A moment of strange feeling and Mathew reappeared back in reality with a small bundle of cores safely sitting in the same bag that the girls originally brought all the cores in.

    ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Daria shouted the very second Mathew moved back into reality.

    ¡°Huh?¡± the young man shrugged and looked at the girl, only to then move his eyes to the direction the girl was pointing at.

    There was a small window, a square half a meter in size, that simply hung by the side of the merchant¡¯s head.

    ¡°Wait,¡± Mathew trembled when a sudden feeling took over his mind. He then looked back at the girl with his eyes wide open. ¡°You can actually see it?!¡±

    Up until this point, the girls could only see the merchant. That was the limit of how much they could interact with it.

    But to have one of the girls now be able to perceive an element of the merchant¡­

    ¡°Daria¡­¡± Mathew uttered the girl¡¯s name as he sent an intense stare down her face.

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m Daria,¡± the girl said while holding a confused expression on her face.

    ¡°Would you mind trying to interact with the merchant?¡± Mathew asked before stepping aside to give the girl some space.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Daria shook her shoulders before approaching Mathew. Yet, before she could even get close, the young man turned his eyes toward Le.

    Amongst the three of his wives, she had the lowest arcane statistic, allowing the young man to instantly check one of his theories.

    ¡°Can you see anything weird near the merchant, Le?¡±

 Chapter 126

    ¡°Can you see anything weird near the merchant, Le?¡± Mathew asked as he turned his eyes to his second wife.

    ¡°You mean that window levitating near where the guy¡¯s head should be?¡± Le replied with a small smile as her eyes locked on the very same object.

    ¡°What about you, Nadia?¡± Mathew moved his eyes over to his prime wife.

    Yet, seeing the detailed statistics of all three women, he could already tell what was going to be Nadia¡¯s answer.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the girl nodded her head. ¡°Would you mind telling us what it is?¡± she then requested.

    ¡°Just a little bit longer,¡± Mathew replied with a shake of his head. He then turned his eyes towards the police officer nearby. ¡°What about you?¡±

    ¡°I only see the merchant,¡± Daniel replied. As he stood in and observed Mathew¡¯s actions, he was perfectly aware of the topic. ¡°No window handing above his head or anything,¡± he borated while shaking his head sideways.

    ¡°Good¡­¡± Mathew muttered under his nose. He then lowered his head only for his eyes to alternate between the floor and what likely was a warehouse¡¯s door.

    Mathew then raised his hand and rubbed his chin as he fell deep into his thoughts.

    ¡®Testing it out could be quite tricky,¡¯ he realized, too scared about potentially injuring any of his allies or even the innocent survivors of the apocalypse to make them the subjects of his testing. ¡®Wait, don¡¯t we have a perfect candidate for this?¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s shoulders twitched before he turned to the policeman with a smile. ¡°Would you mind fetching both Norbert and Stephen?¡± the young man requested out of nowhere.

    ¡°Eh?¡± Daniel shrugged when he realized it was him that Mahtew¡¯s eyesid upon. ¡°What for?¡± he then asked, failing to make it any less obvious that he was simply trying to buy himself some time.

    ¡°I need to run some tests,¡± Mathew replied before ignoring Daniel and turning his head back to his girls. ¡°Daria, look again,¡± Mathew then ordered. ¡°Are you sure this window is all you can see by the merchant?¡±

    Mathew might have been the only one who could use the grace feature of this merchant. Yet, there was also a chance that the only difference between him and Daria, when it came to noticing those things, was the fact that Mathew actually knew where to look.

    ¡°Now that you mentioned it¡­ Isn¡¯t there some sort of a torch?¡± Daria replied with hesitation. She kept on staring at the white light of the grace above the floor. Her mouth would tremble now and then as she would attempt to speak out only to hesitate and end up not saying a word.

    ¡°What about you, girls?¡± Mathew moved his eyes over at Nadia and Le.

    ¡°Nothing,¡± Nadia was the first one to spread her arms open in a gesture of obliviousness. ¡°I tried to look closer ever since you mentioned it to Daria, but I can¡¯t see anything special or unorthodox,¡± she exined.

    ¡®So there is some sort of barrier to seeing those things?¡¯ Mathew thought before shaking his head and then approaching the merchant again. Yet, right as he stood a single step away from the hooded shadow, he suddenly turned his head to the back only to look at Daniel with displeasure.

    ¡°Weren¡¯t you supposed to fetch those two here?¡± Mathew asked in an irritated voice while pulling his eyebrows together.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Daniel rolled his eyes before turning around and leaving for the hole in the wall that has now be the only route anyone could use to move between the floors.

    Mathew apanied the officer with his eyes, only moving them back to the merchant once he saw Daniel disappear below the floor as he quickly climbed down the shaft. Only then did he raise his arm and selected a single core out of the bag before pressing it against the shutters of the window.

    ¡®It doesn¡¯t work,¡¯ Mathew thought, surprised by theck of cooperativeness from this merchant¡¯s feature.

    Up until this point, every time Mathew would assume something would work like he could expect it to work within the game, it would quickly fulfill his predictions. And right now, by refusing to ept the core from his hand, the window that likely lead to the warehouse Mathew purchased simply refused to cooperate!

    ¡°How about you open it first?¡± Daria suggested as a small smirk made its way to her lips, only for the girl to avert her eyes and cover her mouth with her hand.

    ¡°I saw that smirk,¡± Mathew called the girl out. ¡°But do you really think something so stupid¡­¡± he started, reaching out for the window¡¯s shutters¡­ Only to open them with a single pull.

    And it went without question that any further words of beratement ended up stuck in the young man¡¯s throat.

    ¡°Well, it seems I was the one too stupid to realize it,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose before pulling the shutters to the sides and pressing the core against a pitch-ckyer of darkness hidden underneath.

    This time, the core simply disappeared from his fingers the moment it touched the surface of the window.

    [A single grade 1 core deposited]

    A system message appeared in the corner of Mathew¡¯s vision, only for the young man to nce over and then ignore it.

    ¡°I want to pull out a grade one core,¡± Mathew said right away.

    When the core disappeared, it was like a frame of a movie changing. It was between Mathew¡¯s fingers and then it simply wasn¡¯t there. Yet, right now, the process looked slightly different.

    At first, a hollow and see-through projection of the core appeared, just the tiniest distance away from the surface of the warehouse. Then, it slowly started to take colors.

    ¡®Pop!¡¯

    A small, weird yet satisfying sound reached Mathew¡¯s ears right as the core suddenly was infused with mass only to fall down to the ground.

    ¡°Careful!¡± Nadia reacted before anyone could as much as the sense that something was wrong, throwing herself forward and catching the core right before it could strike the ground.

    ¡°Woah!¡± Mathew shouted as he backed off, escaping from the path of Nadia¡¯s leap. And then he had no other choice but to watch from the front-seat perspective how his beloved fell down on the ground. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Mathew then asked, rushing forward to check on the girl.

    ¡°Come on, do you really think something like this would bother me?¡± Nadia asked as she swiftly gathered herself up from the floor.

    Mathew extended his arm to help the girl up. Yet, rather than epting his hand, Nadia brought her own hand up¡­ and then ced the core directly on Mathew¡¯s palm.

    Her eyes turned to the side while she tightened her lips. Nadia¡¯s expression soured as she turned her face away only to mutter, ¡°you didn¡¯t need to ask for it that quickly.¡±

    ¡°I was trying to help you up,¡± Mathew replied with a powerlessment on his own before shaking his head and putting the core back into the bag in his other hand.

    And then, without any hesitation or second thoughts, he shoved the entire bag right into the void of the warehouse.

    [A bag with thirty-seven grade 1 cores deposited]

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shrugged. Because now that he heard the number, he realized that the math of the merchant didn¡¯t check out.

    ¡®We definitely gathered under three hundred of them. I then used thirty to get the first three unlocks and a further two hundred fifty to unlock the second set of features,¡¯ he thought. ¡®On its own, it all works out. But when adding the spare cores¡­¡±

    Counting all the cores up, their haul from before should be exactly three hundred and seventeen. And this number was quite a bit bigger than what Mathew already expected!

    ¡®Could it be that there was a core that was more expensive?¡¯ Mathew guessed. ¡®Like, the one taken from that leader, maybe?¡¯

    Once again, Mathew ended up stuck in the loop on his own thoughts. He was so distracted that he didn¡¯t even bring his hand down, making it oscite right near the void of the warehouse.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Nadia¡¯s shout finally brought the young man back to his senses.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew moaned a little while shaking his head. ¡°How long was I out?¡± he then asked, turning his head and looking at his wife with worry.

    ¡°Only a few moments,¡± Nadia replied while concern made her face turn tense. ¡°Are you really sure you are alright?¡± she then asked as she took a step closer to her partner. ¡°You got hit quite bad, back then,¡± she added, reaching out with her hand towards Mathew¡¯s cheek.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Mathew replied with a smile while allowing Nadia¡¯s small hand to fall on his cheek. He even went as far as to raise his own hand and sandwich Nadia¡¯s fingers between his palm and his cheek.

    For a short moment, the young man simply drifted in thisfortable position, using Nadia¡¯s hand as a temporary pillow.

    ¡°I brought the guy!¡± Daniel suddenly shouted, forcing Mathew to snap out of it. The exhaustion filling the officer¡¯s voice made Mathew re up¡­ Only for the young man to see the officer struggling to get out of the hole while carrying Stephen on his back.

    ¡°What about Norbert?¡± Mathew asked on autopilot, genuinely expecting to see both of them at once.

    ¡°Do you really think an old man like me can carry two people at once?¡± Daniel replied with a scoff before heaving a heavy sigh and dropping Stephen on the floor. ¡°But honestly speaking, Norbert is still out. I didn¡¯t want to disturb him,¡± he added before averting his eyes and sitting sideways on the floor, taking his time to regain his breath.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not that much of a problem,¡± Mathew replied as he turned his eyes back towards Daria. ¡°Now then, do you remember when I asked you to see if there is anything extraordinary around the merchant?¡± he asked.

    ¡°It¡¯s this light,¡± Daria replied, this time her voice was devoid of any hesitation. ¡°At first I thought I was simply tired, but now I¡¯m certain. There is no way for a blob of light to just float randomly a meter above the floor!¡±

    ¡°You arepletely right,¡± Mathew replied with a smile before waving at the girl. ¡°Come closer,¡± he encouraged.

    ¡°Somehow, I don¡¯t really feel like doing it,¡± Daria hesitated as she cast her eyes on Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°I really don¡¯t like that smile of yours,¡± she protested, clearly unwilling to follow through with Mahtew¡¯s order.

    ¡°Scaredy cat,¡± Lemented under her nose, only to turn her face away as soon as Daria directed her furious nce at her partner.

    ¡°Fine then, let me show you what this weird bundle of white light does,¡± Mathew said. He then clenched his teeth¡­ Only to randomly send the most powerful strike that he could manage against a nearby concrete pir.

    His raised statistics added a lot of strength to Mathew¡¯s punch. But even his improved vitality didn¡¯t make Mathew¡¯s skin resilient enough to sustain this kind of impact.

    As a result of the punch, Mathew¡¯s hand was covered with blood as the small part of concrete that he broke away with his punch made a great job at cutting the skin of his hand open.

    ¡°Can you see just how injured my hand is?¡± Mathew asked while raising his slightly pained hand for all to see.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Le nodded her head only to stumble on her feet when Nadia suddenly rushed forward, sending a powerful gust of wind Le¡¯s way.

    ¡°What the hell did you do?!¡± Nadia screamed out, scrambling around as she attempted to reach for Mathew¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Just trust me with this one, will you?¡± Mathew requested while putting a stoic look on his face.

    At first, Nadia hesitated. She ultimately pursed her lips and backed off, although her face showcased just how dissatisfied she was with this kind of development.

    ¡°Well then,¡± Mathew muttered, taking a quick nce at where he should aim his hand before moving his eyes back on the girls. ¡°Let me show you something glorious,¡± he said before grasping at the silvery light.

 Chapter 127

    This wasn¡¯t the first time for Mathew to use the power of touching the grass. But only now he could show the real effect that it had on one¡¯s wounds.

    ¡°And that¡¯s the gist of it,¡± Mathew shook his head to showcase how easy it was for him to move it.

    It wasn¡¯t as if his body healed. If that were to be the case, there would be fresh skin on his knuckles, where the hard concrete cut his hand open. And yet, the color of the skin was perfectly uniform through Mathew¡¯s hand, as if he wasn¡¯t injured in the first ce.

    ¡°That¡¯s amazing,¡± Daria blinked her eyes twice only to keep her eyes locked on Mathew¡¯s fist.

    ¡°It sure it¡­?¡± Le echoed her partner, although her voice had a huge element of hesitation in it.

    ¡°I guess you could see that light,¡± Mathewmented.

    This little experiment not only allowed him to showcase how useful those merchants could be but also confirmed several theories of his.

    ¡®And if what I can guess about the upgrade of this feature is correct¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes to the side and sending a nce towards the merchant.

    Restoring one to their perfect state was only one of the blessings of touching the grass. And yet, there wasn¡¯t any sort of interface for Mathew to manage those.

    ¡®I wonder how big the improvement was to the basic utilities,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes back on his women.

    He opened his mouth¡­ Only to keep his words to himself.

    ¡®It wouldn¡¯t be right to ask them to bother checking it,¡¯ Mathew thought. He then brought his hand up and rubbed his chin.

    ¡°I think that concludes the presentation,¡± Mathew admitted after a moment of thought. ¡°In other words, those who can see and interact with this light can instantly restore themselves to your perfect state,¡± Mathew exined the feature.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this quite overpowered?¡± Nadia asked as she took a step closer and looked at the shadows of the merchant. ¡°I mean, normally it would take days to recover some injuries, there would be huge risks of infection and arge use of medicine,¡± she pointed out, stretching one of her fingers out for everything she mentioned.

    ¡°This just doesn¡¯t make sense,¡± Nadia concluded after not receiving any answer.

    ¡°I¡¯m well aware of that point,¡± Mathew admitted as he rested his back against the wall, leaned his face up, and heaved a sigh. ¡°This is all just too weird. As if someone took elements from various games or stories and¡­¡±

    Mathew turned silent.

    ¡®That¡¯s the problem I have with all of this,¡¯ he suddenly realized. ¡®There are familiarities everywhere, but it doesn¡¯t make sense!¡¯

    Elements from one game would mix with parts of some folk tale and then develop into yet another game. Mathew could notice all sorts of patterns¡­ but the way in which those patterns mixed and interviewed with another made it impossible for him to just pinpoint it.

    ¡®They just took everything they could find huge traffic on and threw it into a cooking pot to mix,¡¯ Mathew thought as his eyes opened wide.

    His face tensed up as his eyes locked on some random element of a stray shelf that survived all the mayhem of the apocalypse.

    ¡°Mat?¡± Nadia called out, first to notice the changes appearing on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± the young man shook his head before raising his eyes to the girls. He then locked his arms on his chest and pursed his lips for a moment. ¡°Actually, I¡¯m sorry for what I¡¯m about to say now,¡± he added.

    ¡°Excuse me?¡± Le asked while moving forward. With both Nadia and Daria steadily closing their distance since a while ago, she was the only one left in the back.

    And now, she took the opportunity to regain her spot between the girls.

    ¡°I think we need to go hunting for cores again,¡± Mathew said with a troubled look on his face.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t we just return from¡­¡± Daria muttered only to cast a quick nce at the merchant to Mathew¡¯s side. She then moved her eyes back to the young man¡¯s face only to raise her arms and cross them over her chest. ¡°I see, you¡¯ve got a n, right?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°It¡¯s based on just a guess of mine¡­¡± he added only to hesitate for a moment. ¡°But if I¡¯m right, then we can abuse certain exploit,¡± the young man added.

    Dark sparks appeared at the bottom of Mathew¡¯s eyes. The corners of his mouth twitched as he attempted to hide his smile.

    ¡°Exploit as in¡­¡± Nadia muttered. She then struck her left fist into the open palm of her right hand. Her eyes widened while her lips curved up in a happy smile. ¡°Some sort of mechanic that¡¯s poorly made, right?¡± Nadia nearly jumped when she looked at Mathew for confirmation and affirmation.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew smiled gently. His seriousness all melted down when faced with the rare, bubbly mood of his crush.

    It was exactly her cheerfulness that attracted Mathew soo much to his first wife in the past. And he learned to treasure those moments ever since.

    Yet, rather than reinforcing the positive image of his n, Mathew was quick to shake his head.

    ¡°Keep in mind, we are going to have to work really hard and put ourselves in a lot of danger,¡± Mathew said as he raised his hand with one of his fingers pointed up. ¡°All for just a shot to see if my guess is correct,¡± Mathew exined.

    ¡°So?¡± Daria asked shortly while resting her fists on her hips. ¡°What do you want to do?¡±

    Mathew pointed out at the merchant without even a second of hesitation.

    ¡°This bundle of light. In the game where ites from, it does far more than just heal people.¡± Mathew stared at Daria¡¯s face with a deadly serious expression on his own. ¡°And it¡¯s a game where those bundles of light are the only safe refuges for the yer within the extremely deadly and dangerous world those games are known from.¡±

    The lore of touching grass went actually far deeper. Yet, Mathew saw no point in exining it nor was he willing to spare a lot of time to do so.

    ¡°And what is the feature that you are aiming for?¡± Le asked, not willing to be left out of the discussion.

    Mathew smiled in response.

    ¡°Leveling up.¡±

 Chapter 128 - I wish to buy knowledge

    ¡°Aren¡¯t we leveling up just by fighting the zombies?¡± Nadia asked as a look of confusion filled her face. ¡°But if you say it¡¯s an exploit¡­¡± the girl hesitated as she pinned her eyes to the floor for a moment. She then raised her face and looked at Mathew. ¡°Does that mean that we will be able to double our leveling up speed?¡±

    ¡°I like the way you are thinking,¡± Mathew admitted with a small, proud smile. ¡°And that¡¯s right,¡± he then added, nodding his head. ¡°Leveling up was one of the main features of this kind of bundle of light in the games it came from,¡± Mathew exined.

    ¡°And that¡¯s the feature you hope you we will get after upgrading it?¡± Le asked, looking at the merchant and then around its proximity as if in hopes of finding the light that the topic was all about.

    ¡°More or less, yeah,¡± Mathew admitted before turning around on his feet and heading for the merchant again.

    ¡°Wait, I want to¡­¡± Daniel appeared to wish to say something right as Mathew reached out and grasped the bundle of shadows hidden beneath the merchant¡¯s hood.

    The young man turned his head around to look at the officer¡­

    Only for the shadows to surge forth and cut him away from reality. A moment of swirling aroundter and Mathew stood within the merchant¡¯s subspace again.

    ¡®Let¡¯s see,¡¯ Mathew thought, ignoring the pirs on his left for the sake of searching through every nook and cranny of the subspace. Yet, no matter how hard he looked, he couldn¡¯t see a single shelf with items that he could potentially buy.

    ¡®Will I have to go back to that evolving merchant?¡¯ Mathew thought, slightly annoyed by the logistic bother of running around just to get to the right merchant.

    ¡°I wish to buy knowledge about levels!¡± Mathew eximed.

    ¡°Ten cores,¡± the mechanical voice of the merchant appeared for the first time in a long while.

    ¡®Woah, it worked,¡¯ Mathew thought as he looked around in search of the entrance to his warehouse.

    ¡°Can I use the cores deposited in my warehouse?¡± Mathew then asked out loud, hoping to avoid the bother of exiting the subspace only to pull the cores out and then return.

    ¡°Affirmative.¡±

    ¡°Then, I wish to exchange ten cores from the ones deposited in my warehouse to buy the knowledge about levels!¡±

    ¡°Purchase confirmed,¡± the emotionless voice of the merchant filled the space.

    This was the very first purchase in which Mathew didn¡¯t have to shield his eyes from the explosion of the lighting from the dissolving cores. Since he didn¡¯t bring them out in the first ce, the young man couldn¡¯t observe the process of them vanishing.

    And then, his head exploded.

    Not literally, of course. A sudden burst of strange energy prated right through his skull and struck down at his brain.

    At first, it came as just a bout of massive pain. Then, this pain turned into a weird, bubbly feeling in his head, as if someone rubbed a rxing cream directly on the folds of his brain.

    And then, Mathew became aware.

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is¡­¡¯ he thought, his eyes opening wide when his brain simply came to know a lot of things.

    Mathew could understand the message by his wits alone at first. He couldn¡¯t exin it, he just felt it. Only after a moment did Mathew¡¯s brain work through the obtained knowledge and started to project it into Mathew¡¯s consciousness.

    At first, a massive wall filled with scrambled letters and numbers filled Mathew¡¯s entire vision. Then, nearly all of the text disappeared, leaving only three, tiny lines hidden in three different and seemingly random spots of Mathew¡¯s vision. And then, finally, those three sentences moved through Mathew¡¯s perception only to form a neat, short list right in the middle of his sight.

    [System Leveling]

    [Progressive Levelling]

    [Rtionship Leveling]

    Each of the lines shone in a gentle, blue light. And despite all his shock, Mathew could still get the message.

    On their own, those three lines didn¡¯t tell him all that much. But then, the young man reached out and ced his finger above the topmost line.

    [System Leveling:]

    [System leveling works on the principle of gathering kill points of the effigies. The stronger the creature, the more kill points will be awarded to the system user, cumting into a periodical strengthening of the user. Once higher stages of system leveling are unlocked, one obtains the ability to manually designate their growth andter to freely manipte it.]

    Just the first part of the three sets of wikipedia-like pages was enough to send Mathew¡¯s mind into disarray.

    ¡®How the hell could this be so fucking simple?¡¯ he moaned in his mind before moving his finger down one line and pressing it against [progressing leveling].

    Yet, even after selecting it, absolutely nothing happened.

    ¡®What the hell?¡¯ Mathew wanted to scream.

    Just as he thought that he discovered a cheap source of extremely useful knowledge, it proved to not be anywhere as great as he expected it to be.

    ¡®No, wait, stop getting emotional,¡¯ Mathew warned himself as he started to think deeper. ¡®What¡¯s the difference between the system and progressive leveling?¡¯

    Mathew allowed himself a short moment to think about the answer.

    ¡°How the heck am I supposed to know if I can¡¯t check what this progressive leveling is in the first ce?!¡± Mathewined out loud, squeezing out a long whine from his throat.

    And then he froze.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the answer?¡± Mathew asked himself as he looked down at the set of three lines again.

    And then, just to test his theory out, he moved his finger down and pressed against the third line.

    [Rtionship Leveling:]

    [A subpart of the system leveling, corrted directly to the nature of the system.]

    [Unlocks features of the standard system leveling by exploring, growing, and solidifying the rtionship between host and wives.]

    [Rtionship level of the host: 2]

    ¡®I see,¡¯ Mathew thought, closing the window and taking a deep breath.

    Slowly but surely things started to make sense.

    ¡®So that¡¯s why I received new abilities when I fucked Nadia back then,¡¯ he thought, only to shake his head. ¡®But there is hardly anything further that we could do,¡¯ Mathew thought as his lips turned into a weird grin. ¡®Or am I supposed to convince them for an anal to unlock new abilities?¡¯ Mathew scoffed.

    He then shook his head and looked at the three lines once again. This time, however, Mathew could guess why he couldn¡¯t ess the one in the middle.

    ¡°I used both the system leveling and the Rtionship leveling,¡± he muttered under his nose, using his voice to solidify his findings. ¡°On the other hand, while I do have an ess to it, I have yet to use the progressive leveling, making it impossible for me to ess its information.¡±

    This was nothing more but Mathew¡¯s usual guess. This time, however, it was backed up by all the things he found out about this world, the merchants, and their modus operandi.

    ¡®If my gut feeling is correct, then that massive list I saw at the beginning outlines all the possible ways to level up,¡¯ Mathew thought as his face tensed up a little. ¡®I guess I just don¡¯t have ess to them yet,¡¯ he added in his thoughts, refusing to believe that only such a tiny fraction of the system potency would be granted to him.

    Mathew then shook his head, clearing it from the stray thoughts. He then raised his face and looked into the ce with most of the merchant¡¯s presence in it.

    ¡°I wish to buy knowledge about skills!¡±

 Chapter 129

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Mathew whispered under his nose.

    He had his eyes opened wide and looked at some distant point deep within the shadows.

    The process of transfering the knowledge was painful yet extremely fulfilling. At the price of temporary torture, Mathew could, atst, get some answers.

    ¡®And ites at a dirt-cheap price as well,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    A small smug smile appeared on his lips, only to be reced by a sudden moment of doubt.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t this exactly what the creators want me to do?¡¯ Mathew faced the thought.

    After everything he learned about the apocalypse, Mathew could no longer deny the idea of a purpose behind it. There was an intent that shaped the events at hand.

    And right now, this intent created an opportunity too great for the young man to resist.

    ¡®But if I start splurging on knowledge right now, won¡¯t I progress the apocalypse too far?¡¯ Mathew thought. He then gritted his teeth and tightened his fists. ¡®And let¡¯s not forget that I need to erect several fortresses like this one.¡¯

    The young man focused on pushing small objectives one by one. Rather than facing a massive challenge all at once, Mathew opted to divide and conquer.

    But the heavy weight of the true task at hand continued to loom on Mathew¡¯s shoulders.

    ¡°Anyway,¡± the young man said, shaking his head to cast away all his doubts. ¡°How much does skill seed cost?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyes towards the spot where Merchant¡¯s presence was thickest.

    ¡°Fifty cores,¡± the voice replied as usual. Yet, Mathew heard a distant echo of¡­ satisfaction?

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m all spent now,¡± Mathewmented as he shrugged his shoulders. He then took a closer look at the map disyed within the merchant¡¯s domain.

    ¡°Are those¡­¡± Mathew muttered, taking a closer look at the map.

    Normal zombies were disyed with a horde of tiny, red dots. But now, there were dots of crimson mixed into the fray.

    ¡®There are even grey ones,¡¯ Mathew noted with surprise once he looked into a distant corner of his area.

    He didn¡¯t even need to zoom in to check on those. The feeling those dots of crimson and grey gave the young man was enough to tell what those represented.

    ¡°Evolved ones,¡± Mathew muttered only to end up gritting his teeth.

    ¡®We fought with three? Four evolved ones?¡¯ the young man thought, only to shake his head and take another look at the map. ¡®There is like eleven of them here,¡¯ he counted.

    Seven of those dots were scattered all over the ce. But four of them with the lone grey dot were all centered around thepound¡¯s main entrance.

    ¡®Aren¡¯t we about to get hit?¡¯ Mathew thought, tightening his hands into fists. The look behind his eyes tensed up.

    Mathew zoomed out and away from the outskirts before centering back on thepound itself. And then he noticed several novelties.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t this Norbert¡¯s ghost?¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a closer look at one of the green dots. Then, his eyebrows moved up his forehead.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew couldn¡¯t even make a sound when the vision on the map started to get buggy. It started to twist and turn as if a signal was lost¡­ Only to stabilize after a few moments and show a sequence of events on the map.

    The dot that Mathew recognized as Norbert¡¯s ghost moved between one of the blue dots and another green one.

    ¡®Judging by the locations¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, his body tensing up.

    There were only so few people of interest left within thepound. And only one of them was left to roam freely.

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is,¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyelids lowering as his lips quivered. He took a deep breath only to slowly release it and leave a tiny smile on his mouth.

    ¡°Well then,¡± Mathew muttered, taking his eyes from the map and turning them back towards the pedestals.

    And there stood the columns, awaiting the donation of the cores. And just like before, the image depicting the content of one of the pedestals was nk.

    ¡®I wonder how much revealing it would cost?¡¯ Mathew thought before shaking his head. ¡°I¡¯m broke now, let me out,¡± he asked.

    The shadowy realm copsed within seconds.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t it happening faster and faster?¡¯ Mathew thought as another suspicion appeared in his mind.

    ¡°I want to join the fight too,¡± Daniel said the moment Mathew¡¯s consciousness returned from the merchant¡¯s subspace.

    ¡®Wait, didn¡¯t he say the first part of that before I entered the shop?¡¯ Mathew took notice, squinting his eyes as another suspicion arose in his eyes.

    He then shook his head to give himself a moment to clear his thoughts.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Mathew said in a neutral voice, too preupied with his ns to spare Daniel a second thought. ¡°We might actually need your¡­¡±

    A figure crawled out of the shaft only to fall on the floor.

    Thump.

    A dull noise rose up along with a small cloud of dust. The floor right by the shaft¡¯s entrance was where everyone carried out the dirt from the old and abandoned shaft, after all.

    ¡°Guys, you¡¯ve gotta see this,¡± Norbert squeaked before coughing out the dirt from his mouth.

    The younger of the policemen rose up to all fours¡­ Only to bnce right at the limits of stability. It was clear that he was far from a healthy state.

    ¡°I know,¡± Mathew said as he moved away from the wall and grabbed his ax. ¡°We need to get going, now,¡± he announced.

    ¡°How bad is it?¡± Daniel asked, realizing the urgency of the situation just from the tone of the two. His face rxed as if a heavy burden was lifted from his shoulders.

    ¡°Pretty bad,¡± Mathew admitted without hesitation. ¡°Three evolved ones and something even stronger,¡± he recounted what he saw on the map. ¡°And a horde of normal zombies to boot,¡± the young man added as he fixed his own attire. He then moved over to Norbert before picking his head up and pointing it towards the merchant.

    ¡°Can you see the strange light floating around the merchant?¡± Mathew asked with a polite tone while manhandling Norbert to keep his eyes on the target.

    ¡°¡­I¡­I s-see,¡± Norbert squeaked the response while struggling to maintain his consciousness. His heavy injury coupled with a tough way up and then Mat¡¯s manhandling left him on the verge of his durability.

    ¡°Great,¡± Mathew said only to put a wide smile on his face. ¡°Then go and grab it,¡± he added before grabbing Norbert by his clothes and throwing him at the merchant.

 Chapter 130 - Rift appears

    ¡°What the hell are you¡­?!¡± Daniel shouted as he lunged forward to catch hispanion. His face tensed in terror as he realized that he wouldn¡¯t make it.

    Mathew crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the situation develop.

    And Norbert¡­ Thrown in the air and barely able to move, he opted to put his hopes in Mathew¡¯s words. He reached out and just as he was about to hit the ground, he grasped at the bundle of the light.

    It then all happened in an instant.

    A silvery ray appeared on every inch of Norbert¡¯s skin. It hid him away from everyone¡¯s eyes only for the light to then explode, giving birth to the renewed policeman.

    ¡°Wha¡­?¡± Norbert muttered in shock as he looked down at his hands. ¡°How am I¡­¡± he muttered before raising his head and looking at Mathew.

    ¡°What?¡± Mathew asked, ying dumb. He squinted his eyes a little while the corners of his lips moved up a bit.

    Norbert¡¯s face tensed up as he realized what was going on. Yet, right as fires appeared behind his ears indicating the looming confrontation¡­ the face of the younger policeman tensed up. It took Norbert a while but he then calmed down.

    ¡°No, we don¡¯t have the time for this now,¡± Norbert said, turning his eyes towards the hole in the wall. ¡°I assume that you know what¡¯s going on,¡± he said while ncing over at Mathew, ¡°so let¡¯s get moving!¡±

    ¡°You areing too?¡± Daniel asked, still struggling to process what just happened. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you¡­ well, take a proper rest first?¡±

    There was no point in using themon sense of the old world in the one they were in right now. It was a lesson that everyone got when they had to face the zombies for the first time.

    And while Daniel wasn¡¯t an exception, it appeared that his instincts were far harder to change.

    ¡®That, or maybe he just dislikes changing his ns,¡¯ Mathew thought while his smile turned just a tiny little bit colder than before.

    ¡°No, I have no idea how,¡± Norbert said as he turned his eyes towards Mathew, ¡°but I¡¯m all healed now,¡± he stated before suddenly sending his hands to the sides and making a deep lean with his face towards his shoes.

    ¡®Damn, man, he surely can stretch,¡¯ Mathew thought with a small sense of jealousy when Norbert¡¯s face nearly buried itself in his own crotch. ¡®Did he remove some of his ribs or something?¡¯

    What served as a shock and a new reason to be jealous for Mathew was proof that Norbert was really back at the peak of his ability for Daniel.

    ¡°Okay, I assume that you guys are ready,¡± Mathew stated before turning towards the hole in the hall. The moment he turned his face away from the police duo, his expression changed from the small smile and urgency in his eyes to an absolute coldness.

    ¡®Maybe I am getting too suspicious of everyone or maybe I¡¯m right by feeling like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, unable to decide between treating Daniel like he would for thest day and actually putting on a distance between the two of them.

    ¡®They were conspiring in a way they didn¡¯t expect me to notice,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying toe to the terms with what decision he should make. ¡®And if they were nning to do something normal, they would surely inform me about it, wouldn¡¯t they?¡¯ Mathew thought, fighting off the desire to cast a nce at the two of them.

    ¡°I¡¯m all healed up so I will take the lead,¡± Mathew announced only to grab Nadia¡¯s arm and stop her from getting in first. ¡°You girls cane after me,¡± Mathew added with a smile before diving into the shaft before any questions could appear.

    After all, this was the first time for Mathew to actively care about the order in which they would descend down to the ground.

    ¡°We will go after you,¡± Daniel said when Mathew already disappeared in the shaft. He then turned his head to the side only for a look of worry to appear in his eyes. ¡°Are you really sure you can do it?¡± he asked his colleague.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine, I told you,¡± Norbert gave exactly the same answer as before. ¡°And I don¡¯t want to be left behind in the dust by all of you,¡± he added in a lower tone only to send a quick nce towards the shaft.

    Nadia followed into the hole right after Mathew. Then it was Le¡¯s turn with Daria closing the procession and sliding into the hole right now.

    ¡°What the fuck are you doing?!¡± Daniel grabbed Norbert by his shoulder as he chastised his former subordinate in a hushed voice. ¡°That wasn¡¯t the n!¡±

    ¡°n changed,¡± Norbert replied in a determined voice. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect I could heal just like that so I epted my role of observer and messenger,¡± he announced only to then shake his head. ¡°But I¡¯m not going to stand back and watch while you are all risking your lives to defend this ce,¡± he added.

    ¡°So the ns can change so easily,¡± Daniel stated while his expression turned dark. ¡°Maybe I should take it as a warning that our main n can change as well?¡± he asked while crossing his arms over his chest. ¡°Or maybe your ns will change so that you will run to that kid and tell him everything?¡±

    The two policemen stood at a standstill, each looking into the other¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°You are right, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Norbert finally gave up. ¡°I just thought¡­ He gained all his advantages because he constantly goes back to fight the zombies and get more and more cores,¡± he pointed out. ¡°I hoped that if I joined in as well, I could grow my system into something more useful than what I have right now!¡±

    Norbert finally opened up his heart to hispanion, revealing both his greatest personal worry and his greatest hope at the same time.

    ¡°That wouldn¡¯t be actually all that bad,¡± Daniel muttered as he thought about Norbert¡¯s words. ¡°With how powerful that kid is getting, having someone else with the power of a system might prove useful down the line,¡± he added.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s stop talking and get on moving,¡± Norbert called before turning his eyes towards the shaft. ¡°If we take too long to descend those kids will realize we had a talk we didn¡¯t want them to hear!¡±

 Chapter 131 - Zombie Army

    Mathew got out of the shaft as soon as he could. Yet, rather than heading for the staircase and then the ground floor, he moved in the opposite direction, approaching the main-gate facing window instead.

    ¡°This looks far worse in reality than it does on the map,¡± he muttered under his nose while gritting his teeth and grabbing hard at the edge of the window¡¯s ledge.

    ¡°How bad is it?¡± Nadia asked as soon as she joined her man by the window and looked down. She then swallowed her saliva before freezing by Mathew¡¯s side. ¡°This doesn¡¯t look good,¡± she admitted when her eyes moved beyond the wall and then the gate.

    The entire street that led to thepound¡¯s main gate was now overflowing with zombies. Yet, contrary to how the horde would act in all the cases that Mathew experienced so far, there wasn¡¯t any crowding issue at the small za in front of the entrance.

    There were roughly two thousand zombies, neatly arranged into formation blocks of twenty zombies wide and ten zombies deep. Three such blocks stood in a small arc in front of the main gate. Five more blocks were arranged in a neat line behind the frontline with one more block left to the far left and a spare, iplete one standing in the third line.

    ¡®What the hell is this kind of deployment?¡¯ Mathew thought, opening his eyes wide as he stared at the peculiarity. ¡®Sure, it looks neat and domineering¡­ but it doesn¡¯t make any sense at all! If they want toy siege to the fortress, spreading their numbers as wide as possible would be more beneficial!¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s thoughts speed down the hallways of his brain as he attempted to figure out the intent that put the zombies in those exact formations.

    ¡°Is this all a work of a single evolved one?¡± Nadia muttered to Mathew¡¯s side while her hands trembled a tiny little bit.

    ¡°That¡¯s unlikely.¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°I find it highly unlikely for a single evolved one to be able to control so many zombies at once,¡± he exined his own take only to squint his eyes as he send the army of zombies another look.

    ¡®Wait, if we assume that there is more than just a singlemander¡­¡¯ Mathew thought. He then scanned the picture just a fewteen meters away from the window again.

    ¡°No, there are three fieldmanders and one that manages the entire picture,¡± Mathew muttered after taking a long look

 Chapter 132 - What Is The Mind Stat Good For?

    ¡°Okay, we are here,¡± Nadiamented when their entire group climbed up to the top of the wall that surrounded thepound.

    It wasn¡¯t a structure designed to withstand a siege. Its entire purpose was to keep strangers away, only allowing inside those who got through a proper verification at the main gate.

    As such, rather thanfortably strolling or standing on the catwalks atop the walls as it would be the case if they were defending a proper, medieval castle, Mathew andpany ended up fighting for a stable footing on top of the wall-like fence.

    ¡°What are we going to do now?¡± the girl then asked, somehow easily managing to stay atop the wall without any hint of struggling to keep herself stable.

    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s her build that makes it easier for her?¡¯ Mathew thought, puzzled by the difference. Yet, just a single nce at Nadia¡¯s and then his own statistics turned the mystery into a matter of fact. ¡®She has sixty-four points in agility while I only have forty-two,¡¯ Mathew checked the system only to shake his head. ¡®I guess that was only to be expected,¡¯ he thought before turning his eye back towards the army of the zombies.

    Ever since Mathew andpany arrived at the top of the wall¡­ The zombies did absolutely nothing.

    Mathew could feel the stares of the evolved zombies hiding somewhere deep within the ranks of their underlings. He could also vaguely sense the stare of a being powerful enough to send shivers down Mathew¡¯s spine.

    Yet, not a single zombie moved.

    ¡°This is almost certainly a trap,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose as he tried onest time to figure out a crafty way to save themselves both the effort and the dangers of an open battle.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we just go and kill them all, then?¡± Daniel suggested.

    At first, Mathew turned happy when he heard the older of the policemen speak. Whether he was scheming something or not, he was still a valuable ally in a confrontation like this.

    And yet, Daniel betrayed Mathew¡¯s expectations, clearly too eager to go and fight to offer any valuable tactical insight.

    ¡®If only I could remember the counter strategy to this setting,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth in a silent fury directed at his own self.

    ¡®

    He could recognize the formations the zombies stood in. He could even tell what game they came from. And it was a game that he spent a considerable amount of time ying¡­ back when he graduated from grade school and joined the ranks of his country¡¯s middle-schoolers.

    In other words, it¡¯s been several years since Mathewst immersed himself in the intricacies of the battlefield tactics. He waspletely out of touch with the genre, left with nothing but some distant memories of how he used to y this game.

    ¡®It¡¯s no use,¡¯ Mathew thought as he tightened his fists. ¡®I can¡¯t remember at all,¡¯ he admitted to himself as he continued the contest of stares with some of the zombies that bothered to look up and still had their eyes.

    ¡°Hey, Mathew, can you see it?¡± Daria suddenly asked.

    ¡°See what?¡± Mathew asked for rification without even bothering to look at the girl. In the end, he was too busy stressing out about theck of memories that could prove to be a game-changer right now.

    ¡°So you can¡¯t,¡± the girl smiled, her cheeky words forcing Mathew to actually look at her. ¡°I¡¯m not going to point them out not to alert them, but I think I can sense the general area where those evolved ones are,¡± she reported dutifully.

    ¡°That¡¯s great!¡± Nadia nearly jumped in joy, only to wobble on the edge of the wall. She managed to somehow salvage her stability before sending a curious nce at Daria¡¯s face. ¡°I know I should¡¯ve noticed it long ago, but isn¡¯t she seeing a lot of the stuff that the two of us can¡¯t?¡± Nadia asked, turning her eyes towards Mathew.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any proof¡­¡± Mathew started, throwing in an excuse just in case, ¡°but I believe it has everything to do with how high one¡¯s arcane stat is,¡± Mathew revealed his belief. ¡°I mean, I thought that it could have something to do with the mind statistic¡­¡± the young man hesitated only to avert his eyes and mutter silently, ¡°I mean, ourpany severelycks anyone with a focus on that statistic.¡±

    ¡°So we can stop being left out as soon as we raise our arcane statistic?¡± Nadia asked, her eyes lighting up. ¡°Is there something that we need to do to get it up?¡±

    ¡°Raising everyone¡¯s stats to the point where they can at the very least touch grass is my current objective,¡± Mathew admitted without any hesitation. ¡°The first idea is to get enough cores to unlock a new method of leveling up,¡± Mathew decided not to hold back at revealing his ns.

    ¡®After all, if I die, it¡¯s better if the girls will have some sort of directions to follow,¡¯ Mathew thought as he sent a nce towards the danger right by the wall. He then shook his head before turning his focus back to the topic at hand.

    ¡°If leveling you guys up won¡¯t work, then I n to buy enough skill seeds to fill up our slots,¡± he then added.

    ¡°Skill seeds? Skill slots?¡± Le asked, those words somehow serving as a key to grab her attention.

    ¡°For every five levels, you can get a skill,¡± Mathew shared some of the facts that he learned from purchasing the knowledge about the skills from the merchant. ¡°Normally one can develop a skill on their own. It usually happens when you are in a pinch and are desperate enough,¡± Mathew exined only for a vicious smile to appear on his lips. ¡°The other way to do it is by simply using the skill seeds,¡± he added b turning around and jumping off the wall.

    ¡°And how much do those costs?¡± Daria asked, clearly interested in something that could improve her fighting ability.

    In the end, her insanely high arcane stat came at the cost of her other statistics falling behind the growth of others! And even with Mathew heavily missing out on the levels, his physical statistics were better than Daria¡¯s, making her the physically weakest in the entire group!

    ¡°Fifty cores per piece,¡± Mathew answered calmly as he looked over his equipment to make sure it was in peak shape.

    ¡°And what does that have to do with leveling up our arcane stat?¡± Nadia asked, unable to put the two and two together.

    ¡°When you strike the zombies down, you level up your brawn. When you take the hits like a man¡­¡± Mathew looked at the girls, ¡°or a strong woman, then you raise your vitality. Move around a lot and you can improve your agility.¡±

    The young man didn¡¯t need to extend the exnation for the girls to catch on.

    ¡°And using our skills allows us to level up our arcane statistics?¡± Nadia asked while raising her eyes to Mathew¡¯s face, looking for confirmation.

    ¡°That seems to be correct,¡± Mathew smiled as he approached the gate before cing his hand on the huge lock that kept it closed.

    ¡°Wait a second!¡± Nadia shouted right as Mathew was about to open the gates and start the mayhem. ¡°If that¡¯s what arcane does, then how do you level up the mind?¡± she asked. Yet, before Mathew could even have a shot at answering, Nadia shook her head and then raised her face. ¡°No. What is that mind stat usable for in the first ce?¡±

 Chapter 133 - Battle Begins

    ¡°I don¡¯t have a single clue,¡± Mathew replied while shrugging his shoulders. ¡°I only learned a thing about arcane because I¡¯m using it myself. As for mind¡­?¡± the young man shook his head. ¡°As I said, I have no idea.¡±

    Daria gritted her teeth before lowering her head. ¡°I understand,¡± she said before turning around and jumping down from the wall.

    ¡°And it¡¯s not something that we have the time to analyze right now, isn¡¯t it?¡± Mathew asked before the girl had a chance to escape from the range of his voice.

    ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± Daria replied as she threw a quick nce towards the gate.

    It wasn¡¯t a single, solid object like the gates one could see in medieval castles. The wall of thepound wasn¡¯t of that kind either. In truth, if not for the force field created by the fortress, the silly fence that surrounded the area would have long been prated.

    And the gate wasn¡¯t any better. It was made with a set of metal spikes pointing up and then merged with four, thick metal bars that held all the spikes together. The gate itself consisted of two wings, both of which opened up to the outside of thepound.

    ¡®That¡¯s the one good point about this situation,¡¯ Mathew thought before shaking his head and pping his hand to get everyone¡¯s attention.

    ¡°Everyone, the first wave will consist of Nadia, Le, and¡­¡± Mathe hesitated. He looked at everyone¡¯s faces only for his eyes to rest on the policemen.

    ¡®Should I involve them?¡¯ For a brief moment, Mathew hesitated.

    He knew that they were already scheming something that they wished to keep outside of his ears. ¡®But if I try to seclude them right now, won¡¯t it serve as a push to make them potential enemies?¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth in frustration.

    ¡®Why can¡¯t I have even a moment without a tough call?¡¯ Mathew moaned internally before shaking his head.

    ¡°Nadia, Le, and Daniel,¡± Mathew finally revealed his desired rooster. ¡°But I need you to keep in mind,¡± he said while turning to the side and pointing his finger at Daniel, ¡°you are going to stay back. On the other hand,¡± he then turned his head back to the girls, ¡°I want the two of you to cut as many heads as you can without going for extra risks. Feed those heads to the back so that Daniel might level up,¡± Mathew finished his orders.

    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± Nadia asked, already weighing her machete in her hand.

    ¡°Almost,¡± Mathew smiled lightly. ¡°The first and foremost rule, whenever there is a danger, I want you to retreat,¡± the young man said. ¡°I, want, you, to, retreat,¡± he repeated his words putting a huge emphasis on everyst one of them. ¡°We have the grass-touching to heal you in case something happens, but I don¡¯t want anything to happen!¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± Nadia jokingly put her hand to her forehead in a parody of a salute. ¡°But why are we supposed to let him level up for free?¡± she then asked, sending a weird look toward Daniel. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to keep him at a low level, but I think he should earn his growth himself!¡± she then exined when everyone looked at her with varying expressions.

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind being at the very front,¡± Daniel was pretty quick to announce. ¡°In fact,¡± he smashed his fists together, ¡°I think my system fits right in the heat of the battle.¡±

    ¡°But we are not going against just zombies,¡± Mathew cut out the protest. ¡°We are going against an organized army of zombies,¡± he pointed out only to take a quick nce to the other side of the gate. ¡°And we have our own objectives to fulfill in this fight!¡±

    ¡®They likely cannot break through the barrier, yet,¡¯ Mathew thought, desperately trying to see through the ns of the enemy before their assault would begin.

    ¡°Shall we start, then?¡± Nadia asked, clearly eager to stop wasting time and just start the action.

    ¡°One by one,¡± Mathew said, seemingly ignoring Nadia¡¯s question. ¡°You are the strongest one in the group. That¡¯s why I¡¯m leaving you the heaviest burden. It¡¯s your hands that I expect to throw the most heads to the back,¡± Mathew said as he looked at Nadia.

    ¡°Roger!¡± the girl happily replied before repeating her parodied salute.

    ¡°Le, you are going to support Nadia. Make sure your backs are secure and you are not taking too many zombies on at once,¡± Mathew instructed the girl.

    Contrary to Nadia, Le only nodded her head before putting a wide grin on her face and resting her machete on her shoulder.

    ¡°Daniel, you are to stay back and finish the heads of the zombies that the girls will throw your way. If you hear me shouting and pointing away from the campus, you will join the fight to help the girls retreat,¡± Mathew gave another order while facing the policeman.

    ¡°Understood,¡± Daniel replied in a rxed manner. There wasn¡¯t any hint of hesitation or suspicion on his face.

    ¡®Is he that good of an actor or is he going to cooperate during this fight?¡¯ Mathew thought. The fact that he was aware of Daniel¡¯s scheming something made it insanely challenging for the young man to trust the policeman with anything.

    Especially in a situation like this one, where even the smallest mistake could easily lead to a disaster.

    ¡®Worst case scenario I will have to grab the girls and just run to a different ce,¡¯ Mathew thought before shaking his head and moving his eyes on Daria.

    ¡°Weren¡¯t I supposed to stay back?¡± the girl asked before Mathew could even open his mouth.

    ¡°No, you have two tasks,¡± Mathew replied while shaking his head sideways. ¡°First, you will be collecting the cores from the heads that Daniel will destroy,¡± Mathew revealed before a small smile appeared on his lips. ¡°Once you can¡¯t carry any more cores, I want you to go back, dump them inside and repeat.¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡± Daria reported, copying Daniel¡¯s response while mimicking Nadia¡¯s salute.

    ¡°Okay then, I believe we wasted enough time,¡± Mathew said before grabbing his ax from where he left it by the wall and approaching the gate.

    Its locking mechanism was extremely simple. From the inside, as long as one kept the main b lowered, it would block the wings of the gate from moving at all. Yet, as this was a ce normally filled with mischievous kids and young adults, there was an additional lock that kept the b in ce.

    ¡®Destroying the b would be both hard and counterproductive,¡¯ Mathew thought before raising his ax and then taking an aim.

    Ting!

    A metallic sound filled everyone¡¯s ears when Mathew cleaved right through the thin metal of the lock.

    ¡°Daniel, I might need some help with this b,¡± Mathew called out, only for the policeman to approach without a word of disapproval. ¡°On three!¡±

    ¡°One¡­ Two¡­¡± Mathew tensed and rxed his muscles in quick session, warming them up for the heavy exercise ahead.

    ¡°Three!¡±

    Three things happened at the same time.

    Mathew and Daniel lifted up the metal b from its handle in the middle of the gate.

    Deprived of its lock, the wings of the gate parted a little, pushed by the random gust of wind.

    The zombies in the first row rushed forward.

    ¡°So it begins,¡± Mathew thought, ncing through the gap between the wings of the gate. He then shook his head before letting the b fall down to the ground. ¡°Go!¡±

    Mathew¡¯s short shout was all that the expedition part of the team needed.

    Nadia rushed first, just like she was ordered to. She reached the gate thrice as fast as Mathew, only for her real speed to reveal itself as soon as she moved past the narrow gap of the gate.

    The zombies only managed to cross half of the initial distance separating them from the gate when Nadia crashed right into the central rank.

    ¡°DIE!¡± Le shouted, hurrying up to catch up with Mathew¡¯s first wife. Yet, while her shouts were pretty wild, she didn¡¯t make a single unnecessary movement.

    ¡®Good,¡¯ Mathew thought as he turned away from the gate before sending a quick look at Daniel. ¡°Now it¡¯s your turn.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± the middle-aged man nodded his head before starting to tap his leg on the ground. At first, it was simply weird, but as time went on and the sounds of the battle nearby reached Mathew¡¯s ears, his annoyance shoot through the roof.

    ¡°Are you¡­¡±

    Just as Mathew opened his mouth to scold the man, Daniel suddenly rushed forward.

    ¡®Is he dancing?¡¯ Mathew thought, watching the man¡¯s movements as he instantly started crushing the heads that the girls threw his way.

    ¡°Daria!¡± Mathew shouted once disciplining himself.

    The moment Daniel crushed the first zombie¡¯s head, Daria could start her work.

    ¡®So far, so good,¡¯ Mathew thought before moving away from the gate and climbing the wall back to where Norbert remained.

    ¡°Is everything okay?¡± the younger of the two policemen asked, alternating his eyes between the situation below the wall and Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Everything is fine for now,¡± Mathew replied only to squint his eyes as he looked at the movements of the zombie¡¯s army. ¡°But the real challenge starts now,¡± he added before tearing his eyes away from the battlefield and moving them on Norbert¡¯s face. ¡°And you are going to y the most important role in it.¡±

    ¡°Pardon me?¡±

    Norbert¡¯s face was full of confusion. There was even a hint of worry in his eyes as he looked down on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°You used your system-given ability the most out of everyone in this group,¡± Mathew pointed out only to stretch his arms towards the battle and give Norbert a cold look. ¡°Now, I need you to figure out which zombies are the evolved ones out there!¡±

 Chapter 134 - They Are Leaving?

    ¡°Look at them go,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose as he observed his teammates rushing into the fight.

    Yet, even when all of them moved outside of the gate, the zombie units remained in ce. Only when Nadia, who held up the front of the group, crossed over half of the distance that initially separated the army from the walls, did the first row of the zombie ranks move forward.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shrugged when his initial observation proved to be wrong. ¡®Not an entire front but just the central unit?¡¯ he thought, watching with curiosity how the two units to the sides only moved several steps ahead beforeing to aplete halt.

    ¡°I found all of them,¡± Norbert reported just a few moments after receiving Mathew¡¯s orders.

    ¡°So quick?¡± Mathew asked, opening his eyes wide as he looked at the face of the younger of the two policemen in his group. ¡°Is it really that easy? Are you sure those are not the decoys?¡± he showered the policeman with questions before he could even point the targets out.

    ¡°In my view, they are like a damned explosion of light whenpared to a sea of burning candles,¡± Norbert exined as his face rxed, a sign that he was now fully back in his body. Norbert then turned his head around, clearly attempting tobine what he saw in his ghost form and what he could see with his physical eyes.

    ¡°There, there and the biggest one is over there,¡± he said, pointing his hand to three different spots.

    ¡®It¡¯s almost like a mathematic form,¡¯ Mathew thought upon marking the points in his mind.

    There was no possible way for a single person to kill all three of the evolved monsters consecutively. While reaching one of themanding zombies was possible if not easy, moving over to the second one would already require one to pass through nearly the entirety of the zombie¡¯s ranks.

    ¡°So the one all the way to the back is the main leader, huh?¡± Mathew spoke, more to himself than to Norbert.

    ¡°That makes sense,¡± the young police officer replied with a shrug of his shoulders. ¡°The times when themanders of the entire army were at its front turned obsolete the moment people figured out how tomunicate over distance,¡± he pointed out only to then squint his eyes. ¡°And that makes me curious,¡± he said as he grasped at the top-most part of thepound¡¯s wall. ¡°Just how the hell are theymunicating?¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s not the most important question,¡± Mathew said as he shook his head sideways. ¡°The real question is, why didn¡¯t they attack the wall in the first ce?¡±

    Mathew looked down at the ongoing fight. Thanks to his elevated position he could see a huge circle of emptiness forming around Nadia as either the zombies themselves or theirmanders realized that she was simply too strong.

    ¡®This is really weird,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how Nadia moved around to ughter all the zombies that were too slow to escape from her machete. ¡®I used to y games when one could pit a single elite character against entire units of cannon fodder¡­ But seeing it with my own two eyes?¡¯

    Mathew shook his head. He then brought his hand up and pped both of his cheeks at the same time to help himself sober up.

    Yet, as he raised his eyes to look further into the battlefield, Mathew¡¯s face tensed up.

    ¡°Daria!¡± he shouted over the wall.

    The girl who, up to this point, simply followed after Daniel and collected all the cores that she could, raised her head.

    ¡°Bring them back, now!¡±

    Mathew moved his eyes up to scan the entire battlefield the moment his order left his mouth. He didn¡¯t need to escort Daria with his own eyes to know she wouldn¡¯t hesitate to fulfill his orders.

    ¡®This isn¡¯t good,¡¯ Mathew thought once he could see the movements of the enemy again.

    The second line of the zombie ranks opened up to the sides, allowing the iplete formation that stood in the third line to press forward. Yet, rather than making any excellent maneuvers, the iplete formation of zombies simply merged with the back of the front central formation.

    ¡®Are they trying to tire us out?¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to make any sense of what he could see. ¡®I don¡¯t fucking understand!¡¯ he screamed out in his mind only to see Daria freely move between the zombies before finally reaching the girls further up.

    After a moment of confusion and nearly avoided friendly fire, all three of the girls were hastily retreating back towards the gate.

    ¡°Daniel!¡± Mathew shouted, getting the attention of the policeman who focused all of himself on finishing the zombie heads that the girls threw toward him.

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    ¡°Stop your task and join the rest, we might need to pull back,¡± Mathew shouted over before moving his eyes back up to get the entire battlefield within the range of his vision.

    The young man didn¡¯t understand the motives behind the enemy movement. Yet, he didn¡¯t need to.

    ¡®I know they wanted to go for the war of attrition,¡¯ Mathew thought when he recalled the moment two zombie units merged. ¡®So the best thing I can do is deny them the opportunity to do so!¡¯

    When all four of the deployed members of Mathew¡¯s group reached the wall and concentrated by the entrance, Mathew could finally breathe out a sigh of relief.

    Whatever the zombies were nning now didn¡¯t matter, as the situation reversed right back to what it was before the battle began.

    ¡°What should we do?!¡± Daniel shouted over, looking up at Mathew¡¯s face.

    In the end, the wall wasn¡¯t all that high. And whenbining the wall¡¯s size and then adding Mathew¡¯s own height, there were less than five meters of distance between the two men.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to shout that loud!¡± Mathew shouted himself. ¡®No, that¡¯s not it,¡¯ he thought, shaking his head to get rid of any and all rxation that could poison his focus.

    Yet, no matter how wary Mathew was, the zombies refused to do anything meaningful. After reforming their ranks and a moment of frantic movement all over their lines, all the zombies stood in the exact same order as before, except for the iplete unit from the third line that was now gone, merged with the central unit at the front.

    ¡®That makes the loss count between a hundred and two hundred,¡± Mathew muttered. ¡°A ten percent of their total number at most,¡± he added, speaking to himself once again.

    ¡°How about attacking again?¡± Norbert suggested only to raise his hand and point at the left-most unit on the front row of the zombie¡¯s rank. ¡°I can see one of themanders right there.¡±

    ¡®It¡¯s a bait,¡¯ Mathew realized without all that much thought. ¡®The moment I send anyone to get thatmander, the center and the right will push together at the gate, clogging it up and stopping the expedition from returning.¡¯

    Mathew gnashed his teeth to the point his jaws started to hurt. And when taking the improvements to his vitality into ount, that proved to be quite a drastic feat.

    ¡°Where is the mainmander?¡± Mathew then asked.

    ¡°Third group to the right, second line,¡± Norbert reported without even a hint of hesitation. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if you can see that far, but he¡¯s right in the middle of the seventh row.¡±

    ¡®I can¡¯t see him at all,¡¯ Mathew thought. He could easily see across the two hundred meters that separated him from the second line of the zombies. The one reason why he still couldn¡¯t see the monster Norbert pointed out though, was just how dense the ranks of the zombies were.

    ¡®I can¡¯t see the forest because the trees are obstructing my view, huh?¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling a joke one of his cousins used to tell him back when the young man used to visit his grandparents at their farm.

    ¡®But if I can¡¯t really see from my elevated position, then there is no fucking way thosemanders see anything at all!¡¯ Mathew realized.

    ¡°Norbert,¡± the young man turned his head to the police officer by his side. ¡°Where is the othermander?¡± he then asked.

    ¡°One to the left and the one I just mentioned,¡± Norbert replied in a slightly confused manner before shaking his head and then bringing his hand to the right. ¡°The second of the weakermanders is right there.¡±

    Mathew took a short moment to digest the news.

    ¡®I guess there isn¡¯t much choice left, huh?¡¯ he thought, taking a deep breath to calm himself down.

    And then, he jumped down from the wall. Yet, he turned his head to the back and looked at Norbert before heading for the gate. ¡°If you see anything of huge concern, alert the others,¡± hemanded before running away and then squeezing through the small gap between the wings of thepound¡¯s gate.

    ¡°Mathew?¡± Nadia was the first one to notice the young man even though her arcane stat was on the lower spectrum. ¡°Something happened?¡±

    ¡°Change of ns,¡± Mathew said shortly. ¡°Nadia, can you see the fucker in the fourth row on the left?¡± Mathew asked.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the girl replied with confusion all over her face.

    ¡°Good, he is your target now,¡± Mathew exined before turning his head towards Daniel. ¡°Same thing but on the right,¡± he exined before turning his eyes towards Le. ¡°I need you to be on the ready to support whoever will struggle to retreat,¡± he ordered before turning his eyes to thest member of the party outside the walls.

    ¡°The same as before,¡± Daria said with a small smile on her lips.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°But it¡¯s not exactly what I want either,¡± he added with a shake of his head. ¡°You are thest line of our defense. If either of us won¡¯t be able to retreat even with Le¡¯s help, it will be your job to pull them out,¡± Mathew exined before reaching out to Daria¡­

    Only to grab several cores that she kept in her rolled-up shirt.

    ¡°But what is the n?¡± Daniel protested when he saw Mathew turning around and looking at the zombies in a self-exnatory way.

    ¡°We need to break theirmanding structure,¡± Mathew exined. ¡°I will rush right to the middle and attempt to distract them,¡± he exined while making sure not to point out his directions in any way or form different from words.

    There was no reason to give the zombies any clues about his n, after all, especially when he had no clue what the level of their intelligence was.

    ¡°I will move directly towards the strongest of the zombies and the one I believe holds this entire army in check,¡± Mathew exined before ncing behind his back.

    So far, the zombies didn¡¯t react to his sudden appearance. They didn¡¯t decide to bank on the opportunity of the gate being open either, leisurely staying their ground instead.

    ¡°You can¡¯t!¡± Nadia protested as terror appeared on her face. ¡°Even you¡­¡±

    ¡°Shush, dear,¡± Mathew silenced his loved one. ¡°I¡¯m only a bait, not a suicide warrior,¡± he added with a smile to mellow down his rude interruption.

    ¡°Remember guys, our aim is to take down the lessermanders, not to disperse this entire army,¡± Mathew exined as he turned himself frontally towards the enemy. ¡°And with that said¡­¡± he started.

    Only for all of the zombies to suddenly froze.

    It¡¯s not like they moved a lot before. Sure, they all stood in ce awaiting themand to attack¡­ But the leaders of this army could discipline their troops only to a certain degree. As such, while the zombies, as a whole, remained motionless, one could easily notice small movements wherever they looked.

    That is all the way until now.

    Because right as Mathew was about to give his order to attack and execute his makeshift n, the zombies fully froze¡­

    Only to turn around and start their slow march to the north-west, in the nearly direct opposite of the direction that would lead them towards the gate!

 Chapter 135 - Red-Eyes Zombies

    ¡°What the¡­¡± Mathew mouthed. His eyes opened wide as he started right at the backs of the zombies.

    ¡®Is this another bait?¡¯ the young man thought, looking around to check the movements of the zombie army in general. Standing on the ground, though, made him lose the height advantage he had atop thepound¡¯s wall.

    ¡®I can¡¯t see shit.¡± Mathew gritted his teeth. No matter how much he strained his eyes, the rows of the zombies ahead blocked his sight of what was happening to the back. ¡®Is that how themanders in the medieval battles felt like?¡¯

    ¡®Norbert!¡¯ Mathew suddenly thought, turning around and looking up the wall. Yet, the policeman stood atop the wall with an empty expression in his eyes. ¡®What is he staring off in the distance, for?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, gritting his teeth in silent frustration.

    ¡°Mathew?¡± Daria asked.

    The orders were given. The objectives were specified. The whole n was ready to be executed. And yet, by simply turning around and leaving, those zombies managed to throw a wrench into the gears of Mathew¡¯s strategy.

    ¡°Damn it!¡± Mathew tightened his hands into fists. He then looked down and took a single, short breath.

    There was no time for profound deliberations. With every second, the zombies were getting further and further away. And while, with their extremely slow speed, it would take them a while to leave the area¡­

    ¡®With every step they take away from us, it¡¯s one more step we will need to make while retreating,¡¯ Mathew noted. ¡®I know I¡¯m not a good strategist. All the battles I could ever properly manage are confined to the code of the games I used to y,¡¯ he thought.

    And with a heavy heart, Mathew raised his hand up.

    ¡°We are dropping the n,¡± he announced.

    ¡°Excuse me, what?¡± Nadia asked, her usually rxed and smiling face suddenly souring. ¡°Are you that worried about us?¡± she then asked as a small smile returned on her face. Yet, the girl then shook her head before stretching her leading arm out in the direction of the retreating army of zombies.

    ¡°They are retreating because we are stronger than those evolvedmanders thought we would be,¡± she stated a possible exnation of the situation.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t that just wishful thinking?¡¯ Mathew retorted in his thoughts, struggling to open his mouth and openly stand up to his beloved. ¡®While she wouldn¡¯t hate me for saying that out loud, I was the one who asked all of them to provide input,¡¯ Mathew thought. His teeth then bit down on his lip so hard that blood started to ooze out of his mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got it!¡± A sudden shout brought the much-needed change to the stalemate Mathew found himself in. He raised his head and looked at the source of the voice. ¡°They are heading to another siege nearby, roughly two klicks away!¡±

    Norbert¡¯s gift, although battle-unrted, proved its worth.

    ¡°Then there is no time to wait!¡± Mathew shouted back before brandishing his ax from a makeshift holster he attached to the back of his suit. And then, as if no further word of exnation was needed, he rushed forward.

    ¡°Everything goes just as we nned!¡± Mathew shouted before taking a breath and pushing his body to its natural limits.

    It took Mathew three seconds to reach his top speed. And then, a single second to reach the retreating line of the zombies.

    ¡°DIE!¡± he shouted, swinging his ax sideways.

    Killing a zombie was one thing. But now that Norbert proved the value of his system, Mathew¡¯s mind was already set on helping him to level up. And for that end, collecting the heads for Norbert to finish off was the easiest method.

    ¡°Haaaa!¡± Le shouted, plunging herself right into the unit on Mathew¡¯s right.

    To the left, Nadia didn¡¯t waste her breath on shouting, opting to rush into the battle without a word.

    For the initial sh, it could only be described as a cold-blooded massacre.

    Mathew spun around his ax, cutting the zombie¡¯s head like a farmer would cut down his bountiful harvest. The difference was in how a farmer had to work hard to earn his keep in form of a grain stockpile while Mathew was here just to pluck the goodies out!

    ¡®There is no end to them,¡¯ Mathew thought as he cut through the zombie ranks. Yet, instead of anxiety, his face continued to grow fat with self-satisfaction. ¡®It would be a pity if we allowed them to just run away,¡¯ Mathew thought whilemitting the crime against his own beliefs and bringing the ax down on the zombie, cutting through its entire body from the top of its head to its crotch.

    ¡°Haaa¡­¡± Mathew released a deep breath from his lungs as he mmed the top of his ax into the ground before resting on the butt end of its handle.

    He wasn¡¯t physically tired after just a few minutes of this kind of light exercise. Yet, the same couldn¡¯t be said about his mental state.

    Even though Mathew was long used to the presence of zombies and could handle killing scores of them, in a bloodbath like that¡­ Even he would falter.

    ¡°There is no time for idle thought,¡± Mathew scolded himself before kicking the back of his ax¡¯s de to make it draw a small arc in the air before the topmost part of its handlended on his shoulder. ¡°Less talking, more culling!¡±

    Yet, as if fate itself wanted to spit Mathew in the face, the zombies stopped running away. Just the fact that they all stopped forced the young man to do the same.

    ¡®What now?¡¯ Mathew thought as he slowed his movements down to the level where he could flexibly react to the ongoing changes on the battlefield. He even took a step back.

    Right in the nick of time.

    After a short dy after stopping, the zombies started to turn around. At first, only one or two turned to face Mathew¡¯s wrath. Yet, as seconds continued to trickle between his fingers, more and more zombies decided to do the same.

    ¡®This is bad,¡¯ Mathew thought when he realized that there was something weird about those zombies. And then his eyes happened tond on the face of one of them.

    It belonged to a kid a few years younger than him. Back when the kid was alive, it likely went to the upper years of middle school.

    Yet, for how insane pity it was to see children involved in this cataclysm, it wasn¡¯t the age of the zombie¡¯s original host that caught Mathew¡¯s attention.

    It was its eyes. Because contrary to all the other zombies Mathew met in both of his lives so far, it was the first time he faced a zombie whose eyes turned red.

    ¡®Are they all evolving?¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a step back as the disastrous reality dawned upon him. He then gnashed his jaws together. ¡®No, it¡¯s not possible for all of them to evolve at once!¡¯

    Mathew took another step back.

    At this point, all the zombies that surrounded him now bore the same characteristic trait that caught Mathew¡¯s attention.

    ¡®I guess it¡¯s time to enter the second stage of the n!¡¯ Mathew thought.

    The zombies started to move. Their normally erratic movements were now well nned and executed. And while each individual one of them was still a far cry from the evolved monsters, they were no longer the cannon fodder that Mathew¡¯s group could kill at their own leisure.

    ¡®This is bad,¡¯ Mathew thought as he used his ax not to kill a zombie, but to ward off its attack.

    In the process of his charge right in the middle of the zombie units, Mathew forgone any sense of self-security. And now, with the zombies somehow reaching a new level all at once, he was stuck deep within their ranks.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± A shout forced the young man out of his stupor. ¡°You need to run, now!¡±

    ¡®Daria?¡¯ the young man thought, easily recognizing the voice. But just like his entire team acted when he decided to push through with the n, Mathew didn¡¯t hesitate either.

    ¡®If she made the effort to go all the way to here, the situation really has to be dire,¡¯ Mathew thought as he swung his ax for onest time and turned around¡­

    Only to see one of those red-eyed zombies reaching out for Daria¡¯s unsuspecting head.

    ¡°BEHIND!¡± Mathew shouted. Any longer form of expression would make his words arrive toote.

    ¡°HoAGH!¡± Daria only managed to shake before a zombie sank its teeth right into the corner between her shoulder and her neck, like some sort of discounted vampire.

    ¡°Get the hell off me!¡± Daria shouted, reaching out for the zombie¡¯s head before tearing it off her neck.

    The girl stood up straight, vignt once again. Yet, she couldn¡¯t stop a small smile of self-satisfaction from appearing on her lips.

    She then fell down on her knees, her eyes turned cloudy.

    ¡®Damn it!¡¯ Mathew screamed inwardly out. He then lunged forth, covering the distance separating him from the girl in just two leaps.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Daria muttered weakly.

    The attack she took wasn¡¯t light. It was a serious bite that warranted a full stop to the mission even if she didn¡¯te bearing the news for Mathew to retreat in the first ce.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Mathew said as he tore off a piece of his own clothing before pressing it against Daria¡¯s injury. He then grabbed her hand and pressed it against the cloth before raising up and pulling out one of the cores that he brought with him.

    ¡®That¡¯s not how I wanted the second phase to go,¡¯ Mathew thought as he gritted his teeth and tensed his fist. He then raised his fist to the air before leaning over Daria and shielding her with his own body.

    ¡°For now, just leave everything to me,¡± Mathew whispered, before bringing his hand down and smashing the core in his fist against the ground.

 Chapter 136 - ?136 Frantic Return

    Mathew¡¯s fist struck the ground. It was a pretty unnatural move as hardly any normal human would find an activity requiring a movement like that and necessary to go through their usual day.

    And yet, the few times that Mathew used this move in his past made it extremely easy for him to repeat it now.

    Swipe!

    ¡®Hah?¡¯

    This was the third time for Mathew to use his ability in a real fight. But for the first time, he heard any sort of noise in the tiniest window of time between him using it and his skill activating.

    SWOOSH!

    Stormy winds gathered around the young man only to explode outwards, pushing all the zombies away. It all happened in a single instant, making it impossible for a normal human to perceive those changes.

    BOOM!

    The real shockwave formed right after the powerful gust of wind. This time, however, rather than being of a physical nature, it was entirelyposed of the same, condensed energy that Mathew could feel in everything system-rted since a while ago.

    ¡®I really need to figure it out,¡¯ Mahtew thought as he continued to hug Daria¡¯s weakened body close to his chest, hoping to shield her from the upheaval that he himself called for.

    ¡®Is it over?¡¯ Mathew thought after the insanely long single instance of time passed and the world around him appeared to calm down.

    The young man raised his head to confirm the situation. And just like he expected, there wasn¡¯t a single zombie anywhere near enough to be an immediate threat.

    Yet, there was an element that Mathew didn¡¯t expect. It was aligned with what he hoped to achieve by detonating a core, yet as it was connected to the zombie¡¯s evolving on the spot, there was no way he could ever predict it happening.

    Because the zombies that were struck by his skill reverted right back to their usual form.

    ¡®So this was some sort of a buff,¡¯ Mathew thought as he tightened his grasp over Daria¡¯s weakened body before raising up and starting to run.

    The most important paradigm of Mathew¡¯s strategy was to preserve everyone¡¯s lives for long enough to bring them to the merchant. And with a single touch of the grass, he could revert them back to their peak state.

    ¡°Hold on for just a little longer,¡± Mathew whispered while dashing through the open space.

    Once Mathew escaped from the encirclement of zombies he put himself in not a single zombie was then left to stop his mad dash back towards the fortification.

    ¡°You are back,¡± Nadia appeared by Mathew¡¯s side the moment he entered the open space. And while her words were etched with relief, when the girl¡¯s eyes moved on to the body in Mathew¡¯s hands, Nadia¡¯s face darkened.

    ¡°How did she¡­?¡±

    Everyone knew about the miraculous ability Daria somehow got. It was the very thing that made Mathew order her to act as a messenger.

    ¡°Now now, we need to hurry,¡± Mathew said. ¡®She is getting weaker by the moment,¡¯ he noticed only to speed up his dash¡­ And then end up slowing down again, worried that too much momentum would make it harder for Daria to hang on.

    ¡°Almost there,¡± the young man added a momentter, right when he rejoined with the rest of the group.

    ¡°What took you so¡­¡± Daniel was already at the wall. The moment he heard footsteps, he turned his face away from Le, ready to chastize Mathew. Yet, the moment he saw the state of the girl in his arms, he choose to shut his lips close and push the wings of the gate open a bit more than they were before.

    ¡°Close the gate once you are in, Nadia, I need you to help me carry her up.¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t waste any time stopping and giving his orders. In fact, Daniel could only hear the first part of his sentence as by the time Mathew turned his attention to Nadia, he was already too far for the policeman to hear him.

    ¡°Carrying her up might be problematic,¡± Nadia pointed out the one obstacle that Mathew actually worried about.

    ¡°I guess it will be a test to the strength of my arms, then,¡± Mathew replied, refusing to borate as he ran through the ruined wing of thepound to enter it.

    A short momentter, Mat was done climbing the stairs and finally came to a halt by the upwards shaft.

    ¡°I need you to help me out, now,¡± Mathew said as heid down on his stomach with his head reaching right to the edge of the floor. ¡°ce her armpits at the back of my knees,¡± he asked before raising his hips to make his legs create a small angle.

    ¡°I will support her from the bottom,¡± Nadia offered right as she brought Daria¡¯s lifeless body up and helped Mathew secure her with his legs.

    ¡°That would be much appreciated,¡± Mathew thanked before reaching out with his hands and grabbing thedder at the back end of the shaft. He then pulled himself even closer before starting to climb up with just his hand alone.

    ¡°Here we¡­¡± he muttered before finally reaching the hard part where he would actually have to pull both his own weight and Daria¡¯s on his hands alone.

    ¡®There is no way I would be able to do so in the past,¡¯ Mathew thought when he finally felt thebined weight of two people in his arms.

    Back in the past, he would struggle to make a single pull-up on his own. And now, after increasing his power through his system, he barely had to put in any effort to do something far harder!

    ¡°Just a little bit more,¡± Mathew muttered, hoping for his encouragement to reach Daria¡¯s mind in spite of her pretty bad state.

    At first, climbing up thedder wasn¡¯t a challenge at all. Yet, as Mathew climbed higher and higher, his arms quickly reminded him of how he was before. Thankfully, from the moment he climbed roughly half the floor up, Nadia followed him into the shaft, using her own shoulders as a foothold for Daria¡¯s legs.

    ¡®It doesn¡¯t help much when climbing but I can at least take a momentary rest between each attempt to go higher,¡¯ Mathew thought, despite being fully aware that he could not afford those rests in the first ce. As such, he continued to climb even when his arms started to feel as if they were on fire.

    All for the sake of bringing Daria higher and higher. Once the three of them finally reached the top floor, Mathew could breathe a partial sigh of relief. Yet, rather than taking his time to enjoy himself, Mathew rested Daria¡¯s body on the floor. And once his legs were free from the burden of her weight, he grabbed her in his arms before rushing towards the merchant.

    ¡°They are back!¡± one of the civilians that Mathew saved yesterday shouted. Even though they didn¡¯t y any role in his ns so far, only an idiot could expect them not to be aware of what was going on. After all, while they couldn¡¯t use Norbert¡¯s ability nor the map at the merchant, they could still look out through a damned window!

    But not a single of those things mattered to Mathew. He focused all of his attention on dragging Daria towards the merchant instead.

    ¡®Please, make it work,¡¯ he prayed in his thoughts before grabbing Daria¡¯s hand and pressing it against the bundle of light.

 Chapter 137 - Trade Sister For Safety

    *Daniel¡¯s PoV if anyone is confused*

    ¡°Are we really going through with this idea?¡± Norbert asked once Le left to check on her wounded friend.

    ¡°Did you change your mind?¡± Daniel asked as he watched the girl¡¯s back as she disappeared between the ruins of the copsed wing of thepound. Yet, the older policemen didn¡¯t bother to wait for Norbert¡¯s answer. ¡°Why?¡± he asked instead, acting as if Norbert¡¯s mind was already set.

    ¡°Because we still know way too little to survive in this world ourselves,¡± Norbert exined in his mind. ¡°You didn¡¯t see what I saw,¡± he stated only to give Daniel a side look. ¡°And I¡¯m not talking about Mathew going crazy or anything. I¡¯m talking about the zombies.¡±

    ¡°I saw what they did to that poor girl,¡± Daniel countered while rolling his eyes. ¡°I believe that¡¯s enough to understand what happened. She relied on her ability to move without being noticed by zombies a bit too much and ended up attacked when she didn¡¯t expect it,¡± he stated even though he knew no details of what transpired.

    All that Daniel knew was that Mathew was responsible for attacking the center of the zombie¡¯s line. All that he saw was first the explosion in the distance and then Mathew carrying half-conscious Daria who kept a small rug pressed against a pretty ugly wound on her neck.

    ¡®I might not know the details but that doesn¡¯t stop me from figuring out what actually happened,¡¯ Daniel thought while squinting his eyes a little.

    Pam.

    Norbert didn¡¯t just wait around for Daniel to finish thinking. Instead, he took it upon himself to close the gate before securing it with the iron b that locked it before.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t see what I¡¯ve seen,¡± Norbert said again as he turned his face to his colleague.

    Daniel opened his mouth at first, ready to bash his junior¡¯s cryptguage. Yet, when he saw Norbert¡¯s face, Daniel slowly pulled up his lower jaw and closed his mouth. He then closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm himself down.

    ¡°What did you see, then?¡±

    Norbert lowered his eyes. He then raised his hand and scratched the skin behind his ear.

    ¡°I gave the order to retreat because the zombies started to fight back,¡± Norbert finally revealed what pushed the first domino of the events that just transpired. ¡°Both you and Nadia were close enough to hear Daria¡¯s shouting. Yet, in your case, I had no other choice but to push Le to help you get back,¡± Norbert continued with his reveals.

    He then raised his eyes and looked Daniel dead in the eyes. ¡°But now that I saw what that kid encountered, I¡¯m quite certain it¡¯s him who Le should¡¯ve helped, not you,¡± Norbert stated.

    ¡°You are aware that I nearly lost my life while trying to go back, are you?¡± Daniel countered, his face turning slightly darker than before.

    ¡°I¡¯m aware of that,¡± Norbert admitted without even a second of hesitation. ¡°But what you fought were just zombies that attempted to strike back. But what Mathew was against¡­¡± Norbert pursed his lips and then lowered his eyes once again.

    ¡°Are you going to spit it out or are you shooting a movie and need the audience to feel the fucking tension by stalling like that?¡± Daniel asked, a hint of the emotions he was bottling inside peeking out through his voice.

    ¡°I just don¡¯t know how to describe it,¡± Norbert didn¡¯t mind Daniel¡¯s attitude at all. He knew the man for long enough to know this situation wasn¡¯t bad enough to make the old policeman lose his temper. ¡°I bet it looked a lot different for the kid himself, but for me¡­¡±

    Norbert hesitated once again. He then bit his lips and rested his back against the wall. His stress at getting the answer just right grew all the way to the point where he even started to bite on the nail of his thumb.

    ¡°You know that there were three evolved zombies out there, do you?¡± Norbert suddenly asked as his eyes shed a little.

    ¡°Yeah. Two normal evolved ones and one that¡¯s even stronger than them,¡± Daniel confirmed and nodded his head. ¡°What about them?¡±

    ¡°Nadia managed to kill the one she was supposed to. That¡¯s why I believe, she had no problem returning as the zombies she was surrounded with turned back to their usual, disorganized self,¡± Norbert exined the first phenomenon.

    ¡°That means I struggled with returning because I failed to kill themander, right?¡± Daniel interjected, trying to figure out as much of the situation as he could before hispanion would spoil the exercise for him.

    ¡°More or less.¡± Norbert nodded his head. ¡°But that¡¯s not the point here,¡± he added right away before raising his eyes and looking into Daniel¡¯s face. ¡°What Mathew faced weren¡¯t just zombies. They weren¡¯t just zombies controlled by the strongest evolved one that we encountered so far either,¡± he continued to borate.

    ¡°What did he encounter, then?¡± Daniel asked, slowly starting to get irritated.

    ¡®I can guess some things but I still need some basic information to make an educated guess. I can¡¯t just figure out something that I don¡¯t know anything about!¡¯ he protested in his mind although ultimately keeping his mouth shut. ¡®There is no use hurrying him up, that would only make him take longer to actually exin what he wants to exin,¡¯ Daniel realized.

    ¡°I really don¡¯t have the words to describe it,¡± Norbert said, burying Daniel¡¯s hopes for a quick resolution. ¡°It¡¯s like¡­¡± he hesitated, ¡°the evolved one we just talked about suddenly vanished, only for its strength to split into the zombies he controlled?¡±

    Norbert¡¯s face was filled with doubt. From this fact alone Daniel could say that what his younger colleague just said was still so far removed from the real picture that it wasn¡¯t all that better form an outright lie.

    ¡°If you want to know more about those zombies you would have to ask Mathew himself,¡± Norbert finished along with releasing a long wheeze.

    ¡°Okay then,¡± Daniel nodded his head before taking a moment and then raising his eyes at Norbert¡¯s reluctant face. ¡°What does all of it have to do with our n, though?¡± he asked before shaking his head. ¡°Or maybe you are no longer bothered by how that kid is sure to turn your sister into yet another sex ve of his?¡±

    Norbert¡¯s face froze. Carol was the only family he was certain that he had left. And in all honesty, it was the only family that he cared for at all.

    ¡°To be frank,¡± Norbert finally raised his face. He then gulped down his saliva before taking a deep breath and preparing himself to give a pretty bold statement. ¡°After I saw what I saw, I don¡¯t think that having her trade her chastity for safety is that bad of a deal.¡±

    ¡°I guess we have no other choice but to give up on the idea,¡± Daniel muttered, taking the obvious warnings behind Norbert¡¯s words pretty seriously.

    The two of them served time in the military together, even if in different units. Despite that fact, they shared some of theirbat histories and even happened to cooperate on missions in the past. The fact that they both ended up in the same police department was a result of the budding friendship that their time in the military created.

    ¡®Since he is willing to go that far, it¡¯s better not to act up just yet, not until we understand the situation better,¡¯ Daniel thought before releasing a heavy sigh.

    ¡°I guess we are going to trade your sister¡¯s pussy for a few more days of the alliance.¡±

 Chapter 138 Confronting the schemers

    ¡°I guess we are going to trade your sister¡¯s pussy for a few more days of the alliance.¡±

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is,¡¯ Mathew thought, resting his back against a random piece of rubble.

    He was hiding among the rubble of the southern wing, listening in to the conversation the two policemen had.

    ¡®I noticed they were scheming again after helping Daria to touch the grass, but I didn¡¯t expect their scheme to go like that,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He then took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Yet, as no more words were shed in the policepany just a few meters away, Mathew decided it was the right time to reveal himself.

    ¡°It¡¯s funny how you guys assume a lot of things without actually asking others what they think in the first ce,¡± he said out loud, walking out of his hiding spot before calmly approaching the policemen.

    ¡°You¡­¡± Daniel uttered, his eyes opening wide. At first, he took a step back, only to realize how did that make him look. ¡°You don¡¯t look surprised at all,¡± he ended upmenting, clearly not sure how else he was supposed to react.

    ¡°Oh,¡± Mathew smiled. ¡°I knew about the two of you colluding against me since a while ago,¡± he exined. ¡°Maybe you didn¡¯t realize it, but it¡¯s not only the zombies that I can see on the map at the merchant,¡± the young man added with a small smile.

    The area turned silent.<sub>.</sub>

    Mathew locked his hands on his hips, staring down at the troubled duo. Daniel looked right back into Mathew¡¯s eyes, unable to utter a word but clearly not willing to concede anything.

    And in this tense moment, Norbert was the only one who simply didn¡¯t know how he was supposed to act at all.

    ¡°Judging by when you came out, you heard my proposal,¡± Norbert somehow ended up being the first one to break the silence. While he kept his eyes averted, he still attempted to dissolve the tense situation.

    ¡°I do not give a fuck about it,¡± Mathew shrugged his shoulders. ¡°I can track Carol just like I tracked your ghost,¡± he said while raising his hand and pointing his finger at Carol¡¯s brother. ¡°And it¡¯s funny how you guys decided to give Carol to me without asking for her consent in the first ce.¡±

    ¡®I know I shouldn¡¯t be that harsh with them, but it¡¯s just too damn nice to call them out like that!¡¯ Mathew thought, more amused than infuriated by the situation.

    The tense situation brewed conflict. Just like no prolonged siege could go without some internal struggle, people stuck in the world of zombie apocalypse were bound to jump at each other¡¯s throats.

    It wasn¡¯t even a matter of conflicting interests. Without the protection from the wide array of rules and mechanisms created to enforce said rules that the civilization brought, only fully authoritarian governance could work in both the short and long term.

    And that obviously led to conflict between those at the top and those who didn¡¯t ept the way the leader dealt with stuff.<sub></sub>

    ¡°It¡¯s funny how you call us out over not asking for Carol¡¯s consent when you likely never intended to ask for it either,¡± Norbert finally brought himself to knock the ball back on Mathew¡¯s field. ¡°Weren¡¯t you just going to im her like you did with the other girls?¡± he used while squinting his eyes.

    ¡°So you don¡¯t know,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose while his lips twitched and formed a small, amused smile.

    ¡°What?¡± Norbert asked, squinting his eyes even further when Mathew¡¯s voice turned out to be too silent for him to catch it.

    ¡°Do you know that it was Carol that came to me asking to be turned into my wife?¡± Mathew raised his head and asked while keeping the amused smile on his lips.

    Norbert froze when he heard those words. His face tensed up. He then took a step forward. Then another. And then he straightforwardly marched towards Mathew only to end up grabbing his shirt and attempting to raise him up.

    ¡°This won¡¯t work, buddy,¡± Mathew sighed calmly before swatting Norbert away with a single smack. ¡°Oh, I forgot to mention I refused her,¡± he added with a lovely smile while looking down at Norbert on the ground.

    ¡°You did what?!¡± Norbert didn¡¯t really mind being thrown to the ground. At least, he didn¡¯t appear to do so when he heard the second part of what Mathew said.

    ¡°Can you two stop it?¡± Daniel finally rejoined the encounter right as Norbert¡¯s face indicated he was about to lose it. ¡°Your sister suggested she could be Mathew¡¯s wife, but he refused. What¡¯s there to be insulted at?¡± he asked, throwing a troubled look at Norbert.<sub></sub>

    ¡°I¡­¡± the younger policeman hesitated, only to end up averting his eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t know. When I heard it, something made me act like that¡­¡± he attempted to excuse himself. Yet, before he could dig any deeper in this direction, Norbert shook his head before raising it from the ground only to then lower his head before Mathew.

    ¡°I apologize for my outburst,¡± he said while properly lowering his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what got into me,¡± he added.

    ¡°Let¡¯s forget about it, then,¡± Mathew waved his hand, indicating that he didn¡¯t really care about the slight conflict. ¡°She¡¯s your sister so it¡¯s only natural you will be quite oversensitive when ites to her,¡± he added before moving his eyes on Daniel.

    ¡°What?¡± the older policeman asked. ¡°Are you finally going to reveal what are you going to do with us?¡± he asked.

    There wasn¡¯t any sign of confrontational attitude in the man.

    ¡®Is he aware that he couldn¡¯t stop me from doing anything even if he tried? Or maybe he just gave up on resisting once his n saw the light of the day?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head and get rid of those useless thoughts.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to do anything to you,¡± Mathew said instead. ¡°On the contrary, I¡¯m interested in what exactly prompted you to look into ways of splitting away from my group,¡± he added with a small smile only to then shake his head again.

    ¡°But?¡± Daniel asked. ¡°Your tone clearly indicated that there is something else you want to say,¡± he pointed out.

    ¡®That¡¯s a proper adult for you,¡¯ Mathew thought, holding back his smile. Right now, grinning at the two of the policemen could send a very wrong message.

    ¡°But we don¡¯t have the time to talk things through,¡± Mathew said before shaking his shoulders. He then turned around and waved his hand towards the building.

    Nadia, Le, and Daria marched out from the ruins, proving that they were ready to intervene if Daniel attempted any funny business.

    ¡°I¡¯m d to see you are okay,¡± Danielmented when his eyes rested on Daria¡¯s face.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like it¡¯s your doing,¡± the girl replied in a harsh tone. Yet, upon noticing Mathew¡¯s cold stare, she shook her head and added, ¡°nevertheless, thanks.¡±

    ¡°Then?¡± Daniel turned his attention back to Mathew. ¡°Judging how you brought all your fighters to this ce you could either be worried about our retaliation or you were nning another expedition,¡± he pointed out what should be obvious at this point.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. But rather than exining myself, I will ask you this one time,¡± Mathew said as his smile soured. ¡°Norbert, why did the army of zombies suddenly start to retreat again?¡±

    ¡°I believe it¡¯s because they found an easier target,¡± Norbert admitted without even a moment of hesitation.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his hand. ¡°While initially, I was too busy thinking about our own situation to notice it, don¡¯t you guys see what that means?¡±

    For the second time, silence filled the ce. Not a single one out of all five of Mathew¡¯spanions managed to realize what he was trying to clue them in.

    ¡®As much as I would like to have them realize it on their own, we don¡¯t really have the time for that,¡¯ Mathew thought before releasing a deep sigh.

    ¡°If they found another, easier target, that means there are other people that managed to survive,¡± Mathew pointed out the direct answer.

    ¡°And what?¡± Daniel asked, taking Mathew by a surprise. ¡°Don¡¯t we have our hands full trying to secure those few that we managed to save in thispound alone?¡± he asked, proving that he was a lot more cold-blooded than Mathew expected.

    ¡®Or maybe he is just a pragmatic?¡¯ Mathew thought. ¡®Nah, it doesn¡¯t matter,¡¯ he concluded before taking a step forward.

    ¡°I believe that an entire army of zombies wouldn¡¯t suddenly get on the move because of one or two survivors that managed to hide away,¡± he pointed out. ¡°And that got me thinking,¡± he added, only to abruptly stop his sentence in the middle.

    This time, despite how short they were on time, Mathew wasn¡¯t going to just reveal the answer.

    Nadia suddenly sighed as she approached Mathew¡¯s side. Contrary to her man, she wasn¡¯t willing to y the long game with the police officers.

    ¡°We believe that the other group that the zombies wanted to attack have people with the system as well,¡± she revealed before looking at Mathew¡¯s profile. She then took a deep breath before moving her eyes back to the officers. ¡°And in the current world, only people with the system can keep up with the rate at which zombies evolve.¡±

    At first, Daniel¡¯s face turned stale. Yet, a mere momentter, a sh of enlightenment appeared in his eyes.

    ¡°So in order to bolster our own defenses¡­¡± he muttered before abruptly turning around to face the gate of thepound only to then nce over his shoulder. ¡°Guys, what are you waiting for? We need to go and save them!¡±

 Chapter 139 Trust for loyalty

    ¡®I didn¡¯t expect him to be so eager,¡¯ Mathew thought as he obediently followed after Daniel¡¯s lead.

    Yet, their runsted for only a few seconds for as soon as the group moved beyond the gate and closed it behind them, Daniel came to aplete stop.

    He then turned around and raised his hand to scratch the back of his ear as he then looked at Norbert. ¡°Which way exactly should we go?¡±

    It was a simple yet extremely important question.

    ¡®Shouldn¡¯t we just follow the direction the army of zombies took?¡¯ Mathew thought, looking at Daniel¡¯s face with a hint of confusion behind his eyes. ¡®Or wait, I¡¯m dumb,¡¯ the young man was quick to chastise himself. ¡®If we just follow them, we would have to somehow go through all of those zombies to get to the people we want to help, wouldn¡¯t we?¡¯

    ¡°Give me a second,¡± Norbert replied before resting his back against the outer side of thepound¡¯s wall and closing his eyes.

    ¡°Since we have to wait for him to get us on the path, how about we talk for a little?¡± Daniel said out of nowhere as he moved up and took a spot right in front of Mathew. Even though there was no hostility in his eyes, his attitude was clearly confrontational.

    ¡°Talk about what, exactly?¡± Mathew asked, even though he could more or less tell what the other party was worried about.

    ¡°About what is your n for the future,¡± Daniel revealed his thoughts without any further hesitation.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°You really did give this question some thought, didn¡¯t you?¡± Mathew asked as a small smile of satisfaction mixing with shrewdness appeared on his lips.

    ¡°I thought about it ever since you announced that you no longer know what to do next,¡± Daniel said. He then shrugged his shoulders and shook his head before raising his eyes to stare directly into Mathew¡¯s.

    ¡°And here is what I figured out. At first, you really were extremely confused about everything. ording to your own story, when you established the fortress you also reached the point where your past experiences cannot be of any further use.

    ¡°Back then, I could tell that you were telling the truth. I might not be a great empath but my years as a negotiator gave me this sort of expertise to see through stuff like that,¡± Daniel went on a long rant.

    Mathew didn¡¯t bother to stop Daniel¡¯s words. He simply allowed them to flow.

    ¡®If the cost of securing his loyalty is shedding some light on some of my secrets then I would have to be an idiot not to take this trade,¡¯ he thought, his lips twitching into a small smile. ¡®Especially when I didn¡¯t reveal my ns not because I wanted to keep them a secret but because I didn¡¯t want to give others false hope.¡¯

    ¡°But?¡± Mathew opened up his eyes only when Daniel took a short break to take a breath.

    ¡°Scuse me?¡± Daniel furrowed his brows in confusion.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Everything that you said so far is about the past me, about me yesterday night,¡± Mathew pointed out, even going as far as to raise his hand and then stretch one of his fingers only to then use it to poke at Daniel¡¯s chest. ¡°And that means it was all leading to some sort of conclusion about today.¡±

    A momentary break ensued. Mathew released a deep sigh.

    ¡°And it¡¯s the conclusion that I¡¯m curious about, now,¡± he finally admitted before taking a step back to rx the atmosphere a bit.

    ¡°Back then, when you said that you have no idea what to do next, you were honest,¡± Daniel shortened his entire passage from earlier to this simple conjunction. ¡°But now, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s the case anymore,¡± he stated.

    The policeman then heaved a deep sigh.

    ¡°I won¡¯t ask you to go into details about why you are still hiding your ns from the rest, but if you want me to follow you without questions when hard timese, I need to understand what you are trying to aplish.¡±

    It was such a simple statement. Yet, for how simple it was, it was just the right message that Mathew had to hear to realize something even simpler.

    ¡®How can others trust me if I hold back my thoughts simply because I¡¯m not sure about them?¡¯<sub></sub>

    ¡°First, let me answer the question that you just imed not to be bothered by,¡± Mathew started as he crossed his arms on his chest before leaning his head to the back and looking at the sky. ¡°I didn¡¯t talk out loud about my ns because I¡¯m sure they will work out in the first ce,¡± he said.

    Mathew then lowered his eyes back to their normal level before sending a long nce over everyone in the group.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t want to promise the development of our situation if it would all end up as my misunderstanding,¡± he revealed while shaking his head. ¡°As to not waste the time, I think everything in this new world works in the same way,¡± he stated the crux of his understanding of the apocalypse.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really¡­¡±

    ¡°I know, just give me a moment,¡± Mathew interjected Daniel¡¯s objection before the man could even voice it out. ¡°We had to establish and then control three merchants to create the fortress, right?¡± Mathew pointed out before turning his statement into a question.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel nodded his head. He was well aware of the details of the fortress even if he didn¡¯t know everything about it.

    ¡°I¡±m not sure, though, if I told you about the choice I had when creating the fortress,¡± Mathew admitted. ¡°Basically, I could choose one of those merchants as the¡­¡± the young man took a break to figure out what words would best describe what he had in mind. ¡°No, I could choose one of three different bonuses for the fortress. And those bonuses would change based on which merchant would be the main one to control the fortress,¡± Mathew exined.

    ¡°I still don¡¯t see the point you are aiming for,¡± Daniel protested while pursing his lips.

    ?[0)??? ¡°Can¡¯t you see the pattern already?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyebrow just like an adult would do when their kid would be unable to solve a simple exercise they got for their homework.

    ¡°Three merchants, three choices, I can see it,¡± Daniel countered Mathew¡¯s mental nudge. ¡°But I can¡¯t really see what you want to imply with this pattern,¡± he stated.

    ¡°God damn it!¡± Mathew cursed in a silent voice. ¡°Isn¡¯t this perfectly obvious already?¡± he asked.

    ¡°We need to establish two more fortresses in order to turn all three of them into something one level higher,¡± Nadia suddenly joined in the discussion upon realizing just how annoyed Mathew was. She then turned her head to her lover before leaning it to the side. ¡°Am I right?¡±

    ¡°Finally, someone who can get it,¡± Mathew moaned before nodding his head. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s exactly what I meant,¡± he properly admitted before turning his eyes back to Daniel. ¡°That¡¯s what I am aiming for,¡± he stated. ¡°That, and various improvements that could allow us to abuse how poorly designed this apocalypse is.¡±

    ¡°Designed?¡± Daniel¡¯s eyes opened wide. ¡°Designed by who?¡± he asked as his face turned dark.

    ¡°What, do you think I¡¯m behind it now?¡¯ Mathew nabbed only to then shake his head. ¡°No, sorry for that. And to answer your question,¡± the young man took a short pause, ¡°I have no idea.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡±

    This time, it wasn¡¯t just Daniel that replied to Mathew¡¯s words with silence. Even though Norbert was busy scouting the area while both Daria and Le didn¡¯t join the discussion in the first ce, they somehow managed to make their silence all the more¡­ silent.

    ¡°Okay then, what did you mean by poorly designed?¡± Daniel asked after heaving yet another deep sigh.

    ¡°I need to tell in advance that it¡¯s just my understanding of what I saw and what I noticed so far,¡± Mathew started before lowering his head. ¡°But isn¡¯t it weird how we might be able to level up in two different ways?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± This time, it was Le who couldn¡¯t hold her surprise back and released a shocked moan. ¡°Why I don¡¯t know the first thing about it?¡±

    ¡°Because we can¡¯t do it yet,¡± Mathew replied without any hesitation. ¡°I can¡¯t say for sure it will work like that, but that touching grass that saved Daria before was originally only one of the uses of, well, touching grass.¡±

    ¡°Leveling up being one of the other possible options, right?¡± Dariamented, finally bringing everyone into the discussion.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°But in order to activate this possibility we still need to upgrade this feature of the merchant,¡± he exined before shaking his shoulders. ¡°That¡¯s why I was so desperate to farm some more cores as soon as possible,¡± Mathew added.

    ¡°Still, there is one thing I don¡¯t understand,¡± Daniel stopped Mathew from entering a long rant about the wonders of leveling up in two different ways. ¡°How does this connect to what we are currently going to do?¡±

    ¡°Guys, I found it!¡± Norbert suddenly woke up only to point his hand in exactly the same direction that Mathew initially wanted to explore. ¡°It¡¯s the building that you wanted to take over, kid,¡± he said as he looked at Mathew only to then move away from the wall and rush ahead.

    Yet, after making only a few steps, Norbert realized he was the only one who moved.

    ¡°It does not,¡± Mathew replied before finally starting to move. ¡°Sure, it would be great to be stronger first and then go help others¡­ but I¡¯m worried that if we stall now, then there will be no one to help in the near future.¡±

 Chapter 140 We need a goal

    ¡®Is it really a good idea to rush to the other hotspot of zombies before making sure we are strong enough to do so?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as he followed at the front of the entire group.

    This was the one doubt that the young man couldn¡¯t get rid of. Yet, the frantic nature of everything that his group did so far made him more inclined to just grab any and all opportunity rather than taking things slow.

    ¡®Thinking back, we couldn¡¯t take our time yesterday because it would likely lead to the entirepound copsing,¡¯ Mathew thought as he nced over his shoulder at thepound in the distance. ¡®But is it really necessary to be in a hurry right now?¡¯

    The doubts continued to uge Mathew¡¯s head for every step that he took. And yet, he didn¡¯t stop. He didn¡¯t even slow down, opting to just follow the words he said to his police allies.

    ¡®If we don¡¯t go help them right away, there will be no one to helpter on.¡¯

    This was an undeniable truth.

    Mathew¡¯s group could y around their options with the zombie army that besieged them¡­ precisely because of this simple reason. They were besieged, not relentlessly attacked without any way of defending themselves. And the walls of the fortress gave them options. Without the fortress, those would be limited to just the two most basic instincts of living beings.

    Fighting or fleeing.

    ¡®And the chances of anyone setting up a fortress so quickly¡­¡¯ Mathew thought only to bite his lips and cull his thoughts.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡®There is no point deliberating over this problem now. The decision is made so all I can do right now is to stick to it,¡¯ he decided.

    ¡°We are getting close,¡± Norbert suddenly announced from the back of the group.

    As he had yet to learn how to both use his skill and move around in a physical world, he had to rely on Daniel¡¯s help whenever he went for a quick scout with his ghostly form.

    ¡°Why can¡¯t we see any zombies, then?¡± Mathew asked, looking around the ce they were in right now.

    ?[0)??? Despite him going to the school in this exact area of the town, Mathew never really bothered to explore it in the past. While other students of the school would often go waste their time in the service industry scattered all over the ce and nearby school, the young man opted most of the time to just enjoy himself before the screen of hisputer instead.

    Yet, even without the experience of traveling those streets many times in the past, Mathew could still recognize the general area his group found themselves in.

    ¡®We are just a single intersection away from the media building so howe we don¡¯t see any of those zombies yet?¡¯

    ¡°They are focused on the northern¡¯s side of the building,¡± Norbert replied shortly. ¡°I don¡¯t know why, but the southern side is nearlypletely devoid of any z¡¯s,¡± he added, introducing a new form of referring to zombies.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Guys, we need to stop,¡± Daniel suddenly announced, right after Norbert gave them some basic info about the situation.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Mathew asked, ncing over his shoulder.

    Seeing how the girls actually listened to Daniel¡¯s request, Mathew ended up having no other choice but to fall in line and stop himself too.

    ¡°What¡¯s the n?¡± Daniel posed a short yet insanely important question. ¡°Are we going to kill all the zombies and hope to establish another fortress in the media building?¡± he asked while looking over everyone¡¯s faces. His eyes thennded on Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°Or maybe we are going to bring them back with us?¡±

    ¡®It¡¯s not like we are limited to just those two possible oues, are we?¡¯ Mathew noticed the smallpse in Daniel¡¯s suggestion. ¡®But those two are indeed both the easiest and the most reasonable paths we can take,¡¯ he then quickly admitted to himself.

    Yet, Mathew noticed one additional thing. It was a small detail about his own way of thinking.

    It was the fact that his initial reaction to Daniel¡¯s suggestion wasn¡¯t to verify its validity. It was to deny it at all cost, even if his suggestion was perfectly fine.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can answer that yet,¡± Mathew replied, shaking his head over his own naive mindset. ¡°We are already struggling to keep our small group cohesive. I don¡¯t think going happy-go-lucky and bringing everyone back with us is the smartest thing we can do either,¡± he added.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Why are we going out of our way, hurrying as if the world could end, if we are not going to bring them back, though?¡± Norbert asked, his face twisting in an ugly grimace. ¡°I mean, I don¡¯t really mind helping the others, but shouldn¡¯t we aim to achieve something by doing so?¡±

    Mathew bit down on his lips again.

    ¡°There is nothing wrong with helping another, especially in times like that,¡± Nadia countered.

    Given her position in rtion to Mathew, she couldn¡¯t really see his expression. As such, those were her own, honest thoughts, rather than the girl¡¯s attempt to back Mathew up.

    ¡°I understand the sentiment,¡± Daniel said as he nodded his head. Yet, he then steeled his resolve which soon reflected on his tensed-up face. ¡°But the time of an apocalypse isn¡¯t exactly the best time to n anything on the basis of sentiment,¡± he pointed out in a surprisingly cold-hearted way.

    ¡°And you somehow made it to the police,¡± Le scoffed. ¡°Aren¡¯t you ashamed to keep wearing your badge?¡± she then asked while resting her hands on her hips.

    ¡®Not good,¡¯ Mathew thought when the atmosphere started to turn tense. ¡®If we allow something like this to stop us so quickly, we will never get to the building in time.¡¯

    ¡°Guys, for now, let¡¯s just get to the building,¡± Mathew proposed. ¡°What we will do after helping the other party out, we can always decide once they are safe and sound,¡± he added.

    ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± Daniel was quick to admit even though a hint of residual annoyance could be seen behind his eyes. ¡°But I believe we still need some sort of a goal,¡± he stated. ¡°We can¡¯t go in there and fight with just the idea of saving someone. If we don¡¯t have the goal we will never stop fighting.¡±

    ¡®That¡¯s a valid point,¡¯ Mathew admitted before lowering his face and even going as far as to raise his hand only to then bite on the nail of his tongue. ¡®What should be our goal for this mission?¡¯

    For how simple this question appeared to be, Mathew struggled to find its answer. In the end, it would be his next few words that would likely decide the course of the events in the near future.

    ¡®So this is the burden of being a leader, huh?¡¯ the young man thought, his lips somehow twitching up into a smile despite the turmoil going on in his soul.

    ¡°I can¡¯t give you the clear goal,¡± Mathew finally came to the terms of the situation he found himself in. ¡°I don¡¯t have enough information about the other group, their own aims, their numbers or their knowledge about the system to dere some sort of lofty goal,¡± he said, ready to defend his stance. ¡°And I believe that assuming some goal right now would only make us less flexible to adjust to the situation as it develops down the line.¡±

    ¡°I never said that the goal has the be final,¡± Daniel countered. ¡°It doesn¡¯t need to be big, but we need to have some sort of goal,¡± he continued to press the issue.

    ¡°We need to get on top of the building, to a rtively safe location, to give Norbert enough time and peace of mind to spy on the other group,¡± Mathew quickly replied.

    ¡®We already gave the zombies a headstart when we didn¡¯t follow them right away when they left,¡¯ Mathew thought. ¡®We only wasted more time by dealing with our potential inner strife. And what we are doing now?¡¯ Mathew asked himself while tightening his fists. ¡®Wasting even more time,¡¯ he thought.

    The young man then raised his eyes at the older officer. ¡°Doesn¡¯t that work for you?¡±

    For a moment, Daniel simply looked down at Mathew¡¯s face.

    The contest of stares then ensued,sting for nearly half a minute.

    ¡°That¡¯s reasonable,¡± the policeman finally replied before heaving a deep sigh. ¡°So, we are going to the roof to the building and then trying to scout out the situation of the other group so that we can decide what to do next, right?¡± he paraphrased Mathew¡¯s makeshift n.

    ¡°THat¡¯s right,¡± the young man answered before turning around and finally taking another step in the direction of their temporary goal. ¡°Are we good to go now, or are there any other problems that you deem important enough to stall us even further?¡±

    Mathew wasn¡¯t provoking the other party. He was simply expressing his displeasure over how much time their group wasted on less than absolutely necessary stuff, even though they were all supposed to be in a great hurry.

    ¡°There are none,¡± Daniel replied. His eyes shed with annoyance, yet the policeman managed to rein his emotions in.

    ¡°Great,¡± Mathew replied in a sarcastic tone before turning around and finally facing the direction their party had to go to. ¡°How about we hurry up and put our n in motion, then?¡±

 Chapter 141 Fate worse than death (Kayas pov)

    ***

    For all those confused ¨C we are going back nearly 100 chapters to the small foreshadow of thest free chapter ??

    ***

    ¡°Who are you?!¡± Kaya hissed, showing her fangs as she lowered herself down.

    She ced her right hand on the ground, burying her tiny ws into the ground.

    Even a failure like her could use the bestial jump, an ability that saved her life and dignity many times in the past.

    ¡°You need not fear me,¡± a calm, deep voice appeared in front of the girl, but also from all the direction¡¯s around her. ¡°You need to fear what will happen if you do not listen to me, though.¡±

    ¡°Is this a threat?¡± Kaya uttered through her teeth, tensing up the muscles in her things and burying her right hand into the ground even deeper.

    For her bestial jump to work its magic, she required not only a stable foothold but also good support for her hands. Ultimately, her prized skill wasn¡¯t even a skill but an evolutional advantage that her race developed.

    ¡°A threat?¡± the voice appeared to be amused. Whoever was behind it, clearly didn¡¯t take Kaya¡¯s stance seriously. ¡°Not at all,¡± it added, this time nearly causing the girl to jump up when it appeared toe from right behind her. ¡°I¡¯m just your only hope at getting out of your current encirclement alive.¡±

    There wasn¡¯t any hesitation, doubt, or even a hint of malice in the voice. It somehow appeared soothing, while at the same time still somehow sounding strange.

    ¡®It¡¯s as if¡­¡¯ Kaya thought, only to then swallow a gulp of her saliva. ¡®As if wasn¡¯t a real voice.¡¯

    Kaya¡¯s ears, just like most of her senses, were better than those of a normal human. And yet, at this exact moment, she could tell even a normal human could easily notice the uncanniness of this voice.

    ¡°And why should I trust you?¡± Kaya asked, still barring her fangs.

    Her stance reached its peak. Her muscles reached the maximum tension.

    And yet, the girl didn¡¯t jump.<sub>.</sub>

    Something at the very depth of her soul told her not to. And if anything, Kaya knew better than not to listen to her instincts.

    ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± she barked, ignoring the teachings of her mother never to do it.

    Her mother was long dead, after all, so Kaya didn¡¯t need to worry about anyone bashing her for it.

    ¡°For now, you need to run,¡± the voice informed.

    ¡°Run where?¡±

    There was no face for Kaya to look at. Even after all the exchanges, there still wasn¡¯t a character that she could see.

    And yet, she could somehow tell the owner of the voice has smiled.

    ?[0)??? ¡°Straight ahead.¡±

    ¡®Are you fucking serious?¡¯ Kaya kept her curse in her thoughts. Not sure what she was interacting with, she dared not to utter words that could anger her one potential ally.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that where most of the human hunters are?¡± Kaya asked while gritting her teeth.

    The direction that the voice pointed her in was exactly the direction she could hear the rustling of the huntersing from.

    ¡°That¡¯s where most of the hunters are, indeed,¡± the voice admitted without any shame. ¡°But that¡¯s also your only way out.¡±

    Once again, Kaya could somehow tell the owner of the voice has smiled.

    ¡°And you are quickly running out of time.¡±

    Kaya clenched both her jaws and her buttocks.<sub></sub>

    ¡®Is this some sort of mental magic?¡¯ she asked herself, only to grit her teeth. ¡®But I¡¯ve never heard about something like this,¡¯ she thought.

    And then, another thought appeared in her head.

    ¡®Wait, if the hunters were using mental magic on me, would I even be able to think of it as a possibility?¡¯

    Kaya had a lot of close encounters with death in her young life. And if she learned anything in all of those situations, it was to trust her instincts.

    ¡®Even if only for a second, I felt like following his advice,¡¯ she thought. The girl then gritted her teeth once again.

    And then, without any further hesitation, Kaya released all the tension from her muscles at once,unching herself forward.

    The bestial leap. The one skill that her kin could use solely because of the physical superiority her race had over the humans. Yet, at its core, it boiled down to simply abusing her superior physicality.

    The girl leaped forward with all of herself.

    A wave of condensed wind struck her right in the face, instantly bringing her momentum down. In just a few seconds she had to bring her hands to the sides, wing at the trees to push herself off them.

    BOOM!

    It was only a short moment since Kaya left the ce where the strange voice caught her. And now, a huge shroom of smoke raised from the ce she left barely a moment ago.

    ¡®He was right,¡¯ Kaya noticed, her eyes opening wide.

    And then, the fiery-hot shockwave of the explosion hit her right in the back.

    ¡°Agh!¡± Kaya cried out in pain, feeling the delicate skin on her back stinging as if a thousandshes struck it.

    ¡°Keep going!¡¯<sub></sub>

    The voice changed. This time, instead of soothing her, the voice somehowpelled her to move.

    With no other choice, Kaya ignored the pain and rushed forward again.

    ¡®That was close,¡¯ she thought when she once again started to w at the trees to keep her momentum.

    If not for thepulsion of the voice, the shockwave¡¯s hit would stagger her, killing the momentum of her leap. And thanks to the girl moving along with the voice¡¯s wishes, she actually managed to ride on the momentum of the shockwave instead!

    She jumped two more times¡­

    And there they were.

    A group of at least forty men moved around the ce, clearly making as much noise as they could without making it too obvious. And while no one was screaming or shing swords, they were all moving through the thickest parts of the forest, crushing twigs, rustling leaves, and even going as far as to shake the trunks of the smaller trees!

    ¡®It was bait,¡¯ Kaya finally realized why the voice pushed her right in the direction of the danger. While the explosion going off where she was a moment earlier already made the girl aware the voice clearly didn¡¯t want her to die, she now slowly started to ept that it was actually on her side.

    ¡°What?¡±

    The girl was soo shocked both by what she saw and the realization behind it that she actually stopped in her tracks. And she did so for long enough for one of the soldiers to actually notice her.

    ¡®Yep, that was a bait,¡¯ the girl thought, gritting her teeth.

    ¡°She is here!¡± the man, contrary to the girl, didn¡¯t waste any time.

    ¡®But don¡¯t they look fairly¡­ weak?¡¯ Kaya thought.

    Her lips moved up, showcasing her fangs as the girl grinned.

    ¡®And that means¡­¡¯

    Kaya didn¡¯t even finish forming her thoughts. Instead, she pushed herself off the tree, jumping right towards the nearest opponent.

    Contrary to the man who spotted her, others were too immersed in their ploy to pay much attention.

    Kaya dropped down directly on the back of the nearest man. As she bore no weapon, she dug her canines into the side of the man¡¯s throat, ripping out a huge chunk of his flesh when she swung her head away.

    ¡®Blood¡­¡¯ Kaya¡¯s mind turned cloudy when the sweet, metallic taste filled her mouth.

    Her eyes opened up wide as human blood slid down her throat. Her senses peaked.

    ¡°It¡¯s her!¡±

    This time, people reacted to the shout of another soldier. But it was already toote.

    ¡°BLOOD!¡± Kaya screamed out, using the shoulders of the dead man below her as a foothold. She sprung up, using the moment when her upwards momentum died to look around for the next target.

    ¡®THINK!¡¯ Kaya screamed out in her thoughts, right as her body dropped down.

    ¡®WAKE UP!¡¯ she attempted to wrestle control over her own body right as her ws slit the throat of another man.

    ¡°Run!¡±

    The calm, soothing voice returned. Yet, even though its tone was the same as when it first appeared, it retained itspelling power.

    And just like before, Kaya could do nothing to resist the order.

    ¡°Turn right.¡±

    Kaya¡¯s body mmed into a tree, losing its momentum.

    ¡°Straight ahead.¡±

    The girl rushed forward as if stopping for even a second would spell her demise.

    ¡°Just a little bit more,¡± the voice said, this time free of itspelling power. Instead, it was filled with encouragement.

    ¡®Just a little bit more, huh?¡¯ Kaya thought, rushing through the ancient forest as if there was no tomorrow.

    ¡°You are almost there,¡± the voice informed.

    And for the third time, Kaya could somehow tell its owner smiled.

    ¡°This is going to kill you a little, so just bear with it.¡±

    ¡®Huh?¡¯

    Kaya failed to stop her momentum in time, even when considering the shock caused by the words of the voice.

    And then, the ground below her feet ceased to be, causing the girl to fall right into a deep ravine.

    The time appeared to slow down. Falling down, Kaya could somehow see a tiny sliver of blue, indicating that at least there was some water all the way at the bottom of the ravine.

    ¡°You did well,¡± the voice praised the girl.

    ¡®At least they didn¡¯t catch me,¡¯ Kaya thought, closing her eyes as she epted her fate. Between death and envement, she didn¡¯t need to hesitate.

    For a prideful beastfolk like her, bing a cumdupster of some fat noble was a fate far worse than death.

    ¡°You did well,¡± the voice repeated right as the roaring of the wind became unbearable. For the fourth andst time, the girl could somehow tell the being behind the voice smiled. ¡°I guess I could lend you a hand, couldn¡¯t I?¡±

 Chapter 142 Slow and steady gets inside

    ¡°The path is clear until the next block,¡± Norbert reported after blinking his eyes a few times, a sign that he returned from the usage of his ghostly form.

    ¡°And after that?¡± Mathew asked while peeking over the small fence his group was hiding behind.

    ¡°Roughly a hundred wanders on the street directly adjacent to the building,¡± Norbert replied without a moment of hesitation. ¡°Some are trying to get inside, some just wander around, others are trying to get around.¡±

    ¡°So their number is decreasing I presume?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not,¡± Norbert shook his head. ¡°For every zombie that finds a way around, another one appears from the other side, stranded from the main horde on the other side of the building. Oh, and most importantly,¡± Norbert swallowed his saliva, ¡°the front of the building is torn open pretty bad.¡±

    ¡®And yet, whoever is inside managed to pull the entire horde to the opposite side of it,¡¯ Mathew thought, deriving his own conclusion from Norbert¡¯s report. ¡°And that means they have someone observant at the very least,¡± he added, not even realizing his thoughts slipped through his lips.

    Mathew shook his head.

    ¡°Did you take a look inside?¡± he asked, sitting down on the ground by the fence as he dropped the idea of scouting the area with his own two eyes. With Norbert at his side, there was no logical point in doing so besides Mathew¡¯s innate desire to ascertain the situation himself.

    ?[0)??? ¡°Only scanned the insides for a preferable route up to the roof and potential dangers,¡± Norbert denied. ¡°I was told not to waste time so I didn¡¯t,¡± he added with a shrug of his shoulders.

    ¡°That¡¯s true¡­¡± Mathew uttered. He then closed his eyes and took a deep breath. ¡°Then let¡¯s not waste any time,¡± he added before springing up, grabbing the edge of the fence, and jumping over it.<sub>.</sub>

    Just like Norbert reported, no zombies appeared to be in the direct vincity of Mathew¡¯s group. And outside of the racketing from where the horde was, their surroundings were so silent the atmosphere turned eeire.

    ¡°Are you really sure it¡¯s okay to just walk through the middle of the street?¡± Daniel asked when Mathew reached the exact center of the open area.

    ¡°If they have someone capable of guiding the zombies by shifting the manpower inside the building, I bet they have someone on the lookout on this side as well,¡± Mathew pointed out. ¡°With how unpredictable those zombies can be and with how little others can know about them, only an idiot would take their current behavior for granted,¡± Mathew stated.

    ¡®And I¡¯m exactly an idiot like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, not holding his own self-critique down.

    ¡°Well then, here goes nothing,¡± Daniel muttered when their group moved past thest intersection and entered the street on which Norbert reported before.

    ¡°You guys know what to do,¡± Mathew said out loud, not minding the prospect of alerting the nearest zombies with his voice. He simply brandished his trusty ax before taking a step forward.

    Just like one would expect, Mathew¡¯s voice alerted some of the zombies. And as they turned around and started to slowly walk towards them while releasing their usual screeches, more and more of them took notice.

    By the time Mathew made his way halfway across the streets, all the zombies on this side of the media building were now zeroed in on his group.

    ¡°Deploy,¡± Daniel ordered shortly, taking a position by Mathew¡¯s far left himself.<sub></sub>

    The girls didn¡¯t waste their breath on confirming they heard the order. Their group was small enough for there not to be any risk of disorganization.

    Nadia stood directly to Mathew¡¯s right, walking roughly half a step behind him. Le moved a small distance away from the center of the group, taking care of the right-wing. As he had no innate means of fighting, Norbert was positioned right behind Mathew¡¯s back with Daria shadowing everyst of his moves as his private bodyguard.

    Not a single one of them uttered a battle cry. As veterans of one and a half days of intense fighting, they no longer felt any rush when it came to fighting.

    ¡®Off we go,¡¯ Mathew thought as he swung his ax back and then rested it on his shoulder. He then hastened his steps a little, just enough to add some momentum to when he swung his ax next.

    A hand of a zombie fell off its body. A kick to its sideter, the unstable corpse fell to the side, freeing the path ahead for the center of the group.

    ¡°Leave the crystals to me,¡± Daria shouted over, just loud enough for her voice to cut through the massive racketing from the other side of the building.

    ¡°Much appreciated,¡± Mathew replied, fixing both of his hands on his handle beforezily swinging his weapon.

    Another zombie fell to the ground with its head rolling away to the side.

    ¡®This feels like some kind of time-off,¡¯ Mathew thought as he pushed further into the group of zombies.<sub></sub>

    His movements were sharp yet short, leaving the young man ready tomit to the fight the second he would notice the zombies suddenly changing.

    ¡°Norbert, it¡¯s the time!¡± Mathew said several zombiester.

    ¡°On it,¡± Daria replied, even though the order, in theory, had nothing to do with her. In reality though,  she dropped whatever she was doing before and brought Norbert¡¯s arm over her shoulder, ready to carry him forward.

    The younger of the officers closed his eyes. This time, however, he took only a moment to return from his scouting mission.

    ¡°Some are detaching from the horde anding around to our right!¡± he reported before closing his eyes again.

    ¡°So I was right,¡± Mathew muttered, adding a bit more strength to his next swing.

    It wasn¡¯t as if Mathew¡¯s opponent turned out to be somewhat harder to deal with. It was the same kind of zombies that the young man was already used to fighting. Mathew simply used this attack as a way to exhaust some of his frustration.

    Because just like he predicted, those stragglers that their meet on the vulnerable side of the building, weren¡¯t stragglers at all.

    ¡®They are damned guards,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he focused on the fight even more than before.

    After experiencing what it felt like to fight against those strange, red-eyed zombies, he had no intention of letting their appearance take him by a surprise.

    ¡°Kiddo! Over here!¡± Daniel shouted from Mathew¡¯s right, not caring about the potential risks of using a loud voice in the proximity of a massive horde.

    ¡°Swing towards us!¡± Mathew shouted back, not even bothering to look to his side. Instead, he tightened the grip over the handle of his ax before ramping up the speed at which he continued to finish the task that the zombie virus failed to aplish.

    ¡°Roughly three hundred detached and are heading around the building towards us,¡± Norbert reported.

    ¡°We do just as nned!¡± Mathew shouted as loud as he could.

    A zombie rushed from ahead, spreading its arms open as if in an attempt to hug the young man. Rather than wasting a second to kill it, Mathew leaned his upper body to the back, reaching out with the handle of his weapon towards Nadia. At the same time, he swung his left leg forward, kicking the zombie away while also using the movement to keep himself stable in the awkward position he found himself in.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Daria called out before throwing a small pebble at her leader.

    ¡°Thanks!¡± Mathew grabbed the shiny core that she got from one of the zombies he defeated before. ¡°Le, get ready!¡± he then shouted before fisting yet another zombie that made the mistake of getting close.

    ¡°Do you want me to clear the path?¡± Nadia as she swung Mathew¡¯s ax around with an expression of wild amusement appearing on her face.

    ¡°I will be fine, thanks,¡± Mathew replied. And as soon as Le reached out to the center of the group and tapped him on the shoulder, Mathew rushed ahead.

    The rest of his group was perfectly capable of making their way toward any of the openings within the wall of the building. Be it the doors, the holes in the wall, or the dug-out path towards the hole in the basement¡¯s wall, one could pick any path they wanted inside the building.

    Yet, rather than following after the rest of his group, Mathew rushed to his right. And by the time he rubbed his shoulder against Daniel, who in turn was moving back towards the center of the formation, a huge unit of zombies finally appeared from beyond the corner of the building.

    ¡®Now, let¡¯s hope this building will withstand the shockwave,¡¯ Mathew thought as he tightened his fists.

    He raised his hand up to the sky before even reaching the group of fresh zombies. He brought it down right as he crashed directly into the army of normal zombies supported by several red-eyed ones.

    And by the time the zombies finally had any realistic way of reaching out for his body, Mathew simply brought his hand down, crushing the stone against the concrete pavement while at the same time infusing it with all the energy that he could muster.

    BOOM!

    Mathew¡¯s skill worked just the same way it did all the times when Mathew used it in the past. Some zombies ended up ttened against the nearby buildings. Others were sent flying in the air only to crash down on the ground.

    Yet, for how gore the aftermatch of Mathew¡¯s skill was, his attack only managed to im a few zombies. A zombie would die only if its head would be crushed and its brain destroyed. And there were only a few of those that ended up crashing against a hard surface with their heads.

    ¡®That should slow them down enough,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning around on his feet before rushing towards the building.

    Whoever was inside managed to take the advantage of the fact that zombies were attracted to living beings. And it appeared that even the evolved zombie that managed to escape Mathew¡¯s culling before couldn¡¯t go against this instinct of theirs.

    As such, despite how easy reaching the building was, it wasn¡¯t the end of Mathew¡¯s initial task. Because if they took too long to reach the other side of the building insides, then all the efforts that the locals put to keep the zombies at bay would end up wasted!

 Chapter 143 Divide and conquer

    ¡°Okay, we got inside,¡± Daniel remarked the moment Mathew joined the rest of the group. He then stretched his hands up before throwing a long nce at the hole they all used to get into the building. Only after a long while that was necessary to confirm no zombies managed to follow them, the officer turned his eyes towards Mathew. ¡°Now, what?¡±

    The young man only smiled in response before shaking his head.

    ¡°It¡¯s not me who you should be asking that,¡± he stated before looking at Norbert. ¡°Which way to the roof?¡±

    ¡°Straight through the main hall, then up the stairs, all the way to the top,¡± Norbert replied. He had more than enough time to figure out all the necessary details of their incursion into the building before they even rushed inside. ¡°That is if you don¡¯t mind going through the floor that the locals upy,¡± he then added, seeing how Mathew was ready to get going right away.

    And his words sessfully managed to stop the young man from rushing ahead.

    ¡°And if we don¡¯t want to cross paths with them just yet?¡± Mathew asked, turning around while an unpleasant grimace formed on his lips.

    ¡°You might find it pretty strange, but this building has nearly the same structure as the school,¡± Norbert pointed out. ¡°Save for the fact that it¡¯s a single brick rather than a cross with four arms pointing in every world¡¯s direction.¡±

    ¡®Why would something like this be strange?¡¯ Mathew thought, angling his head to the side. ¡®This entire city is a wet dream of soviet modernism mixed with brutalism, an ugly ducking of the rightfully gone era. It¡¯s only natural that most of the buildings are nearly the same.¡¯

    ¡°And that means?¡± Daniel asked, clearly not amused by Norbert¡¯s indirect manner of exnation.

    ¡°There are shafts, just like the one we are using back at school, in every corner of this building,¡± Norbert exined what he meant.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°Figures¡­¡± Mathewmented, hiding his face in the palm of his hand.

    The answer was so obvious that it eluded him for a while. Yet, just like the saying went, the darkest houres right before the sunrise. And it was often far harder to figure out the answer to simple questions, out of the sheer fact that people were used to solvingplicated issues instead.

    ¡°The problem is, all those shafts only lead to the topmost floor, not the roof,¡± Norbert pointed out. ¡°And that means, we will have to either climb the outside of the building or go through the area upied by locals to get to the roof,¡± he exined why he wasn¡¯t all that happy with this possibility.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s give it up,¡± Mathew said as he shook his shoulder. ¡°For now, we need to hurry up and get to the other side of the building,¡± he said before shaking his head and getting on the move. ¡°The longer we linger near its weaker side, the easier it will be for the zombies to follow us here.¡±

    Mathew was a man of his words. And while he liked to overthink stuff, once he decided on something, he wouldn¡¯t waste time before putting his wishes into motion.

    ***

    ¡°I¡¯m telling you, I saw a group of people enter the building!¡± Robert shouted before mming his fist into the side of the wall.

    ¡°I don¡¯t give a single fuck about them,¡± Natasha replied, her hand ying dangerously close to the trigger of the shotgun resting on herp.

    The middle-aged woman then dug the heel of her high-heel shoes into the back of the gagged director of thepany that originally oversaw the entire building and its operations.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Or maybe you want to be the one deciding what are we going to do from now on?¡± Natasha then asked, gracing Robert with a smile that was colder than one¡¯s normal grimace.

    ¡°I-I¡­¡± Robert opened his mouth, only to force them to close a momentter. ¡°I do not,¡± he finally replied after swallowing his pride.

    In the end, a man¡¯s pride wouldn¡¯t fare well against the grapeshot that Natasha¡¯s shotgun was loaded with.

    ¡®How in all hells did she get her hands on the gun in the first ce?¡¯ Robert whined in his soul, not daring to utter another word ofint.

    ¡°Everyone, listen up,¡± Natasha said out loud. She then put her entire weight on the poor director¡¯s back as she stood up from the makeshift throne she turned afy chair into.

    ?[0)??? The gun in her hands was the only argument she used to convince her fellow survivors to unbolt it and then drag it out from the recording studio. It was the fear of her unhinged personality that she disyed when she first culled all those who dared to oppose her that made the others waste so much energy moving it up several floors just for Natasha¡¯s wicked satisfaction.

    ¡°Listen and listen well,¡± she added once she finally walked off the director¡¯s back and stood with the barrel of her shotgun resting on her shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m the only one who can keep you all alive. Not that pussy,¡± she added, lowering her gun and pointing its muzzle at the gagged director. ¡°And definitely not a fresh intern like this fucker,¡± she added, moving her weapon and then pointing it right at Robert¡¯s face.

    ¡°Do we understand each other?¡± she then asked while her lips turned into a wicked smile.

    ¡®This power-hungry bitch,¡¯ Robert thought, forcing his lips together to stop even the tiniest sound of dissatisfaction from escaping from his mouth.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Is that a hate I see in your eyes?¡± Natasha then asked, clearly enjoying herself. ¡°Do you maybe want to go and join your girlfriend in the room of¡­¡± the woman hesitated for a moment. ¡°At the room of volunteers?¡±

    Robert¡¯s face froze.

    ¡®Wait, isn¡¯t this my chance?¡¯ he suddenly thought, Natasha¡¯s words reminding him of the only reason why he still dared to stay in the wicked society she created.

    ¡°N-no¡­¡± he lowered his face and mumbled, bringing his acting talent to its peak in order to appear scared. He even went as far as to make his body tremble in the faked panic. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, anything but this,¡± he added in a whisper only slightly louder than the fluttering of a butterfly¡¯s wings.

    ¡°Good boy,¡± Natasha replied with a smile only to knock one of her shoes out of her feet before stretching it out. ¡°Now, lick it clean.¡±

    ¡®You dumb bitch,¡¯ Robert swallowed all of his pride while falling down to his knees and reaching out with his hands to grab the woman¡¯s foot.

    The ck muzzle of her illegal shotgun was persuasive enough to make him follow her sadistic orders.

    Yet, for how much the following action would hurt his pride, Robert actually rejoiced on the inside.

    Not because he had a foot fetish, especially if it was the foot of someone as disgusting as the severely overweight Natasha who never learned the meaning of hygiene, iming it to be a product of patriarchal society.

    But because Natasha appeared to buy his act.

    ¡®You just wait, you dumb bitch,¡¯ he thought as he lowered his lips over the piece of fat that Natasha called her foot. ¡®Even if I will have to give my anal virginity to the people that came, I will find them¡­¡¯

    Robert¡¯s eyes shed with his deeply hidden rage.

    ¡®And then I will make them kill you.¡¯

    ***

    ¡°Damn!¡± Norbet suddenly uttered a disgusted moan before shaking off Daria¡¯s hand and rushing to the wall only to lower his head and throw up directly on the floor.

    That action alone, something that Mathew saw only once before, was enough to put the entire group on a high alert.

    For someone who saw the hell left in the wake of a horde of zombies, it was pretty challenging to find something disgusting enough to cause one to vomit.

    ¡°How bad is it?¡± Mathew asked coldly, tightening his grip over the weapon¡¯s handle.

    If the two weeks he survived in the apocalypse before dying taught him anything, it was that humans could be far more brutal than the mindless zombies.

    ¡°Sorry, it¡¯s nothing as bad as what we saw back in the hidden room,¡± Norbert exined as he spat out to clear his mouth from the residual filth. ¡°But it seems that we might be able to get this ce for ourselves quite easily,¡± he then added as a wicked smile emerged on his lips.

    ¡°Internal strife?¡± Daniel asked, knowing his partner well enough to connect his current expression to the events of the past they shared.

    ¡°Divide and conquer,¡± Mathew muttered after hearing Daniel¡¯s words and figuring out what was going on. ¡°Am I safe to assume there is some sort of conflict between the locals?¡±

    Norbert nodded his head in response.

    ¡°And I think I already know how we can get all of the normal ones to our side,¡± he added as his grin widened. ¡°There is a woman in that group that holds everyone at a gunpoint. And from what I heard, there is a room with volunteers¡­ But judging by the reaction of the others, it¡¯s more like a room stacked with people whose sole aim is to pull the attention of the zombies away from the main building.¡±

    ¡®It all sounds great¡­ too great,¡¯ Mathew thought, And then it dawned upon him. ¡®If there is a room that pulls the zombies away from the main building¡­¡¯

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean that those people in the ¡®volunteer room¡¯,¡± Mathew raises both of his hands and bent two of his fingers on each of his hands to add quotation marks to the room¡¯s name, ¡°are right in the middle of the zombie¡¯s horde?¡±

    Norbert heaved a deep sigh in response.

    ¡°And now you know why I wasn¡¯t all that happy to tell you all about it.¡±

 Chapter 145 We got quite a haul, didnt we?

    ¡°This looks like a good ce to start,¡± Mathew announced when he reached a set of closed doors.

    They were situated at the mouth of a narrow hallway that then expanded into the mainmunication artery of the building.

    ording to Norbert¡¯s report, it was slightly off the direction of the secondary building where the people were held as bait.

    ¡°It would be hard to find a better ce,¡± Le agreed as she weighed down her machete in her hand. ¡°How are we going to do it, then?¡±

    ¡°I will take the front with Nadia,¡± Mathew gave his orders. ¡°We will leave just enough space for some to slip through so that you and Daniel can take care of them,¡± he exined.

    ¡°What about me?¡± Daria asked, the look on her face proving her recent injury only served to motivate her further rather than putting her morale down.

    ¡°Eager for revenge, aren¡¯t you?¡± Mathewmented with a small smile before shaking his head. ¡°Just like Le and Daniel will make sure the stragglers won¡¯t get on our back, you need to do the same for them,¡± the young man borated a little on his n.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Daria said as she pursed her lips and looked away.

    ¡®She isn¡¯t happy,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. ¡®Was it really a good idea toe here before leveling up some more?¡¯

    The hesitation was a natural part of Mathew¡¯s thoughts at this point. Yet, the benefit of growing used to the doubts was that he could keep them at bay.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this, then,¡± Mathew said, opting to cut his indecisiveness with actions. He then grabbed a wide b that held the massive doors together before throwing it aside. ¡°Here we go!¡±

    Mathew kicked the doors open. He could do so only because the zombies treated it as a part of the wall and simply stood around rather than trying to force their way through.

    ¡°Come at me, rotting pieces of shit,¡± Mathew called out.

    He added the bit of obscenity just to hype himself up. For the zombies, it was his voice that attracted them rather than the meaning of what he said.

    And soon, Mathew had to fix his hold over his ax.

    Due to how narrow the entryway to the building was, he grabbed his weapon as high as he could and slide his hand on the handle. Due to the de extending down from where it was mounted, it then covered Mathew¡¯s handpletely, allowing him to operate the weapon in an entirely different way.

    ¡®It¡¯s like having gloves that can cut,¡¯ Mathew thought as he shed at the iing zombies.

    sh after sh, he continued to decrease their numbers.

    The normal zombies stood no chance against his system-improved strength. And when he would slide his hand to the side, a zombie¡¯s neck would be no obstacle on the path of his de.<sub></sub>

    To Mathew¡¯s side, Nadia immersed herself in the battle as well. And just like one could predict from the member of the group with the highest level, her speed was on an entirely different level.

    ¡°Kick the corpses away!¡± Mathew called out after he dug his elbow into the neck of a nearby zombie before bouncing his arm and pushing it forward to decapitate another enemy.

    ¡°I know, I know!¡± Nadia replied leisurely, shing zombies with her machete as if she was beautifying a hedge in some high-ss garden.

    The only difference was that instead of colorful petals trimmed off the hedge,  her moves sttered droplets of red, thick blood all over the ce.

    ¡°Leave some for us,e on!¡± Le protested from the back.

    ¡®Oh, right,¡¯ Mathew shook himself out of the battle frenzy, taking a step back to open some more space between himself and Nadia.

    ¡®I immersed myself in the battle so much that I ended up forgetting about the n,¡¯ he thought, biting down on his lip while kicking and shoving several monsters to the back, giving others the chance to fight some as well.

    Pop.

    Right in the corner of Mathew¡¯s vision, a notification appeared.<sub></sub>

    It had a form of a see-through, blue rectangle that Mathew could easily see, yet had to focus on.

    It held exactly the same message that the young man saw many times before.

    Yet, as moments of the fight turned into minutes and minutes into the hour, notifications in Mathew¡¯s vision started to grow at the same rate as did his exhaustion.

    ¡°How many did we get so far?¡± Mathew asked when his body failed to perfectly execute the attack he nned for the very first time.

    ¡°At least half a thousand,¡± Nadia replied shortly, saving her breath for the fighting.

    ¡°Daria!¡± Mathew called out. ¡°Can youe here?¡±

    ¡°Give me a second!¡± the girl shouted over, keeping her words short just like everyone else.

    ¡°I won¡¯t hold on for much longer,¡± Daniel reported from the back.

    ¡®Shit,¡¯ Mathew cursed in his thoughts. ¡®And here I wanted Daria to check if we culled enough of them to put a dent in their density,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    ¡°I¡¯ming!¡± Daria called out, pushing through the mass of zombies in the entryway at an extremely slow rate.

    ¡°Actually, it doesn¡¯t matter anymore,¡± Mathew shouted back, dropping his earlier idea. ¡®Even if we could open a path to that building, there is no way for us to keep a corridor if we are tired,¡¯ the young man realized before gritting his teeth and turning his head to Nadia.

    Over the course of the extended battle, she moved out of the narrow entrance and stood just two steps ahead, breaking the waves of the zombies before they could face Mathew in the doorway.

    ¡°Nadia, retreat!¡± the young man called over. ¡°I¡¯m going to clean the area of the doors to close them!¡±

    There was no point sticking to the n if they couldn¡¯t handle what it took.

    ¡®There is no point in pushing ourselves now,¡¯ Mathew decided. ¡®There is no way anyone could keep up with our pace of growth, so we can afford to take it easy,¡¯ he thought, perfectly aware of the dangers that other humans would pose in a world of apocalypse.

    ¡°Let¡¯s wrap it up for today!¡± Mathew shouted again right as Nadia started to retreat.

    ¡°Everyone, get to the main hall and hide away from the st!¡± Mathew gave hisst order. He then aimed his des at the skull of the nearest, actually red-eyed zombie.

    The attack alone was enough to split the zombie¡¯s skull open. It was also the one and only hit that Mathew needed to finish it off.

    Yet, rather than turning around to face another adversary, Mathew dropped his ax to the ground before digging his hand into the zombie¡¯s brains.

    ¡°Make ready!¡± Mathew shouted, wrapping his fingers around the core in his right hand while grasping at the ax¡¯s handle with his left.

    And then, just like many times before, Mathew directed all the energy that he could sense within himself towards his hand, before dropping it down and crushing the core in his palm against the pavement of the building¡¯s courtyard.

    A shockwave produced sted all the zombies away from Mathew¡¯s proximity.

    A small portion of it rushed through the open doors, pushing a huge amount of zombie corpses and zombies alike through the entryway and into the empty space of the main hallway.

    And then, everything came to an end, allowing for an eerie silence to momentarily fill Mathew¡¯s surroundings.

    ¡°Time to go get some rest,¡± Mathew summed the situation up, calmly raising from his knees and taking a short stroll towards the entrance before closing the doors, unbothered by a single zombie, and blocking them off with a b.

    He then turned around to look at the messy insides of the hallway.

    ¡°What are you waiting for?¡± he asked, looking at members of his group hiding from the wrath of the shockwave he unleashed. So he raised his arm and pointed at one of the zombies that survived the mayhem and ended up inside.

    ¡°Finish them off!¡±

    It was a simple order, yet crucial one. Because while only a few zombies ended up forced into the building, if they managed to escape their attention, the rtive safety of the building¡¯s insides would be gone!

    ¡°Leave this to me,¡± Nadia quickly volunteered. She then stopped right where the mess of zombie remains started. And as she looked around, a small smile formed on her face.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if we got five hundred,¡± she stated before moving her eyes to Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°But we got quite a haul, didn¡¯t we?¡±

 Chapter 146 The woman that fights the patriarchate and healthy diet alike

    `Before Mathew¡¯s group arrived at the media building, its halls were in nearly perfect order. Outside a stray stic cup here and a candy wrapping there, one couldn¡¯t see a single w in its cleanliness.

    And roughly an hour after reaching the building, Mathew¡¯s group turned one of its main, representative hallways into a butcher¡¯s paradise.

    ¡°How are we standing so far?¡± Mathew asked after plucking out yet another core from the zombie remains. He then turned around and raised his hand before wiping his forehead with his forearm, wary of spreading the blood from his hands to his face.

    ¡°Three hundred here,¡± Nadia reported from the corner where she counted the cores others brought to her.

    ¡°I should have about fifty more in my pile,¡± Daniel reported a momentter from where he kept his own pile of zombie remains.

    ¡°And about a hundred here, huh?¡± Mathew added, more to himself than to anyone else. He then jerked his head and looked to the side. ¡°How about Norbert?¡± he asked while looking over at Daria. ¡°Did he make any contact?¡±

    ¡°Not yet,¡± the girl shook her head. She then looked around only to purse her lips, look at Mathew and then shake her head sideways again. ¡°Also, fifty-three cores here,¡± she added while raising a makeshift bag that she filled with cores plucked out of the zombie¡¯s heads.

    ¡°Then keep watching,¡± Mathew summed up before turning up and tearing up a piece of cloth from one of the corpses that he took upon himself to harvest.

    This sort of simple, makeshift bag already proved its value in temporarily storing the cores so there was no point in looking for an alternative. And with the cores from Mathew¡¯s pile safely stored in his bag, he rose up to his feet before bringing them all to where Nadia continued to count every single one of them.

    ¡°He is here,¡± Daria added after just a short moment, right as Mathew was passing his bag to his beloved.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°Thanks,¡± he said before closing his eyes.

    ¡°In a moment, a friend I made will make contact with you,¡± Norbert¡¯s ghost announced as soon as Mathew closed his eyes and allowed it to invade his thoughts.

    ¡°Got it,¡± the young man nodded her head before opening his eyes.

    And just like Norbert announced, it wasn¡¯t even a minute before someone appeared in the darkness of the further parts of the main corridor.

    ***

    One and a half hours before

    ***

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m all on my own now,¡± Norbert muttered to himself once everyone else left to grind down the zombies. He then looked through the window, eager to see his group-mates appearing outside.

    ¡®I guess it won¡¯t happen,¡¯ Norbert thought after a moment. No matter how long he would linger by the window, he wouldn¡¯t see others appearing.<sub></sub>

    And it was all because the ce he pointed them out as the most favorable for their ns wasn¡¯t anywhere close to being visible from his window.

    ¡°Since I¡¯m stuck waiting, I might as well make myself useful,¡± Norbert muttered to himself before moving to the corner of the room where his group happened to n their future action out.

    He then took off his jacket, the only piece of his equipment left that he refused to let go. Even though it was in shambles, it was still the onest piece that allowed others to identify him as a policeman, after all.

    ¡®In this way, I shouldn¡¯t draw too much attention,¡¯ Norbert thought to himself as he covered his entire, curled-up body with the jacket, making his entire self look like just a random pile of trash.

    ¡®Now then,¡¯ the officer thought before closing his eyes and immersing himself in his ability.

    The experience of bing a ghost was quite peculiar. It started with Norbert suddenly gaining awareness of his surroundings despite keeping his eyes closed. Then, his vision would raise to the level roughly a meter above his head, before the officer would obtain full control over moving his focus point.

    Norbert couldn¡¯t move his ghost like he would a drone or a magical camera. He changed the position of his point of view by focusing on different objects, then waiting for the image to rify. Once this step would be done, Norbert would be free to repeat the process, pushing his ghostly apparition even further than he could previously.

    ¡®They are getting ready, huh?¡¯ the officer thought when he found the location of the rest of his group. Yet, rather than lingering there and watching how they decided on a formation before deploying themselves to each of their desired spots, Norbert continued to scout the insides of the building.

    ¡®All of the lower floors are empty,¡¯ he noticed roughly ten minutes ago.<sub></sub>

    Every change of perspective would take a few seconds at most. As such, even when adding the periodical sweeps that Norbert performed in the wide area around his body, checking every nook and cranny of the building was an easy task.

    And a task that Norbertpleted in less than a quarter of an hour, leaving him with just the topmost floor of the entire building.

    ¡®I guess I can¡¯t avoid it for much longer,¡¯ he thought, before pushing his consciousness towards the one area that he had yet to check.

    The majority of the upper floors were exactly like the rest of the building. Devoid of any human presence or any traps that Norbert could take notice of.

    ¡®They don¡¯t seem to have a merchant here,¡¯ he thought when he finally brought himself to check the one room where he saw the disgusting performance before.

    Yet, despite being prepared for the sorry sights inside, Norbert could barely keep his emotions in check. Yet, it wasn¡¯t rage that filled his soul.

    It was disbelief.

    The ball of fat that likely called itself a woman and great warrior in the war against patriarchate and healthy diet alike, sat in a throne-like chair in the very middle of the room.

    She was surrounded both by men and other women alike, all of whom eagerly tended to all her needs.

    Two guys continued to fan her with a huge piece of looked like a tapestry reinforced with pieces of wood. The guy that Norbert saw licking the fatso¡¯s feet before was currently massaging her back while two girls in the middle of their thirties massager her feet.

    It was a peculiar sight, yet one that was warranted by just a single element of the picture. And it was the semi-automatic shotgun resting on the fat woman¡¯sp with her finger locked against the trigger.

    ¡®Daughter of a whore,¡¯ Norbert thought as he dived around the room, trying to look for clues that the rest of the party could use when storming the roomter on.

    Sadly, the woman clearly did her homework. And outside of the main door and a back door situated on the side of the room, there was no other entrance that one could take.

    ¡®And both doors are well within both view and shooting range of hers,¡¯ the officer thought. Yet, as he nced through the room once again, a sudden idea popped into his mind.

    ¡°Hey,¡± Norbert¡¯s ghost spoke out as soon as he saw the massaging man lower his eyelids.

    The guy brought his eyelids up, looking around to answer whoever called him.

    And then his face froze when he noticed not a single soul in his vincity attempted to make contact.

    ¡°What the hell are you cking off for?!¡± the fatso shouted, raising the barrel of her gun and resting it against her shoulder so that the weapon was aimed in the general direction of the unlucky fellow.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡± the guy instantly cried out, focusing back on the massage.

    And once he closed his eyes again¡­

    ¡°Stay silent and don¡¯t make even the slightest move,¡± Norbert said upon noticing that this time, fatso closed her eyes as well. ¡°We don¡¯t want our sniper to hit you by ident, don¡¯t we?¡±

    The fatso jerked off like a ball kicked by a ser yer.

    She pushed herself forward¡­ or rather, rolled off her chair only to end up sitting on the floor.

    ¡®Or is she lying?¡¯ Norbert thought, confused.

    The woman was simply too fat for him to figure out whether she attempted toy down or not.

    ¡°WHO IS THIS?!¡± the fatso called out, looking around and dragging the barrel of her shotgun around, ready to obliterate the one who dared to scare her like that.

    ¡°Damn it!¡± Norbert eximed,ing up with a n right on the spot. ¡°Can you make her move? Even a bit? This is the only spot that we don¡¯t have an angle for,¡± he bullshited his way, using the timing when the woman would close her eyes to speak.

    That was enough for the woman to open her eyes wide and continue iling her shotgun around before freezing in terror.

    ¡°And now that she can¡¯t hear me anymore, information just for you,¡± Norbert said as he forcefully stopped a giggle froming out. ¡°Find a way to get to the lower floors. Once you get there, we will figure out how to settle this situation.¡±

 Chapter 147 We will depose that despot

    ***

    Back to the present

    ***

    ¡°Come out to the light,¡± Mathew said as soon as he noticed the figure hiding in the shadows.

    Despite the risk of attracting the zombies, the area where they organized both the staging ground against monsters and where they harvested and then counted the zombie cores was perfectly lit.

    After all, it was hard to find out the cores in the depths of the zombies¡¯ slimy brains. Doing so without any light would make this task maybe not impossible, but way too time-consuming for Mathew andpany to bother.

    As a result, while their part of the corridor was well lit, as long as one walked just several meters deeper into the hallway, the area would turn dark pretty quickly.

    ¡°I¡¯m unarmed,¡± the man in the shadows reported, slowlying forward with both of his hands armed.

    ¡°He is telling the truth,¡± Norbert whispered as soon as Mathew blinked.

    ¡°Then stop hiding and juste out,¡± Mathew ordered while rolling his eyes. ¡°We won¡¯t harm those that do not wish us harm,¡± he added, hoping to encourage the other party.

    The young man finally walked into the zone that was somewhat lit, allowing Mathew¡¯s party to see him.<sub>.</sub>

    He appeared slightly older than Mathew and his girls, either around Norbert¡¯s age or just a little bit younger than him.

    His handscked the calluses of someone working physically while his well-kept face and hair fitted the presentation of an office worker.

    ¡®He managed to stay so well-kept through an entire day of the apocalypse?¡¯ Mathew thought, his opinion of the man plummeting right away.

    ¡°I¡¯m Robert,¡± the young man announced when he finally reached the properly illuminated part of the corridor. ¡°And I mean no harm to any of you. Contrary, I came here to ask for a favor.¡±

    ¡®Why am I not surprised?¡¯ Mathew thought, stopping his eyes from rolling with the utmost effort of his willpower. ¡°And does that favor have anything to do with the people kept in the shed outside?¡± Mathew asked, unwilling to give the man any time to organize his thoughts.

    He had all the time in the world to figure out what he wanted to say before.

    ¡®If I want him to be honest, I need to press him a little,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Robert replied while nodding his head, yet, he kept his hand raised high at all times. ¡°To be perfectly honest, I don¡¯t give a fuck about most of them, I joined thepany two days ago so I have yet to properly introduce myself to most of the victims¡­¡±

    ¡°But¡­?¡± Nadia asked, seeing through Robert¡¯s sentence and what it was aimed at.

    ¡°But my girlfriend was also picked as a sacrifice,¡± Robert stated, turning his eyes and looking directly into Nadia¡¯s face. ¡°And if you can save her, I¡¯m willing to do anything that¡¯s within the realm of possibility.¡±<sub></sub>

    ¡°That¡¯s quite a bold statement from someone who can¡¯t contribute anything at all,¡± Mathew countered while raising one of his eyebrows.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Robert opened his mouth and even let the first syble out, only to close his lips right back and avert his eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t really know what to say¡­¡±

    ¡°That will be enough,¡± Daniel spoke out, looking at Mathew with dissatisfaction. He then turned his head and looked at the neer. ¡°We were going to save all of them anyway. Now that you know it, try to figure out how you could be of use for us in turn,¡± he exined the situation.

    ¡®Oh how naive you are,¡¯ Mathew despaired in his thoughts. ¡®You might be a policeman, but the moral code you follow right now is¡­ empty.¡¯

    Mathew could understand Daniel¡¯s approach. But that didn¡¯t mean he was willing to ept or even worse, endorse it.

    ¡®And now that he knows we are going to save his girlfriend anyway, what leverage do you expect for us to have over him?¡¯

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Robert replied, cutting Mathew¡¯s thoughts short. ¡°If you want, I can help you restore the operations of this building?¡± he suggested, only for his voice to take a turn and hesitate.

    ¡°Mathew?¡± Daniel turned his eyes towards the young man again. ¡°I believe you are the one who should decide what we want to know or what to do with him,¡± he pointed out.

    ¡°First off, how far did you go with your girlfriend?¡± Mathew asked as a small smile twitched upon his lips.

    ¡°Hai?¡± Robert jumped a little, the sudden twist of the conversation taking him by a surprise.<sub></sub>

    ¡°I think this question is pretty simple though?¡± Mathew pretended to be stupefied by Robert¡¯s reaction. He then turned his eyes towards his girls. ¡°Is there something hard to understand about my question?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Nothing at all,¡± Nadia answered while shaking her head to the sides.

    Yet, deep behind her seemingly stoic expression, Mathew could see a hint of dissatisfaction.

    ¡®I can tell what she thinks about this turn of the topic,¡¯ he thought, hiding a small smirk from appearing on his face.

    ¡°We are regrly sleeping together,¡± Robert took a breath and replied, raising his eyes to look directly into Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°Are you happy now?¡± he then asked while tightening his fists.

    ¡°Not really,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°That means one less ace in my hand,¡± he added before openly clicking his tongue and then spitting on the ground. ¡°Well then, how about ways to get to that room where that despot is without giving her a clear shot on us?¡±

    There were three things that Mathew hoped to aplish in the media building. And all three of them eventually aimed at the same result.

    First, he had to ensure he had someone with a system that was ready and willing to defend this building with their life. Secondly came defeating all the potential opposition and getting rid of those who could hamper Mathew¡¯s attempt at expanding here.

    And then,st but not least, came establishing an actual fortress.

    ¡®In a sense, we started from the ass side, didn¡¯t we?¡¯ Mathew thought in a momentary reflection when his eyes moved over all the cores his group managed to gather in a single skirmish against the zombie army outside.

    ¡°Getting there without having that filthy bitch notice you?¡± Robert reiterated Mathew¡¯s request. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to say, but there is no way. She used to be the secretary of the director here. And ever since her personality suddenly changed, she made sure to pick the one ce that¡¯s easiest to defend in the entire building.¡±

    Robert¡¯s head leaned down as he pinned his eyes to his shoes.

    ¡°I can¡¯t give you any form of ess or information about one that wouldpensate for the advantage she obtained right from the start,¡± he stated before raising his eyes and looking at the faces of Mathew¡¯s group. ¡°But I believe I know how you can obtain an element of surprise.¡±

    ¡®Hah?¡¯ Mathew nearly jumped, not expecting the guy to be of any use. He already managed to ssify Robert along with all the other freeloaders that he saved back in the schoolpound.

    ¡®I was originally willing to keep him, just in case he could be of useter like the rest of system-less survivors,¡¯ Mathew thought, resting his back against the wall before leaning forward a little. ¡®But to think he could actually contribute anything¡­¡¯

    ¡°Speak, then,¡± Mathew ordered. ¡°There isn¡¯t any point in trying to save the others if we will have to constantly be worried about someone stabbing us in the back,¡± he exined his wish.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if that was one of your guys¡­ or girls,¡± Rober said and then added after ncing over at Nadia for a second. ¡°But there was a voice that led me here,¡± he exined. ¡°And that voice easily made a fool of that bitch, making her cover on the ground in fear of the sniper,¡± he exined.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew, this time, didn¡¯t hide his surprise. ¡°Norbert?¡± he muttered, only to bite himself in the tongue.

    ¡®And what you are mentioning him for, now?¡¯ Mathew was quick to scold himself for freely revealing information to someone whose loyalty he wasn¡¯t sure off.

    ¡°So I was right¡­¡± Robert muttered, heaving a deep sigh and slumping down where he stood. ¡°Also,¡± he raised his voice back to its normal range, ¡°can I lower my hands already?¡± he asked, waving them a bit to the sides. ¡°I¡¯m not really used to keeping them raised¡­¡±

    ¡°I think we stressed him out enough,¡± Nadia suddenly spoke out, the expression on her face mellowing down. ¡°So, what¡¯s the n?¡± she then asked, turning her eyes back to Mathew.

    ¡°You guys are really too soft,¡± Mathew muttered, shaking his head in disbelief.

    Yet, at the same time, the young man was hardly surprised.

    ¡®I wouldn¡¯t fall in love with her if she were any different,¡¯ he thought, looking at Nadia before moving his eyes on Robert.

    ¡°Fine, then,¡± Mathew said. ¡°First, we will make sure to depose that despot, then we will continue grinding the zombies down and in the meantime, we will look for someone suitable to be left here once we are done,¡± the young man formted the next steps of their n.

    He then pressed his back against the wall, pushing himself away from the wall.

    ¡°Before we get to nning how to get that¡­¡± he took a moment to nce over at Robert, ¡°Before we get that bitch down, there is one thing that I¡¯m really curious about,¡± he stated.

    Mathew then crossed all the distance that separated him from Robert. And contrary to Nadia¡¯s wish, he refused for even his expression to soften.

    ¡°What exactly did you mean by her personality changing?¡±

 Chapter 148 Splitting tasks

    ¡°Exactly what you expect from those words,¡± Robert borated. ¡°After the director died while trying to investigate the area where the zombies first appeared, that bitch cracked open the guy¡¯s safe and pulled out the gun she threatens everyone with right now,¡± he exined.

    ¡°Right as the apocalypse started, huh?¡± Mathew reiterated the point that he found the most puzzling.

    ¡®Is this another scheme of the beings behind the apocalypse?¡¯ he suggested himself, conveniently showing all the responsibility for such an event on an entity that he couldn¡¯t even prove existed.

    ¡®But it wouldn¡¯t make any sense otherwise. I know most of the office and corporation workers have psychotic tendencies due to the nature of their work, but not to a such degree!¡¯ Mathew argued with himself, nearly going as far as to bite down on his fingernail in frustration.

    Problems like that were a source of both Mathew¡¯s excitement, as they could lead him to more knowledge about the apocalypse, but also annoyance, as it constantly reminded him how little he knew about it.

    ¡®Did she get infected with a different type of virus? Is she steered by some evolved zombie? Or maybe she is actually an evolved zombie that specialized in mimicking humans?¡¯

    ¡°Well, I won¡¯t figure it out without learning more about the situation,¡± Mathew summed up out loud, shaking both his shoulders and then his head to regain focus.

    ¡°What¡¯s the n, then?¡± Daniel asked after patiently waiting for Mathew¡¯s expressions to change, indicating the end of yet another of his internal bouts.<sub>.</sub>

    Even though the two had only known each other for slightly more than a day and a half, Daniel was quick to pick up the patterns behind Mathew¡¯s behavior.

    ¡°I¡¯m kind of tempted to try doing both things at once,¡± Mathew admitted, alternating his eyes between the doors and Robert¡¯s face.

    ¡°Grinding down the zombies and taking control over the building?¡± Daniel asked just to make sure he was on the same page as the young man.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°If we keep killing the zombies we will force them to make a move,¡± he stated while bringing out his hand only to point at the ceiling to indicate who he had on mind. ¡°On the other hand, we could dedicate everyone¡¯s time to control the upstairs, but that just feels like a waste of time,¡± Mathew admitted, the grimace that went up on his mouth showcased just how troubling this issue was for him.

    ¡°If it¡¯s the case of disarming a gun newbie, then you can leave it to me,¡± Daniel stated, a confident smile emerging on his lips. He then raised his hand and patted himself on the right side of his chest, where his badge should be. ¡°It might be a thing of the past, but I spent quite a long time on a battlefield,¡± he pointed out, the corners of his lips moving up even higher. ¡°As such, I believe I¡¯m the best fit for this mission.¡±

    ¡°That makes sense,¡± Mathew nodded his head. Faced with a vet-turned-policeman, he couldn¡¯t help but admit the truth behind Daniel¡¯s words.

    After all, the other best choice from their group would be Nadia as she boasted the greatest agility of them all. Yet, just the fact that she was quick wouldn¡¯t necessarily prove to outweigh the experience of a war veteran.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Let¡¯s do just that, then,¡± Mathew quickly came to a decision before stepping forward and cing his hand on Daniel¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I will leave Norbert with you,¡± he said only to close his eyes while still keeping his hand on the officer¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Phui!¡± one of the girls to the back couldn¡¯t stop her giggle.

    ¡®I know it has to lookical,¡¯ Mathew thought, more than aware how it would look for someone of his posture to pat a former policeman twice his weight and one and a half his height on the shoulder. ¡®Just put up with it, brother,¡¯ he told himself, swallowing his shame as he focused on the task.

    ¡°Did you hear it?¡± Mathew asked, his eyes still closed.

    ¡°Yup,¡± Norbert wasted no time replying, only making Mathew worry about the safety of their surrounding.

    ¡°Then you know what, before we begin, I want you to do a full sweep of the area,¡± Mathew suddenly proposed, putting their ns at a momentary halt.

    ¡°Is¡­ is this really necessary?¡± Norbert asked with a doubtful voice. ¡°It¡¯s not like there is anyone with a system in this building beside us,¡± he pointed out.<sub></sub>

    ¡°And besides an insane woman with a shotgun,¡± Mathew pointed out on a counter. ¡°And no matter how strong we got from the systems, I doubt we could stop a slug with a far. A bullet would prate our skin the same way it would go through the body of someone without a system.¡¯

    Mathew couldn¡¯t be sure whether his words were correct. After all, there was a chance they grew strong enough not to fear a bullet striking them anywhere but their vitals.

    Yet, the opposite also could be true. Only a proper set of testing could shed some light on the issue, yet the risks and potential costs of conducting such a test were regretfully way above the price Mathew was willing to pay.

    ¡°Daniel will be able to deal with her,¡± Norbert said without even a shred of doubt. ¡°I once saw him get attacked in the bar. Three assassins approached him from the back. And then¡­¡±

    ¡°And then he killed them all with a pencil,¡± Mathew replied in a calm voice, spoiling the backstory of a certain move that Norbert was clearly trying to y off as Daniel¡¯s work. ¡°With a fucking pencil!¡± he added, repeating the exact lines from the movie.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Norbert hesitated. ¡°Only slightly removed from the truth,¡± he then added, clearly taking his time to sort his thoughts to avoid embarrassment. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a pencil but a chair,¡± he then added in a rxed manner as if he just announced the type of dish everyone would have for dinner.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew opened his eyes, so shocked that he forgot he had to keep them closed to converse with the ghostly version of his ally. ¡°Wait,¡± he shook his head to the sides before closing his eyes again. ¡°That was for real?¡±

    ¡°I would rather if you didn¡¯t discuss my past like that,¡± Daniel interjected in the discussion while reaching out, grabbing Mathew¡¯s hand and then shaking it a little to pull him out of a conversation with Norbert.

    ¡°And there it goes, his tsundere side,¡± Norbert giggled right before Daniel¡¯s shaking forced Mathew to cut the discussion and open his eyes.

    ¡°Well then, for how surprising that was, I can¡¯t say it¡¯s a knowledge unwee,¡± the young man stated with a small, still confused smile.

    ¡°Should I wait, then?¡± Daniel asked, shaking off the slight blush from his cheeks before casting a curious nce at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Feel free,¡± the young man replied with a shake of his shoulders. ¡°Happy hunting, both of you,¡± he added when the officer turned around and headed down the darkness of the hall.

    Even though the sun was still high in the sky, this particr part of the building somehow ended with only a few windows, all of which were located in the three areas where the main hall intersected with the subsidiary corridors.

    Mathew turned his head back towards Robert and the rest of his group once he could no longer see Daniel¡¯s back in the darkness of the hall.

    ¡°With that said, how about we go back to the job?¡± Mathew suggested, nodding his head towards the bloodied area of the doors.

    ¡°Excuse me¡­¡± Robert muttered and reluctantly raised his hand before anyone could answer Mathew¡¯s call. ¡°But is that guy going to be fine?¡± he asked before averting his eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t doubt your power, but how¡¯s he supposed to deal with someone armed and constantly aiming at the only two points of entry to the room?¡±

    Robert shook his head.

    ¡°And now that I ran away, that bitch is even more likely to be on her guard,¡± he added only to end up lowering his head in what could only be a silent apology.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry about him,¡± Mathew replied with a small, genuine smile. ¡°He used to serve in the army. And from what I heard, he is quite the man,¡± Mathew added, cursing the idea of praising another male right in front of his own, small harem.

    Yet, Mathew wouldn¡¯t be himself if he didn¡¯t follow a set of rules he found fitting for his lifestyle. And giving credit where credit was due, was one of those rules.

    ¡°Then the rest of you are going to go out and kill the zombies?¡± Robert asked, leaning his head to the side. ¡°Isn¡¯t that¡­ dangerous?¡±

    Mathew could only smile in response to the question.

    ¡°Of course it¡¯s dangerous,¡± Mathew said as a lenient smile appeared on his lips. ¡°But we are putting ourselves in danger now so that we can be in a lesser danger in the future!¡±

 Chapter 149 Why didnt they attack?

    ¡°I¡¯m ready!¡± Nadia reported from the head of the formation.

    ¡°Same here!¡± Le followed suit, reporting from the second line located right at the exit of the entryway.

    ¡°So am I,¡± Daria joined the roll call, waving her hand at Mathew from behind Le¡¯s back.

    With one member down from their initial setup, Mathew could no longer deploy his group in the same, favorable formation. Yet, the benefits of doing so anyway were simply too great to pass on.

    As such, rather than remodeling the entire thing to make the best use of everyone at once, Mathew opted to abandon the hopes of keeping the insides of the building perfectly safe.

    With only Le responsible for clearing out the zombies Mathew and Nadia would let through, she could easily get overwhelmed. And then, it would be all on Daria¡¯s shoulders to keep everyone safe by ughtering all the zombies that would pass through the group.

    It was all for the sake of keeping the one advantage Mathew wasn¡¯t willing to give up on. The advantage of fighting the zombies outside of the building¡¯s entrance.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this, then,¡± Mathew said as he nodded his head and took a step forward. He then ced his hand down on the metal b that kept the doors locked shut. Yet, before moving it away, Mathew stole a quick nce to his right.

    ¡°Are you really ready?¡± he asked, taking a long look at Nadia¡¯s face.

    He grew used to putting her right at the forefront of the danger. It was the rational choice given Nadia¡¯s statistics. Yet, this rational choice imposed Mathew to keep putting the love of his life into more and more danger rather than keeping Nadia as far out of harm¡¯s way as possible.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡®And that¡¯s why we need more people,¡¯ Mathew thought, right as Nadia turned her head around to look back into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine, you don¡¯t need to worry about me,¡± she replied with that insane, gentle smile of hers that could easily melt all of Mathew¡¯s worries and turn his soul into a state of bliss.

    Yet, as soon as her face turned towards the doors, the kind and delicate look on her face gave way to the ferocity she disyed in all of her fights so far.

    ¡°Let¡¯s not dawdle, then,¡± Mathew said, shaking his head before raising and then dropping the b down on the floor.

    ¡°REEEE!!!¡±

    An rmed cry rose on the other side of the doors, right as both Mathew and Nadia pushed their respective wing open. And contrary to how the fight started before, it was the zombies that attempted to draw the first blood this time.

    ¡°Those annoying pests,¡± Mathew cursed under his breath as he wiggled his weapon a little, giving it just enough momentum to smoothen the transition when he pulled it back, behind his head.

    And then, with a single, brutal swing that used his shoulder as the base of a leaver, Mathew cleaved right through the two zombies that rushed at him, leaving their halved corpses for Le to deal with.

    ¡°Don¡¯t waste your strength like that,¡± Nadia instructed, easily dealing with the few zombies that took her as a target. Rather than a fight, this sh turned into a leisure-grade activity for her, something on the same level as the thousand punches she would perform during every day of her martial arts practice.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Yes, teach,¡± Mathew replied, happy to use a moniker for the girl. And just like he announced, he made sure to bring the strength of his next attack to the bare minimum required to cut through the zombie¡¯s flesh and bones.

    ¡®It still takes quite a lot of power,¡¯ Mathew thought when he failed to measure his strength to the perfect degree, his ax locking itself on the discs of the zombie¡¯s spine.

    ¡®Well, no biggie,¡¯ Mathew thought, tensing his muscle and forcing the de through the bone anyway.

    Normally, shing something without any momentum on the de would be a near impossible task. Yet, with Mathew¡¯s system upgrades, he was just able to perform this seemingly unreal task.

    ¡°In the end, I wasted more energy,¡± Mathew muttered to himself, judging the results of attempting to follow Nadia¡¯s advice.

    ¡°No one gets good on the first try,¡± Nadiamented, sneaking right past Mathew the moment he dared to doubt her words. She then punched a zombie with her left hand, pushing it just far away for her machete to slit its head off its neck.

    ¡°Do you really think a fight with our lives on the line is a good time for me to learn such basics?¡± Mathew asked, kicking the torso of the zombie away before pushing the de of his ax against another enemy. ¡°You saw just how quickly I stumbled,¡± he then pointed out.

    ¡®It¡¯s not like I believe it¡¯s a good idea to learn how to fight better,¡¯ Mathew thought, clenching his teeth. ¡®But how about I start my practice in a somewhat safe ce?¡¯

    ¡°Stop whining,¡± Nadia said as a wide grin spurred on her face. ¡°The harder you sweat during the training, the less you bleed during the real fight,¡± she quoted one of the strategists of the ages gone.<sub></sub>

    ¡®She heard it during her lessons, I believe,¡¯ Mathew thought. Knowing the girl quite well, he could tell her interests didn¡¯t align with any other potential source that quote coulde from. ¡®Or maybe when she tried that game I rmended to her?¡¯

    While Mathew continued to struggle over this meaningless puzzle, his hands continued to do the work he signed up for. And with each second, a zombie¡¯s head or several of its body parts would end up cleaved away from the rest of its body, only to fall behind their extended line and end up well within Le¡¯s reach.

    ¡°Their influx is slowing down,¡± Daria shouted from the back, making the most out of time, given how no zombie managed to make it past Le yet.

    ¡°Did we cut through that many of them already?¡± Mathew asked out loud, stunned by the girl¡¯s remark.

    ¡®Sure, I got quite into the fight, but it wasn¡¯t even that long yet,¡¯ he thought, looking around his immediate surrounding.

    Daria¡¯s report didn¡¯t sit well with the young man because it was dissociated with what he expected. And after just a short look, Mathew managed to find the source of that dissociation.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is,¡± he thought as a small grin of interest appeared on his lips.

    The influx of new zombies indeed did slow down. Yet, that didn¡¯t mean Mathew¡¯s group cut through enough of the zombies to visually decrease their numbers yet.

    The answer to that questiony roughly a hundred meters away from the entrance. The orderly rows of red-eyed zombies stood by the back wall of the courtyard, refusing to buckle.

    ¡®There is a lot more of them than they were before,¡¯ Mathew thought. He then gripped his hands into fists, taking a step back to avoid a zombie rushing with its arms aimed at the young man¡¯s head.

    This one step was what cut Mathew¡¯s vision at the enemy in the back, forcing him back into the meaningless ughter of the small fries.

    ¡°We need to get back,¡± Mathew announced after clearing the zombies in his immediate area.

    The experiences of several hours earlier were still vivid in Mathew¡¯s memory. And with quite a lot of distance separating them from where the merchant and the touchable grass were, Mathew had no wish to risk another confrontation with the red-eyed zombies.

    Not if he could avoid it.

    And especially not when their numbers grew from just a few individuals into an army of several hundred.

    ¡®I really should¡¯ve kept Norbert¡¯s vision with us,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva as he slowly started his retreat back towards the entrance.

    ¡°Why are we backing out so quickly?¡± Nadia asked, refusing to move from her ce while waving her machete in aplicated dance that continued to smoothly deprive the nearest zombies out of their heads. ¡°I can still keep going!¡± she imed.

    ¡°We are going back,¡± Mathew repeated his order. He then lowered his ax, took a step to the side, and reached out to grab Nadia¡¯s arm. ¡°We are going back now!¡±

    This time, the girl listened. Yet, the sight of her startled and somewhat fearsome expression heavily stung Mathew¡¯s heart.

    With all the zombies they cleaned in the short amount of time, Mathew found it actually problematic to move over their remains to get back.

    ¡®Why didn¡¯t they attack?¡¯ he asked himself once he finally climbed up the impromptu barricade. Yet, rather than sliding or jumping down to reach the doors, Mathew turned his head and looked to the back.

    And there they were, the red eyes zombies. Standing in their orderly formation, looking exactly like the zombies that initiallyid siege to the school¡¯spound.

    And yet, even though Mathew could tell that all those red eyes were aimed at him, not a single one of those strange zombies made even a single step forward.

    ¡®Strange,¡¯ Mathew thought, before turning his focus back to the topic at hand, dropping down from the pile of remains and then finally hiding back in the entrance.

    ¡°And that¡¯s it for now,¡± Daria muttered a secondter, as she shut down the doors and blocked its wings with the same metal b that Mathew dropped on the ground before. ¡°And we¡¯ve got quite a haul,¡± she added as she looked over all the heads that filled the entryway.

    ¡°Strange,¡± Mathew muttered to himself, as he ignored the girl¡¯s remark and moved back into the hall. ¡°Why didn¡¯t they attack?¡±

 Chapter 150 Call of the weapon

    ¡°Why are you so down?¡± Daria asked once Mathew pulled himself out of his shocked state. ¡°Didn¡¯t we get quite a lot of cores?¡± she then asked, spreading her arms and pointing at all the zombie¡¯s heads littering the floor.

    Some of them still moved. Without a trauma directly to the brain, they wouldn¡¯t cease to exist. Yet, thanks to the vitality of everyone in Mathew¡¯s group, any idental bites hardly posed any risk.

    ¡®At most, those would amount to an annoyance,¡¯ Mathew thought before dropping the bottom of his ax and smashing the skull of the nearest mobile head.

    ¡°We certainly did.¡± Mathew heaved a deep sigh. He then rested his hands on his hips before turning around and looking at the locked doors. ¡°But I don¡¯t understand why they didn¡¯t attack,¡± he revealed without much hesitation.

    ¡°Those zombies at the back?¡± Daria asked before ncing over in the same direction. ¡°Maybe the area is too narrow?¡± she guessed while raising her hand and then scratching the side of her head.

    ¡°Those red-eyed zombies are influenced by that evolved one from before,¡± Nadia joined in, giving her own perspective on the topic. ¡°Maybe that evolved one doesn¡¯t want to fight us in this narrow space?¡± she then suggested while pointing her right at the messy entryway.

    ¡°That surely could be a point,¡± Mathew muttered, lowering his eyes and then rising his thumb to his mouth only to bite on its fingernail. ¡°And we still need to kill a few hundred to get the stones we need,¡± he then added.

    ¡®Well, there is no point in wasting time,¡¯ Mathew thought, shaking his head and all the bothersome thoughts along with it. ¡®We should summon the first merchant,¡¯ he decided, instantly moving in to grab the cores his group gathered before the second attack.

    ¡°This ce should be as good as any,¡± Mathew muttered as he counted a hundred cores before throwing them up and ahead.

    The cores lit up, responding to Mathew¡¯s inner wish. And in the usual sh of light, they all disintegrated.

    As the bright sh of light slowly dimmed, there was a figure standing right where Mathew¡¯s cores ceased to be a moment earlier.

    ¡°Okay guys, what do we need?¡± Mathew asked, turning himself back to the rest of his team.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°A better weapon would be nice,¡± Nadia chimed in to Mathew¡¯s tune with ease. She then raised her machete and took a critical look at the state of the de. ¡°This one is good and all, but if we are going against those red-eyed ones, shouldn¡¯t we power up a little?¡± the girl then suggested, turning her eyes and staring intensely at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Fine,¡± the young man smiled. ¡°I never expected to be able to spoil you by getting you a new weapon,¡± he giggled, hiding his mouth behind his fist. ¡°Any other requests?¡± Mathew then asked, turning his eyes to the rest of the girls.

    ¡°Some meds, just in case?¡± Daria suggested, leaning her head to the side. ¡°I mean, it¡¯s better to have some contingency in case of heavy injuries,¡± she then exined her line of thought. ¡°The school might not be that far, but it¡¯s still a considerable distance in a critical situation.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°How about you?¡± he then turned his eyes to Le.

    Only for the girl to shake her head sideways.

    ¡°No clue,¡± she said as she shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Sure, a new weapon would be nice, but I don¡¯t really know what else I can ask for,¡± she exined her own perspective.

    ¡°Right, that¡¯s kinda true,¡± Mathew nodded his head. He then checked the weight of the makeshift pouch with all the remaining cores.

    ¡°In total, we should have a bit over a thousand by now,¡± Nadia quickly pointed out after throwing a nce throughout the room.

    It was only a rough guess, as no one could perfectly count all the heads with cores still inside.

    ¡°Well then, wish me luck,¡± Mathew waved his hand before stepping forth and grabbing at the merchant¡¯s swirling darkness hidden underneath its hood.

    ¡®It¡¯s the usual,¡¯ he thought when the shadows surged past him, enveloping the young man within reach of the merchant¡¯s subspace.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Wee to the outpost merchant,¡± a metallic voice filled the shadowy realm Mathew found himself in.

    ¡®So there is something new,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his eyebrow in reaction to the wee message.

    Yet, when his eyes moved down at the actual content of the subspace, the weing voice instantly evaporated from his head.

    ¡°That¡¯s an improvement for sure,¡± Mathew muttered to himself as he approached a set of five different pirs.

    They consisted of a decorative foot of a pir, rooting the entire construction in ce. An elegant, perfectly sculpted column grew out of the foot, swirling like some sort of vines only to support the pedestal itself.

    The elevated tform wasn¡¯t just this, a tform to disy an object. Because outside of a small ring that was fitted right at the topmost part of the column, the tform itself appeared more like a marble tablet rather than just an element of furniture.

    Mathew moved forward and reached out.

    He couldn¡¯t really tell what prompted him to do it, what sort of intent invaded his brain. Yet, following this intent, his hand grabbed the edge of the circle right below the tform only to turn it clockwise.

    The ring turned for thirty degrees when Mathew felt a small click with his fingers.

    And the hologram disying a simple knife suddenly turned into a hologram disying a machete.

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a step back and looking at all five pirs.<sub></sub>

    With the exception of the one the young man just tested, there was a pir with a hologram of a sandwich, one with a bandage, one with an ancient-looking scroll, and then thest one disyed just a simple note.

    ¡°Food, medicinal supplies, skills, and information?¡± Mathew muttered under his nose, assigning categories to each of the pirs. ¡°And weapons,¡± he added under his nose as his eyes moved back to the first pir he tested.

    Mathew then moved right back to the weapons pir before starting to move the ring further and further.

    The first object was the knife that Mathew saw. Next came the exact replica of the weapons the girls were using. And after that, came Mathew¡¯s own fireman¡¯s ax.

    ¡®I guess all of those are just the basic kinds of the weapons,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling the one piece of knowledge he gained just yesterday, yet one that felt like it was ages since he learned about it. ¡®And that means, the weapons we have are way better than those.¡¯

    With the amount of zombie blood that each of their weapons shed, they turned sharper, more resilient, and easier to handle. It was as if the word itself was rewarding them for taking the zombies head-on.

    Mathew scrolled the wheel even further¡­ And the fourth weapon came up.

    This time, it was a katana. A weapon that Mathew saw countless times in the manga and anime he watched in the past.

    Weapon cherished by all the otakus across the words. One that was hailed as the peak of craftsmanship.

    ¡°Are you for real?¡± Mathew muttered, his eyes opening wide. ¡°Is this a joke?¡± he then added, only to shake his head and scroll even further.

    ¡®There is no denying that katana is a good weapon, especially a well-crafted one,¡¯ Mathew thought, disappointed by how cringe and stereotypical the system turned out to be. ¡®But it¡¯s by no means a weapon worth the name created around it.¡¯

    Mathew heaved a deep sigh before pushing the ring just a little bit more.

    And the weapon that came out made Mathew¡¯s eyes sparkle.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about!¡± the young man eximed, almost jumping out in exaltation.

    The weapon that the pir now projected, was a saber.

    Contrary to the katanas of the previous slot, sabers didn¡¯t require the same level of craftsmanship to be made. And by digging deeper into the topic, one could find out just how simplistic the reason behind this fact was.

    The sabers didn¡¯t require all that much skill from the cksmith, simply because they didn¡¯t need topensate for the extremely poor quality of the material they had at hand.

    ¡®All the techniques that now are nothing more but a tradition came to be because Japan proper steel,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his hand to the projection of the saber above the pir. ¡®Contrary to those, Sabres came as the peak type of shing weapons, ones that remained in honorary use even all the way to the modern-day!¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s lips turned into a perfect curve, his face no longer capable of keeping up with the young man¡¯s excitement.

    ¡°How much for this weapon?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyes towards the area thickest with the ck, smokey shadows of the realm.

    ¡°Two hundred and fifty cores,¡± the merchant replied in its usual, metallic voice.

    ¡°I want one,¡± Mathew announced even before the merchant¡¯s voice could fade away.

    The beauty of a saber came from three things. It had the shape that made it easiest to sh with it. Due to its shape and the material it was made from, it was extremely resilient. Andstly, the crude design that Mathew already counted twice to be advantageous, forced its users to employ quite a lot of strength topensate for the simplicity of the weapon.

    Mathew reached out even before the stones that flew up from his head could fully vanish in a bright explosion of light. And before his eyes could get over the sh, Mathew¡¯s fingers curled around the firm, the dry handle of the weapon as he pulled it out from the stand.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I thought,¡± Mathew muttered to himself the moment he firmly grasped his new weapon and performed a simple swing.

    It just felt¡­ right in his hand. As if the blood of the warriors and insurgents from the ages gone gave out itsst cry in Mathew¡¯s veins.

    The soul of the saber resonated deeply with Mathew¡¯s soul. And after his experiences in the apocalypse so far, he knew better than to ignore those innate feelings of his.

    ¡°That begs the question, though,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose, resting his new de by his side. ¡°How much could you give me for my ax?¡±

    Mathew couldn¡¯t see the merchant and thus be unable to gauge its emotions. Yet, for yet another time, the young man could somehow swear that the merchant, whom Mathew couldn¡¯t see, smirked.

    ¡°Five thousand, twenty-seven cores.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s jaw muscles failed their job, making his lower jaw fall down, forcing his mouth open as if he was preparing for a debut in ¡°Biggus Dickus Returns¡±.

    And then, Mathew¡¯s lips formed a big, cheerful smile.

    ¡°Sold!¡±

 Chapter 151 Sword Goddess

    ¡°That will be all,¡± Mathew announced after he managed to get rid of the stupid grin from his lips. ¡°For now, that is,¡± he added, the right corner of his mouth twitching up despite Mathew¡¯s desperate attempts to keep it down.

    ¡°Or wait,¡± the young man called, raising his hand to stop the realm from shattering. ¡°Is there any way topare the statistics of the weapons?¡±

    It was an obvious question, yet one that Mathew was stupidlyte with.

    ¡®Sure, this de feels just right in my hand,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking down at his brand new weapon. ¡®But it might be far worse due to theck of umted power.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s worrywart nature surfaced as doubt filled his heart.

    And then, a grin returned to his lips.

    On the merchant¡¯s side, there was no reaction. No voice filled Mathew¡¯s ears¡­

    But just like many times before, he could somewhat perceive this transpositional being showing its amusement.

    ¡°That means I¡¯m close, but not close enough with the answer, right?¡± Mathew gave up on his attempts to stop his smile, openly sharing it with the merchants. He then raised his hand and then waved it down.<sub>.</sub>

    ¡°Send me back, for now, would ya?¡±

    This time, the merchant¡¯s realm copsed properly, not stopped with anyst-minute questions.

    ¡°Your ax!¡± Nadia uttered in a small voice as her eyebrows shoot up on her forehead.

    The very moment Mathew returned to reality, she noticed the change.

    ¡®I wonder how it looks on her end,¡¯ Mathew thought, his grin still firmly holding on to his lips.

    The young man then raised his arm and swung his curved de.

    Its crude, simplistic even, design made it extremely simple to execute shes. Yet, it was this simplicity that hardly allowed any room for error.

    ¡°Here,¡± Mathew said, pushing his hand out while twisting his saber so that it would face downwards. ¡°Try it,¡± he ordered, passing the weapon over to Nadia¡¯s hand.<sub></sub>

    ¡°This is¡­¡± the girl reluctantly epted the de, taking several seconds to find the proper grip on its handle.

    ¡®It¡¯s just a bit shorter than her arm,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how Nadia¡¯s eyes glistered while glued to the tiny markings engraved into the de.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Nadia opened up her mouth, only for an exasperated sigh toe out. ¡°That¡¯s a royal de,¡± she said, raising her eyes from the metal to Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°Can I¡­¡± she acted while lowering her eyes and allowing a small blush on her cheeks.

    Mathew¡¯s grin mellowed down into a happy, warm smile. The awe in Nadia¡¯s eyes was the greatest reward he could ask for¡­ Even if he didn¡¯t do much himself.

    Nadia stretched her arm out as she turned around to get more space. And then, she cut a cross in the air with two, rapid swings.

    ¡®Woah,¡¯ Mathew wheezed his breath in, surprised when Nadia finished her move. ¡®I didn¡¯t even see the beginning of her attack!¡¯

    Nadia¡¯s eyes glistered with excitement as she looked down at the weapon in her hand. She then moved those beautiful eyes and rested them on Mathew¡¯s counterparts.

    ¡°¡­Can I?¡± she asked in a tiny voice. Her eyes opened up wide, putting her emotions fully on disy.<sub></sub>

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Mathew replied in an easy-going voice. He then raised his hand and grabbed at his chest before gripping tightly.

    ¡®Why is she so damn cute¡­?!¡¯ he thought, keeping a smile on his face while he clutched at his heart to keep it beating.

    ¡°On that note, though, I need to know one thing.¡± Mathew shook his head, cutting his own amusement for the sake of practical matters. ¡°Do you want to use the saber alone, or would you rather keep the machete as well?¡±

    ¡°Oh?¡± Nadia jumped a little, the question taking her by a surprise. She raised her hand and rubbed her chin for a moment before getting herself back in a training stance.

    Nadia then swung her new weapon a few times, while holding out her smaller de in her left hand.

    ¡®That¡¯s my girl,¡¯ Mathew thought when Nadia¡¯s movements quickly grew more coordinated and fluid. Her frantic and seemingly random attacks arranged themselves in patterns, allowing the girl to conserve her momentum as she shed her way forward.

    ¡®I wouldn¡¯t want to happen to be in the path of this attack,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping down a mouthful of saliva.

    It didn¡¯t take much of one¡¯s imagination to add mental zombies in Nadia¡¯s path, only for their body parts toe flying all over the ce.

    ¡°You are like a shing machine,¡± Mathewmented, before pping his hands. ¡°Damn, that was insane,¡± he added, releasing the breath that he held for a while.

    ¡°You say?¡± Nadia turned around and asked, before sending a doubtful look toward her machete. ¡°It didn¡¯t really feel well in my hand though,¡± she exined, weighting the weapon in her hand.

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s see,¡± she then said, dropping her weapon on the ground before taking a stance with a saber alone.

    What followed was so delicate that it nearly eluded Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    If Nadia turned into a shing machine before, she then became an elusive dancer that moved along the bends of space.

    Her swings would cut at the air while flowing along with it. Her steps would very well carry her forward yet also backward. Her jumps would work even in the air, as likely to bring her down as they were to raise her higher.

    ¡®It¡¯s like she could casually break thews of physics with every move,¡¯ Mathew thought, unable to even swallow in the shock caused by the show.

    ¡°You are like a sword goddess¡­¡± Mathew muttered, raising his hand out for the girl¡¯s delicate face, only to stop it just an inch away from her cheek.

    ¡®It feels like a sphemy to touch something so godly,¡¯ Mathew thought, stunned to the core.

    The aura that Nadia gave out at this very moment grabbed the young man¡¯s soul and squeezed hard, keeping him rooted in ce.

    His eyes opened wide, as Mathew lost his ability to do anything but stare at the enlighted spark behind Nadia¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Mathew?¡± the girl¡¯s face quickly turned still, losing the charm of her satisfied smile as a bruise of worry appeared on her forehead. ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    ¡°Hahaha¡­¡± Mathewughed out, finally able to shake off his shock. He then reached out and rested his hand on Nadia¡¯s cheek, only to pull her head forward and rest his forehead on hers. ¡°I¡¯m fine, thank you for worrying,¡± he said, giving the two of them a moment to regain their cool.

    ?[0??]? ¡°I don¡¯t want to interrupt your moment, guys,¡± Le¡¯s voice invaded Mathew¡¯s eardrums, pulling him out of his wholesome bubble back into the harem-ish reality. ¡°But can I get this kind of weapon too?¡± she asked, while reluctance, worry, and excitement mixed on her face.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Mathew smiled gently. He then took his time to give Nadia a fleeting hug before snatching the saber from her hand and throwing it to Le. ¡°The drill is the same for both of you,¡± he then called out only to bring his arms back around Nadia¡¯s delicate shoulders. ¡°Find out whether you want two weapons or one, so that I know how many swords to get.¡±

 Chapter 152 Shopping spree

    ¡°I think I would like to keep my machete,¡± Le reported after ying around with both of the weapons at once. Yet, a few momentster, she proved to be the only one interested in this kind of fighting style.

    ¡°I think I will stick with the sword,¡± Daria reported once she had her turn swinging the saber for a while. ¡°I mean, this de served me well, but I think it would stop me from fully utilizing the saber,¡± she exined her decision before passing both weapons back to Mathew.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, you can keep the saber,¡± Mathew informed, only taking the machete out of the girl¡¯s hand. He then turned around and took a long look at Nadia¡¯s face.

    All the happiness and charm behind her eyes from before were now all gone, reced by the reluctance mixing with sadness.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you worry,¡± Mathew said as he approached the girl. ¡°I will get you the saber. In fact,¡± Mathew said as he turned around and looked at the rest of the girls. ¡°I believe we will be all running around with those.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia titled a little. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to stick to your ax?¡± she asked, leaning her head to the side.

    ¡°I sold it,¡± Mathew replied before shrugging his shoulders.

    ¡°You did what?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡±<sub>.</sub>

    The silence filled the hall. Everyone simply stared at Mathew. Nadia with disbelief. Le with shock. Daria with dull surprise.

    ¡°You sold it, huh,¡± Nadia muttered, only to lower her eyes and then shake her head. ¡°Wasn¡¯t that like super grade weapon?¡± she then asked, raising her eyes back on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°You know, in most of my decisions and ns, I follow two, simple rules,¡± Mathew seemingly changed the topic while a small smile appeared on his lips. ¡°First off, I believe a lot of things here work just like they would in a game,¡± Mathew pointed out before turning around and moving towards the merchant.

    ¡°Secondly, I always trust my guts,¡± he added as he made his way toward the merchant. Mathew then turned around and threw another nce at the girls. ¡°And in most of the games, there is no point in upgrading or even using a low-level weapon for long. Even if they are stronger than the basic form of the better weapons, it¡¯s smarter to develop higher-ranked weapons instead.¡±

    This was a simple truth that applied to most of the games. Rarely any equipment one could find in the early stages of the game could be effectively used in thest arcs. And the more resources one sank into upgrading it, the fewer resources one would have to upgrade better weapons that could easily outgrow their weaker counterparts.

    ¡®Even if this can¡¯t be applied linearly to this world, the rule should stay the same,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    After all, it wasn¡¯t like establishing the fortress at his starting location would bring an end to one act and move the young man to a higher-level area!

    ¡®Wait, can I really be sure of that?¡¯ Mathew suddenly asked himself, as he realized the simple yet shocking truth.<sub></sub>

    The world around him was exactly like¡­ several games that he knew off, all mixed together.

    The system of statistics belonged to an old, popr RPG game. The progression through location could be found in several others.

    ¡°God damn it¡­¡± Mathew muttered as he hung his head low and then shook it to the sides. ¡°Things are really gettingplicated,¡± heined before reaching out and grasping at Merchant¡¯s darkness.

    A moment of the usual chaoster, Mathew found himself back in the merchant¡¯s realm. It was in the exactly same state as it was when Mathew left a few moments prior.

    ¡°Let¡¯s not waste time,¡± he spoke to himself before bringing forth two of the machetes used by Nadia and Daria respectively. ¡°How much can I sell those for?

    ¡°Six hundred cores each,¡± the mechanical voice of the merchant replied.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s trade,¡± Mathew quickly made his decision before throwing the des up in the air, only for a burst of light toe out of nowhere. And once the light dissipated, the machetes were now nowhere to be seen, reced by a sizeable crystal lying on the floor.

    ¡°Is that a thousand and two hundred cores?¡± Mathew asked, picking up the expensively-looking item and analyzing it.<sub></sub>

    ¡°That¡¯s correct,¡± the system replied.

    ¡°Well then¡­¡± Mathew opted not to think over this topic too much. ¡®If I allow myself to get distracted by every tiniest novelty, I will never get anything done,¡¯ he decided before approaching the weapon pedestal.

    The holographic projection of the saber was still there, indicating that the ring below the pedestal remained in the same ce as before.

    ¡®I need two¡­ three more,¡¯ Mathew thought, readily reaching out for the crystal in his hand.

    Yet, before he could make his order, Mathew held his hand back. He then moved it down a little before grasping at the ring and turning it by a further thirty degrees.

    The projection changed. From the Saber that Mathew already fell in love with, it turned into some sort of¡­ a rod?

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me this is for casting magic¡­?¡± Mathew muttered, his voice stuck in his throat as he swallowed the air. ¡°Right, that¡¯s what either the arcane or mind stats are for,¡± he thenmented, slowly releasing the air from his lungs as he pulled the ring even further.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew then shrugged, when the projection turned out to be pretty simr to what he saw just a moment earlier.

    It was the same saber as before. At least, its physical features were the same. Yet, even though it was just a projection, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but shudder when he felt just a hint of the weapon¡¯s aura.

    ¡°How much for this one?¡± he asked, unable to tear his eyes off the de.

    If Mathew fell in love with the first saber after swinging it once, he lost his soul to this new one at the first sight.

    ¡°Two thousand cores,¡± the merchant coldly replied.

    ¡®I could get it¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, doing a quick count of his state of finances.

    He got around four and a half thousand cores for his ax. Then twelve hundred cores for the machetes and roughly a thousand from all the zombies his group hunted today. After deducting the price of summoning the merchant and then buying the first saber, Mathew still had above six thousand cores left.

    ¡®No,¡¯ the young man thought as he shook his head. ¡®The same rule that I brought for the machetes, can be applied to those weapons,¡¯ he thought, leisurely turning the ring even further to the side.

    This time, it was the rod from before the upgraded saber that appeared. This time, however, it was surrounded by shing lights of thunderbolts while the air around the projection brimmed due to the sheer intensity of power it held.

    ¡°How much does this one cost, though?¡± Mathew asked as he turned the wheel back to the basic version of the rod.

    ¡°Three hundred fifty cores,¡± the merchant replied.

    ¡®That¡¯s more like it,¡¯ Mathew thought before raising his hand with the massive crystal in it. ¡°I wish to purchase one of those.¡±

    This time, the core in Mathew¡¯s hand didn¡¯t vanish. It turned bright and then shed like a stun grenade, but once the light retracted, the crystal remained firmly within Mathew¡¯s hand.

    It was smaller and its shine was dimmer, but it was still there. And on the floor, there was the first magical staff to exist in this world.

    Mathew then turned the ring back again. And once the projection turned back into a saber, he smiled before raising the crystal in his hand again.

    ¡°I wish to purchase three of those.¡±

 Chapter 153 Weapons honors

    ¡°I¡¯m back,¡± Mathew whispered as soon as the shadowy realm around him copsed.

    The trips to the merchant¡¯s subspace took a strange kind of toll on the young man¡¯s mind. It wasn¡¯t tiring like strategizing or solving exercises. It wasn¡¯t exhausting like hardbor either.

    Yet, the act of passing between the real world and the merchant¡¯s subspace continued to wear Mathew¡¯s mind away.

    ¡°Are those¡­?¡± Le asked, stretching her hand out and pointing at the set of different weapons almost falling out of Mathew¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew nodded his head before carefully removing the first of the sabers. ¡°Here,¡± he said, passing it over to the girl.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Le nodded her head, epting the weapon with proper honors.

    She didn¡¯t appear like someone who would pay any particr attention to such a small detail, and yet, she gently lowered her head before extending both of her arms out. She then epted the weapon with just two of her fingers on each hand before bowing lightly and then taking a step back.<sub></sub>

    ¡°I will graciously ept this de,¡± she whispered, before her fingers wrapped around the handle of the saber.

    Then, with a quick pull of her arm, she brought the weapon in and stood at attention.

    ¡°Impressive,¡± Mathew nodded his head, properly praising Le¡¯s efforts.

    ¡°Not fair,¡± Dariained, lowering her eyes as she crossed her arms by her chest.

    Mathew looked down, ignoring the obvious emphasis Daria put on her breasts. His eyes twitched a little.

    ¡®She received the weapon just a moment earlier and she already made a scabbard for it?¡¯ he thought, raising one of his eyebrows upon noticing the small detail.<sub></sub>

    ¡°You should¡¯ve thought about it earlier,¡± Le countered, pulling out her tongue to mock her cowife.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry girls, but being the first wife does have its perks,¡± Mathew interjected as he attached one of the des to his own side before grabbing the third andst one and kneeling down.

    Back a moment ago, Le gave all her grace to the process of receiving the sword. And now, Mathew fell down on his knees before Nadia, presenting the saber in his two outstretched hands for her to pick.

    Le gave the honors. Daria had the honor of holding on to the very first saber. But it was Nadia that was on the receiving end of said honors.

    ¡°Truth be told, I could buy a much more powerful weapon,¡± Mathew admitted when he had to quickly raise back to his feet, too embarrassed by his own disy of affection to remain on his knees. ¡°I decided against it, though.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s sensible,¡± Nadia nodded her head while keeping her eyes on the de. She went as far as to slowly run her fingers down the de¡¯s length, familiarizing herself with every nook and cranny of her new weapon. ¡°There is no point in overpaying for the weapons if they appear to be the best way of earning cores, don¡¯t they?¡±<sub></sub>

    Nadia finally raised her chin and looked at Mathew. Yet, she didn¡¯t stop there, taking her time to nce over everyone else in the group.

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you didn¡¯t realize it yet,¡± she then added in a half-voice, hints of shock surfacing in her voice.

    ¡®I did,¡¯ Mathew thought, allowing the corner of his mouth to raise in a small smile. ¡®But that¡¯s only one reason.¡¯

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe this,¡± Nadia released an exasperated sigh, shook her head, and looked at Mathew once again. ¡°Can you tell me how much did you sell those machetes for?¡±

    ¡°Six hundred cores each,¡± Mathew revealed without any hesitation. ¡°Speaking of which, a single used machete was worth either a bit more than two sabers or exactly as much as saber and this staff,¡± Mathew then borated a little bit more before showcasing the one piece of equipment he held back from others for now.

    ¡°This is¡­?¡± Nadia asked, leaning her head to the side. Yet, Mathew knew her for long enough to recognize the sparks in her eyes.

    ¡®She¡¯s excited,¡¯ he thought, a strange sense of aplishment appearing in his soul.

    To make his crush excited over the future and what it held while smack down in the middle of a zombie apocalypse?

    ¡°A stick of doom,¡± Mathew replied, grinning from ear to ear.

    ¡¢ Nadia¡¯s eyes opened wide, quickly followed by her mouth. But Mathew didn¡¯t give the girl the time needed for her to react.

    ¡°Just joking, of course,¡± he added, spreading his arms out to soften the impact of the joke. ¡°But I do believe it has something to do with magic,¡± Mathew revealed before turning his eyes to the side and suddenly throwing the staff up.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Daria was startled when the long piece of wood suddenly came flying toward her, yet her reaction time was just good enough for her to catch it. ¡°What was that for?!¡±

    ¡°I want this to be your secondary weapon,¡± Mathew exined his intent. ¡°We still don¡¯t know how to be a mage, how to gain the first magic ability that we could then exploit to force one¡¯s development on the magical path,¡± he revealed his thoughts only to raise his hand and point his finger at the girl. ¡°But with how high both your mind and arcane stats are, I believe you are the most likely one in our group to be a mage.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s exnation was sound and logical. He presented the most likely a magical essory to the person that already was on the path leading to magic.

    ¡®Why do we need magic, though?¡¯ Mathew thought, perfectly aware of the one question that put a wrench in his otherwise perfect ce. ¡®Besides my own wish to see ite to this world, obviously,¡¯ the young man added in his mind.

    The truth was actually pretty simple. The cost of the magical staff was too small for Mathew to bother with it. As such, it cost him virtually nothing, just a measly amount of cores, to purchase it. And if such a random act of splurging could bring more useful abilities to his team, then it could only be called a great investment!

    ¡°Well then, I think I have no other choice but to ept it,¡± Daria finally replied, fixing her grasp over the staff before ultimately putting it in her left hand. Yet, as her eyes alternated between each of her new weapons, the girl raised her eyes and looked up at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Thinking about it now¡­¡± she hesitated, before taking a deep breath and fixing her stare on Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you get swords for Daniel and Norbert?¡±

 Chapter 154 Rhytm of the apocalypse

    ¡°Are they here?¡± Mathew replied, not surprised by Daria¡¯s face.

    ¡°No,¡± the girl shook her head. ¡°They are not here,¡± she added, answering Mathew¡¯s question properly.

    ¡°Then why should I¡­ No, why should we waste cores for weapons that wouldn¡¯t even be used?¡± Mathew said before shaking his head. ¡°No, rather than wasting cores in this way, we should work our way into turning this ce into a fortress.¡±

    ¡°Is that why you didn¡¯t want to get that upgraded weapon?¡± Nadia chimed in, a small smirk filling her lips.

    It was clear that she had no intention of ignoring the small remark Mathew made before.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew nodded his head, giving the girl the respect she deserved.

    This was exactly the second reason why Mathew didn¡¯t get the upgraded saber. He didn¡¯t even waste his cores on the upgraded magical staff, even if it would most likely make it easier for its wielder to develop magic skills.<sub></sub>

    ¡®The things that we can buy here prove this point very well,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling all the weapons he saw at the merchant. ¡®And those are not even all that I could pick from!¡¯

    Mathew could only dream about purchasing this kind of high-level weapons back in the school. Two of the merchants there hardly offered anything extraordinary, while the third one required a lot of cores to be invested in before it would upgrade its stock.

    On the other hand, just the first merchant that Mathew summoned outside of thepound, one that was amply named an outpost merchant, gave Mathew¡¯s group ess to pretty high-level stuff.

    ¡°If my guess is correct, we will be able to get even better weapons once we turn this ce into a fortress,¡± Mathew revealed the crux of his side-quest.

    ¡°So instead of wasting money on upgrading the weapons we can get right now, you would rather wait until we can get the best ones possible,¡± Nadia summarised the intent behind Mathew¡¯s n.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± the young man nodded his head. ¡°For now, those sabers are already a massive upgrade,¡± he pointed out only to then shake his head. ¡°That¡¯s why I want us to kill a lot of zombies with them so that we can sell them off with profit and get even better weaponster.¡±<sub></sub>

    ¡®Because only an idiot would follow something like natural attraction when picking a weapon,¡¯ Mathew said to himself in his mind, his thoughts darkening.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this called the gamer¡¯s hoarding sickness?¡± Le suddenly asked, taking Mathew by a surprise.

    .?O,? ¡°Do you even know what this term means?¡± the young man asked, shaking his head. ¡®She most likely heard it somewhere and thought it was fitting¡­¡¯

    ¡°It¡¯s about not using the consumables in a game due to worry of wasting them, losing them before they prove crucial,¡± Le exined the term properly, betraying Mathew¡¯s expectation for the second time in a row.

    ¡°And you think that applies to our current situation?¡± Mathew asked, backing down from his previous line of thought.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to say that you should splurge on a better weapon, but weren¡¯t you worried about those red-eyed zombies?¡± she asked, crossing her arms over her chest before leaning her head to the side. ¡°Getting stronger should be our priority, then.¡±<sub></sub>

    Le¡¯s logic was sound.

    The red-eyed zombies were stronger than their usual counterparts. While not powerful on their own, they evened out the ying field between the creations of the apocalypse and Mathew¡¯s group.

    They made it so that once again, despite all their improvements, Mathew and the girls were actually vulnerable to the attacks. The risk of getting lost in the horde of violent opponents resurfaced, blocking a lot of momentum Mathew hoped to gain today.

    ¡°To be frank, I believe there is a way better method of getting stronger,¡± Mathew exined. ¡°A weapon is just that, a weapon. Once you lose it, you cannot rely on its prowess anymore,¡± he said. ¡°On the other hand, leveling up ourselves directly will benefit us.¡±

    ¡°So you want to go back to school?¡± Daria asked, figuring out the direction Mathew¡¯s ns moved. ¡°That¡¯s where we can hopefully level up, don¡¯t we?¡± she then asked, raising her chin as she looked up to Mathew¡¯s face, seeking confirmation of her guess.

    ¡°I n to get there before confronting the zombies outside,¡± Mathew said as he nodded his head. He then raised his hand before pointing it out at the ceiling above their heads. ¡°I want to establish a second merchant of this ce first, though.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t you just do it anywhere?¡± Nadia asked, leaning her head to the side. ¡°I assume you want to p one in the room the locals are hiding in, right?¡± she guessed before shaking her head. ¡°I know it¡¯s notte yet, but we really took our time to get where we are. Is it really a good idea to wait for Daniel to deal with the problem above?¡±

    Nadia¡¯s logic was sound.

    There were only up to two hours before the sun would start setting. It was this natural process that set a hard time limit for Mathew to achieve his task.

    ¡®I don¡¯t know what will happen if zombies encounter the merchant. And I definitely don¡¯t want to be clearing every nook and cranny of this ce from zombies.¡¯

    ¡°It would be foolish to assume that those zombies will obediently wait for us to get ready before challenging them,¡± Mathew pointed out as he looked towards the doors. ¡°I bet they are trying to lure us out and then keep the fight going way beyond the nightfall.¡±

    ¡°Contrary to the zombies, we heavily rely on our sense of sight,¡± Nadia agreed while nodding her head. ¡°Darkness would y much to our disadvantage,¡± she murmured before turning her eyes towards Mathew. ¡°Does that mean I¡¯m right?¡±

    ¡°Yes and no,¡± Mathew shook his head as he stopped Nadia¡¯s enthusiasm. ¡°This is yet another guess of mine, but I feel like there is some sort of rhythm, some sort of linear structure of everything that we are doing. And I can¡¯t help but think that it¡¯s best to summon merchants in ces of importance.¡±

    ¡°How is this hall important, then?¡± Le asked, raising her eyebrows as she eagerly jumped on the opportunity to point out the w in Mathew¡¯s thinking.

    There was no hostility on her face, not even a smug smile. Contrary to that, the girl appeared to be perfectly happy and even proud of herself.

    ¡®Right, I asked them to not treat my words like oracles from God,¡¯ Mathew thought, heaving a light sigh.

    ¡°It¡¯s important because it¡¯s where we made our starting base in this ce and where we are holding off the attacks of zombies,¡± Mathew exined. ¡°The second important ce would be the location of the seat of power of the locals,¡± the young man listed out before turning his eyes towards the doors.

    ¡°So the third one is the courtyard where we will y all the zombies?¡± Nadia suggested, trying to solve the problem on her own before Mathew would reveal the answer.

    ¡°That would be a good one,¡± Mathew nodded his head only to then shake it sideways. ¡°I personally believe the shed where the sacrifices are kept would be an even better one.¡±

 Chapter 155 I learned enough

    *** Daniel¡¯s Pov***

    ¡°Head straight ahead, all the way to the staircase at the end of the corridor,¡± Norbert gave his direction, always ready to provide assistance.

    ¡°You told me this already,¡± Daniel opened up his eyes and spoke. ¡°There is no need to keep repeating those directions every minute or so.¡±

    The older of the officers rolled his eyes as he followed the same directions he heard Norbert repeat for the n-th time.

    ¡®I never thought about it before, but we really need to find a way for Norbert to contribute.¡¯

    There was nothing worse than leaving a war veteran to do nothing while in a time of obvious conflict. People that went through the hell of the war and grew used to it often found it extremely challenging to return back to the rtive peace of society.

    ¡®And this applies to the both of us,¡¯ Daniel thought, squeezing his fists a little.

    The only reason why he applied to the police and to the position of a negotiator at that, was because he missed the trill. And with no bullet aimed toe his way in his normal life, he found sce in using his trill-driven character in service of those who couldn¡¯t defend themselves.

    ¡®On the other hand, Norbert¡­¡¯ Daniel thought, gritting his teeth.

    The two of them went to the police together. Yet, only Daniel did it by his own choice. Contrary to him, Norbert simply followed in his steps, unwilling to part with themander of the unit he served.

    ¡®Back before the world went to shit, this job was good enough for him,¡¯ Daniel thought as he reached the stairs and started to climb them only to then close his eyes.

    ¡°All the way to the top floor. Once you see a big hall with double doors, that¡¯s where you want to go,¡± Norbert informed his colleague right away.

    ¡®But right now, it¡¯s only a matter of time before he will break.¡¯

    Daniel took a deep breath before focusing on scaling the stairs. For how simple of a task it would be to someone young and full of energy, moving three levels up turned into a considerable challenge for Daniel.

    In the end, instead of going for his objective as soon as he reached the top floor of the building, Daniel had to take his time to regain his breath and ward off his exhaustion.

    ¡®And I¡¯m not going to hold out for much longer, won¡¯t I?¡¯ he asked himself, unable to voice his concerns over the likeliness that Norbert would hear him.

    And for how worried about his subordinate Daniel already was, he had no ns of making Norbert worry about him as well.

    ¡°Okay then,¡± Daniel finally spoke out after giving himself enough time to regain his strength. ¡°How are we going to tackle it?¡± he then asked out loud before taking a step back, resting his back against the wall and then sliding down as he sat on the floor.

    Doing so not only made him a smaller target that was harder both to notice and then to shoot at, but it also allowed the aging man to preserve a tiny bit more of his strength.

    ¡°I can distract the despot,¡± Norbert reported. ¡°She appears to be quite conscious of the idea that we have a sniper trained on her position,¡± he exined.

    ¡°She really fell for something so stupid?¡± Daniel asked, opening his eyes wide in surprise. ¡°There are no buildings within the exposure of that hall windows that allow for a clean shot!¡±

    Daniel eximed before waiting for a second to hear his colleague¡¯s response/

    ¡°Ah, my bad,¡± Daniel added after a moment of silence, closing his eyes back.

    ¡°Senile old man,¡± Norbert called Daniel some names before refocusing back on the topic. ¡°But you are right. There is no physical way for a sniper to get her,¡± he admitted. And then, even though Daniel couldn¡¯t see it, he could somehow tell Norbert shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter what¡¯s real, the one thing that matters for us is what that bitch believes is real.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± Daniel muttered only for a wicked smile to appear on his lips. ¡°But this also gives me a certain idea. So while keeping up with that sniper¡¯s ruse, go and announce my arrival,¡± he requested only to open his eyes and stand up.

    Daniel intentionally didn¡¯t wait to hear Norbert¡¯s input. It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t value the opinion of his subbordinate. The time they spent in a warzone was more than enough to prove the validity of Norbert¡¯s observations even before he received the system that further enhanced this ability of his.

    Daniel refused to listen to Norbert¡¯s pleas because he himself was aware of just how silly and out-of-the-box his makeshift n was.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready,¡± Daniel whispered once he stood by the heavy, double doors. And only then did he bother to close his eyes.

    ¡°You shall enter in three¡­ two¡­ one¡­¡±

    Bam!

    Daniel didn¡¯t bother to press the handle of the doors and then push them open.

    The second Norbert started his countdown, Daniel started to hum a rtively slow tune out of the few he could perfectly remember. His body then twitched whenever Norbert uttered a number. And right when the countdown reached its conclusion, Daniel raised his leg and kicked the doors open.

    ¡°Well, well, well,¡± Daniel said, stepping inside the hall as if he owned the ce.

    He intentionally ignored the restless ball of fat that held a semi-automatic shotgun on herp, opting to stroll inside the room instead. ¡°What do we have here?¡± he asked as he looked around.

    Only then did Daniel bother to pay the woman in the chair any mind.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± the fatso asked, openly cing her hands on her weapon. ¡°Where are the others?¡±

    ¡°It was deemed that I¡¯m more than enough to judge this ce,¡± Daniel replied offhandedly, acting as if he couldn¡¯t care about the situation any less.

    He could see the people too tired to do anything above raising their heads to take a look at him. He could see males and females alike hiding their teary faces with their hands and refusing to let their eyes meet with his.

    ¡®This is bad,¡¯ Daniel thought, desperately holding back the fire that sparked in his soul.

    There were no obvious giveaways of anything tragic happening in this room. Yet, the years he spent working as a negotiator, allowed Daniel to notice details that would elude others.

    ¡®They are all heavily traumatized,¡¯ Daniel thought, forcefully keeping his hands rxed. ¡®Others are starving,¡¯ he thought before gritting his teeth and turning his eyes back to the fat woman in the middle of the room.

    ¡°Judge?¡± the fatso asked, now pushing her hands into the position on her weapon. The shotgun stillid down on herp, yet she could raise and then aim it within a single breath.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t know?¡± Daniel pretended to be shocked only to then shake his head. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, then, I know how bad this word sounds like but that¡¯s how my superiors refer to the process,¡± the aging man stated only to then shrug his shoulders.

    ¡°Long story short, the apocalypse is over. The army intervened and most of the zombies are already gone. Now it¡¯s time for a cleanup,¡± Daniel borated on his fake story before putting a small smile on his lips. ¡°And my job is to judge whether your means of preserving the safety of both others and you yourself were justified.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s quite a lot of power to put in the hands of a single person,¡± the woman pointed out while squinting her eyes.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it?¡± Daniel admitted the woman¡¯s words without any hesitation before letting out a hearty giggle. ¡°The thing is, the casualty toll of this disaster puts the value ofpetent people quite high,¡± he exined only for his smile to turn wicked. ¡°As such, the military is willing to forgive quite a lot as long as the sum of what happened is positive.¡±

    ¡°And how do you judge this ce?¡± the woman persisted, not letting go of her weapon even for a second. ¡°What about those bastards putting us all at risk by provoking the zombies downstairs?¡±

    ¡®So she knows about them,¡¯ Daniel thought, the corner of his eye twitching a tiny little bit.

    ¡°They might not be conscripted, but hey, we are long past the point where we could rely on enlisted folk alone,¡± Daniel stated and shook his shoulder. ¡°Whether they are conscripted or not, doesn¡¯t matter. They are just one of the groups under the orders of the major general responsible for this province.¡±

    ¡°I see that you are avoiding the first question,¡± the woman pointed out, squinting her eyes while tensing up her hands.

    ¡®She¡¯s just a single jerk of her arm away from shooting my brains off,¡¯ Daniel thought, judging all the details of the situation while starting to hum a pretty energetic song in his mind.

    ¡°That¡¯s because I can¡¯t answer it yet,¡± Daniel said as he turned around and walked towards one of the chairs lying down on their side on the floor. ¡°It all depends on whether that group of mine will get the bait to safety,¡± Daniel mixed in some truth in his story to make it easier to believe.

    He then reached out for the chair. And with one beat of the music in his brain striking, he threw it up rather than simply fixing it on the floor.

    ¡°So you are incorporating them into your forces?¡± the woman asked, clearly ignoring the chair that already reached its peak height only toe falling down directly on Daniel¡¯s head. There was even a small smirk on her lips.

    ¡°That¡¯s ri¡­¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t finish his word. Instead, he waited for both the musical bit in his head and the position of the chair to align, before kicking it right towards the woman.

    Daniel bent his legs, lowering himself above the floor as much as he could without overstraining his joints.

    Yet, no explosive sound of a shotgun discharging reached his ears. Instead, the chair that Daniel used as a cover for his approach simply crashed into the woman.

    ¡®Now,¡¯ Daniel thought, leaping forward, his fist ready to knock the weapon off the woman¡¯s hand even if at the cost of her entire arm.

    Yet, Daniel never finished his strike. He held his hand back when he realized that the woman kept her weapon on herp at all times. And even though getting struck with a chair caused a bruise on her head to start bleeding, she actually continued to smile!

    ¡°I¡¯m d that I stayed here for so long,¡± the woman smiled as she whispered. Her eyes filled with some sort of passionate feeling, one that managed to keep Daniel frozen on the spot, unable to move a single muscle. ¡°Well then, I guess I learned enough,¡± the woman said, only for the strange aura of her body to dissipate, along with the force that held Daniel in ce.

 Chapter 156 Not an educated guess but a gamble

    ¡°So we are going to wait for Daniel to return with good news, right?¡± Le asked, swinging her legs to and fro while sitting on a random desk.

    ¡°We don¡¯t have much choice,¡± Mathew barked.

    It took Le only five minutes to bring him to the edge of his patience.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t we send two of us back to level up?¡± Le continued to push while a smug grin adorned her face.

    With every word she used to challenge Mathew¡¯s judgment, her smile would turn brighter and more amused.

    ¡°Because it would stall the main n if those two people would happen to be away once Daniel returns,¡± Mathew gave his answer before heaving a deep sigh.

    He wouldn¡¯t mind one, two, or even three problems with his reasoning. The young man was more aware than anyone else of his own imperfections. Hemented over his limited knowledge more than the girls in his group could imagine.

    Yet, in the end, he could only make his choice based on this iplete and clue-based information.

    ¡°We will have to waste that time once we establish the second merchant anyway, though?¡± Le continued with her fun, turning her head to an angle. Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a small ¡®o¡¯.

    The curiosity mixed with vicious satisfaction overflowed from her eyes.

    ¡®Ever since I proved I won¡¯t snap back at the voices of opposition, she found a new toy in me,¡¯ Mathewmented over his situation.

    ¡®A man can deal with the quirks of a single woman,¡¯ he thought before heaving yet another sigh. ¡®Dealing with a whole bunch of them?¡¯ the young man shook his head. ¡®Maybe that¡¯s why harems mostlye from the hands of virgin authors?¡¯

    ¡°It¡¯s all because of what happened before we came here,¡± Mathew finally said, opting to put an end to the continuous scrutiny.

    ¡®I know she is just trying to pass some time, but enough is enough,¡¯ he thought, raising his eyes and looking at the girl. Yet, rather than continuing, Mathew turned his eyes to Daria. ¡°Don¡¯t take it personally. Rather than a failure I meant to consider what happened as a valuable lesson,¡± he exined before turning his eyes back to Daria. ¡°As such, I won¡¯t put everyone in danger by making any hasty moves.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t really mind mentioning that,¡± Daria chimed in, responding to Mathew¡¯s words. ¡°I fucked up, I¡¯m well aware of that,¡± she added. ¡°But speaking about the rest of what you said, I think you misunderstand Le¡¯s point,¡± she pointed out.

    ¡°How so?¡± Mathew asked, raising one of his eyebrows.

    His psyche instantly pushed him to defend his words, treating Daria¡¯s remark as an attack on it. Yet, after a second of thought, Mathew calmed down and opened up his wide while looking back at the girl.

    ¡®I asked them to provide input, so I need to learn how to ept it, even if it¡¯s not to my liking,¡¯ he thought, tightening his fists as a new wave of determination filled his soul.

    ¡°By summing up your decision as an equation between risk, the severity of the danger behind it, and the potential benefits of taking it, you forgot about one major element.¡± Daria turned herself on her heel before approaching the window. And after looking outside for a short moment, she turned her head back and looked at Mathew over her shoulder. ¡°The night ising. We are running out of time to fight this army.¡±

    Mathew opened up his eyes to respond to Daria¡¯s points¡­ Only to end up pulling his lips back together as he immersed himself in the new perspective.

    ¡®It¡¯s not like I forgot about that,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth over his current dilemma. ¡®We already fucked up when we underestimated the zombies once. And then there is this feeling¡­¡¯

    Everything until this point appeared to confirm Mathew¡¯s idea about the new way in which the world worked.

    For every challenge, Mathew could find several means of making it easier. He found several ways of leveling up, alling from different types of games.

    ¡®And for a huge showdown like this one, there is bound to be a tool to make it easier,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking down on the floor. ¡®And given the situation, I bet it would be something capable of illuminating the battlefield.¡¯

    Mathew heaved a deep sigh before hanging his head to the back and taking a long look at the ceiling.

    ¡°The problem is, this is not an educated guess but merely a bet,¡± Mathew muttered, mistakingly allowing his voice to slip through his lips.

    ¡°Whether it was a good choice or not, we will only learn in the future,¡± Nadia joined in on the topic right as she approached Mathew before calmly sitting down on her knees by his side. ¡°I¡¯m not saying Matty always takes the best, easiest, shortest, or any other kind of path. What I want you to remember, is that his choices brought us all so far,¡± she pointed.

    Nadia then smiled gently and lowered her eyelids before shifting her bnce to the side only to rest her head on Mathew¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°I understand the criticism. But you really took it too far,¡± she added, rubbing her cheek against Mat¡¯s arm. ¡°I believe we should put more trust in his decisions.¡±

    Nadia didn¡¯t bother to say anything else. Instead, she focused on enjoying her opportunity to snuggle up to Mathew, something that they partook for a surprisingly little amount of time given their shared feelings.

    ¡°I get it, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Le said as she raised her hands in a gesture of surrender. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to put you down or anything,¡± she continued, her face tensing up as her words flowed out of her mouth, ¡°I just couldn¡¯t help myself, not when seeing a new side to you¡­ AAAAGH!¡±

    Le released an embarrassing moan before hiding her face in her hands.

    ¡°It¡¯s all because that dummy Daniel!¡± she then screamed out before turning around in ce, then squatting down and hiding her face in her legs.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you guys are talking about me while I¡¯m away,¡± Daniel suddenly replied,ing out from the darkness of the corridor further down, ¡°but I¡¯m done with my part of the job.¡±

    The officer walked inside the illuminated area. He was followed by a massive woman with an extremelyplicated situation on her face.

    ¡®What the hell?¡¯ Mathew thought when his eyes fell upon her.

    Just Robert¡¯s descriptions were enough to associate the woman with the despot he spoke about. And yet, there were only three things that the young man could see on the woman¡¯s face.

    First came the bloodied cut on her forehead mixed with several bruises, all conveniently kept to one side of her face. Thanks to this, came to the second point of her eyes being filled with regret. And Mathew could see that only because no swelling hid the woman¡¯s eyes away on the other side of her face.

    Andstly, there was extreme exhaustion, expressed both with her haggard breath but also just how red her face was overall.

    ¡°It¡¯s her!¡± Robert suddenly red up, pointing his finger at the woman as he shouted and started to crawl back.

    ¡®So it¡¯s really that woman?¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing over at the young adult acting like a scared puppy.

    Yet, despite how shameful this kind of disy was, it also served as undeniable proof that Daniel got the right person.

    ¡°Guys, her situation is not that simple, actually,¡± the officer reported. He then turned his lips into a thin line before shaking his head. ¡°I don¡¯t really understand a thing, so I will leave her to you,¡± he then said, as he pointed his finger right at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but that won¡¯t work,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°Since you imed the room at the top, I need to go and summon a merchant there,¡± Mathew announced, standing up only to dust off his pants before looking at Daniel. ¡°I believe there will be no problems with this n?¡±

    The two of them were working together. Yet, they didn¡¯t represent a united front like the members of Mathew¡¯s small harem.

    And contrary to the girls in it, Mathew¡¯s fate wasn¡¯t bound to Daniel¡¯s. As such, their cooperation was tight only on the surface, with the tensions and conflict of opinion constantly boiling underneath.

    ¡°Are there?¡± Daniel asked, crossing his arms on his chest and raising one of his eyebrows. ¡°No, fuck that,¡± he suddenly announced as he shook his head before lowering his hand. ¡°That sword, where did you get it?¡±

    Mathew¡¯s lips quivered, only for their corners to raise up.

    ¡°I see you are a man of a culture as well,¡± Mathew replied, unsheathing his saber before putting it out in front of his chest on both of his hands. ¡°We can get them for two hundred fifty cores a piece at the merchant,¡± the young man exined as soon as Daniel took the weapon from his hands, freeing them in the process.

    The officer swung the saber a few times. He then looked at the de in silence for a little longer¡­ Only to release a heavy sigh before turning the weapon around in his hands and passing it back to its rightful owner.

    ¡°While I can¡¯t deny the craftsmanship or the quality, this de doesn¡¯t really suit my style,¡± he informed and shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m d to see you are willing to show it to me with ease, thought,¡± Daniel said before backing off and putting a small smile on his lips.

    ¡°As for your ns¡­?¡± he shook his head. ¡°Go ahead.¡±

 Chapter 157 Dont you want us to hurry up and save that girl of yours?

    ¡°So that¡¯s what happened,¡± Mathew muttered. He then raised his hand and rubbed his chin as he thought back on Daniel¡¯s report.

    The young man then turned his eyes towards the massive woman in question.

    ¡®That would exin why I can¡¯t feel anything from her,¡¯ Mathew thought, giving himself a moment to think before tearing his eyes away from the female ball of fat.

    Sure, this woman was of sizeable stature, yet she had this motherly aura, the kind look in the corner of her eyes.

    It was something that stood in opposition to the stories of what she did before. And yet, Daniel¡¯s rtion to what happened made it all make sense.

    ¡°What that thing said is what worries me,¡± Daniel spoke as he marched a step ahead of Mathew, leading the way. ¡°Call me a conspiracy theorist, but it sure as heck looked like some possession!¡±

    ¡°Are you not aware that there has to be some sort of sentient force behind all of this?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise even though his discussion partner couldn¡¯t see his expression. ¡°I talked about it a lot, didn¡¯t I?¡±

    The young man wasn¡¯t trying to shun the officer, he was genuinely surprised.

    ¡°Maybe not when I was around?¡± Daniel suggested, leaning his head over his shoulder, allowing him to cast a long nce at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°That might be¡­¡± the young man muttered, lowering his eyes as he thought over the topic. ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter. In general, I believe there is some sort of intellect behind all of this,¡± Mathew stated as he revealed his arms to the side in a gesture of having nothing to hide.

    ¡°And you are not in the mood to exin that line of thought, right?¡± Daniel then asked, giving Mathew an eye.

    ¡®It¡¯s good to be on the same page,¡¯ Mathew thought and then rolled his eyes.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± the young man replied shortly, cutting the topic. ¡°I¡¯m sorry but I can¡¯t be arsed to repeat all thoseplicated corrtions that made me believe this theory,¡± Mathew exined before shrugging his shoulders. ¡°Nor you are interested in my exnation, were I in the mood to give it.¡±

    This entire exchange would bring no new information to either party. And despite the cooperation between the two, neither of the men was interested in sharing too much of what they thought.

    Its only purpose was to cut the awkward air when the group reunited and marched through the stairs.

    ¡°It¡¯s over there,¡± Daniel said after staying silent while climbing the stairs. He raised his hand and called the moment his foot stepped upon the highest floor of the building.

    ¡°Let¡¯s hope this merchant will be useful, then,¡± Mathew replied. He then resumed his stroll, casually making his way inside the room.

    ¡®So that¡¯s the ce,¡¯ the young man thought once he pushed the doors open and took a look inside.

    It was clean.

    That was the first thing Mathew thought when his eyes scanned the hall. There were roughly forty people inside, all orderly waiting in the far-off part of the ce. And yet, not a single one of them dared to make a noise.

    ¡°Guys, rx,¡± Mathew called out as he moved towards the room¡¯s center. ¡°We didn¡¯te here to bully you,¡± he informed the group as he reached his destination.

    Mathew then pushed one of his hands into his pocket, grabbing at the cores stashed inside. Yet, rather than summoning the merchant right away, he suddenly turned his head around and scanned the faces of the survivors.

    ¡°Did any of you kill a zombie in the first few hours of the apocalypse?¡± Mathew asked, in a calm,posed voice.

    The young man kept his eyes on the crowd for a moment, only to then lower them and shake his head.

    ¡°I understand if you want to keep your cards to yourself,¡± Mathew said in a voice just loud enough to reach everyone. ¡°I can also understand if not a single one of you happened to kill a zombie,¡± the young man added, spreading his hands.

    He then took a deep breath and held it in his lungs for a moment.

    ¡°I can promise that I will do my best to keep you all fed and safe,¡± Mathew announced only to raise his head and strike his fist against his chest. ¡°I will work you all to the bone,¡± Mathew announced while putting a slightly wicked smile on his face.

    ¡°So that we can rebuild this world together,¡± Mathew dropped thest bomb of the erudite arsenal he prepared on his way here.

    He then squeezed the core crystal in his pocket while focusing his mind on his wish.

    WHOOSH!

    There wasn¡¯t any movement of air that would exin the sound that filled the room. And before anyone could even realize what was going on, a hooded figure stood right in front of Mathew.

    ¡°Now then, let¡¯s see what¡¯s today¡¯s luck,¡± Mathew whispered under his nose as he reached out inside the merchant¡¯s hood and grabbed at the darkness hidden within.

    The shadows surged forward, coating the young man with the presence of another realm.

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is,¡¯ Mathew thought and released a small sigh.

    This time, the merchant¡¯s realm consisted of a total of six elements.

    The first and main one took a form of a huge table. It was in the shape of a circle and capable offortably seating at least eight people. Yet, while the sheer size of the table was pretty eye-catching, it was the papers on its top that drew Mathew¡¯s attention.

    ¡°I see¡­?¡¯ he thought, approaching the table and lowering his eyes on the papers for a moment.

    ¡®Judging by my feeling alone, it¡¯s like blueprints for utilities?¡¯ Mathew attempted to guess while analyzing the details on the papers below.

    The young man took a while before shaking his head and raising his eyes to inspect the rest of the subrealm.

    The second most eye-catching element of the separate dimensiony right below the greatest concentration of the aura that Mathew could detect.

    ¡°Development merchant,¡± was written on a quette roughly the size of a man¡¯s arm.

    ¡®So I was right, I guess?¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes back to the table only to finally move them over to thest interesting element of the subspace.

    ¡°If that¡¯s not the proof, then I don¡¯t know what is,¡± Mathew muttered as his recent conversation with Daniel appeared in his mind.

    For the nth time, the items that the merchant could offer were disyed on the same type of pedestal.

    ¡®I dabbled in coding far enough to understand the importance of reusing the assets,¡¯ the young man thought, unable to stop a small grin from emerging on his lips.

    The four pedestals disyed see-through pictures of four different objects.

    ¡®A crate, an upwards arrow, red cross health package, and¡­ what?¡¯ Mathew attempted to make sense of what he could see.

    The first item was pretty self-exnatory. It looked exactly the same as the supplies that Mathew bought at his first merchant back in the school¡¯spound.

    Yet, the second item? An arrow pointing upwards, like a picture taken directly from some graphic program?

    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s some sort of level-up?¡¯ Mathew attempted to guess, only to then shake his head and turn it towards the next pedestal.

    The third item turned out to be extremely easy to guess. A cloth box with a red cross on it, one would have to never touch a game in their life to miss the meaning of this picture.

    ¡®Or is it?¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. ¡®For how vague those merchants like to be, isn¡¯t this bit too damn obvious?¡¯

    Mathew shook his head before turning his eyes towards thest pedestal, the only one disying the item that Mathew couldn¡¯t recognize.

    The young man stood in ce and continued to analyze the fourth picture. Yet, no matter how much he racked his brains, no results came to be.

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t need to figure it out right away I guess,¡± Mathew muttered before taking a step back and then taking a look at the entire ce. He then pulled out the crystal from his pocket before reaching it out and above the first pedestal.

    ¡°I want to purchase three packs,¡± Mathew announced out loud, more for the sake of formalizing the process rather than because of any need to do so.

    The crystal in his hand shone with the usual light, only to be a tiny bit smaller once the wave of light passed and left three crates of supplies in its wake.

    ¡°That will be enough for now, then,¡± Mathew announced before nodding his head towards the te with the merchant¡¯s name.

    The shadows surged past him, returning Mathew back to reality.

    ¡°WHOA!¡±

    Several people cried out at once.

    ¡®For them, those crates appeared out of nowhere,¡¯ Mathew thought as he took a closer look at the survivors.

    ¡°I will leave those supplies to you,¡± Mathew announced. ¡°Since I don¡¯t know any of you, this guy will be in charge of distribution and organization of everything,¡± the young man then added, only to point his hand at the only person he knew in the room.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Robert jumped on the spot, not expecting the spotlight of everyone¡¯s attention to fall on him. ¡°What do you mean?¡± he then asked, taking a step back as terror appeared on his face.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want us to hurry up and save that girl of yours?¡± Mathew asked, raising one of his eyebrows in a silent threat.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Robert attempted to speak, only to end up swallowing his own words and staring nkly at Mathew¡¯s face for a moment. Then, a look of determination exploded in his eyes.

    ¡°I will do my best!¡±

 Chapter 158 First quarrel of the lovers

    ¡°With that out of the way, I think we are good for a quick trip back home,¡± Mathew announced as soon as he duped the role of the local leader on Robert.

    ¡°And leave everyone here to their own devices?¡± Daniel protested. He then crossed his arms on his chest and took a stance. ¡°I¡¯m staying. We can have Norbert shift between you and me to keep us in touch.¡±

    ¡®What a clever way of talking,¡¯ Mathew smiled, amused by the effectiveness of the officer¡¯s words. ¡®He didn¡¯t simply refuse my n, but came up with one of his own and shown its potential benefits!¡¯

    Neither of the men had to properly exin their actions.

    By deciding to go back to the schoolpound with only about an hour of daylight left, Mathew also told Daniel that he cared very little about the local survivors. He was willing to bet all their lives on improving the strength of his group first and foremost.

    On the other hand, by opposing this n and deciding to stay back, Daniel went against this bet, refusing to treat the lives of the local survivors lightly.

    Neither of them had to spell those facts out for the other to understand.

    ¡®That¡¯s a police negotiator for you,¡¯ Mathew thought before smiling lightly and nodding his head. ¡°So be it,¡± he said before turning around on his heel. Yet, even after making his way toward the doors, he turned his head around and took a look at Daniel¡¯s face.

    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want a saber of two?¡± Mathew asked. ¡®I can understand if he himself won¡¯t use it, but wouldn¡¯t it be better for Norbert to carry one? Or even maybe one of the survivors that¡¯s athletic enough to fight?¡¯

    ¡°I told you, I¡¯m fine,¡± Daniel said as he shook his head. ¡°And in a situation where I would really need them, they won¡¯t make that much of a difference anyway,¡± he exined his thoughts with a shrug of his shoulders.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Mathew nodded his head again before beckoning at the girls to follow him outside. ¡°I wish you good luck. May wee back in time,¡± the young man stated before raising his hand and then turning around and leaving the hall.

    ¡°Are you really sure they will be okay?¡± Nadia asked in a hushed voice as soon as it had no chance of reaching the unnecessary ears.

    ¡°I do not,¡± Mathew replied in a cold voice. He then shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m betting that they will, but there is a chance they will all die,¡± he stated before shrugging his arms.

    ¡°And you are not troubled by it?¡± Nadia asked, a long wrinkle appearing on her forehead.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m not,¡± Mathew pursed his lips together, and a look of slight displeasure appeared on his face. ¡°Dear, we can¡¯t save everyone,¡± Mathew stated as she turned around and stopped in the middle of the stairs, stopping the two other girls from descending as well. ¡°And if we die here, we are sentencing to death all those who we could save in the future.¡±

    ¡°So it¡¯s yet another gamble,¡± Nadia pointed out while raising one of her eyebrows and crossing her arms on her chest. ¡°You are gambling with human life,¡± she used, her eyes turning cold.

    ¡°I really don¡¯t think this is the right ce to discuss it,¡± Mathew¡¯s face darkened. ¡®Is this our first quarrel?¡¯ he thought, taking a deep breath to calm himself down.

    Despite the outward calmness that he used as a mask for many years, Mathew was aware of just how emotional of a person he was. He simply learned how to hide it, how to rein his emotions and keep them in check.

    He never really dealt with the problem itself. And so, aware of this mine waiting to explode, Mathew opted to take a moment to rebuild the walls around his heart.

    ¡°This might not be the right ce for a discussion, fine,¡± Nadia agreed with Mathew, only to raise her chin and look him directly in the eyes. ¡°But I don¡¯t think it¡¯s fine to leave them be either.¡±

    Mathew stared down right into the girl¡¯s eyes for a while. He took three deep breaths, each of them aimed at calming down the sea of his emotions.

    ¡°Nadia,¡± Mathew finally calmed himself down enough to pick up the discussion. ¡°It¡¯s not about betting, gambling, or ying the risk,¡± he started. ¡°It¡¯s all about math. What are the chances that one of us would die in theing battle? How quickly can we go to thepound and back? What¡¯s the value lost if someone from our group were to die as opposed to some random survivors dying?¡±

    Mathew stopped his words from flowing out, taking his time to regain control over his emotions once again.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m happy to ignore the risk of the zombies attacking before wee back. It¡¯s not like I don¡¯t care about the lives of those people,¡± Mathew said, pointing his hand up the stairs to where the hall was. ¡°I simply care about your wellbeing more than I do about any of them. And with how our return can make a huge difference, I won¡¯t risk your life in favor of saving theirs.¡±

    ¡®Wanting to save everyone¡­¡¯ Mathew shook his head as he bit down on his lips to the point his teeth cut through the skin of his mouth. ¡®Isn¡¯t that just pride speaking?¡¯

    ¡°I¡­¡± Nadia obediently listened up to Mathew¡¯s words. Yet, as she tried to reply, her voice broke down as hesitation took over.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Mathew attempted to encourage the girl to share her thoughts, only for Nadia to raise her hand in a simple ¡°Stop¡± gesture.

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking, give me a moment please,¡± she pleaded before lowering her eyes and then turning silent.

    ¡°You can think as we go,¡± Mathew forced himself to keep his cool. ¡°Whatever you figure out, it won¡¯t hurt for us to be on our way while you think,¡± he added before turning around on his heel and continuing his descent down the stairs.

    ¡°I would drop this topic, sister,¡± Daria muttered as she passed by Nadia while following in Mathew¡¯s steps. ¡°This is no longer the world where our old morals work. And there is a reason why sacrificing one¡¯s life and health for others is considered the heaviest virtue in most of the religions and cultures.¡±

    Daria didn¡¯t bother to borate on her unexpected, philosophical remark. As soon as she finished her short speech, she left astounded Nadia behind as she moved down the stairs.

    Le followed right after herpanion. Expecting the unexpected, Nadia raised her eyes on Le, only for thetter to raise her hands up in a gesture of surrender.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t have anything smart to say,¡± she excused herself with a look of difort on her face.

    ¡°Sometimes advice doesn¡¯t need to sound smart,¡± Nadia heaved a deep sigh as she hid her face in her palm.

    ¡°How about this, then,¡± Le said with a small smile quivering on her lips. ¡°You fail to see just how much Mathew worries about you because you are used to it. On the contrary, the two of us have to constantly fight for his attention and recognition,¡± Le suddenly dropped a bomb that managed to catch Nadia off-guard.

    ¡°So I hope you will take this advice from someone who struggles to get a fraction of the favor that you have with him,¡± Le didn¡¯t stop her words as she smiled gently and ced her hand on Nadia¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Love isn¡¯t all about sex. You can win a man¡¯s lower head by sucking on it, but you won¡¯t win a man¡¯s brain by sucking on his brain,¡± Le stated while a mischievous grin appeared on her lips.

    ¡°So I should just ignore my morals and let him do as he wants?!¡± Nadia protested before even realizing that both Mathew and Daria already moved too far down the stairs for her to see or hear them anymore.

    ¡°I¡¯m not telling you to do this or do that,¡± Le negated Nadia¡¯s outburst while shaking her head with disapproval. ¡°I¡¯m just rifying the situation. And you need to understand that you can fight with us only because of how desperate our situation is,¡± she pointed out.

    ¡°And what do you mean by that?¡± Nadia replied, her emotions slowly starting to get better of her. ¡°Am I not worthy to fight by your side?!¡± she attempted to challenge her cowife.

    ¡°Not at all,¡± Le shook her head again, her face taking on a look of an adult giving up on the idea of exining something to a kid too dumb for their own good. ¡°I¡¯m just saying that if he could, Mathew would keep you as far away from the conflict. For him, you are the princess on a white pony,¡± Le gave out her opinion before turning around herself and moving down the stairs.

    Only when she reached the breaking point that would make her turn around to move even further down did she cast onest look at Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡°The two of us are different than you. I¡¯m not saying that to antagonize you, but to make you realize why Mathew makes seemingly dumb or reckless decisions,¡± Le exined as the look on her face mellowed down.

    ¡°And we could all see it when Mathew desperately rushed to save Daria, yeah,¡± Nadia nodded her head only to roll her eyes in a showcase of how much sarcasm she infused in her words.

    ¡°Losing one of us would mean losing a valuable fighter with great potential to grow and a partner so striven for Mathew¡¯s attention they became the most convenient girls left in the world,¡± Le countered without even a second of hesitation. She then raised her head and looked Nadia directly in the eyes.

    Even though Le stood several steps the stairs below the first wife, she somehow appeared to tower over Nadia.

    ¡°I won¡¯t give you an answer to this one as it would make my question meaningless,¡± Le announced only for a small, sad smile to appear on her lips. ¡°Ask yourself what would Mathew do if you were to die instead.¡±

 Chapter 159 What am I supposed to tell her?

    ¡°Are you guys ready?¡± Mathew asked once the entire group gathered by the hole in the wall they used to enter the building in the first ce.

    He then took a look around him, not skipping on anyone even though he just had a small fight with Nadia.

    ¡°Remember, we don¡¯t have much time so we will have to hurry the hell up,¡± Mathew announced only to turn his face back towards the hole and step through it. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    ¡®It could be devastating to stay here for too long,¡¯ Mathew thought, using the broken piece of the wall as a support for his hands that allowed him to basically eject himself forward. ¡®If even a tiny part of stray zombies were to enter the building, this could prove disastrous.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s eyes were focused on what was in front of him¡­ Yet all of his senses worked in unison.

    He could hear every noise. He could feel every fluttering of the wind on his face. He could smell the odor of burned and rotting flesh alike and then judge the distance of the source of the smell by how intense it was.

    All for the sake of keeping his group safe.

    ¡®I need to ask myself what would Mathew do if I were to die,¡¯ Nadia thought, following after Mathew without a word.

    The question that Le left her with made the girl uneasy and restless. Nadia¡¯s emotional state, under the attack of her own consciousness, became so bad she couldn¡¯t even pay attention to her surroundings.

    ¡°Watch it!¡± Daria shouted, slowing down just in the nick of time to take a step to the side, shot her arms out, and then drag Nadia towards herself, pulling her out of harm¡¯s way.

    ¡°AAARG¡± the upper half of a zombie¡¯s corpse reached out with its rotting arms for Nadia¡¯s leg, only to miss it by a mere inch.

    ¡°Are you out of your mind?!¡± Daria shouted. She clearly wanted to stare down at her cowife, yet her reason persevered, making Daria get back into running while pulling Nadia along.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Nadia nodded her head as she got used to the momentum again. She then shook her head in an attempt to clear her mind¡­

    This time, however, this simple motion didn¡¯t work.

    ¡®What would Matty do if I were to die?¡¯ Nadia asked herself again, shortening Le¡¯s lengthy question into a morepact and easier-to-understand version.

    Then, Nadia¡¯s face darkened.

    ¡®He would freak out beyond any reason,¡¯ she thought, well aware of how important she was to her childhood friend turned lover.

    A series of images shed past Nadia¡¯s eyes.

    Mathew cuddling himself to her chest, finding sce in something as simple as her warmth. The worried look on Mathew¡¯s face when he was unable to move during their first time and thus had to leave everything to Nadia. His pained face when he could hardly resist the pleasure other girl¡¯s brought him, the look in his eyes betraying how it all came from how aware he was of her own feelings.

    And the sneaky nces he would steal of her whenever inbat, always making sure that she was okay while near him. The reluctance in his eyes whenever he would send her to a mission or give her some orders, especially when doing so would mean working separately.

    ¡®Wait, isn¡¯t he kinda crazy about me?¡¯ Nadia asked herself, unable to stop her throat from gulping down all the saliva that gathered in her mouth.

    Nadia then looked forward, stealing a long nce of Mathew¡¯s back.

    He didn¡¯t seem to mind her at all with how focused he was on the path ahead.

    Mathew suddenly jumped to the side and pulled out his saber. He then made three quick steps, redirecting the sideways momentum of his jump only to use it to reinforce the shing attack he brought upon his extreme right.

    ¡®Woah,¡¯ Nadia uttered a small moan of inspired shock when the tip of Mathew¡¯s de cut right through the throat of a random zombie, cleaving its head away in a single, gentle swing.

    ¡®But wait, why did he move so much to the side?¡¯ Nadia asked herself as she continued to run after her lover.

    And in just a few steps, the answer appeared before her very own eyes as she made a small jump over the headless body of the zombie.

    ¡®He didn¡¯t clear it because it would obstruct him, but because it could be in my way!¡¯

    A strange, warm feeling welled up at the bottom of Nadia¡¯s soul. And as she moved her eyes back to Mathew¡¯s back, her pupils filled with warmth.

    ¡®He might not speak much unless asked, but his actions prove this point over and over again,¡¯ Nadia noticed only to end up bitting down on her lip.

    ¡®And in such a scenario, what would he do if I were to die?¡¯

    The realization that came with this question shook the girl to the core.

    She lowered her eyes and then nearly closed them, too stunned by her simple discovery to care about anything else.

    ¡°Careful!¡± Mathew shouted, only to turn sideways and bury his legs into the road, leaving a small, smoking trail from his burned-out shoes. ¡°We swing to the right!¡± he ordered, pulling the group away from the main road and through the side streets that this city was full of.

    In one sense, moving as a group through the narrow areas of the small street was a critical mistake. And yet, Mathew, someone who survived longer in the apocalypse than the apocalypse existed, decided to pull his group of four into a sidestreet.

    This time, however, no one bothered to question his decision. For that, the time wouldeter.

    ¡®Just a little bit closer,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking onest look at a group of strange-looking zombies that he saw down the main path. Yet, this looksted for just a second as the buildings of the side street quickly covered the view.

    ¡®What was that bad feeling, I wonder,¡¯ Mathew thought, swallowing down the saliva that was produced when he first noticed those zombies.

    The young man knew better than to ignore one of the few greatest assets that he had in the apocalypse, the extremely basic human instinct of survival.

    ¡®I guess we will stumble into them once we get back,¡¯ Mathew thought, opting to ignore the weird zombies, throwing the notion about them to the back of his head.

    Thankfully, the path back to the school¡¯spound turned out not to have any further obstacles, allowing the entire group to reach the open area in front of thepound¡¯s main gate before rushing in.

    ¡°That was a nice jog,¡± Lemented, most likely not even aware of Nadia¡¯s mishap that could easily cause the entire group to fall into disarray back just a few moments ago. She then turned around only to look at Daria¡¯s exhausted face and the awkward expression on Nadia¡¯s.

    ¡°Is something wrong, guys?¡± Le asked, openly ignoring the entire conversation that she had with Nadia back in the Media outlet building.

    ¡°Let¡¯s not waste time,¡± Mathew cut the discussion short, taking just a few short breaths before rushing inside the building. ¡°We still need to get back. And who knows, maybe they are fighting off the rush of zombies as we dawdle around,¡± he scolded everyone, himself included, before making his way inside through the rubble of thepound¡¯s copsed wing.

    ¡®What the hell is that cold sweat?¡¯ Mathew asked himself once he gained just enough distance over the girls to be left all alone for a short moment.

    His face tensed up as a distant echo of terror sounded in his mind.

    ¡®Those zombies clearly weren¡¯t normal,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he rushed up the stairs and then inside the hole in the wall leading to the shaft. ¡®But just how powerful they have to be for me to keep feeling the terror of their aura, even though I¡¯m within the safety of the fortress now?¡¯

    Mathew knew that he had no time to waste pondering over this stuff. Yet, while climbing up the nearly ancientdder of the shaft, he was free to use that time for any mental exercise he wanted.

    ¡°You are back, guys,¡± one of the local survivors reached out with his hand to help Mathew out of the shaft. ¡°Did Daniel and Norbert¡­?¡± he then asked, once Mathew made his way inside.

    ¡°I guess you saw us through the window,¡± Mathew muttered, only to shake his head. ¡°And no, they should be okay as far as I know,¡± he then added, hoping to calm his former schoolmate down. ¡®Or so I hope,¡¯ he then thought, standing up from the ground before approaching the merchant.

    Then and only then did Mathew stop in his tracks, his hand frozen just an inch away from the darkness of the merchant.

    ¡®It all rests on this guess of mine,¡¯ he thought, gulping down his saliva.

    The terror that he felt from the zombies outside made Mahtew painfully aware of a simple truth.

    ¡®We might be growing faster than anyone else, but not faster than the apocalypse itself,¡¯ he thought before gritting his teeth against each other.

    ¡°Mathew,¡± Nadia called out even before she emerged from the hole. And while there was an urgency in her voice, Mathew simply closed his eyes¡­ before pushing his arm ahead and enclosing his fingers around its darkness. ¡°We need to talk¡­¡± the girl added, just as the shadows surged past Mathew, cutting him away from the reality around him.

    ¡°Safe¡­¡± Mathew muttered once he realized that he managed to escape the problematic situation by the skin of his teeth.

    The young man then plummeted down to the shadowy ground only to bring his knees up and hide his face between them.

    ¡®Just what am I supposed to tell her, once I get back?¡¯

 Chapter 160 Touch the golden grass - double upgrade

    Mathew took a deep breath and held it in his lungs for as long as he could. Only when his heart started to protest and fill his mind with pain and desperation did the young man dare to release his breath.

    ¡°I never knew a small quarrel between lovers could hurt so much,¡± he muttered to himself, only to then shake his head. ¡°The worst thing is, I don¡¯t even understand what did we argue about!¡±

    Mathew wanted to take as long as necessary to calm his thoughts and emotions down. Yet, for every second that he wasted on himself, he could feel the growing pressure of the situation his group was in.

    ¡®I never really tested out how the time passes between the realms,¡¯ Mathew noticed, pursing his lips as he felt his own mind ming himself for the stupid mistake.

    ¡®Testing it would only take a second so I never felt pressure to do it, always pushing it forter,¡¯ he figured out how his mind worked in regards to this particr topic.

    And with a heavy sigh, Mathew stood up. He then raised his hands and violently pped both sides of his head.

    ¡°There is no time to waste. Even if it will only take a second, I need to make the most out of it!¡±

    Mathew shook his head, allowing the pain of his self-p to dissipate. And once he managed to clear his head to some degree, he moved forward, approaching the same pedestals that caught his interest before.

    ¡°What¡¯s the cost of buying an upgrade to the touch-grass feature?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyes to the area where the presence of the merchant was most dense.

    ¡°Two hundred and fifty cores.¡±

    ¡°You guys could at least stop pretending by now,¡± Mathew muttered as he pulled out his crystal before cing it on top of his pedestal of choice.

    Then, everything went as usual. The crystal lit up. The light-flooded Mathew¡¯s eyes, turning him blind for a moment. And once Mathew¡¯s eyes recovered from the sh, the size of the crystal decreased.

    ¡°Is it done?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyes to the usual point.

    ¡°It is.¡±

    The cold, metallic voice of the merchant was quickly starting to annoy the young man.

    ¡°If you are humans then speak normally. If you are not, then why do you pretend you are in the first ce?¡± Mathew asked as he waved his head and turned around.

    He didn¡¯t ask for the merchant to free him from the subspace. He simply walked in the opposite direction to the pedestals. And once his body reached the boundary of the realm, the shadows around him started to copse, forcing him back into the real world.

    ¡°We need to talk,¡± Nadia¡¯s voice reached Mathew¡¯s ears again, only serving to make him even more confused than he already was.

    ¡°Not now,¡± Mathew replied, pulling his hand away from the coiling darkness hidden under the merchant¡¯s hood. Instead, he turned it to the side, to a small, silvery light that floated roughly at Mathew¡¯s hip level.

    ¡®I have the quarrel, Nadia¡¯s wish to talk, the danger Daniel is in, and now the question of how time passes between the realms. Not to speak about what those sub realms even are in the first ce!¡¯ Mathewined in his thoughts, right as he grasped at the silvery light.

    Contrary to entering the merchant¡¯s subspace, using the touching grass feature of the merchant was something that the young man was still not really ustomed to.

    And yet, even though Mathew seemingly upgraded it, the process didn¡¯t change at all.

    As soon as Mathew grasped at the light, it seemingly immersed itself into his flesh only to explode with warm energy that then surged through every cell of his flesh and bones.

    ¡®Aaaah¡­¡¯ Mathew released a small moan of excitement, unable to stop the massive feeling of relief that filled his soul.

    Even though he wasn¡¯t injured, this light somehow healed the microscopic wounds and tears on his muscles, restoring them to their perfect state.

    ¡®Right, touching grass would fully recover every single resource of the character,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling how the feature worked in the games he enjoyed.

    The warm energy that infused itself into Mathew¡¯s flesh finallypleted its task of fully enveloping the young man. Then and only then, did the process that Mathew went through before, change.

    ¡°Are you fucking kidding me?¡± Mathewined when he saw a huge panel made out of the same color of silvery light as the ess point to this feature.

    Yet, it wasn¡¯t the color of the window that appeared that startled Mathew, it was its content.

    And it didn¡¯t disy his statistics or levels. No, that would be too easy. It disyed the options of character creation instead, allowing Mathew to freely change his own damn appearance!

    ¡°And now I can¡¯t show it to the girls anymore,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose only to take a step back and wave his hands in the air, dispelling the light-made window that hung right on the level of his eyes.

    The silvery energy receded from Mathew¡¯s body as soon as it was struck with his wish to get out of this yet another subspace. And before the young man could as much as blink, he was forced back into the confines of the real world.

    ¡°Did it work?¡± Daria asked, somehow far closer to Mathew than she was when he touched the grass before.

    ¡°Unless you hoped for me to get a bigger dick, it didn¡¯t,¡± Mathew replied coldly. ¡°Ah, sorry,¡± he quickly apologized upon realizing that his own sense of disappointment seeped into the tone of his voice.

    ¡°What are you going to do, then?¡± the girl asked, leaning her head to the side.

    ¡®Thank God she doesn¡¯t seem to be upset,¡¯ Mathew thought, breathing a small sigh of relief.

    Even though his heart was dedicated to Nadia and Nadia alone, he wasn¡¯t going to ignore the help of the other members of his system-bound marriage. And Mathew wasn¡¯t the ungrateful piece of shit who would ept the help without returning the favor in kind.

    ¡°Well then, good luck?¡± Daria replied, leaning her head over her other shoulder while encouraging Mathew with a small smile.

    Yet, as the young man¡¯s eyes wandered to the side in a small nce, he could see aplicated yet definitely sad look growing on Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡®No, I can¡¯t afford to get distracted now,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he turned around and grabbed at the entry to the merchant¡¯s space again.

    The shadows surged and took the young man back to the realm that he was so curious about.

    ¡°How much for another upgrade of the grass?¡± Mathew asked as soon as the realm around him stabilized.

    ¡°Two thousand cores.¡±

    Mathew took a deep breath. And then another. And then yet another one.

    ¡°You sure know how to ramp up the prices,¡± Mathew muttered as he squinted his eyes. Yet, despite how money-grubbing this price felt, he needed to recall the terror he felt when noticing those strange zombies outside to make his decision.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this,¡± Mathew encouraged himself as he repeated the same motions as before.

    A blinding sh of lightter, the crystal in Mathew¡¯s hand now became less than half of its initial size.

    ¡®I spent over three thousand, nearly three and a half thousand cores today,¡¯ Mathew realized when he picked the crystal back.

    He then took another short moment to calm himself down. This time, whoever, it wasn¡¯t the problems with Nadia that gued his mind, but the worry that he just wasted two damned thousand cores for nothing.

    ¡°Well then, no good wille from just hoping for the best or worrying about the worst,¡± Mathew muttered to himself before waving his hand to signal the merchant that he was now ready to go back.

    And a moment of extremely strange feeling of having the reality around him copse, Mathew surfaced back in the real world.

    ¡°Please, don¡¯t disappoint me this t,¡± Mathew muttered as he brought his hand to the side in an attempt to reach for the feature¡¯s silvery light¡­

    Only to realize that the light disappeared, now reced by a patch of golden grass that somehow grew out directly from the concrete floor of the building!

    ¡®I really hope this is a good sign¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, kneeling down on one knee before pressing his hand against the golden grass.

    It was soft, extremely soft. So soft that Mathew¡¯s entire self seemingly melted into the sensation. And as soon as it happened, the familiar energy surged forth, filling everyst one of Mathew¡¯s cells.

    The light projected by the energy enveloped the young man whole, cutting him away from the real world. Then, a panel of light appeared, almost exactly the same as the one Mathew saw just a moment earlier.

    Only, this time, there was another tab listed at its very top.

    Filled with hope, Mathew raised his hand and pressed his fingers against the tab.

    The light that made up the panel swirled, turning into a whirlpool of energy for a moment. And once it stopped moving in circles and turned into a panel with words on it again, Mathew¡¯s lips finally turned into a smile.

    ¡°Jackpot,¡± he muttered, watching at all his statistics disyed on the light-made screen. Yet, as if it wasn¡¯t good enough already, Mathew could see a separate window for every member of his harem.

    And to the side of every statistic of every person, there were two small characters of plus and minus.

    ¡°Now that it works, let¡¯s check how much of a help this feature is going to be,¡± Mathew whispered to himself, unable to produce any louder voice with how much excitement filled his soul.

    And then, he pressed the plus to the side of his vitality statistic.

 Chapter 161 Surprising value of the surviviors

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is,¡¯ Mathew thought when he noticed the changes on the golden screen disyed before him.

    As soon as he attempted to add one point to his vitality statistic, two things happened.

    First, a new panel opened up right in the middle of the disy with a single number of five on it. Then, as soon as Mathew¡¯s eyes moved over to that new panel, a confirmation button appeared below the number.

    ¡®Five cores for raising a single stat by one?¡¯ Mathew thought, raising his hand to rub his chin. ¡®It¡¯s hard to say whether it¡¯s cheap or not¡­¡¯ he thought. ¡®Or is it?¡¯

    The only way that Mathew knew to level up so far, or rather, the only way that he could level up, was to kill more and more zombies.

    And it definitely took more than just fifty zombies to raise his level by one and be rewarded with ten statistic points to distribute to his powers.

    ¡®So with a little bit over three thousand cores left, I should be able to get¡­¡¯ the young man thought, quickly doing the calculus in his mind. ¡®Sixty levels in total, huh?¡¯

    A small smile appeared on Mathew¡¯s lips¡­ along with his eyebrows moving up.

    The cost of raising his levels like that appeared to be too damn low!

    ¡°I guess the price of leveling up increases as I use it?¡± he muttered under his nose, only to add a whole ten points to his vitality in total before confirming the purchase.

    Mathew closed his eyes, expecting yet another sh of bright light. Yet, even after waiting for a while, no such thing happened. Yet, when he looked at the disy before his eyes, he could see that the change actually took ce.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 36] > [Vitality ¨C 46]

    [Brawn ¨C 42]

    [Agility ¨C 42]

    [Mind ¨C 5]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 150+32] > [Total ¨C 160+32]

    [umted Levels ¨C 15/19] > [umted Levels ¨C 15/20]

    [Avaible points: 42]

    ¡®Oh right, I still have forty-two points to distribute,¡¯ he thought, only for his eyebrows to move down as he squinted his eyes. ¡®Wait, didn¡¯t it increase by ten as well?¡¯

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    All the possible meaning of the results of his testing swarmed his mind, making it exceedingly hard to wrap his head around all of those things at once.

    ¡®Is it a bug in the system or did I miss a notification about leveling up?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, only to then shake his head and ignore the question for now.

    ¡®Rather than getting puzzled over the inner workings of all those strange features, I better do more testing,¡¯ Mathew decided. ¡®I will have the time to think about itter,¡¯ he thought, raising his finger to bring his vitality up again.

    This time, however, he only raised it by four points, bringing it up to fifty.

    ¡®The cost went up to six,¡¯ Mathew noticed when the number disyed on the golden screen became twenty-four. ¡®Does that mean it rises by twenty percent for every ten points purchased?¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as more and more possibilities appeared in his mind. ¡®Well then, there is only one way to find it out,¡¯ he thought, before mming six points into his agility stat.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 46] > [Vitality ¨C 50]

    [Brawn ¨C 42]

    [Agility ¨C 42] > [Agility ¨C 48]

    [Mind ¨C 5]

    [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 160+32] > [Total ¨C 170+32]

    [umted Levels ¨C 15/20]

    [Avaible points: 42]

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is,¡¯ Mathew thought as a massive grin appeared on his face. ¡®It¡¯s nice to find the very first exploit in this system,¡¯ hemented in his mind as the corners of his lips reached the limit of how much they could move up.

    ¡®While the points I can use for myself do not increase, the total of my points still decides how much I can invest in my wives!¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s entire body vibrated as he attempted to hold back his joy.

    ¡®This is what I was fucking waiting for!¡¯ he thought, before taking a moment to calcte the most optimal approach. Yet, without a board to write or paper to take notes on, he only managed to solve the simpler, early part of the problem.

    ¡°It will always be more worth to invest in my own points up to the moment the cost of my points is twice as high as the cost of increasing the stats of others,¡± he muttered under his nose. ¡°And all of that assuming one thing¡­¡± he then added, only to raise his finger and add a single point to Nadia¡¯s vitality.

    ¡°Jackpot,¡± Mathew whispered when the number on the secondary disy turned into five.

    That single number meant the cost of points was calcted for each member of his party separately!

    ¡°That means, I need to get fifty points for myself first to even the costs,¡± Mathew muttered, moving his hand over to where his own statistics were disyed after clearing the change to Nadia¡¯s vitality. And with a short moment of spamming the plus sign on the disy, hisbined status increased by a total of forty points more at the total cost of a further three hundred cores.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 50]

    [Brawn ¨C 42]

    [Agility ¨C 48]

    [Mind ¨C 5] > [Mind ¨C 20]

    [Arcane ¨C 25] > [Arcane ¨C 50]

    [Total ¨C 160+32] > [Total ¨C 200+32]

    [umted Levels ¨C 15/20] > [umted Levels ¨C 15/24]

    [Avaible points: 42]

    ¡°That should do it,¡± Mathew muttered only to press the confirmation button on the additional disy before waving the entire thing away and leaving the sub realm of the merchant¡¯s feature.

    ¡°What took you so long?¡± Nadia asked as soon as Mathew¡¯s mind returned to the real world. Her face was tense and while Mathew could sense just how awkward the girl was, she clearly felt too worried about him to care about their earlier strife.

    ¡°I know it will be hard to believe, but I got stumped on a Math problem,¡± Mathew exined before lowering his head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, even though I already knew it, I didn¡¯t really think about how the touching grass subspace doesn¡¯t work the same as the merchant¡¯s one.¡±

    Mathew was still used to the reality where entering a merchant¡¯s shadow realm would put a stop to the time of the real world. And yet, judging by how things and people moved in the short amount of time he spent within the touching grass feature before, the same rules didn¡¯t apply to that subspace.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay¡­¡± Nadia replied softly, lowering her head and stepping from one leg to the other.

    ¡®I got so consumed by the intricacies of the system that I kinda forgot about our quarrel,¡¯ Mathew thought, unable to get out of the awkward moment himself.

    ¡°You said you were stumped by a math problem, right?¡± Daria suddenly asked, breaking into the space between the couple and forcing the two of them to look at her.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I found a way to exploit just how messy this system is. What I wanted to figure out, though, was the best way to do it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not good with math,¡± Daria quickly stated, killing all the hope that momentarily appeared in Mathew¡¯s soul. ¡°Same with Le,¡± Daria then added, putting another nail to the coffin of Mathew¡¯s hopes.

    ¡°Math was never my strongest subject,¡± Nadia chimed in, happy to talk about a topic that put a stop to the awkwardness between her and Mathew. Even if it was only a temporary measure, it still allowed her to talk with her husband just like they used to.

    ¡°And since you couldn¡¯t solve it on the go yourself, then we are in quite a pinch, aren¡¯t we?¡± Daria asked, seemingly putting everyone in a bad mood.

    Yet, contrary to her words, her lips were smiling.

    ¡°We don¡¯t really have the time for theatrics,¡± Mathew muttered. ¡°I already wasted a lot of it within the touch grass subspace, so please, save them forter and just tell us already what you thought about.¡±

    ¡°Not a single one of us can solve this problem easily. And I can say that without even asking about the details of what you are talking about,¡± Daria stated only to then shrug her shoulders and open them up to the sides. ¡°But did you guys forget where the hell we are right now?¡±

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew thought, stumped by Daria¡¯s words.

    The expression on her face made it clear that the hints she gave were so obvious she shouldn¡¯t need to say another word to make it clear.

    ¡°We are in the¡­¡± Mathew started speaking, only to stop his words when the obvious reality dawned on him. ¡°We are in the middle of a fucking school!¡± he screamed out only to hide his face in the palms of his hand, ashamed of how such an obvious connection eluded him.

    Mathew didn¡¯t waste a second after he realized Daria¡¯s intentions. He turned around on his heel and looked at the people throwing curious nces at them from all over the area.

    If not a single member of his group could solve this question on their own without wasting a considerable amount of time, then the obvious choice was to let someone else do it for them!

    ¡°We need someone great at math!¡± Mathew shouted and sent a prying nce all over the area. ¡®

    ¡°Excuse me¡­¡± a hand appeared from beyond the doorway to one of the ssrooms on the floor, quickly followed by a scrawny-looking boy.

    ¡®A junior of ours?¡¯ Mathew thought when he noticed the small psychique of his former schoolmate.

    ¡°I don¡¯t mean to brag, but I¡¯ve got the fourth spot in the national math exam,¡± the young man exined as he stepped forward and slowly approached the group.

    He then stood up, fixed his sses, and audibly gulped down his saliva.

    ¡°Can I maybe ask for the details of the problem?¡±

 Chapter 162 First step of the exploit

    ¡°So it¡¯s something like that,¡± Mathew¡¯s junior muttered while leaning over a piece of paper marked with several numbers.

    ¡°Any ideas?¡± Mathew asked, a hint of impatience shing in his eyes.

    Just exining the problem without revealing its exact details took a while. Covering the paper with numbers and graphs took another moment.

    ¡°It would be far easier with aputer, to be honest,¡± Mathew¡¯s junior sighed.

    He appeared to be around sixteen years of age. He had short, brown hair and eyes of a color hanging between deep brown and dark green. He wore a set of thick sses that ented the hint of intelligence hidden within his expression.

    A type of silent honor student.

    And this young man now raised his gaze from the papers and turned into Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I think I can get the gist of it,¡± he said, straightening his back formerly bent over the piece of paper with all the data.

    ¡°Huh? Already?¡± Mathew asked, taken aback. ¡®That quick?¡¯ he thought as a slight sense of shame appeared in his soul. ¡®Is it really that easy?¡¯ he asked himself, twisting his lips in a small, ugly grimace. ¡®Then why couldn¡¯t I figure it out myself?¡¯

    ¡°First, you need to fill out the first basket with fifty pieces,¡± Mathew¡¯s junior spoke, lowering his hand and pointing at one of the small graphs on the paper. ¡°But you already know that,¡± he then added, putting up a small smile.

    ¡®It¡¯s good that he isn¡¯t scared of me,¡¯ Mathew thought, the look on his face tensing up a little. ¡®But¡­¡¯

    ¡°Once you reach the point where the benefits of all the baskets are the same, you need to put twenty pieces to the first basked for every ten pieces you put to each of the other three baskets.¡±

    The young man took a breath and rested his fists on his hips. A confident smile appeared on his face.

    ¡°Then how do I calcte how many pieces I can get?¡± Mathew asked, swallowing both his shame and pride as he leaned over the paper as well.

    ¡°That¡¯s actually simple,¡± the young man smiled and lowered his eyes over the paper. ¡°You just add this number here to every next step,¡± he exined, moving his finger to another form.

    ¡®So the cost of each sessive step increases by the base number and a multiplication of seventy,¡¯ Mathew thought, reading the numbers out.

    ¡®I can wrap my head about the general idea,¡¯ he thought, releasing a small sigh. ¡®But grasping if all the numbers are correct is beyond me,¡¯ he admitted to himself.

    Mathew then shook his head, hiding a small smile from appearing on his face.

    ¡®Thankfully, I don¡¯t need to remember any of those numbers as long as I follow one, simple rule.¡¯

    ¡°Thanks for the help,¡± Mathew said, hiding his grin as he looked up at his former junior. ¡°There is a huge chance we will need your help in the future, so I would like to thank you in advance,¡± he then added, staring down his junior with a perverse smile of a ckpany recruiter roping in yet another innocent soul into his shady business.

    ¡°Ugh¡­¡± the schoolboy released a small moan as he took a steep back.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Mathewughed out. He then brought his hand up to his junior. ¡°Thanks for the help,¡± he repeated himself, this time with a straight, serious face.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the young man awkwardly epted Mathew¡¯s hand, averting his eyes as he shook it.

    ¡®Wait, isn¡¯t this¡­¡¯ Mathew suddenly froze all over, a terror appearing out of the very bottom of his soul. ¡®No fucking way,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth and suddenly pulling his hand back.

    ¡°Well then, we are kinda on a clock right now,¡± Mathew muttered, turning around and reaching for the patch of golden grass right beside.

    ¡®Thinking about this,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s thoughts suddenly stopped when he noticed a certain possibility. ¡®I only can enable my wives to level up by killing zombies,¡¯ he thought, opening his eyes wide as the golden light of the grass enveloped his body.

    ¡®But maybe I can do it with this feature?¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s train of thought broke when he suddenly plummeted into the subspace.

    And for but a moment, he could gaze right into the sh of the golden light as it overtook his eyes.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew muttered as he regained his sense of reality a momentter.

    He couldn¡¯t recall a single thing about what he saw inside that light.

    ¡®My head hurts,¡¯ Mathew thought, falling down to his knees as he brought his hands to his temples. An ugly sense welled up in his stomach and down his throat, almost making the young man throw up on the spot.

    ¡®I don¡¯t have the time for this,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he forced his body to stand up. He then raised his eyes while mping his mouth shut in hopes of preventing the convulsions that shook his stomach.

    Finally, Mathew¡¯s eyes fell upon the golden disy decorated with numbers detailing the strengths of everyone in his group.

    The stats of his girls grew for about a single level each ever since he checked them before departing for the media building.

    ¡®We likely got a level each from fighting the zombies in that building,¡¯ Mahtew thought as he finally found the strength to raise his fingers to the disy.

    ¡°Remember the rule,¡± Mathew thought, adding a specific number of points to every member of his group.

    [Cost: 360]

    The number appeared in the secondary disy.

    ¡®And now we just rinse and repeat,¡¯ Mathew thought, a smile shing up on his face in spite of how he felt.

    360, 790, 1290, 1860¡­

    The numbers grew for every repetition of the process that Mathewpleted.

    Twenty points into his own stats then ten points into each of the girls.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I should spend all the coins I have,¡± Mathew thought, quickly calcting how many he had left. ¡®Well, we are going to farm more pretty soon anyway,¡¯ he thought, quickly changing his mind.

    1860, 2500¡­

    ¡®That¡¯s the limit I guess,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    After all the purchases he did, he only had around twenty-eight hundred cores left in total. And after a quick check, another step would bring the leveling up cost to over three thousand cores.

    ¡®Let¡¯s go with this,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a deep breath as he looked down at the changes he introduced to everyone¡¯s stats.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 50] > [Vitality ¨C 80]

    [Brawn ¨C 42] > [Brawn ¨C 60]

    [Agility ¨C 48] > [Agility ¨C 60]

    [Mind ¨C 20] > [Mind ¨C 50]

    [Arcane ¨C 50] > [Arcane ¨C 60]

    [Total ¨C 200+42] > [Total 300+42]

    [umted Levels ¨C 15/24] > [umted Levels ¨C 15/34]

    [Avaible points: 42]

    [Wife #1]

    [Name: Nadia Astra]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 16+9] > [Level: 21+9]

    [Race: Half-zombie]

    [ss: First Wife ¨C ss 1]

    [Status: Mentally troubled]

    [Level ¨C 25] > [Level ¨C 30]

    [Vitality ¨C 77] > [Vitality ¨C 90]

    [Brawn ¨C 72] > [Brawn ¨C 80]

    [Agility ¨C 68] > [Agility ¨C 80]

    [Mind ¨C 10] > [Mind ¨C 20]

    [Arcane ¨C 25] > [Arcane ¨C 32]

    [Total ¨C 302(90 gifted)]

    [Wife #2]

    [Name: Le Hussate]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 17+3] > [Level: 22+3]

    [Race: Human]

    [ss: Brawler ¨C  ss 1]

    [Status: N/A]

    [Level ¨C 20] ¨C > [Level ¨C 25]

    [Vitality ¨C 60] > [Vitality ¨C 70]

    [Brawn ¨C 79] > [Brawn ¨C 90]

    [Agility ¨C 54] > [Agility ¨C 74]

    [Mind ¨C 0] > [Mind ¨C 9]

    [Arcane ¨C 15]

    [Total ¨C 258(30 gifted)]

    [Wife #2]

    [Name: Daria Paternal]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 18+3] > [Level: 23+3]

    [Race: Human]

    [ss: Seductress ¨C ss 1]

    [Status: N/A]

    [Level ¨C 22] > [Level ¨C 27]

    [Vitality ¨C 35] > [Vitality ¨C 50]

    [Brawn ¨C 40]

    [Agility ¨C 34] > [Agility ¨C 40]

    [Mind ¨C 32] > [Mind ¨C 36]

    [Arcane ¨C 75] > [Arcane ¨C 100]

    [Total ¨C 276(30 gifted)]

    The list of changes was long, yet it brought the strength of everyone in Mathew¡¯s team by a massive chunk.

    ¡®I hope this kind of distribution will be all right,¡¯ the young man thought, staring down at the list of his choices before reaching out and pressing the confirmation.

    For a moment, the golden light that made up the entire subrealm tensed up. The air suddenly turned as thick as liquid, stopping Mathew from moving in any way or form.

    And then, the surrounding space started to twist. The golden light exploded from every tiniest crack in space, rushing towards Mathew¡¯s immobilized flesh.

    He was suspended in space, doomed to just watch the events as they developed.

    The scenery filled with golden light. The disys faded away, made from the exact same light that invaded the space. And as the light rushed towards Mathew, his vision first brightened up, only to then suddenly turn dark, right as the golden realm shattered, sending unconscious Mathew falling to the floor.

    He plummeted down¡­ Yet there was no one there to catch him.

    With just the corner of his eye, Mathew could somehow still see. And he saw every member of his party suddenly getting weak knees while the golden light assaulted them as well.

    ¡®Did I overdo it?¡¯ A residual thought appeared in Mathew¡¯s head as the darkness surrounded his consciousness, shutting it down like one would blow out a candle.

 Chapter 163 Class evolution

    Mathew woke up to a massive pain in his head.

    His ears were ringing while his body refused to move at all.

    ¡®Ugh¡­¡¯ the young man whined in his thoughts. He then took a deep breath, trying to use it to ward off the unpleasant experience.

    And just like that, everything came to an end.

    Mathew opened up his eyes, only to see how cheap were the panels on the floor.

    ¡®How long was I out?¡¯ the young man asked himself, prompting his chest up on his arms and looking around.

    The young man that helped Mathew before has yet to even turn his head around. Mathew¡¯s girl¡¯s allid down on the floor with their eyes closed.

    ¡®I really overdid it,¡¯ Mathew thought, internally admitting the me. ¡®I should¡¯ve raised our strength step by step, not all at once,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he rose up to his feet.

    Mathew rose up to his feet¡­ only to end up half a meter up in the air after pushing himself off the ground.

    ¡®What the¡­¡¯ Mathew panicked.

    Not because he was in any danger, a fall from such a small heigh wouldn¡¯t hurt him.

    The young man was bewildered by the reason why he suddenly found himself up in the air.

    ¡®Is it the increase in my stats?¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes opening wide right as his body plummeted down.

    Pat.

    Mathewnded like a cat, softly absorbing the impact on his joints. He then turned the momentum into a swing that helped him to rise back to his feet.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m not used to this kind of strength,¡± Mathew muttered as he brought his right hand up and looked at it with awe.

    The system was a byproduct of the apocalypse. Something that Mathew hated to the core and with all his might. A way of reusing the resources of the apocalypse into monsters harder and harder to defeat.

    ¡®I should hate everything rted to the apocalypse, and so do I,¡¯ Mathew thought, still staring his hand down. ¡®And yet, I can¡¯t refuse how nice it feels to get stronger.¡¯

    ¡®No,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s thoughts suddenly took a turn. He shook his head and looked to the side. His feet moved as soon as his eyes locked on their target.

    ¡°Nadia¡­¡± Mathew muttered, falling to his knees by the girl, only to watch her slowlye to her senses on her own.

    ¡°What happened¡­?¡± the girl asked in a frail voice, failing to focus her eyes on anything. ¡°Did you¡­¡± she opened her mouth and let out a few sounds, only to end up pausing her sentence as a wave of weakness took over her flesh.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay already,¡± Mathew encouraged his girl, grabbing her from the side and helping her to stand up. ¡°And yes, we grew by quite a whole lot,¡± he then added, eager to sweeten the deal for the girl.

    ¡°That¡¯s good, then,¡± Nadia smiled gently before shaking her head and taking a deep breath.

    Just like was the case for Mathew, Nadia managed to fight off her sense of weakness in a single moment. And to be perfectly fair, she did so a lot faster than her man!

    ¡°Ugh, that was a weird feeling,¡± Nadia muttered. She then wiped her mouth with the back of her hand before looking around.

    ¡°What the hell was that¡­?¡± Daria muttered, weakly raising up her arms and lifting her head from the floor. To her side, Le also started to regain her consciousness.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t over yet,¡± Mathew finally dared to mention, now that everyone was awake. ¡°But first, I want you all to decide what you want to improve on first,¡± the young man exined. ¡°Oh, but first, try to move around and see how you feel.¡±

    ¡®And check if you received some interesting abilities,¡¯ Mathew thought, calling forth the system window and ncing at everyone¡¯s stats. ¡®I distributed the points with everyone¡¯s potential progress in mind, after all.¡¯

    Mathew put a lot of importance into raising each, specific stat towards a certain threshold. It was just another guess of his, yet in a lot of games, reaching a round number of a personal statistic would oftene with additional benefits.

    ¡°I¡¯m simply stronger, I think,¡± Nadia reported after taking a quick stroll around while waving her hands around. ¡°How about you, guys?¡± she then asked, turning her eyes towards the rest of the group.

    ¡®Now that I think about it, shouldn¡¯t I receive some kind of skill myself?¡¯

    Not only did Mathew raise his arcane by a whooping ten points, but he also pumped a total of thirty points into his mind. And for as little as he knew about this stat, in particr, bringing it all the way up to fifty points surely would have some meaningful effects!

    ¡®Judging by how my vitality improved with just a few points, I really should receive some added benefit,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth when scouring his mind didn¡¯t reveal any new tricks.

    The young man then shook his head before ncing at the system sheet again. And to his surprise, he found out that there were two changes that he either missed before or changes that happened only after everyone received their levels.

    Nadia¡¯s ss changed from ¡°First wife ¨C ss 1¡± to ¡°Bloodhound ¨C ss 2¡± while Daria¡¯s ss changed from ¡°Seductress ¨C ss 1¡± to ¡°Shadow Walker ¨C ss 2¡±.

    ¡®Is this change associated with their existing skills? Or maybe level alone?¡¯ Mathew put his guess forward but decided to stay put and keep his mouth shut.

    ¡®It might be just a hunch, but I feel like directing them on a certain path would be detrimental to their growth,¡¯ Mathew thought, clenching his fists as he looked at the girls.

    ¡°Just a moment, please,¡± Daria asked while raising her hand.

    Mathew turned his eyes to the girl only to see her hand shaking and her entire body acting pretty weird.

    And then, measly a second after she called out to the others, something suddenly pulled at the girl, instantly dragging her through the floor towards one of the walls.

    ¡°Wha¡­¡± Mathew released only half of a shout before jumping to his feet and towards the girl.

    Yet, whatever pulled on the girl had a headstart advantage. And just as Mathew¡¯s fingers were about to grasp at Daria¡¯s ankle, she struck the wall¡­

    No.

    As soon as she neared the concrete wall of the building, her body entered some sort of a vortex only to merge into shadows. And before Mathew could even blink, a towering figureposed of a dark, swirling mist appeared before him, staring the young man down with its bright, red eyes.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew gulped down his saliva. And as the screen of the system¡¯s sheet appeared before his eyes for but a moment, he made an interesting discovery.

    All of Daria¡¯s stat¡¯s now seemingly doubled over. And while their normal values appeared just like usual, beside every stat of her, there was now another number.

    It was kept in sharp brackets and represented roughly one and a half of the normal value of Daria¡¯s stats.

    Then, as rapidly as it began, everything came to an end.

    The ck, shadowy figure dissipated, leaving Daria¡¯s body standing exactly where the misty shadow was just a moment earlier.

    And it left her with nothing but a shocked look on her face.

 Chapter 164 Leveling up wives

    ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Daria asked in a faint voice while raising her hands to her eyes only to look down at her palms.

    Her eyes widened as if she wasn¡¯t sure whether she could trust what her eyes told her. And so, she raised them on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Calm down,¡± Mathew attempted to produce a deep, soothing voice. Yet, his haphazard attempt thoroughly failed, making him sound like some sort of goat in pain.

    ¡°Heh,¡± Daria let out a small giggle, breaking free from her stunned state.

    ¡®It wasn¡¯t supposed to be like that, but it ended up working anyway,¡¯ Mathew thought, allowing a small smirk to appear on his face as well.

    ¡°It appears that your ss evolved,¡± he informed the girl. ¡°A shadow walker¡­¡± he then whispered in a conspirational tone. Mathew¡¯s eyes swung from one side to the other as he scanned the room. ¡°Quite cool, isn¡¯t it?¡± he then asked, looking up at Daria¡¯s face while grinning his teeth out.

    ¡°Cool¡­¡± the girl hesitated. She then pursed her lips and averted her eyes. ¡°I guess?¡± she added in the same voice as before.

    ¡°Ah, speaking of ss evolving,¡± Mathew¡¯s eyes twitched, ¡°Nadia, it happened to you as well,¡± he dropped the bomb without hesitation.

    ¡°Huh?¡± the girl only managed to shrug, her eyes widening as she looked at Mathew without any iota of understanding on her face.

    ¡°You turned into a bloodhound,¡± Mathew exined only to then avert his eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t expect me to understand what that means, though,¡± he quickly added, raising his hands in a defensive gesture.

    ¡°Bloodhound, huh?¡± Nadia muttered, lowering her eyes as she sank deeper into her thoughts. ¡°I think I can draw the connection between this ss and my abilities,¡± she admitted while crossing her hands over her chest.

    ¡°What about me?¡± Le asked, feeling left out of the party with all the sudden evolutions. ¡°What ss do I have now?¡± she asked, eagerly looking up the answer on Mathew¡¯s lips.

    ¡°Ah, you need to wait just a moment,¡± Mathew quickly replied, a tinge of awkwardness spreading at the bottom of his soul. ¡°If my guess is correct, then you are a single level away from leveling up,¡± he then exined, turning his eyes to the side.

    Even if it was only a matter of a single moment, Le ended up having the lowest level in the entire group. And while she might not be the mostpetitive person left on the, knowing such detail definitely would hurt.

    And Mathew had no courage to see the effects that news would have on the girl¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I¡­ I see,¡± Le replied, quickly putting up a brave front as she gulped down her excitement. ¡°You said it¡¯s not over yet, didn¡¯t you?¡± she then asked, grasping at the straws.

    ¡°That¡¯s correct,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°So I would like for everyone toy down on the ground,¡± he then ordered, raising his eyes to look at each of his girls. And even though he just raised his sights, Mathew then quickly cast his eyes aside. ¡°I can¡¯t guarantee you won¡¯t lose consciousness again.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s group learned about the effects of sudden leveling just now. It would be foolish to replicate the same mistake now that they knew better.

    ¡°What are you going to do now?¡± Nadia asked as she obediently fell down to her knees before crossing her legs as she rested her back against the nearby wall.

    ¡°This golden patch of grass allowed me to raise everyone¡¯s statistics by quite a lot,¡± Mathew exined the situation without any hesitation. ¡°But in my case, for every level worth of stats I gain, I can gift one of you with the same increase.¡±

    This wasn¡¯t a secret. Mathew didn¡¯t reveal anything new to the girls. His entire group keenly listened to the mathematician from the ss two years below theirs who solved the problem.

    ¡°And that means, I have neen levels to distribute among you,¡± Mathew finally gave out thest piece. A concrete number that the girls could understand.

    ¡°What are our levels right now?¡± Daria asked. The eased-down look on her face indicated she came to terms with her new situation and even managed to find some pride in it.

    ¡°My strength is equal to someone on the thirty-fourth level,¡± Mathew revealed before moving his eyes on Nadia. ¡°Thirty.¡± Mathew¡¯s nce moved over at  Le and then Daria. ¡°Twenty-five and twenty-six.¡±

    ¡°How about bringing us to level thirty and then Nadia to level forty?¡± Daria quickly suggested. She then raised her eyes and looked right into Mathew¡¯s pupils. ¡°We can¡¯t have you be the strongest. You are the most important person in the group so you can¡¯t be the vanguard,¡± she exined her thoughts before turning her eyes towards Nadia.

    ¡°Girl¡­¡± Daria hesitated for a little before taking a deep breath and reaffirming her determination. ¡°Look, I¡¯m willing to let you keep your top spot in the pack. I do acknowledge that the two of you have something special going on,¡± she somehow brought the topic of romance into a discussion strictly about their growth. ¡°But for you to enjoy those privileges, I need you to protect Mathew,¡± Daria released her powerful statement.

    A moment of silence ensued on the floor, as everyone looked right at Daria¡¯s face.

    ¡°Even if at the cost of your life,¡± the girl finally added herst piece before turning silent and locking her eyes on Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡°I-I understand,¡± Nadia replied in a slightly panicky voice. Despite her easygoing and often socially-brave front, when put under pressure like that, her soft self would peek out of her shell.

    ¡°Then all is good,¡± Daria smiled before shrugging her arms and turning her eyes towards Mathew. ¡°Are you okay with that arrangement?¡±

    Mathew took a moment to look at all the girls. Yet, if there was one thing inmon, it was the determination visible in their expressions.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Mathew said, patting himself on his hips as he took a deep breath and called forth his system. He took a second to organize his thoughts and n for the future before enacting his next wish.

    ¡®I wish to donate four levels to Daria, five levels to Le, and ten levels to Nadia!¡¯ he thought as strongly as he could, before ncing over at his own stats.

    In there, there was a single line that bothered him. A line that depicted a potential he was willingly putting aside.

    All because Mathew was worried that using the free points that he had would raise the cost of leveling up through other means.

    ¡®Let¡¯s distribute those as well,¡¯ he decided, quickly drafting a n before confirming it with a single wish.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 80] > [Vitality ¨C 82]

    [Brawn ¨C 60]

    [Agility ¨C 60]

    [Mind ¨C 50]

    [Arcane ¨C 60] > [Arcane ¨C 100]

    [Total ¨C 200+42] > [Total 342]

    [umted Levels ¨C 15/34] > [umted Levels ¨C 34/34]

    [Avaible points: 42] > [Avaible points: 0]

    [Wife #1]

    [Name: Nadia Astra]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 21+9] > [Level: 21+19]

    [Race: Half-zombie]

    [ss: Bloodhound ¨C ss 2]

    [Status: Determined]

    [Level ¨C 30] > [Level ¨C 40]

    [Vitality ¨C 90] > [Vitality ¨C 120]

    [Brawn ¨C 80] > [Brawn ¨C 100]

    [Agility ¨C 80] > [Agility ¨C 100]

    [Mind ¨C 20] > [Mind ¨C 32]

    [Arcane ¨C 32] > [Arcane ¨C 50]

    [Total ¨C 402(190 gifted)]

    [Wife #2]

    [Name: Le Hussate]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 22+3] > [Level: 22+8]

    [Race: Human]

    [ss: Brawler ¨C  ss 1] > [ss: demaster ¨C  ss 2]

    [Status: Determined]

    [Level ¨C 25] ¨C > [Level ¨C 30]

    [Vitality ¨C 70] > [Vitality ¨C 80]

    [Brawn ¨C 90] > [Brawn ¨C 110]

    [Agility ¨C 74] > [Agility ¨C 94]

    [Mind ¨C 0] > [Mind ¨C 9]

    [Arcane ¨C 15]

    [Total ¨C 308(80 gifted)]

    [Wife #2]

    [Name: Daria Paternal]

    [Age: 19]

    [Level: 23+3] > [Level: 23+8]

    [Race: Human]

    [ss: Shadow Walker ¨C ss 2]

    [Status: Determined]

    [Level ¨C 26] > [Level ¨C 30]

    [Vitality ¨C 50] > [Vitality ¨C 60]

    [Brawn ¨C 40]

    [Agility ¨C 40]

    [Mind ¨C 36] > [Mind ¨C 41]

    [Arcane ¨C  100] > [Arcane ¨C 125]

    [Total ¨C 306(70 gifted)]

    [A/N: For now this will be thest time when I extensively show the stats for a while. Included them to make everything clear]

 Chapter 165 Newfound power

    ¡®That should do it,¡¯ Mathew thought once he distributed all the points ording to nothing more but his wits.

    He could only guess how the system would reward reaching a certain threshold of statistics, he could only assume how the ss system worked or even what exactly a level was.

    ¡®I don¡¯t even know why I can¡¯t level up myself,¡¯ the young man thought, gritting his teeth.

    And then, without any further hesitation, he confirmed the changes, donating all the spare levels that he had.

    ¡®I don¡¯t feel any difort myself,¡¯ Mathew thought as he nced down at the palms of his hand. ¡®Save for Naida, Le and Daria grew by about the same amount,¡¯ he thought, turning his eyes towards the girls.

    Contrary to how the power-up went before, this time no one fainted. No one fell to the ground, unable to control their body for a moment.

    At most, everyst member of Mathew¡¯s group present on the scene simply tensed up. Their breath stiffened, as their body had to ustom itself to its newfound power.

    ¡°Did it work?¡± Le was the first one to open her mouth. She turned her eyes to Mathew, looking at him with the sparks of excitement and anxiety dancing around her pupils.

    ¡°It did,¡± Mathew nodded his head and released a deep sigh. ¡°Congrattions, you are now a demaster,¡± he announced, gracing the girl with a small, proud smile.

    ¡®I never expected how nice it feels to see someone of your own grow,¡¯ he thought, enjoying this small, warm spot that he discovered in his soul.

    ¡°demaster?¡± Le voiced the word off before looking at her weapons.

    She was the only one that requested to keep her machete, even after obtaining a better de. It all made sense when one would take that factor into ount.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me about it, I don¡¯t know any better than you,¡± Mathew warned the girl, spreading his arms to physically showcase his powerlessness. ¡°In fact, as it¡¯s a ss you appear to be inclined towards, I bet you will have it easier to figure out its quirks.¡±

    ¡°That¡­ makes sense,¡± the girl admitted. She then pulled out her swords and stared at them for a while.

    ¡°Are you two okay?¡± Mathew asked, leaving Le to her own devices as he brought his attention to the other girls in his group.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Nadia reported. ¡°I will need a moment to get used to the feeling of this body, though,¡± she then added in a hurried voice as she nced up at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I need a moment too,¡± Daria admitted, lowering herself and resting her palms against her knees to support her bent upper body. ¡°It¡¯s not that I feel sick, I¡­¡± she hesitated, ¡°I feel strange¡­¡± Daria then added, unsure what words to use herself.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Mathew nodded his head before pping his hands together. ¡°Everyone, we are taking fifteen minutes of break,¡± he announced while hiding his own impatience and uneasiness. ¡°Try to figure out what you are capable of right now and get used to your improved self!¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t waste any time after his announcement. And the reasons behind his decision were t-out obvious.

    Right now, everyone in his group was in a delicate state where they couldn¡¯t control their strengths and powers. That alone made them weaker than they were before gaining so many levels all at once.

    ¡®Just like a yer testing out a new ss only to be stuck in an endless list of skills. It¡¯s confusing as hell,¡¯ he thought, scratching the back of his ear as he looked at his own stats.

    ¡®Now that I have an arcane on level hundred, I should get some big power-up, shouldn¡¯t I?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head and head towards the broken wall.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡± Nadia asked, instantly noticing Mathew¡¯s movements.

    ¡°Just to test something out,¡± the young man replied, trying to hide the awkwardness in his voice.

    They never really made up after thest quarrel. And while Mathew hoped to just move on, doing so turned out not to be as easy as he initially expected.

    ¡°It would be bad if I damaged this ce any further than it already is,¡± he exined his reasons before sinking into the hole and sliding down the metaldder inside.

    ¡®Climbing it was such a pain and now I can move down in a matter of seconds,¡¯ Mathew thought, tightening his grasp over the rails once he saw the lighting out from the exit hole.

    A mere momentter, Mathew stepped out to the ruins of the fallen wing of thepound.

    ¡®There isn¡¯t enough of them to pose any real threat,¡¯ he thought as he nced over the situation at the gate. He then looked towards the sun, only to see it slowly inching towards the horizon. ¡®We really don¡¯t have time,¡¯ he thought, clenching his teeth as he turned around and moved even further into the ruins.

    ¡®Thest time I used it, was before all the leveling up,¡¯ Mathew thought, pulling out a single core and staring it down as it rested on top of his palm. ¡®Maybe using it again will give me some clues?¡¯

    Mathew was stumped. Not because hecked the motivation to grow. But because he had no clues as to what this growth exactly entailed.

    Sure, improving one¡¯s vitality was a pretty straightforward deal¡­ And yet, Mathew invested his points into Arcane instead of the simple, physical stats.

    In a sense, it was a gamble. A gamble that Mathew was desperate to prove it would pay off.

    So, unwilling to waste any more time, Mathew squeezed the stone in his hand before smashing it down against the ruins covering the ground.

    BOOM!

    The mayhem that ensued was on an entirely different level than what would happen before.

    The pieces of rubble closest to Mathew simply evaporated, deconstructed by the raw power unleashed by the young man¡¯s attack. Within a meter radius away from Mathew, not even dust remained.

    The stones from between a meter and two meters away would fly up and strike like a cannonball against anything that stood in their path. A broken piece of concrete the size of a wardrobe casually mmed into the broken side of thepound, causing quite a few more pieces to fall down while plugging one of the holes at the same time.

    Yet, it was the area from two to ten meters away from Mathew that turned into a practical kill zone.

    Two meters away from Mathew, the force of his attack would disperse to the point it couldn¡¯t really shoot up several tons¡¯ worth of rubble. Instead, the chaotic mess that ensued would tear apart any and all, indiscriminately.

    ¡®Oh my fucking god,¡¯ Mathew cursed under his breath, awed and shocked at the sight at the same time. ¡®Thank god I tested it beforehand,¡¯ he thought, feeling sick at the mere thought of what would happen if his girls ended up caught up in the disaster.

    ¡®But what did I learn from this,¡¯ Mathew asked himself, refusing to allow his terror to triumph over his real purpose. ¡®I definitely felt a surge of energy flowing through me,¡¯ he thought, sping his teeth together as he stretched out his hand, forcing his mind to somehow replicate the feeling.

    And then, a part of Mathew¡¯s consciousness separated from his soul. The will to produce a bolt of mana cut its ties with the rest of his mind, turning into a will that then propelled the mana forward from the young man¡¯s hand.

    Mathew stood in ce with his hand erected, watching at a small hole that his bolt created in several meters long cross-section of a piece of concrete rubble.

    ¡°WHAT?!¡±

 Chapter ?166 The process of casting magic

    Chapter ?166 The process of casting magic

    ''How the hell can this be so powerful?'' Mathew asked himself as he looked down at his palms.

    They were responsible for unleashing this new spell of his. And yet, those palms of his appeared to Mathew to be exactly the same as in the past.

    The young man raised his eyes to the pierced piece of concrete.

    ''Isn''t this way too strong?'' was Mathew''s first thought.

    To evaporate several inches thick holes in concrete would take an insane amount of energy, especially for it to happen instantly.

    And yet, the facts spoke against what Mathew believed to be possible or not.

    ''The question is, how do I approach it?'' the young man asked himself, recalling a quote from one of the obscure books written way in the past.

    ''There are two kinds of people. Those who listen to the facts are one. For the others, if the facts don''t confirm their theory, then damn the facts!''

    Mathew tightened his fists as he looked at the hole of his making.

    "Am I going to be one of those people?" he muttered out the question, sharing it with the world.

    This simple question was far more troubling than Mathew could ever expect. Because now that it came for him to answer it, he finally understood the weight that prompted the others to go with the easier route.

    "I basically need to redefine the concept of strength, power, and pretty much most of physics I know and grew used to," the young man whispered, unable to tear his eyes away from the pierced piece of concrete.

    "It''s just a small hole, yet it can change my way of thinking so much," Mathew muttered under his nose, only to then slowly close his eyes as he had no other choice but to ept the reality.

    "Do all men really think about this all the time?" an unexpected voice startled Mathew when it came from behind his back. And yet, for someone to announce their approach most likely meant there was no danger involved.

    Still, Mathew turned around on his heel, like a girl caught on stalking the social media of her crush. He jumped a little and opened his mouth, ready to rebuke...

    Only to see Le''s grin.

    "You came to test your abilities too?" Mathew asked, taking a few breaths to calm the beating of his heart. Changing the topic was his utmost priority!

    "Did I disturb you, by any chance?" the girl replied, putting on a cute, innocent smile as she leaned her head to the side. Yet, her expression quickly mellowed down as she looked down, her energy vanishing on the spot. "Yes, I didn''t want to put any further stress on thepound," she added only to raise her head and give Mathew a cheeky side look. "Well, not after I saw what you did a moment ago," she then added with a smug smile.

    ''Well, there is no way to refute that,'' Mathew thought, internally admitting his mistake.

    "Learning from my mistakes, I see," the young man spoke up, only to shake his head and then nod it towards the girl. "That''s actually a great idea. I underestimated just how powerful we became, so it''s better if the others won''t repeat the mistake I already did," he admitted, praising the girl in a slightly roundabout way.

    "I hope I won''t trouble you by being here," Le then added only to turn around on her heel, away from Mathew''s eyes. She then took a stance with both of her weapons.

    Le held her saber at the level slightly below her hips with its tip pointed at forty-five degrees upwards and ahead. The girl held her machete in a reverse grip, with its de pointed backward while holding the entire weapon at the level of her chest.

    ''I wonder what she will do,'' Mathew thought, looking at the girl with quite a lot of interest.

    And yet, even after a good while, Le didn''t bother to move, stuck in her position and with her eyes closed.

    ''Well, I better not disturb her either,'' the young man thought, realizing his own rudeness. Rudeness, and wastefulness, as five out of fifteen minutes of break, have passed.

    ''I need to focus on my own abilities,'' Mathew decided, tearing his eyes away from the girl before turning around and immersing his consciousness in the feeling of the energy flowing through his veins.

    ''Let''s go through the process again,'' Mathew thought, repeating all the steps that he made to unleash his first mana bolt.

    And sure enough, after only a moment of concentrating, Mathew''s palm lit up with the dim shine of condensed mana only for it to all disappear when the young man released the control over his own will.

    "So that''s how it works," he muttered under his nose, his eyes open yet with his mind too focused on his internal state to notice the arrival of the rest of the girls.

    Nadia threw Mathew a long, longing look, yet ultimately decided not to bother him. Instead, she took a small spot to the side of the ruins before getting in position herself.

    ''Now that I''ve identified this feeling, I should be able to replicate it,'' Mathew thought, too focused on his own training to pay any mind to the world around him.

    He then repeated all the steps of unleashing his mana bolt again... Only to stop as soon as he could feel the familiar sensation welling up in his soul.

    ''So the mana starts to form once I create a final picture of what I want to achieve?'' Mathew thought, quickly acting on his idea and focusing on analyzing how it worked.

    And for yet another time, Mathew shot out a bolt of mana out of his palm, creating a fourth hole in the block of concrete he used as a firing target.

    "Now then, to take it all into consideration..." the young man muttered, holding out his right hand as he closed his eyes and rested his left hand on his right forearm.

    ''Grasp what you want to do,'' Mathew thought, manually replicating all the steps of casting his mana. ''Turn it into a picture,'' he continued to follow up through the routine he came up with.

    ''Allow the will to carry on.''

    ''Let it separate from the mind.''

    ''Help by pushing more energy into the flow that the intent creates.''

    ''Release it out of the palm.''

    Step by step, Mathew replicated the process that would normally happen on its own. And bit by bit, his body reacted, replicating the results of the formerly system-assistance-exclusive action.

    Poof!

    A small sound of a string bouncing reached Mathew''s ears as soon as the energy expelled itself out of his palm.

    This time, it wasn''t just a small bolt of mana. This time, it was an arc of bright light that sped forward, cutting through everything in its path...

    Only to disappear roughly fifteen meters away from the young man.

    ''This is...'' the young man''s thoughts halted as he stared down at the effects of his small discovery.

    This time, he didn''t create a small hole in a block of concrete. This time, Mathew''s attack cut right through the block, only to continue severing everything that stood in its path, all the way to the point where it dispersed into nothingness.

    ''Did it run out of energy?'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes. ''Or maybe it''s a matter of a distance?'' he thought, trying his best to ount for every possibility.

    "Mathew!" Daria''s shout finally forced the young man out of his immersed state. And as he turned his head around to look at the owner of the voice, Mathew was sted by the massive shineing out of Daria''s eyes.

    "Listen! I think we no longer need to fear the night battle!"

 Chapter ?167 Trio by the gate

    Chapter ?167 Trio by the gate

    "I think we no longer need to fear the night battle!" Daria''s words came out of nowhere. Yet, for how obvious they were, it took everyone in the group far longer than they should realize.

    "Oh right, you get stronger when in shadows!" Mathew called out, shooting his hand up only to smack his face with it. "How could I miss that?"

    Mathew''s words formed a question, yet no one was expected to give it any answer. It was just Mathew''s whine against the world that gifted him with such inferior intelligence.

    ''Or is it that simple?'' he then thought, lowering his eyes and killing his excitement for the sake of coldly analyzing the situation.

    "Dear, it is true that you might turn the scales of the conflict on our side," Mathew admitted, only to shake his head. "But I wouldn''t say that fighting during the night turned out into something we are good at. We can''t rely on you to kill the entire zombie army after all," he borated on his way of thinking.

    "Well, that might be true," Daria was quick to admit. A bit of her enthusiasm vanished... but the energy behind her eyes was far from all gone. "But still, it''s another triumph card for us to y, isn''t it?" she then cheekily suggested.

    "That''s right," Mathew nodded his head only to turn his head and throw a scanning look at the area.

    While he and Daria talked, both Le and Nadia were too immersed in their own training to pay any attention. And while Nadia was busy striking the air with her hands, Le remained still.

    Yet, a single look at the girl''s focused face was enough to tell she wasn''t just wasting time.

    "I think we can''t really waste much more time," Mathew muttered when he turned his eyes towards the line of the horizon with only a small part of the sun still visible above it. "Well then," he added only to then p his hand. "Everyone, the time''s up!"

    Not a single one of them managed to grasp the full potential of their improved selves. A period of just fifteen minutes was way too short for it to happen. And yet, Mathew felt that he had no other choice but to keep pushing through the list of the things they had to do.

    ''I really hope we will be able to take things easy for a while once we are done with this,'' he thought, moving up as soon as the two other girls broke free from their focus and looked towards him.

    "Gather by the gate. I''m going to sprint to check the situation on the map," Mathew issued his quick orders before running off towards thepound.

    All fresh thanks to the touching grass feature and with his body now supported by the strange energy of the system, Mathew could cover the ruined area, several sets of stairs, and then two levels worth of climbing thedder in a matter of minutes.

    And before the original timer of the fifteen minutes of brake was up, the young man was back at the gate, ready to deploy with the girls.

    "What''s the situation?" Nadia asked, doing her absolute best to keep a straight, emotionless face.

    ''We really shouldn''t bicker like that,'' Mathew thought in exchange. ''We don''t know how long we have left to live, and here we are, unable to speak to each other normally over a stupid quarrel.''

    The young man wished to scream his problems out... But he ended up keeping them to himself.

    "I''m not sure if you noticed it before, but I saw some zombies that nearly overwhelmed my mind with their aura alone," Mathew announced.

    "Yeah, it was hard not to notice them," Le confirmed Mathew''s hunch. "What about them?"

    "Well..." Mathew hesitated a little only to raise his hand to his head and scratch the back of his ear. He then turned his hand and pointed it towards the gate nearby. "They are right here."

    The sight of zombies trying to make their way through the solid panel made up of steel ting and the iron frame was somon that everyone got used to it. As such, they hardly paid any attention to the zombies whose turn it was to make some noise by thepound''s gate.

    "It was a wise idea to check out the map, then," Daria muttered, her eyes shing up. She then stared at Mathew''s side, making it impossible for the young man to ignore her gaze.

    "What''s up?" Mathew asked in a tone that revealed he had already given up on trying to persuade the girl not to do whatever popped up in her head.

    It was a rare sight, yet, her face appeared just like Le back when she suddenly revealed her dark side back on the first day of the apocalypse.

    "Can I try to take them on?" Daria pleaded, putting her hands together and lowering her head, only to look at Mathew''s face with upturned eyes. "Pretty please?"

    "I won''t let you go alone," Mathew quickly replied, shaking his head to ent his response. "You might spearhead our expedition, though," he then added.

    Daria''s lips twitched a little only to turn into a bright smile.

    "That''s more than enough," she thanked, only for her smile to turn smug before taking a devilish hint.

    ''She is out for blood,'' Mathew thought, a smirk making way to his own lips. "Well then, without any further ado..." he spoke up, only to unsheathe his saber and take a step towards the gate.

    "We go!" Daria shouted happily, taking a leap directly over the wall only to thennd just a few steps away from the zombies at the gate.

    ''Thisss...'' Mathew held back a curse that welled up in his mouth, opting to focus on following the girl instead.

    He took a small distance to run up and gain some momentum before jumping up, using his hands to prompt himself up the edge of the wall before following after Daria to the outside.

    Puff...

    Mathew softened the impact of thending by bending down on his knees. His head turned to both sides, allowing the young man to quickly register all the important elements of his new surroundings.

    And as soon as his eyesid down on the three zombies that scared him so much before...

    A dark shadow flew past Mathew, at a speed that he wouldn''t expect even Nadia to perform. His eyes followed after the shadow, only to see it shing with the three, seemingly normal, zombies that stood up from the crowd of small fries.

    ''There we go!''

 Chapter ?168 Bigger doesnt mean better

    Chapter ?168 Bigger doesn''t mean better

    Daria rushed into the fight first. In her shadowy form, not a single member of Mathew''s group could even hope to catch up to her.

    It didn''t mean they didn''t try, though.

    Mathew rushed forward as soon as he shook off his shock and calmed down his beating heart a little. Nadia''s reaction time appeared to be slightly slower yet her supreme speed allowed her to reach the ce of conflict even before the young man.

    Out of everyone, it was Le that surprisinglygged behind, even despite her stats being far superior to Mathew''s.

    ''Food for thought forter, isn''t it?'' Mathew released an internal sigh, only to then put all of his attention on the enemies right in his face.

    The three zombies didn''t appear to be any different than all the others Mathew ughtered by thousands before. And yet, they were faster, stronger, and harder to cut than theirmon kin.

    If there was any physical difference between them, then it was a weird, alien green that took over most of their remaining skin.

    "DIE!" Daria shouted, her shadowy form somehow changing her voice into a slightly darker tone than usual. She then swung her hand, only for her de to emerge from it the second it could reach the zombie''s neck.

    The first of the three zombies fell just like that.

    "ROAAAR!" the remaining twomented on the progress with a loud scream, only to throw themselves back into the fight.

    And for some reason, they became even faster than before.

    ''Woah,'' Mathew thought when he had to bend his spine back, desperate to avoid a sweeping grab of the zombie. Half a second after the zombie''s ws passed right by Mathew''s hand, Le attacked from the side, taking the zombie''s attack on her de.

    ''Is the pool of their strength shared or something?'' Mathew thought when he had to use the back of his saber to ward off another attack. He took the zombie''s ws on the weapon before allowing them to slide down, towards his wrist.

    "We need to kill them both at once!" Mathew shouted once he entered a stalemate with the zombie when the two of them started a contest of raw strength.

    "Keep him still!" Le shouted, leaping to the side. She used her momentum to slide on the side of her leg, only to then sh at the back of the zombie''s knees.

    It was a wonder how zombie bodies operated. ording to all the medical research up to date, zombies shouldn''t exist in the first ce. And yet, while their existence was undisputable, they still somewhat obeyed thews of physic.

    Le''s de cut straight through the tough flesh of the zombies, depriving him of the foothold necessary to keep the contest of strength going.

    ''That''s our chance!'' he thought, pushing his muscles to their limits and finally overpowering the zombie.

    "Cut him into pieces!" Mathew shouted as soon as he managed to break through the zombie''s stance, using his own weight to then pin the monster to the ground.

    "We are almost there as well!" Nadia shouted from the side, only for the zombie she was fighting with to suddenly go flying through the air.

    ''Huh?'' Mathew shrugged, startled by the sudden movement.

    "Huh?" Le openly released her moan of surprise when her eyes followed the zombie as well.

    "Leave him to me!" Daria shouted in an excited voice, her shadowy form leaping right after the zombie that she threw into the air herself.

    "Almost there," Le uttered as she worked her de to deprive the zombie of its legs before working on its arms. Her eyes, though, were directed towards the other zombie.

    ''She is trusting me so much to leave keeping it still all to me,'' Mathew thought.

    It was a rtively small thing, a trust that grew between the two of them strictly from the fact that they shared their interests in battle.

    And yet, for Mathew, thisplete trust the girl had to have in him to ignore the zombie she was carving outpletely was more rewarding than actually sleeping with the girl in question.

    "Now!" Daria''s shout reached Mathew''s ear. He raised his eyes up... Only to see Le already change her position before cing the sharp side of her saber on the zombie''s neck.

    "Move away!" she then shouted, as Mathew''s hands were in the way of her desired cut.

    Tick.

    Something in the zombie within Mathew''s grasp changed. The change itself was instantaneous, not needing any time to boot up or anything.

    The zombie tensed its muscles, ignoring the fact that most of its tendons were cut.

    ''So above a certain level, they can actually ignore physic,'' Mathew acknowledged the reality, squeezing his arms even harder in an attempt to hold the zombie in ce.

    An attempt... that ended up futile.

    Despite all its injuries, the zombie continued to struggle and even slowly start slipping out of Mathew''s grasp. Yet, right as the young man''s arms were about to give out, Le''s de finally cut through the zombie''s flesh, separating its head from the rest of its corpse.

    "It''s done..." Mathew muttered, falling back on the ground while ignoring the blood that instantly dirtied his apparel. As his eyes wandered to the side, he could see the zombie''s head rolling away.

    The zombie''s face would appear before Mathew''s eyes, only for the head to continue rolling and effectively hiding its face away. And so, the young man could see how the light within the zombie''s eyes gradually vanished before its head turned as dead as all zombies should be in the first ce.

    ''Wait, shouldn''t its head remain alive?'' Mathew suddenly asked himself, realizing just what was so strange about this head to have him so innately puzzled about it.

    And yet, the facts were as they were. Contrary to the normal zombies whose heads would remain alive even once cut away from the rest of their bodies, decapitating these stronger zombies apparently was enough to do them in!

    "Here," Daria suddenly appeared to Mathew''s side, her hands as bloody as they could get while the rest of her clothes remained perfectly clean. She reached out her right hand towards Mathew, only to suddenly pull it away when he attempted to ept her helping hand.

    "Look at its core," she exined her intent, once Mathew stood up on his own. "Isn''t it bigger?"

    The shiny stone in the girl''s hand was just like she said, bigger.

    ''But bigger doesn''t mean better,'' Mathew grumpily thought, before taking a closer look at the shiny pebble in the girl''s palm.

 Chapter 169 Horde at the gates

    Chapter 169 Horde at the gates

    ¡°This is just my feeling, but I believe those are worth between twenty and a hundred times more than a core from a normal zombie,¡± Mathew informed after inspecting the crystal pebble for a short while.

    ¡°That much?¡± Daria asked, her eyebrows moving up her forehead. ¡°Wait, no, killing those three was far harder than even killing three hundred normal zombies,¡± she then added, quicklying to terms with Mathew¡¯s assessment.

    ¡°It certainly would be,¡± Mathew agreed with the girl¡¯s words, only to then give her a long look while a small smirk twitched on his lips. ¡°But killing three hundred zombies is a chore, killing those three was an adventure,¡± he said, finally allowing his smirk to fully appear.

    ¡°An adventure that could get us killed if not for all the leveling,¡± Daria countered, rolling her eyes. ¡°But I guess something like this makes sense in this clearly game-inspired system,¡± she added while sending Mathew an eye.

    In the end, in their entire small group, Mathew was the only one who could bear the name of a gamer. As such, the girls had no other choice but to believe in his judgments on things that were rted to gaming.

    ¡°It does make sense,¡± Mathew said, confirming Daria¡¯s words. ¡°There is no game when early opponents give the same loot or experience as the stronger opponents,¡± he said. The young man then shook his shoulder. ¡°If that wasn¡¯t the case, there would be no point in getting out of the starting town.¡±

    Mathew finished his sentence and looked around, checking if there are any further dangers lurking about.

    ¡®I didn¡¯t see anything in the direct proximity of thepound on the map but I can¡¯t lower my guard,¡¯ Mathew thought to himself. ¡°Anyway guys, we wasted enough time on them, let¡¯s move!¡±

    The reason for the expedition wasn¡¯t to just kill some zombies. Their objective was to return to the media building post-haste and hopefully arrive on time before the army of zombies stuck there would attack.

    ¡®Oh, I leveled up too,¡¯ Mathew noticed as he took a quick look at his system. Yet, a new level that he could donate appearing on his statistics wasn¡¯t the only change to his profile.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 82]

    [Brawn ¨C 60]

    [Agility ¨C 60]

    [Mind ¨C 50(38)]

    [Arcane ¨C 100]

    [Total 342]

    [umted Levels ¨C 34/34] > [umted Levels ¨C 34/35]

    [Avaible points: 42] > [Avaible points: 10]

    There was the level up. Then there were the ten points that Mathew could use on himself. And then, there was a seemingly small change to Mathew¡¯s mind statistic, making it disy two different numbers.

    ¡®Is it safe to assume that mind rtes to mana?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, puzzling over the new discovery as he ran along with the girls.

    For every step they made, the group got closer to the building they left Daniel and Norbert at. Yet, for every step they made, the sun would inch even further below the horizon.

    ¡®We only have a few minutes of sunlight left,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. Yet, even this situation didn¡¯tst for long. For the first time in what appeared to be ages, though, it wasn¡¯t new, random trouble appearing as if there was some kind of sadistic game master overseeing Mathew¡¯s adventures.

    The situation didn¡¯tst for long, because Mathew¡¯s group reached their destination.

    They did so far sooner than anyone in the group expected, finally learning what it meant to be humans with over thirty levels clocked in the system.

    ¡°We are toote,¡± Nadia muttered in a silent voice once the group stopped just a few meters away from the destroyed side of the building.

    The holes in the wall were as big as they were when they visited the ce before. And for how broken this wall was, it did a pretty good job at covering whatever was going on inside from the eyes of Mathew¡¯s group.

    But they didn¡¯t need to see it.

    The noises of matter hitting matter, the sound of zombies screeching, seemingly distant shouts of a familiar voice, shouts of voices that couldn¡¯t be less familiar¡­

    All of those noises mixed into a single overture that yed out to the setting sun. And from this mix of sounds alone both Mathew and the girls could tell that the party has already started.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go in first,¡± Mathew ordered, painting a circle with his saber to warm up his wrists.

    He didn¡¯t bother to wait for the girls to process his orders and went in first, ready to take the brunt of the attack right on himself.

    And yet, even after Mathew entered the building through the very same hole that his group used in the recent past¡­ Nothing happened.

    The noises continued, indicating that the battle was still going on. Yet, nowhere within Mathew¡¯s sight could he spot even a single zombie!

    ¡®Are they all concentrated somewhere else?¡¯ Mathew thought, only to delve deeper into the corridors of the building right as the girls started to follow him inside.

    Mathew had his nerves tensed up for only a short moment, as he soon found out where the main stage of the battle was.

    ¡°Drop the stones, now!¡± Daniel shouted, only for a volley of small pebbles to fall from the third floor down on the mass of zombies concentrated around the back entrance of the building.

    Daniel stood right in the same doors that Mathew and the girls used to sortie before. Now, though, rather than preparing to go out, the former policeman was doing his absolute best to stop the zombies froming in.

    Bang!

    His fists struck the zombie, sttering its head all over the wall of the entryway. Then, Daniel took a second of break, making three quick steps to reposition himself a tiny bit before sending his fists flying again.

    ¡°Go and help him!¡± Mathew called the girls forward while he himself rushed towards the nearby staircase.

    ¡®If Daniel managed to hold those zombies out on his own, he should be able to hold on for a little longer once the girls will help him,¡¯ Mathew thought, rushing up the stairs and then back through the corridor.

    All for the sake of just a single thing.

    And then, just like that, Mathew reached the window on the second floor, a window that allowed him to see the full extent of the situation.

    ¡®So far, so good,¡¯ the young man thought when he nced outside. Yet, as his eyes lingered on the army of the zombies, thest ray of the sun dried out, coating the entirety of the city in nearplete darkness.

    ¡®And so the night begins,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    The girls below made a short work of the zombies that Daniel failed to keep in check. And by the time Mathew managed to digest what he saw, they already pushed through the entrance and made their way to the courtyard.

    In a sense, this was a massive mistake, leaving a narrow space where the number of zombies lost the majority of itsbat value. Or so would be the case in a normal fight.

    ¡®They are pushing out so that they can have more space to fight on their own,¡¯ Mathew realized the n of his girls, only for his lips to twitch and then form a small smile. ¡®I guess there is only one thing left for me to do, then,¡¯ he thought, opening the window with a single pull before jumping down, right in the middle of the horde of the zombies.

 Chapter 166 The process of casting magic

    ¡®How the hell can this be so powerful?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as he looked down at his palms.

    They were responsible for unleashing this new spell of his. And yet, those palms of his appeared to Mathew to be exactly the same as in the past.

    The young man raised his eyes to the pierced piece of concrete.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t this way too strong?¡¯ was Mathew¡¯s first thought.

    To evaporate several inches thick holes in concrete would take an insane amount of energy, especially for it to happen instantly.

    And yet, the facts spoke against what Mathew believed to be possible or not.

    ¡®The question is, how do I approach it?¡¯ the young man asked himself, recalling a quote from one of the obscure books written way in the past.

    ¡®There are two kinds of people. Those who listen to the facts are one. For the others, if the facts don¡¯t confirm their theory, then damn the facts!¡¯

    Mathew tightened his fists as he looked at the hole of his making.

    ¡°Am I going to be one of those people?¡± he muttered out the question, sharing it with the world.

    This simple question was far more troubling than Mathew could ever expect. Because now that it came for him to answer it, he finally understood the weight that prompted the others to go with the easier route.

    ¡°I basically need to redefine the concept of strength, power, and pretty much most of physics I know and grew used to,¡± the young man whispered, unable to tear his eyes away from the pierced piece of concrete.

    ¡°It¡¯s just a small hole, yet it can change my way of thinking so much,¡±  Mathew muttered under his nose, only to then slowly close his eyes as he had no other choice but to ept the reality.

    ¡°Do all men really think about this all the time?¡± an unexpected voice startled Mathew when it came from behind his back. And yet, for someone to announce their approach most likely meant there was no danger involved.

    Still, Mathew turned around on his heel, like a girl caught on stalking the social media of her crush. He jumped a little and opened his mouth, ready to rebuke¡­

    Only to see Le¡¯s grin.

    ¡°You came to test your abilities too?¡± Mathew asked, taking a few breaths to calm the beating of his heart. Changing the topic was his utmost priority!

    ¡°Did I disturb you, by any chance?¡± the girl replied, putting on a cute, innocent smile as she leaned her head to the side. Yet, her expression quickly mellowed down as she looked down, her energy vanishing on the spot. ¡°Yes, I didn¡¯t want to put any further stress on thepound,¡± she added only to raise her head and give Mathew a cheeky side look. ¡°Well, not after I saw what you did a moment ago,¡± she then added with a smug smile.

    ¡®Well, there is no way to refute that,¡¯ Mathew thought, internally admitting his mistake.

    ¡°Learning from my mistakes, I see,¡± the young man spoke up, only to shake his head and then nod it towards the girl. ¡°That¡¯s actually a great idea. I underestimated just how powerful we became, so it¡¯s better if the others won¡¯t repeat the mistake I already did,¡± he admitted, praising the girl in a slightly roundabout way.

    ¡°I hope I won¡¯t trouble you by being here,¡± Le then added only to turn around on her heel, away from Mathew¡¯s eyes. She then took a stance with both of her weapons.

    Le held her saber at the level slightly below her hips with its tip pointed at forty-five degrees upwards and ahead. The girl held her machete in a reverse grip, with its de pointed backward while holding the entire weapon at the level of her chest.

    ¡®I wonder what she will do,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking at the girl with quite a lot of interest.

    And yet, even after a good while, Le didn¡¯t bother to move, stuck in her position and with her eyes closed.

    ¡®Well, I better not disturb her either,¡¯ the young man thought, realizing his own rudeness. Rudeness, and wastefulness, as five out of fifteen minutes of break, have passed.

    ¡®I need to focus on my own abilities,¡¯ Mathew decided, tearing his eyes away from the girl before turning around and immersing his consciousness in the feeling of the energy flowing through his veins.

    ¡®Let¡¯s go through the process again,¡¯ Mathew thought, repeating all the steps that he made to unleash his first mana bolt.

    And sure enough, after only a moment of concentrating, Mathew¡¯s palm lit up with the dim shine of condensed mana only for it to all disappear when the young man released the control over his own will.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it works,¡± he muttered under his nose, his eyes open yet with his mind too focused on his internal state to notice the arrival of the rest of the girls.

    Nadia threw Mathew a long, longing look, yet ultimately decided not to bother him. Instead, she took a small spot to the side of the ruins before getting in position herself.

    ¡®Now that I¡¯ve identified this feeling, I should be able to replicate it,¡¯ Mathew thought, too focused on his own training to pay any mind to the world around him.

    He then repeated all the steps of unleashing his mana bolt again¡­ Only to stop as soon as he could feel the familiar sensation welling up in his soul.

    ¡®So the mana starts to form once I create a final picture of what I want to achieve?¡¯ Mathew thought, quickly acting on his idea and focusing on analyzing how it worked.

    And for yet another time, Mathew shot out a bolt of mana out of his palm, creating a fourth hole in the block of concrete he used as a firing target.

    ¡°Now then, to take it all into consideration¡­¡± the young man muttered, holding out his right hand as he closed his eyes and rested his left hand on his right forearm.

    ¡®Grasp what you want to do,¡¯ Mathew thought, manually replicating all the steps of casting his mana. ¡®Turn it into a picture,¡¯ he continued to follow up through the routine he came up with.

    ¡®Allow the will to carry on.¡¯

    ¡®Let it separate from the mind.¡¯

    ¡®Help by pushing more energy into the flow that the intent creates.¡¯

    ¡®Release it out of the palm.¡¯

    Step by step, Mathew replicated the process that would normally happen on its own. And bit by bit, his body reacted, replicating the results of the formerly system-assistance-exclusive action.

    Poof!

    A small sound of a string bouncing reached Mathew¡¯s ears as soon as the energy expelled itself out of his palm.

    This time, it wasn¡¯t just a small bolt of mana. This time, it was an arc of bright light that sped forward, cutting through everything in its path¡­

    Only to disappear roughly fifteen meters away from the young man.

    ¡®This is¡­¡¯ the young man¡¯s thoughts halted as he stared down at the effects of his small discovery.

    This time, he didn¡¯t create a small hole in a  block of concrete. This time, Mathew¡¯s attack cut right through the block, only to continue severing everything that stood in its path, all the way to the point where it dispersed into nothingness.

    ¡®Did it run out of energy?¡¯ Mathew thought, squinting his eyes. ¡®Or maybe it¡¯s a matter of a distance?¡¯ he thought, trying his best to ount for every possibility.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Daria¡¯s shout finally forced the young man out of his immersed state. And as he turned his head around to look at the owner of the voice, Mathew was sted by the massive shineing out of Daria¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Listen! I think we no longer need to fear the night battle!¡±

 Chapter 167 Trio by the gate

    ¡°I think we no longer need to fear the night battle!¡± Daria¡¯s words came out of nowhere. Yet, for how obvious they were, it took everyone in the group far longer than they should realize.

    ¡°Oh right, you get stronger when in shadows!¡± Mathew called out, shooting his hand up only to smack his face with it. ¡°How could I miss that?¡±

    Mathew¡¯s words formed a question, yet no one was expected to give it any answer. It was just Mathew¡¯s whine against the world that gifted him with such inferior intelligence.

    ¡®Or is it that simple?¡¯ he then thought, lowering his eyes and killing his excitement for the sake of coldly analyzing the situation.

    ¡°Dear, it is true that you might turn the scales of the conflict on our side,¡± Mathew admitted, only to shake his head. ¡°But I wouldn¡¯t say that fighting during the night turned out into something we are good at. We can¡¯t rely on you to kill the entire zombie army after all,¡± he borated on his way of thinking.

    ¡°Well, that might be true,¡± Daria was quick to admit. A bit of her enthusiasm vanished¡­ but the energy behind her eyes was far from all gone. ¡°But still, it¡¯s another triumph card for us to y, isn¡¯t it?¡± she then cheekily suggested.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head only to turn his head and throw a scanning look at the area.

    While he and Daria talked, both Le and Nadia were too immersed in their own training to pay any attention. And while Nadia was busy striking the air with her hands, Le remained still.

    Yet, a single look at the girl¡¯s focused face was enough to tell she wasn¡¯t just wasting time.

    ¡°I think we can¡¯t really waste much more time,¡± Mathew muttered when he turned his eyes towards the line of the horizon with only a small part of the sun still visible above it. ¡°Well then,¡± he added only to then p his hand. ¡°Everyone, the time¡¯s up!¡±

    Not a single one of them managed to grasp the full potential of their improved selves. A period of just fifteen minutes was way too short for it to happen. And yet, Mathew felt that he had no other choice but to keep pushing through the list of the things they had to do.

    ¡®I really hope we will be able to take things easy for a while once we are done with this,¡¯ he thought, moving up as soon as the two other girls broke free from their focus and looked towards him.

    ¡°Gather by the gate. I¡¯m going to sprint to check the situation on the map,¡± Mathew issued his quick orders before running off towards thepound.

    All fresh thanks to the touching grass feature and with his body now supported by the strange energy of the system, Mathew could cover the ruined area, several sets of stairs, and then two levels worth of climbing thedder in a matter of minutes.

    And before the original timer of the fifteen minutes of brake was up, the young man was back at the gate, ready to deploy with the girls.

    ¡°What¡¯s the situation?¡± Nadia asked, doing her absolute best to keep a straight, emotionless face.

    ¡®We really shouldn¡¯t bicker like that,¡¯ Mathew thought in exchange. ¡®We don¡¯t know how long we have left to live, and here we are, unable to speak to each other normally over a stupid quarrel.¡¯

    The young man wished to scream his problems out¡­ But he ended up keeping them to himself.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if you noticed it before, but I saw some zombies that nearly overwhelmed my mind with their aura alone,¡± Mathew announced.

    ¡°Yeah, it was hard not to notice them,¡± Le confirmed Mathew¡¯s hunch. ¡°What about them?¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Mathew hesitated a little only to raise his hand to his head and scratch the back of his ear. He then turned his hand and pointed it towards the gate nearby. ¡°They are right here.¡±

    The sight of zombies trying to make their way through the solid panel made up of steel ting and the iron frame was somon that everyone got used to it. As such, they hardly paid any attention to the zombies whose turn it was to make some noise by thepound¡¯s gate.

    ¡°It was a wise idea to check out the map, then,¡± Daria muttered, her eyes shing up. She then stared at Mathew¡¯s side, making it impossible for the young man to ignore her gaze.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Mathew asked in a tone that revealed he had already given up on trying to persuade the girl not to do whatever popped up in her head.

    It was a rare sight, yet, her face appeared just like Le back when she suddenly revealed her dark side back on the first day of the apocalypse.

    ¡°Can I try to take them on?¡± Daria pleaded, putting her hands together and lowering her head, only to look at Mathew¡¯s face with upturned eyes. ¡°Pretty please?¡±

    ¡°I won¡¯t let you go alone,¡± Mathew quickly replied, shaking his head to ent his response. ¡°You might spearhead our expedition, though,¡± he then added.

    Daria¡¯s lips twitched a little only to turn into a bright smile.

    ¡°That¡¯s more than enough,¡± she thanked, only for her smile to turn smug before taking a devilish hint.

    ¡®She is out for blood,¡¯ Mathew thought, a smirk making way to his own lips. ¡°Well then, without any further ado¡­¡± he spoke up, only to unsheathe his saber and take a step towards the gate.

    ¡°We go!¡± Daria shouted happily, taking a leap directly over the wall only to thennd just a few steps away from the zombies at the gate.

    ¡®Thisss¡­¡¯ Mathew held back a curse that welled up in his mouth, opting to focus on following the girl instead.

    He took a small distance to run up and gain some momentum before jumping up, using his hands to prompt himself up the edge of the wall before following after Daria to the outside.

    Puff¡­

    Mathew softened the impact of thending by bending down on his knees. His head turned to both sides, allowing the young man to quickly register all the important elements of his new surroundings.

    And as soon as his eyesid down on the three zombies that scared him so much before¡­

    A dark shadow flew past Mathew, at a speed that he wouldn¡¯t expect even Nadia to perform. His eyes followed after the shadow, only to see it shing with the three, seemingly normal, zombies that stood up from the crowd of small fries.

    ¡®There we go!¡¯

 Chapter 168 Bigger doesnt mean better

    Daria rushed into the fight first. In her shadowy form, not a single member of Mathew¡¯s group could even hope to catch up to her.

    It didn¡¯t mean they didn¡¯t try, though.

    Mathew rushed forward as soon as he shook off his shock and calmed down his beating heart a little. Nadia¡¯s reaction time appeared to be slightly slower yet her supreme speed allowed her to reach the ce of conflict even before the young man.

    Out of everyone, it was Le that surprisinglygged behind, even despite her stats being far superior to Mathew¡¯s.

    ¡®Food for thought forter, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ Mathew released an internal sigh, only to then put all of his attention on the enemies right in his face.

    The three zombies didn¡¯t appear to be any different than all the others Mathew ughtered by thousands before. And yet, they were faster, stronger, and harder to cut than theirmon kin.

    If there was any physical difference between them, then it was a weird, alien green that took over most of their remaining skin.

    ¡°DIE!¡± Daria shouted, her shadowy form somehow changing her voice into a slightly darker tone than usual. She then swung her hand, only for her de to emerge from it the second it could reach the zombie¡¯s neck.

    The first of the three zombies fell just like that.

    ¡°ROAAAR!¡± the remaining twomented on the progress with a loud scream, only to throw themselves back into the fight.

    And for some reason, they became even faster than before.

    ¡®Woah,¡¯ Mathew thought when he had to bend his spine back, desperate to avoid a sweeping grab of the zombie. Half a second after the zombie¡¯s ws passed right by Mathew¡¯s hand, Le attacked from the side, taking the zombie¡¯s attack on her de.

    ¡®Is the pool of their strength shared or something?¡¯ Mathew thought when he had to use the back of his saber to ward off another attack. He took the zombie¡¯s ws on the weapon before allowing them to slide down, towards his wrist.

    ¡°We need to kill them both at once!¡± Mathew shouted once he entered a stalemate with the zombie when the two of them started a contest of raw strength.

    ¡°Keep him still!¡± Le shouted, leaping to the side. She used her momentum to slide on the side of her leg, only to then sh at the back of the zombie¡¯s knees.

    It was a wonder how zombie bodies operated. ording to all the medical research up to date, zombies shouldn¡¯t exist in the first ce. And yet, while their existence was undisputable, they still somewhat obeyed thews of physic.

    Le¡¯s de cut straight through the tough flesh of the zombies, depriving him of the foothold necessary to keep the contest of strength going.

    ¡®That¡¯s our chance!¡¯ he thought, pushing his muscles to their limits and finally overpowering the zombie.

    ¡°Cut him into pieces!¡± Mathew shouted as soon as he managed to break through the zombie¡¯s stance, using his own weight to then pin the monster to the ground.

    ¡°We are almost there as well!¡± Nadia shouted from the side, only for the zombie she was fighting with to suddenly go flying through the air.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shrugged, startled by the sudden movement.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Le openly released her moan of surprise when her eyes followed the zombie as well.

    ¡°Leave him to me!¡± Daria shouted in an excited voice, her shadowy form leaping right after the zombie that she threw into the air herself.

    ¡°Almost there,¡± Le uttered as she worked her de to deprive the zombie of its legs before working on its arms. Her eyes, though, were directed towards the other zombie.

    ¡®She is trusting me so much to leave keeping it still all to me,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    It was a rtively small thing, a trust that grew between the two of them strictly from the fact that they shared their interests in battle.

    And yet, for Mathew, thisplete trust the girl had to have in him to ignore the zombie she was carving outpletely was more rewarding than actually sleeping with the girl in question.

    ¡°Now!¡± Daria¡¯s shout reached Mathew¡¯s ear. He raised his eyes up¡­ Only to see Le already change her position before cing the sharp side of her saber on the zombie¡¯s neck.

    ¡°Move away!¡± she then shouted, as Mathew¡¯s hands were in the way of her desired cut.

    Tick.

    Something in the zombie within Mathew¡¯s grasp changed. The change itself was instantaneous, not needing any time to boot up or anything.

    The zombie tensed its muscles, ignoring the fact that most of its tendons were cut.

    ¡®So above a certain level, they can actually ignore physic,¡¯ Mathew acknowledged the reality, squeezing his arms even harder in an attempt to hold the zombie in ce.

    An attempt¡­ that ended up futile.

    Despite all its injuries, the zombie continued to struggle and even slowly start slipping out of Mathew¡¯s grasp. Yet, right as the young man¡¯s arms were about to give out, Le¡¯s de finally cut through the zombie¡¯s flesh, separating its head from the rest of its corpse.

    ¡°It¡¯s done¡­¡± Mathew muttered, falling back on the ground while ignoring the blood that instantly dirtied his apparel. As his eyes wandered to the side, he could see the zombie¡¯s head rolling away.

    The zombie¡¯s face would appear before Mathew¡¯s eyes, only for the head to continue rolling and effectively hiding its face away. And so, the young man could see how the light within the zombie¡¯s eyes gradually vanished before its head turned as dead as all zombies should be in the first ce.

    ¡®Wait, shouldn¡¯t its head remain alive?¡¯ Mathew suddenly asked himself, realizing just what was so strange about this head to have him so innately puzzled about it.

    And yet, the facts were as they were. Contrary to the normal zombies whose heads would remain alive even once cut away from the rest of their bodies, decapitating these stronger zombies apparently was enough to do them in!

    ¡°Here,¡± Daria suddenly appeared to Mathew¡¯s side, her hands as bloody as they could get while the rest of her clothes remained perfectly clean. She reached out her right hand towards Mathew, only to suddenly pull it away when he attempted to ept her helping hand.

    ¡°Look at its core,¡± she exined her intent, once Mathew stood up on his own. ¡°Isn¡¯t it bigger?¡±

    The shiny stone in the girl¡¯s hand was just like she said, bigger.

    ¡®But bigger doesn¡¯t mean better,¡¯ Mathew grumpily thought, before taking a closer look at the shiny pebble in the girl¡¯s palm.

 Chapter ?169 Horde at the gates

    Chapter ?169 Horde at the gates

    "This is just my feeling, but I believe those are worth between twenty and a hundred times more than a core from a normal zombie," Mathew informed after inspecting the crystal pebble for a short while.

    "That much?" Daria asked, her eyebrows moving up her forehead. "Wait, no, killing those three was far harder than even killing three hundred normal zombies," she then added, quicklying to terms with Mathew''s assessment.

    "It certainly would be," Mathew agreed with the girl''s words, only to then give her a long look while a small smirk twitched on his lips. "But killing three hundred zombies is a chore, killing those three was an adventure," he said, finally allowing his smirk to fully appear.

    "An adventure that could get us killed if not for all the leveling," Daria countered, rolling her eyes. "But I guess something like this makes sense in this clearly game-inspired system," she added while sending Mathew an eye.

    In the end, in their entire small group, Mathew was the only one who could bear the name of a gamer. As such, the girls had no other choice but to believe in his judgments on things that were rted to gaming.

    "It does make sense," Mathew said, confirming Daria''s words. "There is no game when early opponents give the same loot or experience as the stronger opponents," he said. The young man then shook his shoulder. "If that wasn''t the case, there would be no point in getting out of the starting town."

    Mathew finished his sentence and looked around, checking if there are any further dangers lurking about.

    ''I didn''t see anything in the direct proximity of thepound on the map but I can''t lower my guard,'' Mathew thought to himself. "Anyway guys, we wasted enough time on them, let''s move!"

    The reason for the expedition wasn''t to just kill some zombies. Their objective was to return to the media building post-haste and hopefully arrive on time before the army of zombies stuck there would attack.

    ''Oh, I leveled up too,'' Mathew noticed as he took a quick look at his system. Yet, a new level that he could donate appearing on his statistics wasn''t the only change to his profile.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level - 2/2]

    [Vitality - 82]

    [Brawn - 60]

    [Agility - 60]

    [Mind - 50(38)]

    [Arcane - 100]

    [Total 342]

    [umted Levels - 34/34] > [umted Levels - 34/35]

    [Avaible points: 42] > [Avaible points: 10]

    There was the level up. Then there were the ten points that Mathew could use on himself. And then, there was a seemingly small change to Mathew''s mind statistic, making it disy two different numbers.

    ''Is it safe to assume that mind rtes to mana?'' Mathew asked himself, puzzling over the new discovery as he ran along with the girls.

    For every step they made, the group got closer to the building they left Daniel and Norbert at. Yet, for every step they made, the sun would inch even further below the horizon.

    ''We only have a few minutes of sunlight left,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. Yet, even this situation didn''tst for long. For the first time in what appeared to be ages, though, it wasn''t new, random trouble appearing as if there was some kind of sadistic game master overseeing Mathew''s adventures.

    The situation didn''tst for long, because Mathew''s group reached their destination.

    They did so far sooner than anyone in the group expected, finally learning what it meant to be humans with over thirty levels clocked in the system.

    "We are toote," Nadia muttered in a silent voice once the group stopped just a few meters away from the destroyed side of the building.

    The holes in the wall were as big as they were when they visited the ce before. And for how broken this wall was, it did a pretty good job at covering whatever was going on inside from the eyes of Mathew''s group.

    But they didn''t need to see it.

    The noises of matter hitting matter, the sound of zombies screeching, seemingly distant shouts of a familiar voice, shouts of voices that couldn''t be less familiar...

    All of those noises mixed into a single overture that yed out to the setting sun. And from this mix of sounds alone both Mathew and the girls could tell that the party has already started.

    "Let''s go in first," Mathew ordered, painting a circle with his saber to warm up his wrists.

    He didn''t bother to wait for the girls to process his orders and went in first, ready to take the brunt of the attack right on himself.

    And yet, even after Mathew entered the building through the very same hole that his group used in the recent past... Nothing happened.

    The noises continued, indicating that the battle was still going on. Yet, nowhere within Mathew''s sight could he spot even a single zombie!

    ''Are they all concentrated somewhere else?'' Mathew thought, only to delve deeper into the corridors of the building right as the girls started to follow him inside.

    Mathew had his nerves tensed up for only a short moment, as he soon found out where the main stage of the battle was.

    "Drop the stones, now!" Daniel shouted, only for a volley of small pebbles to fall from the third floor down on the mass of zombies concentrated around the back entrance of the building.

    Daniel stood right in the same doors that Mathew and the girls used to sortie before. Now, though, rather than preparing to go out, the former policeman was doing his absolute best to stop the zombies froming in.

    Bang!

    His fists struck the zombie, sttering its head all over the wall of the entryway. Then, Daniel took a second of break, making three quick steps to reposition himself a tiny bit before sending his fists flying again.

    "Go and help him!" Mathew called the girls forward while he himself rushed towards the nearby staircase.

    ''If Daniel managed to hold those zombies out on his own, he should be able to hold on for a little longer once the girls will help him,'' Mathew thought, rushing up the stairs and then back through the corridor.

    All for the sake of just a single thing.

    And then, just like that, Mathew reached the window on the second floor, a window that allowed him to see the full extent of the situation.

    ''So far, so good,'' the young man thought when he nced outside. Yet, as his eyes lingered on the army of the zombies, thest ray of the sun dried out, coating the entirety of the city in nearplete darkness.

    ''And so the night begins,'' Mathew thought.

    The girls below made a short work of the zombies that Daniel failed to keep in check. And by the time Mathew managed to digest what he saw, they already pushed through the entrance and made their way to the courtyard.

    In a sense, this was a massive mistake, leaving a narrow space where the number of zombies lost the majority of itsbat value. Or so would be the case in a normal fight.

    ''They are pushing out so that they can have more space to fight on their own,'' Mathew realized the n of his girls, only for his lips to twitch and then form a small smile. ''I guess there is only one thing left for me to do, then,'' he thought, opening the window with a single pull before jumping down, right in the middle of the horde of the zombies.

 Chapter 170 I cant let them do everything themselves!

    ¡°Throw!¡± Daniel¡¯s voice somehow reached Mathew¡¯s ears even through all the noises around him.

    ¡®Throw what?¡¯ the young man thought, shing his saber to the side only to cut the hands of the zombie to his back with a strand of mana. ¡®Where the hell are you in the first ce?¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s question would remain without any official answer. Yet, the problem of who was supposed to throw something and what they were supposed to throw in the first ce quickly turned out to be quite obvious.

    Plop, sk, crack.

    The sounds that the falling bricks made when striking the zombies were of all sorts of kinds. Depending on where the projectile would fall, the sound the rotten flesh of the zombie would make would differ.

    ¡®At least he is not pushing them to fight on the front,¡¯ Mathew thought, sending yet another cut with his saber into the crowd of the zombies surrounding him.

    Mathew has yet to unlock all three merchants for this particr ce in order to find out its full potential. And yet, from the two that he already summoned, he could tell the value of local survivors.

    And as they were able to actively contribute to Mathew¡¯s goals through production, having them die in a battle against zombies would be nothing less than a tragic waste.

    ¡°Woah!¡± Mathew uttered a small cry when he suddenly found himself surrounded by the zombies. His rush to join in the fight resulted in him dropping a bit too deep within the zombie lines for hisfort.

    And now, with four different zombies approaching him from three different directions, he found himself unable to dodge or block all the attacks at the same time.

    ¡®I need to get back,¡¯ a single thought prompted Mathew¡¯s cold, calctive side. Instead of retreating like a normal person would, he rushed forward, just slightly to the side.

    ¡°Ugh,¡± a small moan escaped from Mathew¡¯s mouth when a strike to his chest pushed all the air out of his lungs. The zombie thatnded a hit had actually no hands, with only the forearm bones protruding from the rotting mess of flesh that remained on his arms.

    The strike ended up blunt, just an inch away from Mathew¡¯s sr plexus. It was pretty painful, even after all the improvements to his vitality.

    It was painful¡­ but nothing more.

    ¡°Wheeze,¡± Mathew audibly took on air, using the opportunity he paid with his pain to squeeze between three more zombies. In theory, he strayed even further away from the safety of the doors. Yet, in reality, by moving away from the central point of the fight, he suddenly found himself in a rtively open space.

    ¡®Now I have enough room to move around,¡¯ Mathew thought, swinging his saber right away and felling down the zombie that reached its rotting hands for him. ¡®What about others, though?¡¯ Mathew then asked himself, cutting two more zombies to open up a circle two meters wide around him with no further opponents.

    It would take about three seconds for the zombies to reach him now. Three seconds that he was free to use on looking over the battlefield.

    To Mathew¡¯s left, Daria was going on a rampage in her shadowy form. In the single second that Mathew could spare to look at her, she changed her position seven times. And within those seven times, Mathew could only notice her moving five times.

    ¡®Is she able to teleport around or something?¡¯ he thought, turning his eyes to his right.

    Given how Daria took the nk, Mathew expected to see Le on the other wing of their loose formation. And yet, when he looked to the right, he saw no one else but Nadia.

    Once again, Mathew could spare just a single second to check her out. And that single second was enough for his mind to turn hazy.

    ¡®What the hell is she doing?¡¯ he thought, unable to even follow up on the girl¡¯s movement. And it was all within the frame of her not even moving all that fast!

    Whenever looking at something, the human eye would look for patterns. If someone swung their arm, there was a limited set of further moves that they would follow up the swing with. And even within those limited moves, some were easier and more probable to follow than others.

    And yet, those rules didn¡¯t appear to apply to Nadia. She moved around like some kind of robot, programmed to resemble human movements yet unable to replicate them at all.

    Her body would swing to the left while she would send her de to the right. Then, her next attack would result in her body swinging along, only for the girl to follow it up with a kick¡­ that rather than pushing the enemy away, allowed the girl herself to jump away and gain some distance.

    ¡®Ugh,¡¯ Mathew released an internal moan, fighting off his desire to close his eyes and massage his temples. His observation time was extremely limited. And the young man was already stretching it pretty thin.

    In such a situation, Mathew had no other choice but to keep his body ready to get back into fighting at a moment¡¯s notice.

    In the end, Mathew used hisst second to look over his shoulder, to where the girls came from. His view was obstructed by the mass of zombies that separated him from the doors, limiting his view to just the things that happened above the level of the zombie¡¯s heads.

    Swing, thrust. Swing, swing, vertical cut, and then thrust. Swing, thrust. Swing, swing, vertical cut¡­

    Mathew couldn¡¯t see Le at all. What he could see, though, were both the swings of her saber and the effects they had on the mass of zombies around.

    And surprisingly enough, despite having the lowest stats in the entire group right now, the pile of corpses around her position appeared to grow the fastest in the entire group!

    ¡®All of that despite repeating the same moves over and over again,¡¯ the young man noticed before pulling his attention back to his own position.

    ¡®Everyone is working so hard,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his wrist around before swinging his saber upwards. As the cut was perfectly horizontal, Mathew couldn¡¯t even hope to decapitate the zombie that reached him first.

    But it wasn¡¯t his intention in the first ce.

    ¡®Since we are doing pretty well here,¡¯ he thought, kicking off the halved body of a zombie before turning his face towards his next opponent. ¡®Then I might train my spells a bit!¡¯

    Mathew spun on his left leg, using the momentum of the turn to execute a powerful upward-horizontal swing. He missed the joint, which was the point where the decapitation was the easiest. And yet, thanks to the sheer weight of the saber and the strength Mathew operated it with, the de cut straight through the bone, felling the zombie¡¯s head off its shoulders.

    Mathew then took a step back. He lowered his saber to a neutral position before focusing on his left palm. Before a single second could pass, he could already feel the energy railing up in his flesh and pouring into his palm.

    ¡°It would make me look bad if I allowed the girls to do all the fighting themselves, wouldn¡¯t it?¡± he muttered under his nose before raising his palm towards the backside of the zombie¡¯s army.

    And then, Mathew allowed his intent to separate, infusing his will in the mana that then shoot out of his palm.

 Chapter 171 Zombie leader

    ¡®Isn¡¯t this way too easy?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as he observed how a part of his will coated in mana continued to cut down the zombies around him.

    This time, rather than a simple bolt or a wave, Mathew¡¯s mana took the form of a half-circle, making it appear like some sort of a boomerang. And just like a boomerang, it continued to spin on its own while sliding through the air and zombie¡¯s necks alike.

    ¡®It stays active as long as it¡¯s within a certain distance from me,¡¯ Mathew observed, kicking down at the zombie¡¯s head that rolled towards his legs. He then wasted a moment grabbing the core from the zombie¡¯s brains.

    ¡®Then what would happen if I were to embed the intent on a core instead?¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s reasoning was sound. Since he was the source of both the mana for the spell and the intent that shaped it, then embedding his will on a core would eliminate both the possible reasons that restricted the range of his spells.

    Yet, as the young man looked at the core in his palm, he couldn¡¯t stop a wave of doubt from filling his soul.

    ¡®I saw what I can do with just a single one of these,¡¯ he thought, only to end up closing his fingers over the core only to then drop it on the ground and move on.

    By that time, Mathew¡¯s flying de already ceased to exist, either by flying out of his range or by using up all the energy that created it.

    ¡°I really need to study how to use those abilities more,¡± Mathew muttered to himself, bringing his saber forward, perfectly in line with his straight arm.

    Mathew focused for a little, even going as far as to close his eyes for a second. He then gathered the mana on his right hand like usual¡­ Yet, rather than shooting it out, he then infused the mana into his saber instead.

    ¡°So it does work,¡± Mathew muttered, staring at the faint glow that now surrounded his weapon. He could sense the presence of some sort of energy within the de¡¯s metal¡­ Yet it wasn¡¯t on the level that would make him wary if it was his opponent wielding an enchanted weapon like that.

    ¡°Yosh,¡± Mathew moaned a little, shaking off his interest and focusing his attention back on the battlefield¡­

    Right to see Daria¡¯s shadowy form fly right by him, turning the three zombies that were about to attack into a cloud of purple mist.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew thought, startled by the sight as he took a step back and watched the bloody mist fall down to the ground.

    He just happened to see the moment when Daria¡¯s attack disintegrated the zombies. It was nothing more but a chance¡­ yet there was one thing that Mathew found weird.

    The mist that came from the zombie¡¯s flesh fell down to the ground¡­ But not a single stone did so too.

    ¡®Did she consume them?¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes to the rampaging girl. And then, he took a quick nce at her system stats.

    ¡®Woah,¡¯ Mathew swallowed the air in his mouth.

    Just like with her Mind statistics, now all her stats grew to have an additional set of numbers in brackets that likely depicted the strength of the girl¡¯s current, shadowy form. And Mathew could see with his own eyes how those numbers slowly continued to grow!

    ¡®I guess I was right,¡¯ the young man thought, peeling his eyes off Daria¡¯s system and focusing on the fight yet again.

    The entire battle started less than ten minutes ago, yet Mathew¡¯s group managed to clear more than half of the zombies already. And from the look of things, it was Daria that was the greatest contributor to this result.

    ¡®We should be able to clear them out before the night turns really dark,¡¯ Mathew thought, shing yet another opponent as he pushed in deeper into the zombie¡¯s formation.

    ¡®Especially with how eager thatss is to keep going,¡¯ Mathew thought, sparing yet another second to send a nce towards the girl¡¯s system.

    Her shadowy form initially boosted her stats by around half of their value. In other words, it gave her a t increase of roughly fifty percent to her base stats. Yet, as the fight went on and the girl continued to ughter the zombies only to consume their cores in the process, the multiplicator of her stats already approached the threshold of doubling them!

    ¡°We might really turn into a group more suited to fighting in the dark,¡± Mathew summed up in a rxed voice as he continued to cut down the zombies that were stupid enough to get within his range.

    In five more minutes, the army of the zombies fully copsed, leaving only a few pockets of resistance that just happened to be in ces inconvenient for Mathew¡¯s group to reach.

    ¡®The question is, where the heck is that leader of theirs?¡¯ Mathew thought, cutting his saber to left and right as he tore through a pocket of zombies left in a stray corner of the courtyard.

    Yet, right as he was about to move to the next pocket and continue clearing the courtyard¡­ Mathew¡¯s saber struck the zombie¡­ and stopped.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shook a little, turning his eyes to his target that was already dead within his perception of the battle.

    But the reality couldn¡¯t be any further from what Mathew thought. And as he raised his eyes on the opponent, he saw the zombie staring him down with its extremely, sickeningly blue eyes.

    Mathew¡¯s saber was stuck on the zombie¡¯s side. It prated just deep enough to cut through the skin and press against the bones, yet it was too shallow to do any real damage. What was the worst, though, was that Mathew couldn¡¯t really pull it back!

    ¡®Is it¡­?¡¯ he thought, only to send two mana des right at the zombie¡¯s wound, cutting its flesh away and finally freeing his de.

    At that point, Mathew would have to be an idiot not to realize what was going on. Yet, rather than retreating and showing his back to the zombie¡¯s leader, he took a step back and stood in a passive stance, ready for the zombie¡¯s attack.

    ¡®Bring it on!¡¯ he thought¡­ Only to end up in the contest of stares with the strange monster.

    ¡°He is mine!¡± Daria suddenly shouted, her shadowy form shing past Mathew¡¯s side. The young man could make out Daria¡¯s shadowy hand reaching out for the zombie¡¯s throat¡­ Only for the zombie to simply fall to its back, avoiding the attack by a mere inch.

    ¡®There is no doubt,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth and tensing up his hands as he readied himself for the troubling part of the battle. ¡®This is the leader!¡¯

 Chapter 172 Shining eyes

    Daria¡¯s attack missed.

    Not because the girl was slow. She was far faster than Mathew ever expected her to be, especially with how little time she had to get used to this new ability of hers.

    Daria¡¯s attack missed because the zombie leader somehow could predict that it woulde and it implemented proper countermeasures in advance.

    ¡®Well, it¡¯s better not to waste time right now,¡¯ Mathew thought, shaking his head to purify his mind from all the useless thoughts before he charged forward, ready to pit himself against the ultimate enemy of today.

    ¡®Will you please¡­ die?¡¯ Mathew thought, sending a horizontal sh with his saber while simultaneously creating two mana des in his spare hand and sneakily sending them in as well.

    The zombie leader deflected Mathew¡¯s de with ease, sacrificing its wrist to redirect the strike to his side. Yet, when the two half-circles of Mathew¡¯s mana des finished their long detour, both of them struck the zombie squarely in the back.

    ¡°REEEE!¡±

    The outcry that followed almost made Mathew drop down to the ground. This sound prated through everyyer of one¡¯s defense, carrying all the pain and all the emotions of the injured zombies with it.

    ¡®What the fuck is this?!¡¯ Mathew screamed out through the blurry cover of the weird, foreign emotions that filled his mind.

    He couldn¡¯t get rid of them. He couldn¡¯t iste them. It was as if the zombie¡¯s leader etched a part of its conscious self on those who dared to challenge it.

    ¡°Huff¡­¡± Mathew released a deep breath when the influence of the zombie¡¯s attack finally faded away. ¡°I guess it was some sort of a mental attack,¡± he summed the situation up before raising his eyes on the group¡¯s opponent.

    The zombie leader was now back to their perfect prime. There was no sign of the wounds that Mathew¡¯s dealt to its back with the manades, there wasn¡¯t even a single scar left over where his saber cut the zombie¡¯s wrists cleanly off.

    If someone were to look at the situation from the outside, it would be perfectly reasonable for them to assume that the fight has yet to actually start!

    ¡°Guys, don¡¯t let this temporary defeat get to your heads!¡± Mathew shouted, taking a step forward to force the girls to look at him instead of thinking about what happened just now. ¡°It surprised us with a strange attack,¡± Mathew exined, only to turn around and nce over at his small harem. ¡°But don¡¯t we have abilities of our own?¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t wait for the girls to reply to his question. Instead, he turned his head back towards the zombie¡¯s leader before rushing in, ready to finish the nightly adventure as soon as possible.

    Mathew swung his saber way before he would get the zombie within his range. Yet, once the forward momentum of his dash, the sideways momentum of his sh, and all the other small details that Mathew made use forbined, his saber proved to be just long enough to etch its tip into the zombie¡¯s neck.

    ¡®Too shallow,¡¯ Mathew thought, pulling his hand far to the left to finish the strike, only to release two straightforward bolts of mana. With his de carried all the way to Mathew¡¯s left side, it would take the young man a while to pull it back to his right from where he could properly execute further attacks.

    ¡°My turn!¡± Daria shouted, sliding behind the zombie only to force her legs into the ground and then use her foothold as a springboard that then sent her right towards the enemy.

    This time,  the zombie¡¯s leader failed to react in time, swaying back and forth when Daria¡¯s shadowy limbs carved out a huge chunk of meat from the zombie¡¯s side.

    ¡®isn¡¯t his eyes shining a bit brighter than before?¡¯ Mathew thought, observing the situation and watching how Daria retreated, only to make space for Le and Nadia to join in on the fray.

    Yet, rather than watching how the girls grew used to their new abilities and made proper use of them¡­ Mathew directed his eyes back to the detail he noticed before.

    ¡®Its eyes¡­¡¯ the young man thought, only to see how a strange thing happened.

    The zombie¡¯s eyes were already shining with a light on their own when he first noticed it. And yet, right now, Mathew could see the shine behind his eyes suddenly exploding in intensity with every passing fraction of a second.

    ¡°GET DOWN!¡± Mathew shouted, following his own order as he brought his hands to his ears.

    And sure enough, before his body could even hit the bloodied courtyard yet after his hands properly sealed his ears, another scream followed.

    ¡°reeee¡± Mathew didn¡¯t dare to look at the zombie when it unleashed its ability. The young man didn¡¯t know how did its ability work. Sure, he could guess that it was connected to the sound of the shout it would utter whenever activating it¡­ But he couldn¡¯t say that for sure. And between the right to watch what was going on as it was changing and the possibility of avoiding the attack fully¡­

    Mathew wasn¡¯t the kind of curious person that would allow his self-interest to win over the cold logic. As such, he continued to keep both his eyes and ears shut for a good while, allowing the sound of the attack to die offpletely before daring to raise his eyes.

    Maybe it was the distance that prevented the zombie from attacking. Maybe it simply never treated Mathew¡¯s as a source of any real danger, making it ignore his movements, even while he was supposed to be under the force of a crowd control ability.

    One could spend an entire day trying to guess what was the reason that made the zombie ignore Mathew. But Mathew was a pretty simple person. And in a situation like this, he wouldn¡¯t be himself if he decided against exploiting it!

    ¡®Now is the time,¡¯ Mathew thought, pushing his upper body off the grounds as he looked down at the zombie just a few meters away.

    It appears to be perfectly confident in the effects of its ability. And rather than paying attention to Mathew¡¯s slow movements, the zombie approached the nearest corpse of its undead soldiers only to tear a piece of it away before pressing it against its own wounds.

    ¡®It¡¯s healing!¡¯ Mathew discovered the truth behind the insane regenerative abilities of the zombie just like that, by avoiding its attack and sneaking a peek at what it was doing while it assumed others were out ofmission.

    The zombie leader finished healing the wound that Daria inflicted on its sides. It then bent over to pick up another bloody scrap of meat from one of its fallen zombies.

    ¡®Once it heals the other wound, it will be all back to square one,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth in mute frustration.

    Yet, rather than rushing at the monster, Mathew simplyid down on the ground and continued to amass the greatest amount of energy he ever dared to wield.

    Sure, it was still a far cry from the energy contained within a single zombie¡¯s core, yet Mathew had no other choice but to make do with what he had on hand.

    After all, it would be hard to call this situation a victory if he unleashed his power of core crushing only to end up decimating everyone in the building and ttening the building itself in the attack designed to finish the boss of the zombies off.

    ¡®I guess I can only hope it will work,¡¯ Mathew thought, waiting for the opportune moment.

    Then, right as the zombie was about to press the next scrap of bloody meat to its other wound on its sides. One of the girls started to writhe on the ground, fighting a desperate battle to recover her ability to move and act.

    The zombie¡¯s leader turned its eyes away from the direction where Mathew was hiding by not moving at all. And for the faintest moment, its entire focus ended up directed at the ce where Nadia struggled to throw off the ability that stopped her.

    Yet, this faint moment was all that Mathew ever needed.

    The second the young man saw the opening, he released his intent from his left hand.

    The passage of the seemingly enormous amount of energy that he gathered was enough to make his left hand feel like it was shoved into a crucible full of melted metal. Yet, rather thanmenting over the aftereffects of releasing such a massive amount of mana from his body, Mathew rushed ahead instead.

    ¡®This cut will reach you!¡¯ he thought, sending his saber flying on an arc from his far-right over to the zombie¡¯s leader located in the dead center of Mathew¡¯s vision and the path he took. Yet, for every step that Mathew made towards the zombies, the two bolts of energy that he ended up releasing would gain an inch of distance advantage.

    The bolts struck the zombie, cutting both of its arms off with ease. And before the zombie could even recover enough to realize what just had happened¡­

    Mathew saber reached its throat, cleanly cleaving through half of it¡­ Only to stop in ce when the zombie¡¯s eyes shone again and then exploded with light so potent it blinded the young man before he could even lower his eyelids.

 Chapter 173 Fighting blind

    ¡°Wha¡­¡±

    Mathew blinked his eyes a few times while stepping to the back. Yet, he was forced to quickly stop his retreat when pulling on the handle of his saber proved not to do anything.

    ¡®I can¡¯t pull it out?¡¯ the young man thought. Blinded by the light that exploded from the zombie¡¯s eyes, he couldn¡¯t even see the reason why his saber was stuck.

    Yet, in this tense moment, Mathew had no other choice but to swallow his pride and let go of his weapon, taking several steps to the back before the zombie could do one better over him.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Nadia shouted from the side. From the few sounds that remained in the area after Mathew¡¯s group cleaned most of the zombies out, the young man could tell that she was sprinting¡­ But where?

    ¡®Can she even see me?¡¯ he thought, taking yet another step to the back. ¡°Stay away!¡± Mathew then shouted, unwilling to let the girl risk her health in a haphazard attempt of helping him.

    ¡®If she¡¯s blinded as well, I can¡¯t let them get any closer,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he lowered his eyelids. Mathew could only hope that keeping his eyes closed would let them regenerate faster. Yet, what he didn¡¯t expect, was that by closing his eyes, all his other senses suddenly became more sensitive, allowing him to somehow make out what was going on around him.

    A fleeting feeling of the wind brushing against Mathew¡¯s face caused him to juke to the side. Yet, Mathew wasn¡¯t used to using his other senses in ce for his eyes. And an extremely sharp, hot feeling that then blossomed on his cheek was the perfect proof of that.

    ¡®Die,¡¯ the young man thought, turning the palms of his hands in the direction he sensed the attacking from.

    Yet, right as the young man was about to unleash the barrage of mana bolts in the direction he believed the zombie to be in¡­ He stopped.

    ¡®I can¡¯t see. Meaning, I don¡¯t know if the girls aren¡¯t too close,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he fully fell to the ground and rolled away.

    Mathew blinked his eyes again. And thankfully, they were recovering quickly, allowing him to recognize the general shapes of stuff before him. The images were blurry and merged with each other, but at the current rate, it would take less than half a minute for the young man¡¯s eyes to fully regenerate.

    It was just a period of thirty seconds. Yet, this short moment that Mathew wouldn¡¯t pay any attention to in other situations now turned out to be pretty long.

    After all, it was one thing to just waste away half a minute doing nothing and survive thirty seconds in an intense fight while being unable to properly see!

    ¡°Dodge, right!¡± A voice reached Mahtew¡¯s ears from his left. Mathew didn¡¯t bother to try to figure out who shouted those words, opting to follow the advice right away.

    This time, not only did Mathew feel the surge of wind on his cheek, but he could also see a blurry object roughly the size of a human shifting from side to side before him.

    This time, however, no pain followed Mathew¡¯s dodge, proving that his juke was quite effective.

    ¡°Get back!¡± another voice reached Mathew¡¯s ears before he could even get himself up from the bloodied ground. And while his hands slipped on the wet stones of the courtyard, two blurry objects passed right by him, shing with the blurry object that attacked him before.

    ¡°Give me fifteen seconds!¡± Mathew shouted, obediently crawling back, as far away from the fight as he could on all fours.

    Mathew closed his eyes again, counting each passing second.

    He could hear the noises of the fighting from right ahead. He could hear the shouts that the girls would utter whenever unleashing a heavy attack just like he could hear their muffled moans of pain when they would receive an attack themselves.

    ¡®I need to get back to the fight,¡¯ Mathew thought, right as his count reached ten.  He opened his eyes again, hoping and praying that they would already recover¡­

    Yet, the reality wasn¡¯t as favorable as the young man would wish for. Sure, the blindness caused by the sudden sh of light that nearly burned through his eyeballs continued to subside, its effects weakening with each passing second¡­ But Mathew¡¯s eyes still needed more time to work properly.

    ¡®I can see everything, but quick movements do elude my eyes,¡¯ he realized, gritting his teeth as he turned around on his back before rolling himself forward and resting on his knees on the ground.

    Mathew pushed his upper body forward, once again ending up on all fours.

    Eleven. Twelve. Thirteen¡­

    Mathew continued to count the seconds. And with each second that passed, his dynamic vision continued to revert back to how great it used to be.

    ¡®Fourteen¡­¡¯ Mathew counted, digging his fingers into a patch of grass fully covered in blood. The earth snuck underneath his fingernails, sending a surge of pain right towards the young man¡¯s brain.

    ¡°FIFTEEN!¡± Mathew shouted thest element of his count, using his strange position to leap forward. He pushed himself off the ground with his legs, only to do the same with his hands. And while his feet slipped on the bloodied stones, his hands gripped the earth well enough to send him flying forward.

    Mathew had no weapon in his hand. He couldn¡¯t even tell what happened to his saber or where did it end up at. Yet, that didn¡¯t mean he was out of options.

    ¡®Create the intent just like back then,¡¯ he thought, focusing on the task as he rushed forward, quickly closing the distance that separated him from the target.

    Sixteen.

    A single second passed from the moment Mathew leaped forward to when he reached the direct proximity of the zombie¡¯s leader. Right now, he could see all the details of the zombie¡¯s rotting face along with all the small injuries the girls inflicted on it.

    And then, Mathew swung his hand, with nothing but the de-reinforcing aura protruding from his hand.

    This spell was supposed to just improve the effectiveness of his saber. And yet, even without the weapon in his hand, Mathew still managed to establish an intent capable of creating the very same aura as before!

    And with this aura in his hand, he struck right at the exact same spot that he nearly managed to cut with his physical de before.

    ¡°STOP!¡± One of the girls shouted. Yet, Mathew already invested too much into this one attack. His position, his momentum, the angle of approach¡­ All the minute details that an expert could see in his attack made it impossible for the young man to stop without third-party interference.

    ¡°Got¡­¡± another girl shouted, grabbing Mathew¡¯s cor. ¡°You!¡± she finished her sentence, pulling the young man back, right as his aura de was about to sh the zombie¡¯s neck.

    ¡®What the hell?!¡¯ Mathew protested in his thoughts but opted to keep his dissatisfaction to himself.

    Mathew didn¡¯t know the reasons why at least two different girls were against him executing what appeared to be the final attack. Yet, he had enough trust in them to ept the situation and the fact that he didn¡¯t know everything that was going on.

    One of the girls grabbed Mathew¡¯s cor and pulled him to the back. Yet, even this act of desperation wasn¡¯t enough, as before the girl could throw the young man to the back, Mathew felt a stinging pain suddenly exploding right below the bone of his left arm.

    ¡®The hell is this?¡¯ the young man only managed to formte this single thought, when Le finally managed to pull him away far from the foreign object to force it out of Mathew¡¯s flesh.

    ¡°You can¡¯t see them, but it uses extremely long ws!¡± Le shouted, using her right hand to fend off the next three attacks.

    Le¡¯s fingers then rxed their grip over Mathew¡¯s cor, only for the girl to bring her weaker hand back to the fray just in time to block the attack she couldn¡¯t take on her saber.

    ¡°I will take the left,¡± Nadia shouted from somewhere in the courtyard, only to then appeared by the zombie¡¯s side, her arm outstretched as far as her joints allowed.

    Yet, even this wasn¡¯t enough to bring the de of her weapon down on the zombie¡¯s neck.

    ¡°It¡¯s mine!¡± Daria then joined the fray.

    Contrary to the others, she didn¡¯t bother with avoiding the zombie¡¯s attack. Instead, her shadowy form wiggled around as she approached the zombie leader directly, allowing its extremely thin yet long ws to freely cut through her body.

    ¡®That madss¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    He could see the blood flowers blossoming on the girl¡¯s back, despite Daria being in her shadowy form.

    Yet, what appeared like a stupid, suicidal attack actually turned out to be pretty effective. And at the cost of having her body prated by several fang-needles, Daria¡¯s shadowy form managed to reach the zombie only to deprive the zombie of its head with a single swipe of her wed hand.

 Chapter 174 Bloody cough

    ¡°Is it over?¡± Mathew muttered, watching how the headless corpse of the zombie leader fell first to its knees, only for its weight to take over and push it fully down on the ground.

    Daria¡¯s shadowy formnded roughly two meters to the back of the zombie¡¯s corpse. She trodded several steps forward to disperse her momentum only to then sling on her heel as she turned around, ready to face the zombie leader again.

    But there was no need for it anymore.

    The headless corpse of the zombie leader remained exactly in the same spot that it fell to the ground.

    There were no suspicious twitches that would signal the fight wasn¡¯t over yet. Mathew couldn¡¯t feel the mana converging in this ce in an unnatural way.

    The entire field calmed down, as if the exciting arc of the story came to an end, giving the participating characters time to calm down and enjoy their moment of victory.

    ¡°We won?¡± Daria shyly muttered, her voice indicating she didn¡¯t really believe in her own words.

    Her shadowy form dispersed, finally revealing several cuts and holes in her clothes that gave birth to the ever-evolving red roses of her blood.

    The girl suddenly fell down on one of her knees. Her head slumped down on her shoulders as she started to breathe heavily, struggling to catch a breath.

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Mathew cursed under his breath, shedding all the joy of winning the encounter. ¡®Should we take her back to the school?¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he rushed ahead.

    Mathew made several steps ahead, rushing towards the girl¡­

    But his own injuries quickly caught up to him as well.

    ¡®We are in really bad shape right now,¡¯ he thought, unable to stop the feeling of powerlessness from taking over his entire self.

    ¡®If I can¡¯t even properly take care of enemies on this level, how the hell am I supposed to defy whoever is behind this apocalypse?¡¯ the young manmented in his thoughts.

    Those vile, unproductive, and depressing thoughts invaded Mathew¡¯s head and refused to go away. And for up to entire five seconds, they paralyzed his movements, forcing him to stay in his ce, watching how the rest of his group rushed over to Daria¡¯s side.

    ¡°You will be alright!¡± Le stated in a tone that wouldn¡¯t ept any disagreement. ¡°Just press those wounds and wait for us to organize you a way back to thepound!¡±

    ¡®Fuck this all,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he ignored his own pain and broke free from his physical stupor, taking thosest few steps that separated him from the girl.

    ¡®There is one way to immediately help her,¡¯ Mathew thought. Yet, as his mind was about to analyze the downsides of such a solution, the young man quickly turned his eyes towards Daria¡¯s wounds.

    The sight of her exposed flesh and blood pumping out of the unnatural openings in her body were both enough on their own to kill all the hesitation Mathew dared to harbor. And when they both assaulted the young man¡¯s eyes at once, his internal self made the decision on its own and proceeded to fulfill it before Mathew¡¯s self could even catch up.

    ¡®Status,¡¯ Mathew thought, even though the information was always there, right in the corner of his peripheral vision. And with a single nce alone he could tell what kind of small detail on his own status page changed.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [umted Levels ¨C 34/35] > [umted Levels ¨C 34/43]

    [Avaible points: 10] > [Avaible points: 90]

    ¡®That¡¯s quite a few levels I gained from this battle,¡¯ he thought, coldly epting the fact that just this single fight alone amounted to nearly a third of all his umted efforts so far.

    This was an increase that Mathew would normally love to enjoy and then strategize over how to make the most of it. But in the current situation, he hardly had any option to do so.

    ¡®I wish to donate levels,¡¯ Mathew¡¯s inner-self thought. ¡®Four levels to my second, second wife.¡¯

    The order was simple. Yet, besides what Mathew thought to get it done, he also infused the order with the idea of how the gifted stats should be distributed. And just like one could expect from the situation they were in, Mathew put a massive focus on Daria¡¯s vitality.

    Yet, vitality wasn¡¯t the only thing that Mathew raised when it came to Daria¡¯s statistics. Sure, he dedicated thirty out of forty statistics points to raise her vitality and thus rendered her wounds meaningless, he still decided to add ten more points to her mind.

    ¡®Back in her shadowy form, she didn¡¯t appear to be affected much by her wounds,¡¯ Mathew thought, doing his absolute best to think of a n on the spot, despite how stressful the situation was for him. ¡®Then if I enable her to stay in that form for a little longer, she should be able to make the trip back to thepound,¡¯ he thought.

    And as such, Mathew ended up unable to do anything but observe to see whether his gamble would pay off this time.

    ¡°Hah?¡± Daria suddenly stopped her pained moans and released a small, confused sound. She then raised her hands from her wounds only to then drop them back and pat her injuries a few times.

    ¡°Are you any better?¡± Mathew asked, kneeling down before the girl and looking her directly in the face.

    ¡°I do,¡± Daria replied. Her eyes were wide open while her face froze in shock. Not her experience at rapidly leveling up nor her memories of healing up all at once could prepare her for the effects of healing through leveling.

    Because while her wounds stopped bleeding, her body didn¡¯t shed its wounds.

    ¡®It¡¯s puzzling how our health works as it would usually do rather than following some sort of a game system,¡¯ Mathew thought, suddenly struck by the realization.

    He couldn¡¯t see a new number appearing beside their vitality whenever someone in his group got hit. There was no indicator of the health they had left within the bounds of the system. And while raising vitality made them generally stronger, harder to injure, and more prone to natural healing¡­

    ¡®When we are struck hard enough, we bleed,¡¯ Mathew thought, putting his sudden realization into words. ¡®And we bleed just like everyone else.¡¯

    This simple realization implied a greater truth about this strange, new world.

    ¡®It feels like a status detailing system vitality should appear now, all to spite me,¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling the changes going on in his mind.

    The momentary fury caused by the irrationality of the new rules continued to bother the young man. His calctive mind simply couldn¡¯t grasp the world where everything was vague and unspoken.

    ¡®And with all of that in my head I already forgot about not spending many coins,¡¯ the young man suddenly realized the potential connection between all the events of thest two days.

    ¡°Fuck it all,¡± Mathew uttered through his lips. He refused to let all the bullshit around keep getting him. And so, he raised his chin and looked at the girls.

    ¡°Daria, you might be better now but you are still far from being healthy,¡± Mathewmanded, sharpening his look as his mind fell back into the track of constructive nning. ¡°I need you to get some rest first. Once you feel better, Le will escort you back to thepound,¡± Mathew gave his orders and turned his eyes to his first lover.

    ¡°The two of us are going for the usual and will gather the cores,¡± Mathew said, looking Nadia in her eyes after ensuring she bore no heavy wounds. ¡°We need to get this ce secured as soon as possible, then get the survivors out of the shed¡­¡±

    Mathew¡¯s words slowed down. His lips moved at a slower pace with each passing second. And at the end of it all¡­

    A single cough escaped his lips.

    ¡°Cough!¡±

    Mathew looked down at the hand that he reasonably raised to cover his mouth. In the soul, he felt a tinge of tiny relief due to how massive this sudden cough was.

    Yet, he didn¡¯t see any phlegm on his palm. Instead, it was covered in blood.

    And there was only one source of where this red liquid coulde from.

    ¡°Then we will all make a trip back to thepound,¡± Mathew added with his quivering mouth.

    ¡°Mat!¡± Nadia shouted, leaning herself forward as sheunched ahead.

    Yet, before her hands could offer the young man any rest, Mathew¡¯s vision darkened before his consciousness turned off.

 Chapter 175 Im sorry (Yes, thats chapters title, not authors apology)

    ¡°Mathew!¡±

    It first appeared as a distant voice, one that Mathew could call a miracle to hear.

    ¡°Mathew!¡±

    The second call appeared like a word spoken by a friend to Mat¡¯s side, brought up in a casual discussion.

    ¡°MATHEW!¡±

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ The young man finally opened his eyes when the call turned into a proper shout that prated his ears and threatened to wring his brain dry.

    Nadia¡¯s terrified face was the first thing Mathew saw when his eyes finally started to convey what they saw to his brain. Yet, it wasn¡¯t the thing that Mathew could perceive the most.

    Cold.

    An everpresent and never-ending cold shrouded his entire body as if all his clothes vanished only for the world around to turn into artic.

    His heart was beating fast as if he just finished a force-march rather than regained consciousness.

    ¡°What¡¯s goin on¡­?¡± Mathew asked, only for his words toe out shaky. For some reason, his lips refused to move like usual, opting to act sluggish andzy instead.

    ¡°He lost too much blood,¡± Nadia called while turning her head to the side, talking to someone who was right outside of Mathew¡¯s field of vision.

    ¡®Did I?¡¯ the young man thought, too weak to even open his mouth and utter this question out loud. ¡®Then maybe I should invest some of my free points into vitality as well?¡¯

    The young man was well aware of how hypocritical he was when it came to distributing points. When it came to his girls, Mathew would be the first to make them raise their vitality. Yet, when it came to himself, he would have to defeat a lot of his inner, mental opposition to do exactly the same thing.

    ¡®I guess I just feel the pressure to constantly do my absolute best,¡¯ Mathew thought, feeling like a thousand needles pierced his heart for every second that he was condemned to seeing Nadia¡¯s panicked and desperate expression.

    ¡®I need to ensure that my stats offer the best survivability to damage ratio¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, hesitating under the pressure that the fear on Nadia¡¯s face put on him.

    ¡°Fine¡­¡± Mathew uttered weakly before sending a simplemand to his system.

    ¡®It¡¯s good I can operate it with just my thoughts alone,¡¯ the young man realized, watching how some of his spare points went right into his vitality.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level ¨C 2/2]

    [Vitality ¨C 82] > [Vitality ¨C 102]

    [Brawn ¨C 60]

    [Agility ¨C 60]

    [Mind ¨C 50(38)]

    [Arcane ¨C 100]

    [Total 342]

    [umted Levels ¨C 38/43]

    [Avaible points: 90] > [Avaible points: 70]

    ¡°AAAAH!¡± Mathew took a massive breath. As soon as the change to his vitality came active, the young man felt as if a massive weight was taken off his chest, allowing him to breathe properly again.

    ¡®Thinking about it, didn¡¯t I just reach some sort of threshold?¡¯ Mathew asked himself as he nced over at his status.

    His vitality crossed a hundred points threshold. And while the improvement alone was enough to alleviate some of his current problems¡­ The gamer¡¯s side of Mathew¡¯s soul screamed out.

    Because in most of the games that he yed in his life, reaching this kind of round number with one¡¯s statistic points woulde with additional perks!

    ¡°I guess this is just another thing I will need to put in the back of my head and save to analyzeter,¡± the young man muttered.

    Mathew then finally put some strength into his muscles, resting his hands against the floor before using them to prompt himself up.

    ¡°Mathew!¡± Nadia shouted as soon as she noticed her partner¡¯s movement. She quickly ced her hands on Mat¡¯s shoulders only to gently press him down, refusing his wish to stand up. ¡°You need to rest now, do you understand?!¡± she nearly screamed in his face, holding her voice back right at the border between a decisive direction and a shouted order.

    ¡°I¡¯m a little bit better now,¡± Mathew protested with his voice while allowing the girl to push him down.

    Even though they still have yet to resolve their quarrel from before, the dangerous reality that they were in clearly allowed the girl to figure out whether that quarrel was important or not.

    And sure, while there was still some tension in the air between the two of them, Nadia was long past the idea of ignoring Mathew in his vulnerable moment over some silly disagreement from before.

    ¡°You are nowhere near good enough to move,¡± Nadia opposed Mathew¡¯s words, even going as far as to mount his hips and sit down right on his crotch, pinning the young man down to the ground with her own weight.

    ¡®She¡¯s so decisive,¡¯ Mathew thought, staring at the girl¡¯s curves from this extremely favorable position.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia was pretty quick to notice the changes caused by Mathew¡¯s preferential perspective. She brought her head down and took a look at the spot she was sitting at. Then, the girl shook her hips to the side, rubbing her own crotch against Mathew¡¯s in a bid to ascertain whether her feeling was correct.

    And then, Nadia brought her eyes up and rested them on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Seriously?¡± she asked in a tone of someone unable to believe that a certain topic came up in a situation that didn¡¯t call for it in the slightest.

    ¡°I told you I¡¯m better now,¡± Mathew countered, averting his eyes while a small blush appeared on his cheeks.

    ¡°I can feel that now,¡± the girl came with the counter of her own, rubbing her hips a tiny little bit more.

    Mathew didn¡¯t bother to continue this exchange of bickering. Instead, he brought his hands up and ced them on top of Nadia¡¯s slim waist.

    ¡°Dear, I don¡¯t think this is the right time for that,¡± Mathew finally said, going against every instinct that made him a man. But just as he said, this wasn¡¯t the time for him to engage in leisure.

    ¡°On that, I can agree,¡± Nadia said as she nodded her head. She then stood up and moved a bit to the side before offering her hand to help Mathew up. ¡°And before we go back to thepound¡­¡± she suddenly uttered, putting the unnecessary topic back on the pedestal.

    Yet, rather than continuing with the topic, Nadia simply rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Mathew¡¯s back, hugging him as close as she could.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

 Chapter 176 The aftermatch

    ¡°Are you two lovebirds done with chirping to each other?¡± Le asked, silently appearing by the couple¡¯s side. ¡°I mean not to interrupt you, but weren¡¯t we supposed to get back to thepound first?¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t say that you didn¡¯t mean to interrupt if that¡¯s exactly what you are doing,¡± Mathew pointed out, only for his lips to curve up a little. He then released a deep sigh before cing his hands on Nadia¡¯s shoulders and gently pushing her away. ¡°You are right, though Even though a lot of things happened over thest two days, it¡¯s not like we can allow ourselves any leisure yet.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that kind of a bummer?¡± Nadia asked, taking a step to the side to reveal the bloody scenery that she formerly hid with her back from Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°That we can¡¯t just take it easy?¡± Mathew asked, reading out the intent behind the girl¡¯s words. ¡°I believe it is, but what can we do about it?¡± he then asked the real question only to follow up with a shake of his head. ¡°Hopefully, once we get all three fortresses, whatever wille next will give us some wiggle-room.¡±

    ¡®In theory, we could take it easy as soon as we established the fortress back at the schoolpound. It¡¯s all on me that we kept on going all in to grow stronger,¡¯ Mathew thought, bitting his teeth as a wave of regret and guilt filled his soul.

    ¡°Shall we go back, then?¡± Le asked, crossing her arms on her chest. ¡°I know that we are all tired but I believe it¡¯s best if we go and properly recover,¡± she exined her approach.

    ¡°No,¡± Daria called out from several meters away where she obediently followed everyone¡¯s wish and rested to let her body recover from her injuries. ¡°There is no point running around from one ce to another. We should finish everything we have to do here and only then go back,¡± she stated.

    ¡°But your injuries¡­!¡± Le protested, turning her head to look at her dear friend. Yet, seeing the unforgiving look in Daria¡¯s eyes, Le ended up dropping her head only to finally shake it to the sides.

    ¡°I second what Daria said,¡± Mathew joined in. ¡°I actually think we should take it easy for the rest of the night. And while I¡¯m pretty sorry to say that, but I would like you two to take care of gathering the cores after all,¡± he added, alternating his eyes from Nadia to Le and back.

    ¡°We got injured too, you know?¡± Nadia pointed out, crossing her arms on her chest and raising one of her eyebrows.

    ¡°It¡¯s not¡­¡± Mathew attempted toe up with some sort of excuse.

    ¡°Chill,¡± Nadia was quick to cut him off. ¡°I was only joking,¡± she added, opening up her arms only to drop her hands down on her hips and turn around on her heel. ¡°If I were toin about those few scratches I got, I would only insult the danger that you two put yourselves in,¡± she added before heading off to the doorway.

    ¡°On the other hand, I¡¯m perfectly fine,¡± Le pointed out. She then raised the corner of her lips only to take a spin on her heel as if to showcase the state of her body to the rest of the group. ¡°See?¡±

    ¡°I see,¡± Mathew replied, shaking his head over the girl¡¯s attitude. After all, given her skimpy dress, she appeared more to flex her curves than asking for a health inspection. ¡°Or rather, I don¡¯t see anything wrong with your body at all.¡±

    ¡°Not fair!¡± Nadia shouted over from the doorway where she already got busy moving the corpses and extracting cores from those that didn¡¯t have them plundered by Daria¡¯s shadowy form. ¡°The two of us are to work now, don¡¯t try to get ahead!¡± she scolded Le, raising her now bloodied hands back on her hips.

    ¡°Does that mean I¡¯m free to get some?¡± Daria asked cheekily, getting on all fours and moving a bit closer towards Mathew. And while her possition made her breast hang down and wiggle for Mathew¡¯s eyes to see, an unpleasant grin that quickly appeared on her face culled Daria¡¯s attempts at seduction.

    ¡°We should rest for now,¡± Mathew shook his head as he stood up and moved over to Daria¡¯s side, only to plummet down on his ass and pat himself on hisp. ¡°Come here,¡± he then ordered, only for the girl to fight off the pain of her injuries as she happily jumped at the opportunity and rested her head on the young man¡¯sp.

    ¡°You guys are to rest,¡± Le shouted over from where she joined hands with Nadia and started to work on clearing the mess left after the fight. ¡°We don¡¯t want the two of you dying in heat of passion, do we?¡±

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s true,¡± Mathew agreed with the girl. ¡®I was already feeling weird, ying around with Daria while the two of you are working hard for everyone¡¯s sake¡­¡¯ he thought.

    And then, Mathew¡¯s entire body froze.

    ¡®Wait, everyone¡¯s sake?¡¯ he thought, a hidden part of his self alerting the conscious part of his mind.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Daria asked, raising her head from Mathew¡¯sp as she noticed the sudden change in his constitution.

    ¡°Ah, sorry,¡± Mathew apologized and shook his head, forcing himself out of his state of deep thought. ¡°I think I just realized something that should be insanely fucking obvious,¡± he added, only to bring his hand up and then hid his face in its palm. ¡°Girls,e back,¡± he then shouted over, shaking his head over his own idiocy.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Nadia unknowingly echoed Daria¡¯s words, not sparing any time to return to the two.

    ¡°You are right,¡± Mathew spoke, seemingly not making any sense. ¡°There is something terribly wrong with what we are doing right now,¡± he stated, shaking his head.

    ¡°And what that might be?¡± Nadia asked, approaching the group from behind with her hands already full of cores that she harvested.

    ¡°The fact that we, the only people who can fight the zombies, are willing to waste our time and energy on menial jobs,¡± Mathew exined.

    His head finally stopped shaking as he finally looked directly at the girl¡¯s faces.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t we save quite a few people who could do those things for us?¡±

 Chapter 177 Employing the surviviors

    ¡®This is where we fought,¡¯ Nadia thought as she climbed up the stairs. Given the ease of her current task, she didn¡¯t even take Le with her, opting to leave the other healthy member of the group back with Mathew and Daria in case something unexpected were to happen.

    The girl then stopped in her steps, right as she reached the top floor of the building.

    ¡®And this is exactly where our argument started,¡¯ she thought, biting down on her lips as she looked down on the unusual part of the building.

    For everyone else, this ce had nothing special to itself. Just another part of the building left to rot away by the people who once used it.

    And yet, for this very specific girl, this very specific ce held one of the worst memories of her recent past.

    ¡®I might dislike the idea of fighting with him¡­ But I can¡¯t say I changed my mind about what we fought,¡¯ she thought, gritting her teeth before shaking her head and then taking thest few steps and pushing the double doors leading to the only room on the floor open.

    ¡°Hai!¡± Someone shouted and jumped, scared by the sudden opening of the doors.

    ¡®It had to be hard for them,¡¯ Nadia thought, watching how the look on everyone¡¯s faces tensed up. Yet, while some could tell that the time of their anxious wait for the news was over and thus they would gain freedom from this anxiety¡­ Others were smart enough not to expect good news.

    ¡°First off, good news,¡± Nadia spoke out loud, only to then cough to clear her throat. She then raised her eyes and looked over the scared survivors only to then slightly lower her eyelids as a certain annoyance appeared in her soul.

    ¡®While we were fighting for their lives and safety amongst other things, they were all holed up in here, doing nothing,¡¯ she thought, gritting her teeth to contain the spread of her negative emotion.

    ¡°All of the zombies that gathered by the building courtyard are now gone,¡± Nadia finally revealed the good news. She had to take a moment to rein her negative emotions before she was able to control the tone of her voice, though.

    ¡°And the bad news?¡± Robert, the guy that cooperated with Mathew¡¯s group before, stood up and asked while turning his hands into fists only to hide them behind his back. ¡°What about the survivors in the shed?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be so anxious,¡± Nadia informed only for her lips to quiver into a small smile. ¡°Unless they killed each other already, you guys will have the honor of setting them all free,¡± she then exined.

    ¡°Excuse me?¡± Robert squinted his eyes and slightly turned his head to the side. ¡°What exactly do you mean by that?¡±

    Even though he only left a small portion of his eyes open, Nadia could see the glint of suspicion appearing in his pupils.

    ¡°It¡¯s fairly simple,¡± Nadia said as she shook her shoulders. ¡°Out of fivebatants in my group, two are heavily injured and one is extremely tired,¡± she announced. ¡°Me myself and the other girl that managed to avoid heavy wounds are tired as well.¡±

    ¡°And how does that connect to us?¡± Robert asked, squinting his eyes to the point where he either attempted to impersonate and parody Asian people or simply let his suspicions be known to all around him.

    ¡°It¡¯s pretty simple,¡± Nadia said as she shook her shoulders. ¡°Now that the hard part of the job is over, it¡¯s time for you guys to do your part,¡± she informed.

    Nadia then pushed deeper into the room, ignoring all the stares that instantly surrounded her. Yet, she didn¡¯t bother with them all, stopping only when she reached the very window of the massive room. And then, she pointed her hand at the scene of carnage outside.

    ¡°You guys are to select ten people who will then go and clean up the mess left after the fight,¡± Nadia finally revealed her purpose here.

    ¡°Just that?¡± Robert asked, his eyebrows rocketing up on his forehead for a change.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think you will keep that attitude once you get down to the bloody business,¡± Nadiamented, shaking her head over the naivete of the civilians.

    ¡®Wait, civilians?¡¯ the girl thought, catching herself on the distinction she never made about people before. ¡®If those who do not fight are civilians¡­ Then what does that makes me be?¡¯

    The girl then shook her head, opting to ignore the question for now and focus on the topic at hand.

    ¡°Your task will be simple. First is to extract the cores hidden in the brains of the fallen zombies. Secondly, it will be to first move all the corpses out of the way and bury them and then clean all the blood at the end.¡±

    The exnation was as simple as the job that the exnation was all about. In the end, the hardship of this job was never in howplex or hard it was but it was hidden in the massive impact it could have on one¡¯s psyche.

    ¡°Is that all?¡± Rober asked, raising his eyebrows as far as the physical limits of his body allowed. ¡°Pluck something out of the dead zombies¡¯ heads and then just clean the corpses up?¡±

    ¡°Ten able-bodied people, on the double,¡± Nadia cut the talk with a p of her hands only to then scan the room in search of potential candidates. ¡°Only when the job is done will you be able to bring out all the survivors from the shed and let them enjoy the supplies that we will provide in exchange for your work,¡± she then added another incentive.

    ¡®Even if they managed to keep some stashed food or water in the building, there is no way they have enough supplies to keep everyone here alive for long,¡¯ she thought only to close her eyes and raise her head, looking up to the sky currently hidden behind the room¡¯s ceiling.

    ¡®Maybe that¡¯s why Matty cared about them so little?¡¯ she suddenly thought, when the weight of all the problems rted to keeping others not only safe but fed and well-kept as well fell down on her shoulders.

    ¡°We are ready,¡± Robert quickly said, forcing the girl to open her eyes and look down at the group of volunteers in surprise.

    ¡°That quickly?¡± Nadia asked, genuinely surprised by how little time the survivors needed to organize themselves.

    ¡°We need to contribute, don¡¯t we?¡± Robert asked as he rested his hands on his hips only to look to his sides where nine other survivors made their final preparations for the departure. ¡°Who doesn¡¯t contribute, doesn¡¯t have the right to eat, after all!¡±

 Chapter 178 For every bit of pain, a pleasure

    ¡°I¡¯m back,¡± Nadia called out as soon as she descended down the stairs. She was so eager to return to the proximity of her group that she leaped over thest several stairs only to then use the momentum of her jump to run thest few meters separating her from the group.

    ¡°How did it go?¡± Mathew asked, raising his head as he pushed his upper body off the ground with his hands.

    ¡®To think that I would still sit down and do nothing,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he put a neutral expression on his face just in case. ¡®Well, it might be annoying but I better not make the girls worry,¡¯ he thought, doing the bare minimum necessary to showcase his attention without straining his already exhausted body too much.

    ¡°It went better than I expected,¡± Nadia reported as she killed her momentum with a slide only to fall down on her knees and kneel by Mathew¡¯s side with sparks of excitement shing in her eyes. ¡°They organized themselves even before I approached them so it was only a matter of telling them toe to work,¡± she exined the situation.

    And just as the girl finished her report, the group of ten volunteers from the local survivors started to appear by the staircase. They carried no arms or protection, save for the arm-long gloves that someone found in advance.

    ¡°Okay guys, let¡¯s not waste the time!¡± Robert called from the front of the group he was leading. He then took a first, slightly reluctant step towards the pile of corpses. ¡°Right, should we focus on extracting the cores or moving the corpses away?¡± he then asked, turning his head to Mathew whom he already figured out to be the leader of the group.

    ¡°Why not both?¡± Mathew asked, leaning his head to the side. ¡°I mean, I¡¯m only interested in getting the cores. Clearing the corpses is for the sake of the people stuck in the shed and to prevent the spread of a disease,¡± he exined the situation before shrugging his shoulders.

    ¡°Mat, hey, Matty!¡± Nadia called out from Mathew¡¯s side, eager to get his attention while slightly annoyed by Robert stealing it from her.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Mathew asked, slightly baffled by Nadia¡¯s unexpected attitude.

    ¡°Did I do a good job?¡± the girl asked, leaning forward on her knees as if she wanted to make her head easier to pat for her man.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew smiled, defused by how cute and unorthodox Nadia¡¯s behavior was. He then reached out and attempted to read her intention, cing his hand on top of the girl¡¯s head only to then gently rub it. ¡°You did well,¡± he added in a soft, hushed voice.

    ¡°Hehehe¡­¡± Nadia released a small giggle. She also closed her eyes and moved her head even closer, immersing herself in the simple joy of having her head patted.

    ¡°¡­¡± Mathew continued to pat the head of his first wife. Yet, rather than enjoying the moment like the girl, he couldn¡¯t help but worry.

    ¡®What makes her act like that?¡¯ he asked himself, unable to figure out the reasons behind Nadia¡¯s unusual behavior.

    Just three years in the past, he would simply shrug his shoulders and attribute it to how unpredictable and unexinable the paths of a girl¡¯s mind were.

    But today wasn¡¯t three days ago. And in the span of those three short days, the world changed way too much for the young man to simply assume something to be without much importance.

    ¡°Did something happen?¡± Mathew asked, pulling his hand out of Nadia¡¯s head. Yet, rather than bringing it all the way back to his side, he moved it over to the girl¡¯s cheek.

    ¡°¡­¡± Nadia looked into Mathew¡¯s eyes. Her smile was now nowhere to be seen. And soon enough, she also averted her eyes after opening her mouth for a second only to then close it right back.

    ¡°So something did happen,¡± Mathew muttered, moving his hand up and down Nadia¡¯s cheek.

    A series of images shed through the young man¡¯s mind.

    Nadia killing a random survivor. Nadia getting down with Rober or some other man. Nadia scratched her leg only to find out it was now infected with the zombie virus¡­

    ¡°It¡¯s not like something happened. I simply managed to sort out my thoughts,¡± Nadia finally replied, raising her head¡­ yet instead of looking Mathew in the eye, she looked to the back, where the survivors already started to dutifully fulfill their obligation.

    Amongst others, Robert was clearly the one working the hardest.

    He would first move the corpse out of the way, stacking it in the corner of the courtyard. Only then would he pick up a small hammer left by the side of the pile of corpses, and smash it into the corpse¡¯s head before extracting the core and leaving it on another pile nearby.

    Nadia looked at the workers for a second, scanning the patterns of their movements. She then bit down on her lips before sending a quick nce at the other girls of the group, currently sitting down and resting while observing how her interaction with Mathew would progress.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Nadia mouthed out towards Daria and Le only to finally turn her head back towards Mathew and lean in for a kiss.

    ¡®Hmm?¡¯ Mathew stumped, unable to understand the progression of the events. And with Nadia pressing her lips against his mouth, the processing ability of his brain lessened to a pitiful degree.

    ¡°You see, I don¡¯t really think I was wrong back then,¡± Nadia said once she pulled her lips away and licked them clean. Her eyes moved up as she locked them on Mathew¡¯s pupils¡­ Only for her hands to sneak up towards his pants. ¡°But I also realized that your point wasn¡¯t wrong either. My failure to figure it out back then was what brought up our argument in the first ce,¡± she stated, right as her hands managed to find the way around Mathew¡¯s belt and under the fabric of his pants.

    ¡°And this is¡­?¡± Mathew muttered, tensing his jaws to hide the reaction that the touch of Nadia¡¯s delicate hand brought upon his mind.

    ¡°I brought you a lot of pain with this argument,¡± Nadia muttered, leaning in towards Mathew¡¯s face. Yet, rather than going for another kiss, she brought her lips closer to Mathew¡¯s ear. ¡°A lot of mental pain. I saw your face back then, I saw how you actedter,¡± she said, only to pull herself away at the same time as she sneakily pulled Mathew¡¯s pants down far enough to free his manhood from their restraints.

    ¡°So this is my way of making it up for you,¡± she finally revealed her intentions, leaning over Mathew¡¯s pants in a way that would put her back in the way of any of the survivors that would happen to nce over in their direction. ¡°For every bit of mental struggle that I brought, let me pay you back with physical pleasure,¡± she requested only to lower her head and ce a gentle kiss right on the top of Mathew¡¯s erection.

 Chapter 179 Nadias "M" side

    ¡®Is this heaven?¡¯ Mathew thought as his eyes moved up, way beyond the natural limits imposed by his skull.

    The feeling of his beloved sucking him off mixed with the sight of other people working hard for the sake of furthering his own goals was enough to make any man sink into the feeling.

    The physical pleasure mixed with mental satisfaction in Mathew¡¯s mind was only ented by how both Daria and Le quickly started to throw some lustful looks at them.

    ¡®I guess seeing this is making the two of them horny,¡¯ the young man thought, closing his eyes when Nadia suddenly tensed up her lips and attempted to suck the soul out of his dick.

    ¡°Guys,¡± Mathew managed to utter a small call towards the girls.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Le asked, smiling as she moved up closer and sat down in a position that further blocked any of the survivors from seeing what was going on.

    ¡°Actually, you fulfilled my request before even hearing it,¡± Mathew revealed, finally allowing himself to put his hands on the sides of Nadia¡¯s head. ¡®It¡¯s supposed to be her punishment, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ he thought, adding a tiny bit of force as he helped the girl to move her head up and down. ¡®It¡¯s all for the sake of making it up for me, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ he thought, finally gathering enough courage to openly start moving Nadia¡¯s head to his own rhythm.

    At first, the girl tensed up, clearly not expecting Mathew¡¯s involvement. Yet, it wasn¡¯t long before Nadia got used to the new situation and wholeheartedly epted it, allowing her man to shake her head up and down while Nadia herself put all her focus on moving her tongue and sucking at her unusual candy.

    ¡°Damn, this is insane,¡± Mathew muttered, closing his eyes as waves upon waves of pleasure rocked against his mind, threatening to send him into a sexual frenzy.

    ¡°Hey¡­¡± Daria muttered as she approached Mathew¡¯s side and rested her hands on Mathew¡¯s wrist. ¡°Could you do me as well?¡± she then asked while lowering her head and looking up to make herself look as cute as she possibly could.

    ¡°Dear, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mathew replied, denying her request right away. ¡°Later, it would be my pleasure. But right now, I want to focus on Nadia and Nadia alone,¡± he exined his thoughts while his smile soured. ¡®And I can only hope that they won¡¯t take it as favoritism.¡¯

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Daria replied in a dejected tone. ¡°I understand,¡± she added while forcing a smile on her lips. Yet, rather than just dropping the topic, she then looked toward Le only for her sad smile to turn bright again. ¡°Do you wanna have a go? Like in the old times?¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Le blushed as she attempted to reply, only to cut her answer short when she nced over her back.

    Mathew followed the direction the girl send her eyes towards only to see that while they were trying to be sneaky with it, some of the survivors couldn¡¯t help but keep throwing nces toward his group.

    ¡°Daniel!¡± Mathew suddenly shouted while squeezing Nadia¡¯s head towards his crotch at the same time.

    ¡°Mhhmhmm!¡± Nadia, with her mouth fully filled with Mathew¡¯s shaft, couldn¡¯t utter anything more but some strange sounds.

    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mathew instantly apologized as a terror of realization filled his soul. Blinded by his pleasure he nearlypletely forgot about how the girl sucking him off felt, clearly making him bring Nadia all the way to the point of choking on his dick!

    ¡°Aaaah¡­¡± Nadia first took a deep breath as she brought her upper body up. Yet, rather than coughing to clear her throat or desperately fighting for her breath, she simply licked her lips clean before gracing Mathew with a lovely smile. ¡°Did you like it?¡± she then asked, crawling up Mathew¡¯s body as if she was ready to mount him.

    ¡°I loved it,¡± Mathew admitted honestly before bringing his hand up and cing it on Nadia¡¯s delicate cheek. ¡°But I can¡¯t enjoy it if ites at the price of your displeasure,¡± he added, a hint of worry appearing on his face.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia froze up, taken aback by Mathew¡¯s remark. ¡°I did enjoy it quite a bit, though?¡± she then revealed, leaning her head to the side with a puzzled expression on her face.

    ¡°You called?¡± Daniel finally appeared at the staircase, butting in right at the least convenient moment possible. And being the experienced veteran and former police officer he was, he instantly noticed all the details there were to the situation.

    ¡°It seems that some of the workers are more interested in the two of us than they are with their fucking job,¡± Mathew exined his issue while using a voice both loud and stern.

    ¡°¡­¡± The officer stared nkly at Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°Are you serious?¡± he then asked, right as Nadia¡¯s lust finally lost her rationality, making a beautiful blush appear on her face which she quickly hid by turning it away to the side.

    ¡°Please, don¡¯t dig any further,¡± Mathew asked, rolling his own eyes. ¡°It¡¯s too important for me to put it forter while being too silly to discuss it openly,¡± he exined in a way that didn¡¯t exin anything.

    ¡°I¡­ I understand,¡± Daniel said before heaving a deep sigh and turning himself towards the doorway where the workers were now dutifully pretending that Mathew¡¯s scorn never applied to them in particr.

    ¡°Now, back to the topic,¡± Mathew muttered while turning his eyes towards Nadia and pretending not to see Daniel using kicks and punches to motivate the survivors to work harder. ¡°You imed that you enjoyed it yourself,¡± Mathew mentioned only for a small smile to appear on his lips. ¡°Tell me, was that true, or were you trying to ease the burden on my heart?¡±

    The question was simple. Nadia was the kind of kind girl that wouldn¡¯t see a problem with lying to make it easier for others. And yet, in this particr situation, there was a chance that she actually enjoyed a bit more forceful encounter than usual.

    ¡°Can you promise you won¡¯tugh?¡± the girl asked while lowering her eyes and allowing her blush to reappear on her cheeks.

    ¡°I promise, dear,¡± Mathew said without even a second of hesitation while moving his upper body forward and bringing his face closer to Nadia¡¯s.

    ¡°I did enjoy it,¡± Nadia admitted in a silent voice, a voice so silent, in fact, that Mathew barely made out what she said.

    ¡°You can¡¯t even imagine how happy that makes me,¡± the young man said right as his dick started to throb. Because of how much he loved the girl before him, treating her forcefully awoken something hidden in the depths of his soul that Mathew never knew about himself.

    ¡°Would you like me¡­¡± Nadia hesitated, only to look at Mathew with her eyes upturned. ¡°Would you like me to continue?¡±

    ¡°Oh, baby,¡± Mathew moaned even though Nadia has yet to pick up where they left. ¡°I don¡¯t think you would find a man who would refuse such a lovable request,¡± he said with a genuine smile taking over his entire face.

    ¡°Well, then¡­¡± Nadia muttered in response. She then brought her hands up to her hair, moving it out of the way as she lowered herself over Mathew¡¯s loins. ¡°Feel free to use my head as you like, then,¡± she said, only to part her mouth as wide as she could before pulling out her tongue¡­

    And then freezing in ce, waiting for Mathew to steer the situation in any direction he would like from now on.

 Chapter 180 Investigation (Part 1)

    ***Norbert¡¯s POV***

    ¡°That should do it,¡± Norbert muttered as he pulled his consciousness back in.

    Ever since he sat down to observe the area and help organize everyone¡¯s efforts, he didn¡¯t move from his spot. He continued to scan the area for some previously unperceived threats, ready to warn the others if he were to stumble upon something.

    He looked when the zombies stood down, awaiting some sort ofmand.

    He observed when the zombies suddenly attacked, seemingly for no apparent reason.

    He kept on looking when Daniel went out to hold the zombies off.

    It wasn¡¯t Daniel that organized the survivors to make them throw all sorts of objects at the zombies from above. While the older officer was sure to get the praise, Norbert was the one who haunted the survivors for long enough to make them figure out how tomunicate with him.

    He was the one leading them around the building to help them avoid hidden dangers while collecting potential projectiles.

    And so, Norbert continued to watch the events unfold when Mathew and his girls returned, dropping from the windows only to instantly charge against the mass of zombies.

    Norbert watched with a batted breath how those few kids braved to take on an entire army worth of horrifying zombies, a feat that he himself would likely fail at.

    And so, Norbert observed how those four kids took the brunt of the zombie attack on them and them alone, before mopping most of the zombies out and then finishing off the hidden leader of the army.

    ¡®It didn¡¯t go without a flinch, but it¡¯s over,¡¯ Norbert thought when the leader of the zombies left. Yet, rather than breathing a sigh of relief, that was when Norbert raised his focus by a whole degree.

    And so, he was the only one who kept watching when the few surviving zombies from the army changed their characteristics right before the fight with the boss entered its peak stage. And he saw how those few surviving zombies changed again when the shadowy form of Daria snatched the head of the boss zombie leading the army.

    ¡®They weakened right when the boss grew in power. And then, they weakened even further when those kids killed it,¡¯ Norbert summarized his observations, registering them in the back of his head before moving back to his one and only duty.

    And so, he continued to observe.

    He saw one of the girls venturing out to get some manpower from the survivors. He spectated the entire encounter and then attempted not to pry too much when the girl happily rushed back to get her reward.

    ¡®Let¡¯s not interrupt them too much,¡¯ Norbert thought, courtly averting the eyes of his soul as he left Mathew and Nadia alone to their own devices, opting to investigate the recovery of the other group of the survivors.

    ¡®They are clearing the area pretty nicely,¡¯ Norbert observed as he changed his observation point to an elevated position about the building¡¯s courtyard.

    The workers were split into two groups. A party of five had the simple task of digging several ditches deep enough to house all the corpses. As for the other five, they each have a task on their own.

    The leader that made the others follow the girl in the first ce was now in charge of collecting the stones.

    ¡®Hmm?¡¯ The officer¡¯s spirit twitched as the eyebrows moved up on his physical face. Norbert focused his spiritual eyes on the man, eager to see whether his sudden bout of suspicion held true.

    Yet, even after several minutes of strict surveince, he failed to catch Peter snatching even a single core for himself!

    ¡®I guess it¡¯s my professional bias,¡¯ he ended up assuming before moving his eyes towards the others.

    One of the survivors was in charge of collecting the corpses and then dragging them towards the ditches. Another one would use some makeshift shovel to turn the bloodied ground over on itself, turning the courtyard from a bloody mess to a patch of titled earth.

    A separate group of two took on the task of crushing the skulls of those zombies who lost their heads in the heat of the fight and now required a proper finish. The former TV presenter of around thirty years of age would catch and then hold those heads in ce, allowing her handsome partner to smash them open with a small hammer.

    Thest of the survivors didn¡¯t appear to do anything active. Yet, his role couldn¡¯t be underestimated. Because while everyone busied themselves with their tasks, he moved around the courtyard, looking for any potential leftover zombies that could pose the threat to others.

    ¡®He doesn¡¯t even have a system¡­¡¯ Norbert thought, closing in over the man.

    He didn¡¯t wear any elements or badges that would allow one to connect him to thepany that originally managed the building. And a single look at his tattered uniform was enough to guess the man¡¯s job.

    ¡®A cleaning guy, huh?¡¯ Norbert whispered to himself. His physical eyebrows moved up on his face as awe filled the officer¡¯s heart.

    It was a simple, nearly powerless man. And yet, he stood guard over everyone else, all of whom greatly outranked him in the social world of the past, with nothing but the handle of his mop in his hand.

    ¡®I guess hard times make it clear who has the greatest balls,¡¯ Norbert thought, before focusing his eyes in the direction of the element he originally set out to investigate.

    It was a small shed, hidden in the far corner of the courtyard. The distance that separated it from the main building made it pretty hard to figure out its intended use.

    It was too far to be equipment shed. Too small to be a separate studio or even a housing unit for the less fortunate employees.

    Normally, not a single person would pay this remote building any mind. And yet, in the specific situation Norbert found himself in along with hispanions, the inside of this building was of utmost importance.

    ¡®If nothing bad happened to those other survivors and especially Peter¡¯s girlfriend, then they will be much more willing to work hard,¡¯ Norbert thought, before focusing himself on the shed, ready to peek at the state of things inside¡­

    Yet, for the first time since he gained the ability to move around away from his body¡­ Norbert failed to get to the ce he desired to check.

    As it turned out, the shed with the remaining survivors¡­ was somehow off-limit for his ability.

 Chapter 181 Investigation (part 2)

    ¡®What?¡¯ Norbert¡¯s ghostly form twitched as it shed against the strange barrier that kept the insides of the building out of his reach.

    Even his physical body shook in its hideout, reacting to the bacsh of the sh.

    ¡®That was unexpected,¡¯ Norbert whined to himself as he shook both his physical and his ghostly heads. ¡®But hardly surprising,¡¯ the officer added in his thoughts.

    ¡®I might not be much of a gamer,¡¯ he thought, changing the position of his ghost to take a look at the building from a little bit further away. ¡®But even I know what this means,¡¯ he thought, allowing a small, unseemly grimace to cover his face.

    The area ahead was off-limits for Norbert. Or rather, it was off limits for his current self.

    ¡®I really need to find a way to level up somehow, don¡¯t I?¡¯ the officer thought.

    A long rift appeared right through the middle of Norbert¡¯s forehead. He couldn¡¯t help feeling annoyed at the notion of being left in the dust by all those who directly participated in the fight.

    ¡®I know that my skillset is more suited for the auxiliary role, but I will never be able to grow at this rate,¡¯ he thought.

    Norbert then clinched his ass and gritted his teeth.

    ¡®I can¡¯t forget about Carol,¡¯ Norbert reminded himself, gritting his teeth.

    The timing of the stray thought about his sister couldn¡¯t be any worse.

    ¡®Just as I was about to give up.¡¯ Norbert shook his ghastly head.

    ¡®There is no use whining, huh,¡¯ he thought only to switch his perception and move over the top of the shed.  ¡®How am I supposed to help her survive in this world if a mere barrier can stop me?¡¯

    Norbert didn¡¯t waste any time trying to cross past the barrier. The walls of the shed were imprable for his current self. Yet, the invisible barrier of the building was anchored fully on the building¡¯s structure.

    Norbert had no means of breaking through the shield. But he was free to check if the building itself didn¡¯t have ws.

    It was a small, far-detached shed that had as much use as one would expect it. As such, it took the officer only a few moments to carry out a throughout investigation.

    ¡®This seems to be the best spot,¡¯ he finally decided on the rooftop¡¯s fragment that decayed over the years.

    It was nothing more but a tiny gap, no bigger than the side of a smartphone¡­ But it was the most Norbert could ask for.

    He approached the gap, ready to look through it with a single purpose in mind.

    ¡®If this barrier boots up when one approaches it, I could try to enter before ites up,¡¯ Norbert thought. He then directed his eyes towards the gap and then took a moment to calm himself down.

    ¡®I need to be as quick as possible,¡¯ Norbert thought to himself. ¡®So that I can scout the ce, let the survivors get freed, and go back to the school so I can finally find Carol!¡¯

    The officer¡¯s physical body took in a deep, long breath. He held it in his lungs for a while. And then, right as his physical eyes opened to let the air out, Norbert pushed his perception and dynamic vision to their limits.

    First, he changed the position of his ghost to right above the rift. His vision turned blurry when the vision from his previous spot suddenly mixed with what was in front of his ghost¡¯s form now.

    ¡®Keep going!¡¯ Norbert urged himself, correcting the direction of his ghostly eyes even before his brain managed to single out the frames of his current vision.

    Norbert¡¯s vision has yet to go back to being normal. While his eyes provided the up-to-date information, without the normal transition of looking around, Norbert¡¯s brain needed a moment to move over to the new vision.

    And in this short moment, Norbert gazed right through the hole.

    ¡®Go in!¡¯ the officer urged himself, attempting to sneak in through the gap before the barrier¡­

    ¡®FUCK!¡¯

    The barrier rejected him again. The pain caused by the sh of his ghostly form against said barrier nearly made Norbert ck out.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯

    One could expect the pain to be the main factor that made Norbert freeze in both his physical and ghostly forms. Yet, the truth was slightly different.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t this¡­ Robert¡¯s¡­¡¯

    Norbert failed to get inside the building. The barrier proved to be a bit too much of a challenge for him, especially when the officercked the means to even attempt breaking through.

    What he achieved, though, was a quick nce inside. And while most of the shed¡¯s insides were exactly as one would expect from what Norbert¡¯s group learned from Robert and other survivors¡­

    There was one girl that stood up on her legs, contrary to all the other people inside who were all down on the ground, appearing to be sleeping.

    And this one girl, right when Norbert attempted to break through the barrier, looked up, right towards the crack the officer attempted to use.

    ¡°So it¡¯s time,¡± the girl said, squinting her eyes as she kept her stare right on the crack in the roof.

    ¡®What the hell was that?¡¯ Norbert thought, panicked all over. He left his ghostly state to hang in the air, opting to return to his physical body right away.

    He sat down on the ground for several hours without making even the slightest movement. As such, it was only natural that when Norbert attempted to stand up and rush toward the others, his body failed to meet up his expectations, making the officer trip on his own legs and fall right down to his face with a loud thump.

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Norbert cursed under his nose, raising up and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He then stood up and bolted forward, rushing towards the stairs.

    ¡®I might be the only one without any fighting skills, but I¡¯m still pretty athletic,¡¯ the officer thought, squinting his eyes as he ran down the stairs. ¡°And I will be damned if I will reduce myself to whining in the corner!¡±

 Chapter 182 Too late

    ¡°God damn, girl,¡± Mathew uttered through his teeth. His head angled to the back as the young man tried his best to hold on against the pleasure.

    ¡®And I thought that she might be a slight masochist,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth while Nadia pushed his dick up her mouth, making its shroom rub against the back of her throat. ¡®I guess I was too blind to see the gs!¡¯

    Nadia¡¯s lips struck against the base of Mathew¡¯s cock. Yet, rather than simply pulling her head away while sucking on Mathew¡¯s cock with all her might, Nadia kept her face smashed against her man¡¯s crotch, holding her breath while she kept the dick deep down her throat.

    ¡°Mhmm¡­¡± a tiny sound somehow made its way around Mathew¡¯s dick and through Nadia¡¯s mouth.  Yet, even though she was starting to choke, Nadia only raised her eyes while keeping her face in ce.

    ¡®Fuck¡­!¡¯ Mathew brought his hands down on the girl¡¯s head, only to pull it away from his dick.

    ¡®Fuuuuuuck!¡¯ the young man cursed when Nadia¡¯s lips slid down his manhood while her tongue frolicked around. Only by screaming his lungs out within his soul did Mat manage to stop the onught of the iing orgasm.

    ¡°Haaa¡­.¡± Nadia left her mouth open, breathing in and out while staring down the tip of Mathew¡¯s dick.

    A single strand of saliva fell down the right corner of her lips as her mouth slowly moved up and down to the rhythm of her breaths.

    ¡°I won¡¯tst at all if you go at it that hard,¡± Mathew revealed in a slightly hesitant tone. He then escaped with his eyes to the side, unable to look the girl in the face.

    ¡®I never expected the burnt of actually saying something like this,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as a sense of shame filled his soul.

    What kind of man he was to be defeated by just a moment of a girl¡¯s passion?

    ¡°Good,¡± Nadia uttered a single word, only to lean herself forward and wrap her lips around just the tip of Mathew¡¯s dick. Shepressed her mouth as far as she could, all the way to the point where Mathew¡¯s pleasure reached the border of pain.

    And then, slowly, inch by inch, Nadia pushed her mouth down his shaft, swallowing Mathew¡¯s entire erection before nting a kiss down on his crotch.

    ¡°¡­hey!¡±

    A distant shout reached Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡®That¡¯s what I needed,¡¯ the young man thought, initially happy that something wasing that would absorb his attention. By using this random event that was clearlying his way, he could distract himself away from the pleasure for just a little bit longer!

    ¡®Wait, no!¡¯ Mathew quickly changed his mind, when he realized what this kind of shout actually meant.

    ¡°HEY!¡± the shouting became louder, yet it came from a voice the young man could hardly recognize. And so, to not be caught with his pants down¡­ literally, Mathew grabbed at Nadia¡¯s head again.

    ¡°You wanted me to go hard?¡± Mathew asked, pressing his palms tightly against the girl¡¯s cheek.

    Nadia raised her eyes and looked right into Mathew¡¯s face. With Mat¡¯s dick in her mouth, she couldn¡¯t really nod or shake her head, so she resorted to just moving her eyes up and down.

    ¡°Good,¡± Mathew replied in the same way the girl did a moment earlier. And then, depriving himself of all the mercy, he pulled Nadia¡¯s head away¡­

    Only to push his hips forth while, at the same time, pulling Nadia¡¯s face back over his dick.

    ¡®Gosh!¡¯ Mathew¡¯s eyes escaped up. The amount of pleasure caused by the convulsing, gulping movements of Nadia¡¯s throat was nearly enough to break his sanity.

    And so, with just two more moves, Mathew couldn¡¯t hold himself back any longer.

    ¡°HEY!¡± Norbert dropped down from the stairs only to slide the remaining distance to the hall where everyone else was resting.

    Right in time to send a weirdly enjoyable sensation down Mathew¡¯s spine when he realized one of his malepanions was now watching him inject his semen directly into Nadia¡¯s messy face.

    ¡°Aaaaahhh¡­¡± Mathew couldn¡¯t stop himself from uttering a long moan as a wave of orgasmic pleasure shook his body, making it tense and rxed in quick session over and over again.

    ¡°I know you guys are busy, but this is pretty fucking urgent!¡± Norbert screamed out, smashing his fist into the floor to add some gesture to his words.

    What he didn¡¯t anticipate, though, was that this kind of feat was simple for the direct members of Mathew¡¯s harem. Even Daniel would struggle to keep his hands unharmed when striking the concrete the floor was made up with.

    ¡®Emergency?¡¯ Mathew thought, struggling to navigate through the misty sea of pleasure to get his thoughts straight. Yet, the striking importance hidden behind this single word helped him to fare through his pleasure, only for his consciousness to properly emerge from it a momentter.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Mathew asked, biting down on the inner side of his cheek to let the pain help him clear his mind.

    ¡°There is no fucking time!¡± Norbert screamed out, scrambling from the floor as he rushed towards the entryway where the survivors continued to bustle around their jobs.

    ¡°We need to hurry, then,¡± Nadia spoke out, only to then gulp down all that was left in her mouth.

    ¡°Gulp¡­¡± Mathew then swallowed his saliva, unable to resist the charm of the grace that Nadia did such a simple thing with.

    Yet, rather than standing in awe with his dick out atrge, Mathew quickly fixed his clothing before standing up as well. By the time he finally made the first step towards the doorway, Le was already five steps ahead of Norbert, with Daria, Daniel, and Nadia following closely behind.

    ¡°Hurry up!¡± Norbert continued to shout, even when everyone was already running.

    A few secondster, Le reached the doors to the detached shed.

    ¡°Hey guys, what¡¯s¡­¡± Robert appeared on the scene as well, a mix of confusion and fear appearing on his face.

    ¡°Open it!¡± Norbert shouted, only for Le to obediently follow.

    Even if the officer wasn¡¯t the leader of their group, he was the one who knew what the emergency was. As such, Le didn¡¯t dare to waste the time waiting for Mathew to confirm it.

    The girl grabbed the doors and pushed them open. Yet, rather than stepping inside, she stood in ce¡­

    Only to then turn her head around and look at Norbert.

    ¡°What emergency?¡± Le then asked, her expression darkening.

    Norbert finally reached the doors and managed to look inside.

    But the scene already changed. All the elements that he found weird when going back to what he saw through the gap in the roof were now gone. And the very girl that he noticed acting weirdly, was now sleeping right in the middle of all the survivors who formerly acted as bait for the zombies.

    ¡°W-what¡­?¡± Norbert muttered, his eyes opening wide as he realized that what he saw with his ghostly form and what he saw with his very own eyes weren¡¯t the same.

    ¡°Wait a second,¡± he quickly called only to sit down and close his eyes.

    ¡®Hmm?¡¯ Mathew stopped in ce, taking a quick look inside only to move his eyes back on Norbert. A secondter, he closed his eyes, reading the intent of the officer.

    And while Mathew could then see Norbert¡¯s ghost-like usual¡­ The officer continued to act weird.

    While his physical body kept sitting by the doors to the shed, his ghost continued to fly in and out of the shed as if unable to decide whether he wanted to get inside or to get out.

    ¡°It¡¯s all gone,¡± Norbert finally muttered as his consciousness returned to his body. He then fell forward on his hands only to smash the ground with his right fist.

    ¡°We were too fuckingte!¡±

 Chapter 183 What is it that you see

    ¡°Toote for what?¡± Mathew asked, turning his head from the insides of the shed to Norbert¡¯s face.

    ¡®He was really in a hurry to get here,¡¯ Mathew thought, clenching his teeth as he thought about the situation. ¡®His emotions were too true for it to be just a random bait,¡¯ he decided, turning his eyes back into the shed before Norbert could even reply.

    ¡°This was the very first ce that I couldn¡¯t get inside with my ghost,¡± Norbert exined. ¡°I tried in every way I could think of, but it was of no use,¡± he added, shaking his head with regret.

    ¡°And that¡¯s why you brought us here in such a hurry?¡± Mathew asked, raising one of his eyebrows. ¡®Is he that eager to get some achievements? While it¡¯s true I kind of neglected his growth¡­ But¡­¡¯ the young man thought, conflicted by the situation and his own perception of it.

    ¡°That¡¯s not it,¡± Norbert denied Mathew¡¯s usation while shaking his head to the sides. ¡°Being unable to enter only served to fire up my curiosity. And while I failed to enter in the end¡­¡± he stated only to raise his hand and point at the ceiling. ¡°I managed to get a glimpse of what was going inside.¡±

    ¡°Fuck it all,¡± Robert suddenly forced his way into the conversation. ¡°We all worked hard. Can we go and reunite with our friends and loved ones now?¡±

    The young leader of the survivors didn¡¯t appear to be asking a question.

    ¡®The only reason why he isn¡¯t inside checking up on his girl is the courtesy towards me,¡¯ Mathew noticed.

    ¡°I don¡¯t see why not,¡± the young man then said, shrugging his shoulders.

    It was of no importance whether Robert would get to reunite with his girl now or in a few moments. Yet, it was of no importance to Mathew and his harem, while the same couldn¡¯t be said about Robert himself.

    ¡°No can do,¡± Norbert shook his head, making Robert stand down right as he was about to leap forward.

    Robert¡¯s eyes were locked on one of the bodies. Even when he turned his head to look at Norbert, he kept on ncing toward a particr survivor inside the shed.

    ¡°And why is that?¡± Robert asked through his tightened lips, clearly on hisst straw before ignoring the courtesy and going to his girlfriend anyway.

    ¡°She¡¯s the exact reason why we all hurried here in the first ce,¡± Norbert replied in a low voice.

    A dark expression appeared on Robert¡¯s face¡­ Only to match the emotions that showcased in Norbert¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m not joking here, man,¡± Norbert then added, ignoring Robert and turning his eyes towards Mathew instead.

    ¡°I understand,¡± the young man stated. ¡°You all stay here,¡± he then ordered everyone before looking toward Daria and Le. ¡°You two,e with me.¡±

    The shed itself was pretty small. It was a simple building of four walls and a single, bottom floor, with a balcony hanging over half of the insides.

    ¡®There is adder to the balcony but there doesn¡¯t seem to be anything of interest there,¡¯ Mathew thought as he pushed through the floor littered with sleeping people.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Daria suddenly let out a small cry of surprise. Even though her injuries made her limp ahead, she still fell to her knees, right over the body of the girl both Norbert and Robert expressed their immense interest in.

    ¡°So you can see it too,¡± Mathew muttered silently, watching at the slight aura of magic that continued to disperse around the sleeping body of the girl.

    ¡°Are you guys done?¡± Robert asked while gritting his teeth. To say that he was dissatisfied with the other party checking up on his girl would be a massive understatement.

    ¡®It¡¯s impressive that he can hold himself back like that,¡¯ Mathew thought, his respect towards the man growing a little. ¡®Or maybe he is logical enough to know that even in an emotional state he won¡¯t be able to do us any harm?¡¯

    Mathew shook his head and heaved a deep sigh.

    ¡°It¡¯s all gone now,¡± he said, watching how thest bits of mana dispersed in the air, leaving the girl in the exact same state as all the other survivors in the shed.

    ¡°It¡¯s dispersing everywhere,¡± Daria gave her own input, following the movements of the mana particles in the air. ¡°I thought that it might be returning to where it came from but¡­¡± she added only to grit her teeth, turn her head to the side and look at Mathew¡­ Only to then shake her head to the sides.

    ¡°Are you fucking done?!¡± Robert screamed out, not taking a step forward only due to Nadia¡¯s and Daniel¡¯s presence.

    ¡°Yeah, we are,¡± Mathew nodded his head. He also raised his hand and gestured hispanions to the back to stop whatever they were doing, worried that Nadia wouldn¡¯t stomach Robert speaking to him in this way. ¡°Feel free to wake her up,¡± Mathew added, turning around and leaving the shed.

    ¡°What did you see, guys?¡± Le asked, right as Nadia opened her mouth, likely, to ask the same question.

    ¡®So she didn¡¯t see it, huh?¡¯ Mathew thought. ¡®I never expected her to, given her low arcane and mind stat¡­ But doesn¡¯t that beg the question of what¡¯s the threshold to be able to see this energy?¡¯

    ¡°A residual ene¡­ residual mana around that girl,¡± Mathew answered once he got out of the shed. He then turned around and took a look at Robert doing his best to wake the girl up.

    And a mere momentter, the girl actually returned from her slumber, raising up only to bring her hands to her head.

    ¡°My head is killing me,¡± she said in a bothered voice.

    ¡°Let¡¯s leave them alone,¡± Mathew ordered, turning his back to the shed and walking away. ¡°As alone as they can be in the middle of all those people,¡± he remarked a secondter.

    ¡°I¡¯m still waiting for the answer,¡± Le pointed out, crossing her arms on her chest as she followed Mathew back to the main building.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I answer it already?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise as he looked over his shoulder at the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°Yes and no,¡± Le said as she shook her head. ¡°You told me what the two of you saw back there,¡± she exined. ¡°But you have yet to tell me what is it that you actually have seen.¡±

 Chapter 184 Moving on

    ¡°This is a simple question,¡± Mathew stated. He then lowered his eys and shook his head. ¡°But sometimes, the simplest questions have the¡­¡±

    ¡°The hardest answers,¡± Le said and nodded her head before rolling her eyes in a sign of her impatience. ¡°Yeah, I know. But I don¡¯t recall asking for your philosophical thoughts.¡±

    The look in the girl¡¯s eyes was solid. Le crossed her hands over her chest and moved her right leg a little bit forward only to tap the top of her leg against the ground.

    ¡®She won¡¯t take this kind of shit right now,¡¯ Mathew realized, gritting his teeth only to then close his eyes.

    Mathew took only a moment to sort out his thoughts. Yet, in this short moment, Le¡¯s eyebrow already traveled all the way up her forehead.

    ¡°Do you remember what I said about there being an intent behind this entire apocalypse?¡± Mathew asked while raising his head and looking Le directly in the eye.

    ¡°Yeah, I do,¡± the girl replied, nodding her head.

    ¡®She stopped tapping her leg,¡¯ Mathew took notice, silently breathing a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Then I believe that this intent isn¡¯t just some passive entity that brought the apocalypse to this world for funsies,¡± Mathew revealed what he had suspected for a while yet kept to himself, worried about scaring both his group and the other survivors. ¡°And for the second time since we approached this building, I believe they directly interfered in the events.¡±

    Le froze in her ce. Her gestures of annoyance all ceased as well, stopped in thest frame they were in when the girl processed the news.

    Besides Le, no one else appeared to be surprised by the revtions, though.

    ¡®Nadia, I can understand,¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing over at his crush. ¡®With how fiercely intelligent she is, it would be strange if she didn¡¯t figure it out herself already.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s eyes then moved over at Daria.

    ¡®She saw all the things that alerted me in the first ce so herck of surprise is expected,¡¯ he thought, only to turn his eyes towards thest two people on the ground.

    Norbert didn¡¯t belong to his group in the same, direct way the girls did. And while they continued to cooperate, he was too far detached from Mathew to be able to catch all the bits of information he would sometimes reveal.

    Yet, it was Norbert who brought everyone to the shed. And he did so because he apparently witnessed what Mathew just said with his very own, although ghostly, eyes.

    Andstly, there was Daniel. And it was this exact man that escaped the scrutiny of Mathew¡¯s eyes, keeping his expression perfectly calm.

    ¡®I can¡¯t tell whether he can just hide his emotions that well or if he managed to figure it all out himself,¡¯ Mathew thought, puzzled by how ambiguous Daniel could be at times. ¡®I guess he wouldn¡¯t get the negotiator¡¯s job if he wasn¡¯t like that.¡¯

    The entire apocalypse started only around two days ago. Yet, with how those two days were packed with events and high-stakes situations, Mathew nearly forgot about the very reason that brought him and Daniel together.

    ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Le released a pained moan as she shook her head before turning it towards Mathew¡­ and then dropping her eyes down.

    ¡°Now I get why you didn¡¯t want to speak about this,¡± she admitted, lowering her eyes even further. And then, she lowered her whole head, just to express the depth of her apology.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it too much,¡± Mathew advised, turning around and making his first step back towards the media building since Le¡¯s interrupted their return in the first ce. ¡°Time spent worrying over things we have no influence over is a time wasted.¡±

    ¡®So is time spent on standing in ce and talking when we could all be moving toplete our next objectives!¡¯

    With the topic of outside interference somehow settled, no one stopped Mathew from going about his own missions anymore. He reached the immediate courtyard of the media building only to find all the leftover cores from the fight neatly stacked by the doorway.

    ¡°Even with all the distributions, that should be just enough for the third merchant and establishing a second fortress,¡± he muttered, squatting down by the pile of the shiny cores. He then loaded them all onto his shirt only to stand up and turn right back.

    ¡°Now, back to the shed,¡± Mathew announced, starting to move before anyone could start whining about going to and fro.

    ¡®I do recall that there was supposed to be some sort of special bonus for establishing the merchant in that shed,¡¯ Mathew thought, moving as slow as necessary to keep the cores safely tucked onto his shirt while not moving any slower than absolutely necessary.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew muttered as soon as he got back to the shed.

    His group left the area only a few moments earlier, with no one but Robert¡¯s girlfriend awake back then. Yet, in the short time since they left, Robert and his girl managed to wake up most of the survivors, already working on moving them out of the way.

    ¡°Should we wait?¡± Nadia asked soberly.

    ¡®No good wille from letting all of those people know about merchants,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    Yet, this moment of hesitation passed as soon as it appeared.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± he replied, pointing with the side of his head back towards the main building. ¡°They are bound to find out about merchants once they get back to the mediaplex,¡± he pointed out.

    Mathew then knelled down by the corner of the shed¡¯s doors, lowering the bottom of his shirt to allow all the cores stored on it to trickle down to the ground.

    Mathew then selected a hundred of the cores before standing up and approaching the very middle of the room all the while ignoring the sleepy survivors that have yet to vacate this ce.

    ¡°I wish to summon a merchant,¡± he then said in a casual tone one would use to strike a conversation with someone on the street.

    As usual, the bright light exploded from the cores within Mathew¡¯s possession, only for the sh of light to vanish a momentter, depriving Mathew of all the cores he brought with him.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯

    Or rather, that¡¯s what Mathew thought would happen. Because while all the other elements of the procedure, starting at the sh of light and at the appearance of the merchant worked¡­

    Only about twenty cores vanished from his grasp, leaving a whole eighty of them safe and sound!

 Chapter 185 Times five?

    ¡°Is this some sort of bug?¡± Mathew whispered under his nose, staring down at the cores left in his possession. ¡®Woops,¡¯ he then thought, raising his eyes to look around.

    Thankfully, save for the members of his group, no one appeared to pay him enough attention to listen in on those words.

    ¡®Still, I¡¯m quite sure I did the math right,¡¯ the young man thought, turning his eyes back towards the cores now that he managed to calm down a little.

    After all, even if he was willing to slowly share his information with the members of his group, the same couldn¡¯t be said about the random survivors that Mathew already depicted as working their asses for his own sake!

    ¡®Well, that¡¯s more buying power for us,¡¯ he finally decided to ignore the situation before turning his attention to what was supposed to be the second most important element of tonight.

    And so, Mathew reached out before grasping at the darkness coiling underneath the merchant¡¯s robe.

    The shadows surged and washed away the reality, recing it with the subspace where the trades could happen. Yet, contrary to all the times when the young man entered this kind of realm¡­ There was absolutely nothing of interest in it!

    ¡°Where are your wares?¡± Mathew asked out loud, hoping that speaking out would somehow activate the merchant.

    ¡°The products of this merchant will only get unlocked upon establishing a settlement,¡± the robotic voice announced in response to Mathew¡¯s inquiry.

    ¡°Settlement?¡± the young man repeated a single word that the merchant said. ¡°Not a fortress?¡±

    This time, however, the robotic voice didn¡¯t appear to confirm Mathew¡¯s doubts.

    ¡®What a bummer,¡¯ the young man thought. Even though he was eager to let his emotions out by actually using his voice to produce those words¡­ The few encounters he had with the merchants so far taught him to do better than to express any sign of dissatisfaction with how they operated.

    ¡°In that case, there is nothing for me to do here,¡± Mathew announced before raising his eyes to the same spot as usual. ¡°I want to go back, then.¡±

    Once again, the shadows surged. And after just a short moment of time within the subspace, Mathew returned back to the real world.

    ¡°How did it go?¡± Nadia took a step forward and asked. She first looked towards Mathew¡¯s hands, quickly confirming that he held just as many cores as he brought with himself into the merchant in the first ce. Then, she scanned Mathew¡¯s entire body, confirming ack of any new features.

    ¡°I think you know the answer already,¡± Mathew released a deep sigh as he looked at Nadia¡¯s face to let her beauty relieve some of his mental stress.

    ¡®This isn¡¯t how I expected it to go,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth and turning around with the intention of putting all the cores back in a single ce.

    Yet, as Mathew turned around, he couldn¡¯t help but notice a small window floating right by the side of the merchant¡¯s shadowy head.

    ¡®Oh,¡¯ he thought, stopping in his tracks before approaching the merchant again and opening the window up. Then, with a single shove, he forced all the cores in his hands into the window, safekeeping them all within his storage.

    ¡°Can you girls bring me the rest of the cores?¡± Mathew then requested, right as an idea popped up in his head.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Nadia replied, turning around on her spot and beckoning Le to follow them.

    Daria¡¯s shadowy presence on the battlefield of the recent past led to her consuming quite a few cores as she fought. Yet, even when ounting for this decrease, the number of zombies in the army they defeated was still quite high, resulting in a considerable yield of the cores.

    ¡°And in the meantime, just to confirm my guess¡­¡± Mathew muttered to himself as he reached out and entered the merchant¡¯s subspace again.

    ¡°How many cores did I just leave in my storage?¡± he asked.

    ¡°You have deposited four hundred cores to your storage,¡± the robotic voice of the merchant replied.

    ¡®Thank God it worked,¡¯ Mathew thought, heaving a sigh of relief. ¡°Thanks,¡± he then said. ¡°I want to go back now.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s consciousness returned to reality right at the same second as he squeezed the merchant¡¯s shadows.

    ¡®So those cores are somehow five times as valuable as the ones we were getting before,¡¯ he put his observations into a sentence in his mind. ¡®Doesn¡¯t that mean we can nearly afford not only a fortress here but also an entirely new one somewhere else?¡¯

    ¡°Here you go,¡± Nadia called out right as Mathew sank deep into his thoughts. ¡°That should make all of them,¡± she added before handing Mathew a makeshift back ripe from all the cores stored inside.

    ¡°Great, thanks,¡± Mathew said. He then grabbed the bag before wasting some time putting the cores, one by one, into the storage. And to not waste all this time on just moving the valuables around, he made sure to count them all.

    ¡®Assuming all of them were worth more, I should have around a thousand and nine hundred cores right now,¡¯ Mathew finished up the calction the moment he threw thest core into the window of the storage.

    ¡°We need a hundred more,¡± he then spoke, dropping the bag on the ground as he turned back towards the girls.

    ¡°Are you going to get them now?¡± Le asked as she threw a quick nce towards the outside.

    Right where they stood, they were well within the lightsing from the media building.

    ¡®How this ce retained electricity despite the entire grid failing is a question forter, I guess,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he opted to ignore this topic for now.

    ¡°No way in hell,¡± he then shook his head, replying to Le¡¯s question. ¡°Right now, we are going to turn this ce into another fortress and spend the night here. Only once the night passes and the sunlight return we will venture out to find the right location for the third fortress,¡± he exined his ns.

    ¡°Wait, the third fortress?¡± Daria asked, finally regaining enough of her strength after the run towards the shed to join in the discussion. ¡°And what happened to that merchant?¡± she then added another question as she turned her eyes towards the shadowy figure standing silently right where it was summoned.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s just the extension of my observation from before,¡± Mathew exined his thoughts right away. ¡°Just like we need three merchants to establish a fortress in a ce, I believe we need three fortresses like that to establish something of a higher tier.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to know,¡± Daria smiled as she admitted with a nod of her head. Yet, rather than keeping her smile, her lips turned into a thin, straight line. She then leaned her head to the side while keeping her eyes on Mathew¡¯s face at all times.

    ¡°What wrong?¡± Mathew asked. ¡®I might not be the expert when ites to how women think, but even I can tell there is something on her mind.¡¯

    ¡°I only have a single question, now,¡± Daria stated only to rest herself against the wall of the building before staring down Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°Why am I learning about this only now?¡±

 Chapter 186 It was my fuck-up

    ¡°Why am I learning about this only now?¡±

    Daria¡¯s question was simple. Yet, just like Mathew wanted to mention before, it was also insanely hard to answer.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Mathew opened his mouth and even started speaking, all to close them back up as he realized he had no idea what he should say.

    ¡°Can¡¯t answer, huh?¡± Daria pointed out, leaning her head to the side.

    ¡®What is this interrogation?¡¯ Mathew whined within his thoughts. He then pursed his lips and took a breath to calm down. ¡®No, that¡¯s not the point. I¡¯m getting annoyed because she is pretty much correct with her point.¡¯

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mathew finally said.

    ¡°Is that all?¡± Daria asked, raising her hands only to cross them over her chest while raising her right eyebrow. ¡°I didn¡¯t touch this subject to hear your apology!¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± Mathew raised his face back up and looked directly at Daria¡¯s face. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t change the fact it¡¯s my fuck-up here,¡± he added.

    ¡®If you make a mistake, own the hell out of it,¡¯ Mathew thought, swallowing his saliva as he reaffirmed himself in his decision.

    ¡°It was me who stated that I don¡¯t want you guys to just blindly follow me. And yet, it was also me who held back my ideas of what is going on. I know why I did it, but that doesn¡¯t mean I was right with it,¡± he stated, looking Daria directly in the eyes only to then lower his head.

    ¡°That¡¯s why, to all three of you, I wish to apologize,¡± Mathew repeated the very meaning that he started his reply with. ¡°But what would be an apology without making proper amends?¡±

    Nadia raised her eyebrows. Le sighed only to take a quick look around.

    ¡°I¡¯m d that didn¡¯t turn out into an unnecessary argument,¡± Daria said before breathing out. Then, her entire body rxed, as if it lost the tension it gained when the girl first brought up the topic.

    ¡°But I don¡¯t think this is the right ce nor time to talk,¡± Le then chimed in, turning her head around as she looked at the survivors still bustling around with their jobs.

    They managed to gather all the cores they were left after the fight. They even managed to move most of the corpses to the ditches that the other part of the group dug out. And yet, they were still a long way from cleaning the entire area properly.

    ¡°Guys, don¡¯t ck off!¡± someone from the survivors¡¯ group shouted. ¡°If we leave even a single puddle of blood unattended, that¡¯s equal to inviting a disease!¡±

    ¡®I¡¯m d someone gets it,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes towards the survivors only to move his eyes on Norbert. ¡°Can you find us a ce in the building that¡¯s away from everyone?¡±

    Norbert closed his eyes and froze in his ce. He then breathed in and out a few times before opening his eyes back up.

    ¡°Second floor, the recording room to the right of the end of the corridor,¡± the officer quickly obliged.

    ¡°Thanks for your understanding,¡± Mathew then thanked in a seemingly strange way. Yet, rather than exining it to anyone, he simply turned around and started heading towards the staircase¡­ Only to nce over his arm and stop in his tracks when he saw two people he didn¡¯t invite follow after him.

    ¡°Guys, I will say this again,¡± Mathew said, stopping in his tracks and turning around only to cast a meaningful nce at both Norbert and Daniel. ¡°I thank you for your understanding.¡±

    Everyone stood down right where they stood.

    Nadia didn¡¯t appear to care much about the situation as she simply walked a few steps more to stand by Mathew¡¯s side. On the other hand, Le smiled lightly as she looked at Daniel and Norbert, eager to see how they would react.

    ALl in all, only Daria appeared not to care at all, if not for a slight annoyance that shed behind her eyes when everyone stopped.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Norbert opened his mouth, only to close it back down when Daniel rested his hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°We understand,¡± the older of the officers said before pulling Norbert back by his shoulder. ¡°We will be waiting at the bottom floor and I will make sure Norbert won¡¯t intrude upon your privacy,¡± he proimed.

    ¡°That¡¯s very thoughtful of you,¡± Mathew said and nodded his head in cold grattitude. ¡°It will save Daria the effort of being on a lookout,¡± he then added before turning around and picking up the ck.

    ¡°Was this really necessary?¡± Nadia asked when their group climbed up the first set of stairs.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mathew asked, not exactly sure what part of what happened Nadia wasn¡¯t so sure about.

    ¡°Antagonizing them like that.¡±

    ¡± I didn¡¯t antagonize them,¡± Mathew refused to ept Nadia¡¯s take. ¡°It was their choice to distance themselves from us. Now it¡¯s time for them to bear the consequences of their actions,¡± he exined.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this¡­¡± Nadia attempted to refute Mathew¡¯s words, yet before she could properly do so, she ended up closing her mouth instead.

    ¡°Feel free to speak your mind,¡± Mathew encouraged his crush. ¡°Holding my thoughts to myself is the mistake I made. There is no point in you to follow in those faulty steps of mine.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this quite small-minded?¡± Nadia asked while averting her eyes.

    ¡®It seems she still remembers our previous argument,¡¯ Mathew thought. He then took a deep breath. ¡°In a sense, it is,¡± he admitted. ¡°But in the grand scheme of things, it¡¯s necessary. But let¡¯s keep this topic aside for now since we are going to have a proper talk soon anyway.¡±

    There was no point in discussing something that could potentially rip their greater group apart while they were still vulnerable to some randoms eavesdropping on them.

    Thankfully, for how big the media building was, moving around it was pretty convenient. As such, it took Mathew and his girl only a few moments to reach the recording studio Norbert pointed them out towards.

    ¡°I will leave the lookout job to you,¡± Mathew said, ncing over at Daria.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± the girl replied with a nod before going to the corner of the room so that she could have its entirety within her sights.

    ¡°Now then,¡± Mathew reached the middle of the recording studio only to ce his entire arm on the main table before shoving everything from it directly on the floor. He then picked up a stray chair before cing it by the desk and sitting down. ¡°Let¡¯s start with what I believe is going on right now.¡±

 Chapter 187 Nights arrangements

    ¡°And that wraps it up,¡± Mathew announced, spreading his arms forward. He then heaved a sigh of relief.

    ¡®Who could¡¯ve known that telling them everything like that could be so liberating?¡¯ the young man thought, closing his eyes to revel at the moment.

    ¡°I can¡¯t say I agree with all your ideas,¡± Le muttered while nibbling down on the fingernail of her thumb. ¡°I understand where are youing from,¡± she said, raising her eyes to Mathew¡¯s face, ¡°but I think some of your ideas are a bit too far-fetched.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s fine,¡± Mathew replied, nodding his head. ¡°Or rather, that¡¯s exactly the point why I wanted to share this stuff from the very beginning,¡± he said, only to lower his eyes a bit when all three girls threw him a doubting look. ¡°I know, I know, I spectacrly failed to deliver,¡± he admitted.

    Mathew then raised his eyes, ridding his cheeks of the blush as he picked up the challenge behind the girls¡¯ stares.

    ¡°But you can¡¯t say there was no good will!¡±

    Mathew smiled triumphantly.

    Nadia lowered her face to the palm of her hand.

    ¡°We are not here to judge you,¡± she muttered in an embarrassed tone of a mother whose kid just did her in public. ¡°We are here to figure out what¡¯s the best way to move forward,¡± Nadia then announced.

    And then, her expression soured.

    ¡°It pains me as hell to say this, but I do believe that getting that girl is the best way,¡± Nadia then casually dropped the bomb. ¡°It might mean fewer opportunities for us to grow, sure. But the cost of growing ourbined strength will be much lower.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s eyebrows moved up. ¡®If there were to be anyone against the idea, I expected it to be Nadia,¡¯ he thought.

    After all, this was the talk about getting another girl into their group.

    ¡°I regretfully agree,¡± Daria said as she nodded her head only to then lower her eyes to the side. ¡°I said it before, didn¡¯t I?¡± she then asked, raising her eyes towards Nadia. ¡°We can¡¯t let our personal feelings affect the efficiency of our actions.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s how we got you to agree to share Mathew with us, after all,¡± Le chimed in.

    She was sitting down on a random chair, with her legs curled up. Her hands coiled around her knees, while her crossed ankles made it just barely impossible to peer into the secret area between her legs.

    Le¡¯s entire figure randomly oozed erotism. And as if it wasn¡¯t enough, sheid down her cheek on her knee, adding a factor of extreme adorableness to her own picture.

    ¡®Is it me, or having girls talk about sharing me is strangely exciting?¡¯ Mathew asked himself. His body then shrugged, as an unpleasant feeling appeared in his thoughts. ¡®Or is it just me feeling horny and projecting?¡¯

    ¡°It¡¯s decided, then,¡± Le said, putting on a small, mysterious smile. ¡°And that sums things up for tonight,¡± she then added, taking a nce over to the window.

    They were far into the hourly nights. It was only a matter of time before the sun would once again shine upon the city.

    ¡°We should catch some sleep,¡± Le added after a short while. ¡°It would be bad to waste precious daylight, wouldn¡¯t it be? With all that efficiency talk and all?¡±

    Le¡¯s smile was contagious.

    ¡°I guess you are right,¡± Nadia admitted. She then stretched her arms out to the sides while pushing her breasts out. ¡°So? How are we sleeping tonight?¡±

    The atmosphere tensed out in an instant. The smiles from before disappeared.

    ¡°We are guchi,¡± Daria informed, keeping her watch in the corner of the room. And yet, despite being a few meters behind the others, her presence was so strong she appeared to be right in the middle.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think taking turns will satisfy everyone,¡± Le sighed, pursing her lips as she looked towards Mathew¡¯s chest only to then lick her lips.

    ¡°How about an exhaustion game?¡± Nadia suddenly proposed, causing the other two to raise their eyebrows.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Daria asked, rustling around in her corner with impatience.

    ¡°It¡¯s simple,¡± Nadia said with a bright smile. ¡°We all go at him right now. But first, we decide the order of picking with a simple rock, paper, and scissors game. And then, whoever willst the shortest will just go to sleep on her own,¡± Nadia exined her idea.

    And with each word she said, her smile turned brighter and brighter.

    ¡°I¡¯m down.¡± Daria was quick to secure her spot.

    ¡°I¡¯m game,¡± Le confirmed her satisfaction with the solution as well.

    ¡°On three, then.¡± Nadia pushed the topic only to rest her right first on top of her left palm.

    ¡°Wait for a second,¡± Mathew called out, raising his hands to stop the girls. ¡°And what if I will be the first one to surrender?¡± he asked. The long wrinkle on his forehead showcased just how genuinely worried the young man was.

    ¡®I already learned my reason,¡¯ he thought, recalling the events of thest night and what urred at times during the day. ¡®Harem only sounds nice in theory, in practice, however¡­¡¯

    Mathew gulped down his saliva.

    ¡°I¡¯m the one who needs to satisfy all three of you at once, after all!¡± he then pointed out, grasping at straws to dy the inevitable.

    ¡®I can see it,¡¯ Mathew thought, freezing his face to not let the mark of terror appear behind his eyes.

    The glint in the girls¡¯ eyes. He could see it. The small giveaway of what his night would look like.

    And even though he had no proper idea how to solve this situation, he was still grasping at the razor¡¯s edge just to dy it.

    ¡°Wait, you thought we would let you get away scot-free after you hid so much from us?¡± Nadia asked, raising her right eyebrow as high as her face allowed.

    Yet, her expression wasn¡¯t exxagerated. It conveyed just how surprised the girl was by Mathew¡¯s words.

    ¡°¡­¡± Mathew escaped with his eyes to the side. ¡°I guess?¡±

 Chapter 188 Missunderstanding

    ¡°Aaaah¡­¡± a groan escaped from Mathew¡¯s mouth.

    He stared with his eyes emptied out at the ceiling of the room.

    The sunlighting into the room from the nearby window annoyed the young man¡¯s eyes¡­ yet he couldn¡¯t close them.

    Not after the entire night that he spent wide awake.

    ¡®That¡¯s it for some nap to refresh,¡¯ Mathew whined in his thoughts, allowing his eyelids down for but a second.

    The day was starting. And just like many generations before him, Mathew had to make the most of it.

    ¡®This will be a tough day,¡¯ he thought, empty-mindedly attempting to raise from some rags his group used as beddings for the night.

    Mathew attempted to move up¡­ Only to fail to move at all.

    ¡°So this is what it means to be pinned by beauty,¡± he muttered, giving up on his attempts.

    Towards the left of his head, Daria cuddled up his raised arm with her entire self. She squashed his hand between her breasts while coiling around Mathew¡¯s arm with her legs, pressing her soft stomach against Mathew¡¯s cheek.

    To his right, Nadia cuddled up to his side, trapping his arm between his own side and her naked torso. The forehead of her head rubbed against Mathew¡¯s head, while her breath gently caressed his ear.

    And to top it all off, Le¡¯s backside rested a bit down Mathew¡¯s hips. Just by looking down his chest, he could see her pussy dripping with the cum in its full disy while the girl turned his feet into her pillow.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, squinting his eyes in self-reflection. ¡®I¡¯m one lucky man, aren¡¯t I?¡¯ he thought, releasing a dryugh.

    He then closed his eyes, finally giving up on the early morning.

    ¡®There is no use going outside if it¡¯s going to kill us,¡¯ he thought, desperately looking for an excuse as he finally fell into the depths of slumber.

    ¡°Come on, wake up!¡± Le¡¯s voice shook Mathew away as if he never get to fall asleep at all. ¡°It¡¯s way past morning already!¡±

    ¡®God damn¡­¡¯ Mathew whined in his thoughts, heaving all the air from his lungs in a desperate sigh. ¡®This wasn¡¯t in the fine print of what I expected,¡¯ he thought, squeezing his eyelids before slowly opening them up.

    Le didn¡¯t lie. The sun was out so far Mathew could no longer see it from his point of view with the window¡¯s frame blocking his line of sight.

    ¡®It¡¯s sote already?¡¯ Mathew thought, sending a current of mana through his body. It was a small trick he learned overnight, back when he desperately fought to stay up to the task.

    ¡°Do we really need to hurry that much?¡± Nadia asked, jumping up a little when Mathew suddenly forced himself on his feet. ¡°It¡¯s not like there is a lot for us to do today,¡± she added, settling herself back on a small chair in the corner of the room.

    ¡°It¡¯s still better to do something over justying around in the bed,¡± Mathew replied, shaking his body to get off all his perceived exhaustion. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m aware of the irony here,¡± he then added, rolling his eyes as he squatted down to grab his clothes from beside the bed.

    ¡°If that¡¯s what you say¡­¡± Nadia pursed her lips into a thin line. ¡°Well then,¡± she added after taking a breath only to stand up herself. ¡°Daria, are you up?¡± she then asked, turning her head to the corner of the room.

    ¡°Yup,¡± Daria replied, pushing away the strand of hair that fell on her face. ¡°So, what¡¯s the n?¡± she asked, pushing herself against the wall to stand up.

    ¡°We need to head back to thepound,¡± Mathew answered without even a second of hesitation. ¡°There are only two ways to y any given game. Either tall or wide,¡± he mentioned, fixing his shirt over his head. ¡°And we pushed for the tall build for long enough. Now it¡¯s time for some expansion.¡±

    ¡°Urgh,¡± Nadia shrugged, ¡°it¡¯s kind of unnerving to have you describe it that way,¡± she exined as her body involuntarily leaned away.

    ¡°It¡¯s just a simple truth,¡± Mathew said on the exhale. ¡°We can either ept the raising cost of growing our strength or we need to look to expand our numbers.

    ¡°Will you be able to keep up at it, though?¡± Daria threw Mathew a small smirk. She then approached and send a quick nudge to his side. ¡°We all bear witness to how tired you are after the night,¡± she added in a whisper while standing on her tiptoes and leaning over Mat¡¯s ear.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew shrugged, taken aback by the girl¡¯s suggestion. ¡°It was never my intention to do so?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Daria shook on her tiptoes, mming her heels to the floor to regain stability.

    ¡°Hah?¡± Nadia slightly jumped as well, turning her widened eyes to Mat¡¯s face.

    ¡°I mean¡­¡± Mathew looked from one girl to the other. It took him a moment to finally figure out what the situation was all about. ¡°Ah, I get it,¡± he admitted only to cover his face with his palm and then shake his head to the sides.

    ¡°Intimacy appears to be necessary to establish the connection,¡± he stated, raising his eyes on Nadia¡¯s face. ¡°But for what reason would I need to sleep with themter?¡±

    The air in the room turned stale.

    Nadia slowly turned her head to one side, casting a quick, probing nce at Daria. She then moved her eyes to Le¡¯s face.

    For but a moment, they all just stood in ce and stared each other down.

    ¡°That makes sense¡­ I guess¡­¡± Nadia finally spoke only to heave a deep sigh after that. ¡°We were too stuck on the idea of the harem expanding to realize it didn¡¯t actually have to,¡± she exined her perspective only to then shake her head and raise her eyes on Mathew.

    ¡°But that doesn¡¯t change what we need to do,¡± she then added, only to look around the room and then toward the doors. ¡°And at what cost it might need to happen.¡±

 Chapter 189 Our fault?

    ¡®That¡¯s everyone,¡¯ Mathew thought after sending a quick nce over all the people gathered at the broken main entrance to the media building.

    ¡°Are you sure there is nothing else you want us to do while you are away?¡± Robert asked, taking a step out of the crowd of people that came to see Mathew¡¯s group off.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew replied with a nod of his head. ¡°For now just stay tuned and enjoy your time with your girlfriend,¡± he then added, sending the man off with a small smile.

    ¡°Will do,¡± Robert replied before lowering his head and then straightening up in a small salute.

    ¡°I wish you safe travels,¡± Daniel joined in right as Robert backed down to the crowd he emerged from. ¡°It¡¯s not a long way to go, but try not to get too careless,¡± he advised.

    ¡°What is this, a father-son moment?¡± Mathew asked, raising his eyebrow as he looked at the older officer with a mocking smile.

    ¡°We might have our differences, but that doesn¡¯t mean I wish you ill,¡± Daniel replied while heaving a sigh. ¡°And oldie like me will never be able to see eye to eye with youngsters like you,¡± he then added only to turn around on the spot and head back to the hole in the wall that they were using as the entrance.

    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want toe with us, man?¡± Mathew asked, right as the officer was about to leave the range of his voice. ¡°It¡¯s safer for us to travel together rather than splitting up like that.¡±

    ¡°No can do,¡± Daniel said. He stopped in his tracks and then shook his head. ¡°Someone has to stay with them,¡± he exined his intentions with a wave directed at those who came to see Mathew¡¯s group off. ¡°If we all leave, they will be powerless even against simple zombies.¡±

    ¡®I know it¡¯s true, but still¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, only to grit his teeth and stop the entitled thoughts from fully forming. ¡®It¡¯s his decision what he wants to do. I¡¯m in no position to tell him to do otherwise.¡¯

    ¡°Fine, then,¡± Mathew said, pping his hands against the sides of his hips. ¡°What about you, Norbert?¡± he then changed the direction of his attack on the actual target Mathew wished to convince. ¡°Are you going to stay ore with us?¡±

    On the surface, this appeared to be a simple question. A simple choice between going with Mathew¡¯s active party or staying with Daniel¡¯s passive option.

    And yet, what Mathew couldn¡¯t really tell Norbert right now, his presence was necessary for an entirely different reason.

    ¡®If I don¡¯t tell him what we are going to do now, he is sure to take it the wrong way,¡¯ Mathew thought, holding his sigh back not to alert the other party. ¡®And there is no way I¡¯m going to tell him now,¡¯ he added in his thoughts, ncing over at the whole group of people that gathered to watch them leave.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Norbert opened his mouth to reply, only to shut his lips closed as he nced over at his mentor and senior. ¡°I really would like to stay, man, I¡¯m serious,¡± he said with his eyes locked on Daniel¡¯s face.

    Norbert then swallowed his saliva only to move his eyes over at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°But I don¡¯t think I can afford to stayfortable as no one but a watchdog,¡± he said.

    Norbert then closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

    ¡°If I want to contribute I need to raise my strength. I need the means to fight against the zombies,¡± he stated, alternating his eyes between Daniel and Mathew. ¡°And for that end, I have no other choice but toe with them,¡± he finally revealed the answer.

    Norbert¡¯s eyes locked on Daniel¡¯s face for a moment, only for the younger officer to turn them down and then away to the side. Whatever was the case for it, he clearly couldn¡¯t stand to keep looking at the man.

    Not right after he inly betrayed his obvious expectations.

    ¡°I understand, brother,¡± Daniel said in a solemn voice. Yet, there was no sign of anger, fury, or even disappointment on his face. ¡°You go and do what you need to do,¡± he then added, right as he took a step forward and then mmed his hand on Norbert¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You still have your sister to save, don¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°I will return as soon as I¡¯m sure she¡¯s safe,¡± Norbert announced, raising his chin as he looked Daniel straight in the eye.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Daniel said, reaffirming his earlier words. ¡°Now, stop stalling and just go already!¡±

    And with as little as a small pat on Norbert¡¯s back, Daniel set Mathew¡¯s entire group out, back towards the dangers of the zombie-overthrown city.

    ¡®Now, this is pretty damn awkward,¡¯ Mathew thought a mere momentter when thest soundsing from the media building gave way to the unnerving silence of the dead city. ¡®How the hell am I supposed to bring up Carol now?¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s ability allowed him to sense the stares that all three of the girls gave to his back.

    ¡®They want me to talk it through,¡¯ the young man thought, painfully aware of the girls¡¯ intentions.

    Yet, rather than straining the fragile rtionship he built with Norbert up to this point, Mathew opted to put this topic aside for now.

    ¡®It changed so much,¡¯ Mathew thought once he directed his attention from the topic of Norbert¡¯s sister to the sights around him.

    There were no people walking down the streets. There were no animals running around happy to go on a walk with their owners.

    Instead, after taking just a few steps away from the media building, the only presence beside his group that Mathew could spot on the street was that of zombies.

    ¡®And they surely don¡¯t look as weak as they were two weeks into my previous run,¡¯ he thought, squinting his eyes as an unnerving sensation welled up at the bottom of his abdomen.

    It wasn¡¯t the lust that he already grew somewhat used to.

    It was a chilling sensation of realization.

    ¡°Here you are doing it again,¡± Nadia suddenly said, stopping Mathew from falling into the pit of depression caused by his recent realization. ¡°If you thought of something, how about you share it with us rather than keeping it to yourself?¡±

    Nadia¡¯s suggestion was as valid as it could get. Yet, it didn¡¯t make it any easier for Mathew to speak up.

    ¡°It¡¯s just a guess¡­¡± Mathew took a moment but finally attempted to speak up. ¡°But don¡¯t you think those random zombies are getting stronger?¡± he suggested, only to turn his eyes towards the nearest group. ¡°Like, isn¡¯t that kinda our fault?¡±

 Chapter 190 Road of reveals

    ¡°I don¡¯t really understand what you are trying to imply,¡± Le said. Her voice was soft¡­ but her squinted eyes and tightened jaws made it clear she wasn¡¯t simply refuting Mathew¡¯s im based on logic.

    She refused to ept it with every fiber of her being.

    ¡°You guys wanted me to share my thoughts but that means I need some time to exin them,¡± Mathew bounced back only to pick up the pace of his steps. ¡°And my suggestion is based on one of the mostmon yet most hated mechanics used in games.¡±

    Mathew said his piece and then turned silent, expecting someone to chime in and read his intent.

    Yet, seconds passed and soon the silence kept for over a minute. And as there were no signs of any of the girls catching Mat¡¯s drift, he heaved a deep sigh before standing down and turning around.

    ¡°Have you ever heard the phrase level scaling?¡± Mathew asked, turning his eyes from one girl to the next all the way to when he looked at Norbert.

    ¡°It still exists?¡± Norbert suddenly asked, his eyes widening as a look of understanding flourished on his face.

    ¡°Not directly, no,¡± Mathew replied with a shake of his head. ¡°Most of the developers took notice of how angry it made the yers. But that doesn¡¯t mean the idea itself is gone.¡±

    ¡°How about you guys exin what the hell are you talking about?¡± Le took a step forward while locking her arms on her chest and raising her chin so that she could look at Mathew along the line of her nose.

    ¡°Level scaling. A system where the strength of every opponent you meet in the game is decided by their base statistics and then raised by how strong your own character is,¡± Mathew exined the general concept. ¡°In short words, level scaling made games more challenging as you would never reach the point where some enemies are of no significance.¡±

    The exnation was simple. And the reason why yers hated such a system was even simpler. After all, games were ultimately just a tool to escape reality, the reality that made people feel powerless, conflicted, and confused.

    And there is only one thing that could happen once the developers took away the easiest way for yers to feel fulfilled and powerful in the games.

    ¡°But you say that system doesn¡¯t exist anymore, didn¡¯t you?¡± Nadia pointed out, joining the discussion.

    She had a strangely ufortable look on her face.

    ¡®Is she mad?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, unable to figure out the girl¡¯s feelings through the tiny hints present on her face. ¡®Well, that¡¯s not something I have the time to figure out right now,¡¯ he then decided only to turn his attention back from his thoughts and to the girl.

    ¡°The strict level scaling is gone for years now. But a lot of games are constructed around the idea that defeating the boss puts you in an area with stronger opponents,¡± Mathew finally exined the crux of what he wanted to teach the rest of his group.

    He then opened up his arms, pointing with each of his hands at a different group of zombies wandering off in the distance.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you see it?¡± Mathew then asked. He then lowered his head and turned around, refusing to face anyone. ¡°By dealing with that army of zombies from before, we likely raised the level of this area. If we do it again, I don¡¯t think people will be able to contend with the normal zombies anymore.¡±

    ¡®And that means, if we want to actually establish the three fortresses, it will likely mean killing off all the survivors still left in the city,¡¯ he thought. ¡®But there is no way I can tell them that, is there?¡¯

    ¡°How can you be so sure it¡¯s not a natural growth?¡± Daria finally joined the discussion herself with a pretty solid argument. ¡°I mean, it¡¯s true that we got rid of that damned zombie leader¡­ But aren¡¯t you just trying to find a connection between two things that might bepletely separate?¡±

    ¡°No, he isn¡¯t,¡± Nadia said, taking on the burden of replying to Daria¡¯s suggestion. ¡°Because he can see the difference between how the zombies grow in strength now and how they did before,¡± she stated only to drop her hands down on her hips and lock her eyes on the back of Mathew¡¯s head.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Le asked, squinting her eyes as she stopped in her tracks.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s the right time to tell them?¡± Nadia then asked, still keeping her eyes on the back of Mat¡¯s head.

    ¡°And I bet you think it is,¡± Mathew whispered in his response to Nadia¡¯s suggestion. And yet, he still refused to turn back and look at the girls. ¡°Two days ago I died. Yet, instead of moving on to whatever awaits people after their death, I came back to a time two hours before the apocalypse started.¡±

    The city was weirdly silent. With most of its inhabitants gone, there were no people to make the noises one could usually hear in the streets. And now, with Nadia staying silent and the rest of Mathew¡¯s group too shocked to utter a word, the silence somehow became even deeper.

    ¡°So that¡¯s why you baited the force toe to the school,¡± Norbert muttered after taking a moment to digest the news. ¡°I only have one question, then,¡± he added, raising his eyes and looking right at the back of Mathew¡¯s head. Yet, right as he opened his mouth to pose his question, his eyes moved over to Nadia¡¯s face.

    ¡°Why speak about it now?¡±

    Once again, silence took over the area around the group. Yet, contrary to Mathew, Nadia wasn¡¯t in the mood to keep it going.

    ¡°Because we want to know the real reason why you areing with us,¡± she revealed with a shake of her arms. ¡°Is it for your sister?¡± she suggested, only to then shake her head sideways. ¡°It might be, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s true. She is safe in the schoolpound, after all.¡±

    Nadia took a deep breath.

    ¡°The truth is, I believe I know why you tagged along,¡± she revealed, turning around on her heel and taking two steps forward to stand right before the officer. ¡°I need to hear the truth from your mouth, though.¡±

    For the third and hopefullyst time, the group turned as silent as the rest of the city was. In this short period of time, Norbert looked down on the street, hiding his expression. He then swallowed his saliva before raising his face back up.

    ¡°I need to get stronger if I want to protect her,¡± Norbert said. ¡°And I don¡¯t think I can get any stronger by sitting on my ass and following Daniel¡¯s wishes.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± Mathew spoke out, finally breaking the silent treatment he gave to everyone after saying hisst piece.

    ¡°Because it weakens Daniel¡¯s position?¡± Norbert asked, taking on a slightlybative mode. ¡°I will have you know it won¡¯t¡­¡±

    ¡°Not even close,¡± Mathew cut into Norbert¡¯s words. He then turned around and looked the man in the eye with a dead-pan expression all over his face. ¡°It¡¯s because we are also hoping to get stronger. And your sister is an indispensable element of that wish.¡±

 Chapter 191 Dont be a delusional virgin

    ¡°My sister is¡­¡± Norbert muttered. His lips stopped moving right as he was about to fully rephrase what Mathew said a moment earlier. He then squinted his eyes. ¡°The hell do you want with Carol?¡±

    There was no aggression in the officer¡¯s voice. His face was deprived of shock or fury.

    Or rather, his expression becamepletely nk, devoid of any emotions that could give Mathew a hint over how to proceed.

    ¡°You see, this is a topic that¡¯s already agreed upon,¡± Mathew said, crossing his arms over his chest. ¡°And do you want to know the only reason why I¡¯m telling you about this?¡±

    Norbert didn¡¯t bother to respond. He squinted his eyes even further instead, forcing Mathew to ept it as his reply.

    ¡°A threat?¡± Norbert finally pried open his mouth and attempted to guess. Yet, with his mouth now moving, he could no longer keep the emotions boiling in his soul from surfacing.

    ¡°Not at all,¡± Mathew countered, shaking his head. ¡°It¡¯s nothing more but courtesy.¡±

    ¡®If I let him think he can do something about it, this could turn into a pretty massive conflictter on,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. ¡®If this was a game I would only need to gain enough favor with a random NPC to invite her into the group. Why does real life need to be that damnplicated?¡¯

    Norbert stared down at Mathew¡¯s face. Yet, as seconds passed, the expression on his face mellowed down a little.

    ¡°And what ns you might have towards my sister?¡± the officer asked while slowly raising his right eyebrow. He then raised his hands and crossed them on his chest. ¡°Because judging by how you brought this topic up, it¡¯s not something I will be happy with.¡±

    ¡°And you would be right,¡± Mathew replied without even a moment of hesitation.

    ¡®I can feel your stares, you know?¡¯ he thought, trying to ignore the tant nces of all three girls in his group.

    ¡°Because I¡¯m going to sleep with your sister in a way she never slept with anyone before,¡± Mathew revealed. Yet, there wasn¡¯t even an iota of gloating in his tone.

    Mathew simply stated the facts.

    ¡°And why is that?¡± Norbert asked while showing a slightly unhinged smile.

    ¡°You are taking it better than I expected,¡± Mathew ignored the question and praised the officer. ¡°Would you mind telling me what this question of yours is supposed to achieve?¡± he then asked, putting the pressure back on right away.

    For a moment, Norbert simply stared down at Mathew¡¯s face. And then, as if something clicked deep in his soul, he heaved a deep sigh while lowering his eyes to the street. Only after all of that did he raise his eyes back on Mathew.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t the world that I know. And regardless of how infuriating it might be, you do seem to know more about it than anyone else,¡± Norbert pointed out. He then lowered his hands and allowed them to fall to his sides right as he took three steps forward and stood right in Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°That¡¯s why I want to know what I¡¯m missing,¡± he said, looking right into Mathew¡¯s eyes from just an inch away. ¡°What makes fucking my sister so important you are willing to split our little group from within.¡±

    Norbert slowly uttered his words, still keeping his face ufortably close to Mathew¡¯s. Yet, after but a moment of silent confrontation, Norbert took a step back, leaving Mathew¡¯sfort zone.

    ¡°First off, take a look around,¡± Mathew suggested. He then calmly waited for the officer to follow his advice. ¡°Now tell me, what do you see?¡±

    ¡°A deserted city? Empty streets? The three girls of yours?¡± Norbert listed out the things one could observe in their immediate surroundings.

    ¡°Good, you are not blind at the very least,¡± Mathew said with a sigh. ¡°Then look at, how you called them, my girls,¡± he requested.

    ¡°Are you trying to find a means to beat me up?¡± Norbert asked instead, raising his eyebrow in a mocking expression. He then squeezed his facial muscles, making a weird face. ¡°Oh look, he is looking at you the wrong way, now I have to beat him up for disrespecting my girl!¡± Norbert acted out the role of some stupid punk. ¡°You will have to try harder than that,¡± he then mocked, raising his chin as he looked at Mat¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯m not trying to bait you at all,¡± Mathew remarked, shaking his head to the sides in disbelief. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡­ Wait, I¡¯m not acting like usual so it would be wrong for me to expect you to know I wouldn¡¯t do something like this,¡± Mathew admitted after a moment of reflection.

    And so, the young man raised his hands in the motion of surrender.

    ¡°My bad here, I admit. But I also promise that¡¯s not my intention.¡± Mathew lowered his hands. ¡°Now then, can you look at them? In a way, a man would?¡±

    ¡°Matty¡­¡± Nadia muttered, blushing a little when she felt Norbert¡¯s stare all over her features. ¡°What are you¡­¡±

    ¡°This is an important lesson for you too, so I need you girls to bear with it for now,¡± Mathew countered before Nadia could even express her displeasure with the situation.

    ¡°Okay, I looked at them,¡± Norbert said after a short while. ¡°I guess you lucked out with this apocalypse as I see no feasible reality without it when you end up with bombshells like them,¡± he then added, still keeping up his mocking front.

    ¡°Then, I need you to answer one simple question,¡± Mathew exined, his tone indicating he was nearing the crux of his point. ¡°And I want you to really think about the answer. At the same time, I will assume you are not a delusional virgin either,¡± he introduced several rules to his logic.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Norbert replied, crossing his arms over his chest again. ¡°I don¡¯t see the need for it but go on.¡±

    ¡°The question I want to ask you now is simple,¡± Mathew said, taking a step forward. This time, it was his turn to intrude upon Norbert¡¯s personal space. ¡°With all three of them eager to suck me dry every night, do you really think I would bother adding another thirsty chick to my group if I didn¡¯t consider it absolutely necessary?¡±

 Chapter 192 Would you believe... I forgot?

    ¡°The way you put it¡­¡± Norbert muttered, raising his hand to rub his chin as he thought. ¡°Yeah, my bad,¡± he admitted. ¡°I didn¡¯t consider it from this point of view. But still¡­¡± he said only to shake his head.

    Norbert¡¯s head stopped. He took a deep breath before raising his face and looking straight into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°If you are not just hungry for another girl, then why?¡±

    It wasn¡¯t a questioning from an officer¡¯s mouth. It wasn¡¯t scrutinying from the former servant of thew and order.

    It was but a questioning from a mouth of a brother worried about his sister and desperately looking for a way to save her from what was decided for her.

    ¡°Are we seriously going to have this talk again?¡± Mathew protested, raising his face to the sky to find a recipient of his whining. He then shook his head before closing his eyes and taking a few breaths.

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t want to go into detail so let¡¯s keep it simple,¡± Mathew decided out loud, lowering his eyes and looking straight at Norbert. ¡°We have several avenues to grow stronger. Yet, we exploited all of them already. Right now, it¡¯s simply cheaper to help someone else grow rather than forcibly pushing with our growth.¡±

    Despite how simply Mathewid the situation out, he couldn¡¯t be sure that the recipient of the information would get it. ¡®The chances are better than when I exined it to the girls¡­ But I can¡¯t really tell whether he is up to date with current gaming trends,¡¯ Mathew thought, keeping his eyes on Norbert¡¯s face to scan it for his reaction.

    ¡°The general cost of raising your levels increases as you go, so you need Carol because it will be cheaper to grow her strength than it would be growing your own strength by the same degree.¡± Norbert crossed his hands over his chest again. His left foot started to rhythmically tap against the ground as he squinted his eyes and focused on his internal thoughts.

    ¡°Still,¡± he finally spoke again, shaking his head before raising his eyes back on Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°I don¡¯t really see why it needs to be Carol in particr.¡±

    ¡®That¡¯s a good point,¡¯ Mathew thought, nodding his head with approval. ¡®But one that I¡¯ve thought about long ago.¡¯

    ¡°There are exactly three reasons for our choice,¡± Mathew stated, looking around his group to indicate he wasn¡¯t the only one to me. ¡°First, she came to us first, asking if she could be of any help. That proves she has the initiative and guts. Then, since we cooperate with her brother, I believe she is less likely to randomly stab us in the back.¡±

    Mathew exined his reasons in a calm, steady voice while observing Norbert¡¯s reactions at all times.

    ¡°That only makes two,¡± Norbert pointed out. ¡°You said you have three reasons for picking her. What¡¯s the third?¡± he asked while raising his left eyebrow up a little.

    ¡°It¡¯s not going to be anything new for her,¡± Mathew finally revealed the third reason.

    ¡®I know I could just ignore that part¡­¡¯ Mathew¡¯s lips trembled as he pressed them together in a silent bout of hesitation. ¡®No, it¡¯s better to be honest if I want to keep them by my side,¡¯ he decided.

    ¡°Oh¡­¡± Norbert¡¯s reply carried out all the air from his lungs, making him slump down as he stood.

    It was nothing less than a miracle that the officer managed to stay on his feet.

    Pac.

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew twitched, startled by the unexpected sound. Yet, as he looked around, all he could see was all three of his girls massaging their foreheads with the inner side of their right palms.

    ¡®Wait, did I do something stupid?¡¯ Mathew then reflected, realizing just what kind of motion could produce the noise from before and led to all three of his girls apparently making out with their own hands.

    ¡°Well, I can¡¯t deny that,¡± Norbert finally spoke out, breaking through the awkward atmosphere Mathew unwillingly created.

    ¡°Great,¡± Mathew said, quickly taking the opportunity to derail the current topic. ¡°Then how about we pay more attention to the road now?¡± he suggested. ¡°I don¡¯t want us to fall into the overconfidence facy.¡±

    ¡°What,¡± Nadia spoke out, lowering her hand and raising her head to look at her man. ¡°Do you still want more cores or something?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have enough of them,¡± Mathew quickly replied, refuting Nadia¡¯s attempts at putting the idea out as something bad.

    ¡°Even with all the cores we gathered from the huge fight from the night?¡± the girl then asked, opening up her eyes wide in surprise. ¡°Wait, how many cores do we even have in the first ce?¡±

    ¡°We only have nearly enough to get the two fortresses and then I have no idea how much we will need to go further,¡± he exined. ¡°And then, we still need some cores to let Carol level up once she joins the group,¡± he added only to sum the situation up with a shake of his head.

    ¡°If I do recall correctly, right now we have almost two thousand. That means we need around four hundred more to get to the third fortress,¡± Mathew then properly gave Nadia the details she was interested in.

    ¡°Establishing a fortress cost a thousand and we have to do it twice. Then, we still need to get three merchants for the third location. So, in short, we don¡¯t have anywhere near enough of them,¡± Le joined the conversation, pointing out the obvious. ¡°But I actually want to ask about something else,¡± she then added.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Mathew asked, taking the opportunity to change the topic from what he talked about before even further.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t we get the fortress up and running back in the media building?¡± Le asked, leaning her head to the side as she stared down at Mathew¡¯s face with curiosity brimming in her eyes. ¡°I mean, we had the cores to do so¡­¡± she pointed out.

    Yet, Mathew didn¡¯t respond right away like he usually tried to do.

    First, he took a breath in as if he wanted to prepare fuel for producing words. He then opened up his mouth¡­ Only to keep them open as he looked to the side and slowly closed them down.

    ¡°Would you believe if I told you¡­¡± Mathew muttered, stuttering every other word as he spoke. ¡°If I told you that I forgot about it?¡±

 Chapter 193 To go back or to not go back, thats the question

    ¡°Are you¡­¡± Norbert attempted to utter ament, only for thetter half of his sentence to turn out to be too silent for anyone to hear it.

    So he took a moment, gulped down his saliva, and took a deep breath. And then, he opened up his mouth again.

    ¡°Are you fucking serious?!¡±

    ¡°Trust me, I wish it was only a stupid joke,¡± Mathew admitted, hiding his face in his palm, too embarrassed to look at the others.

    ¡°What are we going to do now, then?¡± Nadia asked, getting over the shock of Mathew¡¯s revtion faster than anyone else in the group.

    ¡°You are just going to gloss over the fuck-up?¡± Norbert asked, clearly unhappy that such a massive failure could go away as if it never happened.

    ¡°Gloss over?¡± Nadia asked, raising her eyebrows. ¡°And what good¡­¡± she attempted to say something, only to hold her breath back and close her eyes. ¡°No, I¡¯m just saving the daylight for action. I will be able to scold or make fun of Matty all I want during the night,¡± she added with a shake of her shoulders.

    ¡°That¡¯s so?¡± Norbert muttered, putting Nadia¡¯s words in doubt.

    ¡°That¡¯s so,¡± Nadia replied with confidence only to then throw a quick nce at the side of Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°Nothing good wille from wasting time now to pressure him. And it¡¯s not like we do not make mistakes either,¡± she then added, shaking her shoulders once again.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like we lost that much time either,¡± Daria joined in, taking Mathew¡¯s side without much hesitation. ¡°The question is¡­¡±

    ¡°What are we going to do now?¡± Le finished the question that Daria started. ¡°Do we continue back to the school? Or do we go back to the media building? Or maybe we are just going to roam around to gather more cores and decide what to do nextter?¡±

    ¡®All the options are valid right now,¡¯ Mathew thought, keeping his thoughts behind the barrier of his mouth. ¡®But deciding which one will be best¡­ That¡¯s a whole different beast altogether.¡¯

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Norbert mused as he turned his eyes to Mathew, indicating who he thought was responsible for making this decision.

    ¡°We are still closer to the media building than we are to thepound,¡± Mathew pointed out. He then took a deep breath and raised his eyes with renewed confidence. ¡°We will lose less time if we go back now than we would by putting it off forter¡­¡± he added, only for his voice to turn lower and lower with each word.

    ¡°What did you think about, now?¡± Nadia asked, getting quite good at noticing the moments Mathew would usually keep to himself.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± Mathew replied, shaking his head. He then pursed his lips into a thin line before taking a long breath. ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing,¡± he then added before any of the girls could add her own two cents. ¡°I just thought about what we talked about before,¡± he said, taking a step back towards the media building.

    ¡°The idea of hunting some zombies for cores?¡± Le asked. And while her guess was wrong, the small smirk on her lips indicated it was just a clever way of prompting Mathew to reveal his thoughts.

    ¡°No,¡± the young man shook his head, ¡°rather than thinking about the cores, I¡¯m worried that raising another fortress will turn all the zombies in the area even stronger.¡±

    The idea ofpleting certain tasks leading to the growth of the general strength of all the zombies was just a theory in the making. Mathew had no proof of its validity, just like with most of the ideas he took into ount when nning his actions.

    And yet, it was a theory he couldn¡¯t ignore just yet.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we are in a position where we can bother with how our actions will affect others,¡± Le stated her opinion on the matter. ¡°Caring about random strangers is a privilege we are not privy to, not when we struggle to survive ourselves.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m d we had this talk away from Daniel,¡± Norbert pointed out with a sigh. ¡°I can bet you any amount that he would strongly disagree with that.¡±

    ¡°Well then, I think we reached a conclusion, then,¡± Mathew pointed out, taking another step back the way his group came from. And then, before anyone could challenge his unvoiced decision, he took another step.

    And soon, without any vocal agreement within the group, Mathew¡¯s party turned around only to walk the very same road they took before.

    ¡°A group of zombies ahead,¡± Norbert reported about a minuteter. ¡°I don¡¯t see any reasonable way to move around them,¡± he added some details to his report.

    ¡®If it was night, I would send Daria to take care of it and feed her shadowy form on their cores,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to shake his head and turn his eyes towards Le. ¡°Can you take care of it?¡± he requested. ¡°With your de skills, you should have the easiest time out of all of us.¡±

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± the girl replied, hurrying ahead without a word ofint.

    For a mere moment, the girl disappear from Mahtew¡¯s field of view, only to appear again a minuteter, when the group reached the ce where she cleaned up the party of the zombies.

    ¡°How were they?¡± Mathew asked when his group reunited with the girl. He then looked down at the double-dead corpses of the zombies, analyzing the sight before the girl could even answer.

    ¡°I believe you are asking how strong they were,¡± Le said with a small smile. ¡°Nothing out of ordinary,¡± she then replied. ¡°Way weaker than those we fought during the night.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew muttered to himself, throwing onest nce at the corpses before turning his eyes back on the road and picking up the pace. ¡°The question is, are they weaker overall than those we fought, or is it the influence of the night itself?¡±

    Mathew¡¯s question remained without an answer, just like most of the doubts he had about this new, changed world. And with the members of his group thinking hard about the meaning of Mathew¡¯s offhanded question, the rest of their journey passed in rtive silence, broken only by the random screeching of the zombiesing from way off in the distance.

    ¡°Oh, hey,¡± a survivor of the hole in the media building¡¯s wall jumped when Mathew¡¯s group appeared from beyond the ruins of a nearby house. ¡°Wait, what are you guys doing here? Didn¡¯t you leave a few moments ago?¡±

    ¡°What are you even talking about?¡± Mathew asked, rolling his eyes in reaction to the stupid question. ¡°This is our first time here!¡± he then added as if it was an obvious matter only to then pass by the stupefied survivor and enter the building.

    ¡°¡­ have that for now. Fixing the holes should be our¡­¡± Daniel spoke to one of the other survivors while scribbling some notes in the notepad he held in his hand. Yet, before he could finish his sentence, the noises Mathew¡¯s group made alerted him, making the officer turn his sights towards Mat¡¯s party.

    ¡°Huh?¡± The officer shook a little while raising his eyebrows in surprise. ¡°Weren¡¯t you guys supposed¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± Mathew cut into Daniel¡¯s sentence while waving his hand. ¡°I forgot something important,¡± he shortly exined before approaching the shadowy figure of the merchant and reaching out for the shadows hidden underneath its hood. ¡°It will only take a moment and we will be back on our way out,¡± he added before squeezing the shadows and allowing the strange power of the merchants to transport him to the separate dimension.

 Chapter 194 Picking the bonus

    The shadows surged forth. Just like all the times before, the darkness covered Mathew¡¯s vision, locking him out of what he considered to be his reality.

    ¡®This is really taking a while,¡¯ the young man thought, bored to the hell out of his mind while waiting for the shadows toplete their job.

    Thankfully, the time that Mathew wasted for the subspace to establish itself wouldn¡¯t influence the passage of time in the real world. After all, no matter how long he would spend within the merchant¡¯s subspace, barely any time if any would pass in the real world!

    ¡°It¡¯s good to be back,¡± Mathew muttered once the subspace finished forming. And just like all the times before, there were only a few pedestals with the few items the local merchant offered.

    ¡°I don¡¯t mean to be rude,¡± Mathew muttered silently, somehow sure that the merchant would hear him anyway. ¡°But do I really need to go around all three merchants in this location to find out which bonuses they offer upon establishing the fortress?¡± Mathew asked out loud this time.

    For a moment, the shadowy realm remained as silent as it always was.

    ¡°User can request the list of potential bonuses provided by the location of the fortress core,¡± the usual, metallic voice announced.

    ¡°How much would it cost?¡± Mathew then asked. ¡®It might be stupid to suggest a fee in the first ce,¡¯ he thought, raising his head around the ce out of boredom, ¡®but knowing what happened so far, it would cost some cores anyway.¡¯

    ¡°User can receive such list free of additional charge,¡± the merchant¡¯s robotic voice replied, taking the young man by a surprise.

    ¡®No fee?¡¯ he thought, stopping his mouth from opening up. ¡®Well, since it¡¯s free, I better not suggest imposing a fee over it,¡¯ Mathew thought, rolling his eyes. ¡®Or does it even matter? I could always just go around and manually check it all,¡¯ he realized. ¡®I guess it¡¯s just a natural convenience aimed at not making me hate the merchants.¡¯

    ¡°I wish to see this list, then,¡± Mathew announced.

    ¡®If it¡¯s possible, then I would rather not waste even more time just going around the area to check it,¡¯ he thought, right as the merchant got to work, producing yet another window for Mathew¡¯s system.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is,¡± the young man muttered under his nose as he nced over the possibilities. ¡°Just like before, I can improve one aspect of the fortress,¡± he continued to whisper to himself. ¡°Productivity and defense ability I can understand,¡± he continued to mutter, only for his eyes toy down on thest option. ¡°But what the hell does capacity means?¡±

    ¡°Capacity describes the maximum daily output of the local industries,¡± the merchant¡¯s robotic voice replied, taking Mathew by a surprise once again.

    ¡®So you are not going to withhold the information from me, now?¡¯ the young man thought along with raising his right eyebrow.

    ¡°How is it different from efficiency, then?¡± Mathew asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

    ¡°Efficiency describes the ratio at which the industries turn materials into products,¡± the merchant replied in its usual voice.

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it is,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. He then took a deep breath to calm himself down as he looked up towards the area where the shadows were the densest. ¡°Is there any chance I could get some numbers?¡± he requested. ¡°It¡¯s hard to decide which bonus is more important if I don¡¯t know their range.¡±

    And then, Mathew waited. Yet, as seconds started to turn into minutes and minutes into what felt like hours, he had no other choice but to ept the fact that the unusual informativeness of the merchant had its limits.

    ¡°Which of the merchants offers the efficiency bonus, then?¡± Mathew asked, ready to get this entire topic over with so that he can move on.

    ¡°Efficiency bonus is tied to the merchant user is connected to right now,¡± the merchant announced, speaking about itself in the third person as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

    ¡°I wish to take out a thousand worth of cores from the storage, then,¡± Mathew ordered without any further hesitation.

    A window, exactly the same one that floated to the side of the hood of all the merchants Mathew met so far, appeared within the shadowy realm. This time, however, rather than reaching out with his own hand to pull out the goods, the window opened on its own only for a huge, shiny core to fall out of it and then float towards Mathew, suspended right at the height of his chest.

    ¡®So that¡¯s how it looks,¡¯ Mathew thought, not expecting his request to be fulfilled in this way. Yet, rather than wasting time adoring the piece, he simply took hold of it only to raise it in his right hand and close his eyes.

    ¡°I wish to¡­¡± he said¡­ And hesitated.

    ¡®Back at thepound, all the bonuses appeared to be more or less equal in their overall worth,¡¯ he thought, going back with his thoughts to the options he could choose back then. ¡®Not a single one of them appeared to be underpowered or redundant¡­¡¯

    For a moment, Mathew simply froze in his weird position, with the shiny crystal raised high above and ahead.

    ¡®And that means¡­¡¯

    ¡°Is it possible to establish a fortress here with the bonus from a different merchant?¡± he then asked while opening his eyes.

    The area of the thickest shadow suddenlypressed only for its shadowy entity within to coil around.

    ¡°It is possible.¡±

    ¡®It¡¯s a bet¡­ But following my guts brought me pretty far already,¡¯ Mathew thought, closing his eyes for yet another moment, only to open them up and reveal the fresh bout of determination that filled his pupils.

    ¡°I wish to establish a fortress in this area with the bonus to its capacity!¡±

    ¡°Processing the request,¡± the merchant announced without any dy. ¡°Please, vacate the subspace so that the process can continue.¡±

 Chapter 195 Leaving the fortress behind

    ¡°Did it work?¡± Nadia asked, approaching Mathew from behind as soon as he pulled his hand away from underneath the merchant¡¯s hood.

    ¡°I believe it did,¡± Mathew replied, only to then shrug his shoulders. ¡°Or at the very least, it will work sometime soon,¡± he then added, recalling thest bit he heard from the merchant.

    ¡°So it¡¯s not instantaneous?¡± Daniel asked, leaning his head to the side as he observed Mathew¡¯s back.

    ¡°You tell me,¡± Mathew replied, shrugging his shoulders. ¡°It said I need to vacate the merchant¡¯s subspace for the processing of the request to continue,¡± he reported.

    ¡°How did it work back in the school building?¡± Daniel then asked, refusing to let go of the topic.

    ¡®He is going to stay here so it¡¯s only natural he is heavily interested in the details,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to hold back the annoyance welling up in his soul in response to the officer¡¯s prying.

    ¡°I can¡¯t say for sure, but by the time we left the merchant and went to the courtyard, the barrier was already up.¡± Mathew gave the spare bit of information that he actually had.

    ¡°And that means we are done here,¡± Le joined in on the discussion. She approached Mathew¡¯s side only to wrap herself around his arm only to then pull him away from the merchant. ¡°We were supposed to be back at the school by now, so let¡¯s not waste any more time.¡±

    Mathew raised his eyebrows as he nced over at the girl.

    ¡®Does she dislike Daniel or something?¡¯ he attempted to guess why the girl was so hasty. ¡®Or maybe she doesn¡¯t like this ce?¡¯

    Mathew shook his head.

    ¡®Well, it¡¯s not like it matters,¡¯ he decided before turning around on the spot, slow enough to give the girl all over his arm enough time to follow along.

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s go,¡± he said, getting on the move right away.

    ¡°Wait a second!¡± Daniel shouted after him, right as Mathew began to move. ¡°Food for thought. ording to what you said, the merchant called the ce you go to visit him a subspace, didn¡¯t he?¡± he pointed out the detail that Mathew didn¡¯t pay much mind to. ¡°Does that mean that your guess about the nature of that ce was correct?¡±

    Daniel¡¯s lips curved upwards as he crossed his arms on his chest, staring right at the back of Mathew¡¯s head.

    ¡°Or does it mean that it started using the nomenture you came up with?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Mathew muttered, lowering his eyes to the floor as he analyzed the suggestion. ¡°That¡¯s definitely an interesting point,¡± he finally admitted, turning his head and looking over his shoulder only to then nod at Daniel. ¡°Thanks for pointing it out.¡±

    There was no need for Mathew or anyone in his group to say their farewells again. They did so a few moments earlier already, after all. And so, without any further dy, they headed right back to the very hole they used to enter the building both yesterday and a moment earlier.

    ¡°Oh right,¡± Daniel shouted again, not bothering to follow after the group at all. ¡°By the time youe again, make sure to use the main door. Blocking off all the holes is our priority!¡±

    This time, Mathew didn¡¯t stop to think over what he heard. Instead, he simply pushed ahead, dragging Le along his side while making both Norbert and the rest of the girls follow along.

    ¡°The barrier is already up,¡± Mathew only muttered when he noticed the slight hue growing directly out of the grass, roughly two meters away from the wall of the media building.

    ¡°Then the fortress is already up,¡± Nadia chimed into the topic. ¡°And with that, we no longer need to concern ourselves with this ce,¡± she added, hurrying up to Mathew¡¯s unupied left to im her ce by his side.

    ¡°That statement is only valid until we get the third fortress up,¡± Mathew pointed out as he stepped through the barrier from the patch of grass surrounding the building to the concrete by the side of the road. ¡°But yeah, for now, we can forget about this ce.¡±

    ¡°Good,¡± Daria muttered, pushing her cheek against Mathew¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I don¡¯t know why but that ce¡­¡± she attempted to say something only for a shudder to shake her body. ¡°It makes me feel restless.¡±

    ¡®Just like I thought,¡¯ Mathew thought, his body tensing up a little. It was only a small, psyche-based change, yet it made him extremely resistant to the softness of two girls pressed against his sides. ¡®She has the highest arcane stat out of all of us so I shouldn¡¯t discount her feelings.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s group moved out. As they ended up taking the open road rather than squeezing through side alleys, it was only a matter of time before they would return to the schoolpound.

    ¡°A small pack ahead,¡± Norbert reported from the back of the group. ¡°Two hundred meters ahead, hidden behind the house to the left,¡± he then added some details to his report.

    ¡°Do you want to fight them?¡± Nadia asked, looking up from Mathew¡¯s side to her man¡¯s face.

    ¡°Can we avoid them?¡± Mathew asked, ncing over his shoulder at Norbert¡¯s face.

    ¡°Huh?¡± the officer jumped a little only to then look at Mathew with his eyes widened by a surprise. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say we are short of cores?¡±

    ¡°Yes, we are,¡± Mathew admitted, turning his eyes back onto the road ahead. ¡°But right now I really want to get back home,¡± he added, only for his eyelids to slide halfway down his eyes. ¡®It only took a bit over two weeks for me to consider the school to be my home,¡¯ he thought, properly taking the time of his previous life into ount.

    ¡°Well then,¡± Norbert muttered and gulped down his saliva. ¡°I believe we should be able to run past them,¡± he added after a moment of thought.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s do just that,¡± Mathew announced, sneaking his arms out of Nadia¡¯s and Daria¡¯s embrace before moving to the left of the group. ¡°Le, I want you to protect Norbert. Daria, you secure our backs. Nadia, you are my backup. If we won¡¯t be able to avoid this fight, I will take the brunt of the first strike,¡± he quickly gave out the roles for the potential conflict ahead of them.

    Mathew then shook his head and blinked his eyes a few times to chase away all the exhaustion that still shackled his mind a little.

    ¡°For now, though, let¡¯s try to avoid them so that we can head home!¡±

 Chapter 196 Horde at the gates

    ¡°Huff, huff, huff.¡±

    Mathew exhaled the air from his lung in perfect harmony with the stepping of his jog.

    From an outsider¡¯s perspective, he appeared like a typical young adult going for an energetic stroll mixed with a periodic run.

    Or rather, he would appear like that if not for the rest of his group tagging along as they all kept just enough speed to keep the zombies chasing them at a constant distance.

    ¡°Just a little bit more,¡± Mathew called out once he could see the outline of the school¡¯spound emerging from beyond the other buildings of the now-dead city. ¡°Make sure not to be too fast!¡±

    Mathew¡¯s idea was simple. Since he didn¡¯t want to waste time hunting the zombies, the best bet his group had was to avoid them. And yet, even though they could easily outrun them on the rtively open streets of the city with most of the zombies nearby either dead or away in some other ce, Mathew decided against it.

    Because once all their tasks at the school would bepleted, they would be left with a massiveck of cores necessary to establish the third fortress, not to speak about the potential cost of establishing a settlement.

    ¡®We need to guide them just a little bit more and then they should be stuck by the school¡¯s wall,¡¯ Mathew thought, controlling his breath as he continued to make his way forward. ¡®Still, it¡¯s weird how little zombies we saw on our way.¡¯

    The city before their trip to the media building and the city that he could see during their return turned out to be extremely different.

    Back just a single day, Mathew believed it would be madness to take the shortest and the most convenient path of the main city¡¯s road. It was too open, too exposed to the attacks from all the side roads and the zombies hustling around.

    And yet, right now, even though they paid no effort to keep themselves silent or hard to notice, only three different groups of zombies totaling roughly fifty specimens appeared on their path. And right now, those fifty zombies continued their mad rush¡­ Only to remain about twenty meters behind Norbert at all times.

    ¡°How are you holding up?¡± Mathew asked, ncing to the back at the weakest member of his group.

    ¡°I will¡­¡± Norbert opened his mouth and started his reply, only to cut it short when he had to desperately gasp for air.

    He was a rtively athletic person. As a member of the anti-terrorist unit of the localw enforcement of the past, he had to represent a certain level of fitness in order to keep his position.

    And yet, after only two kilometers long run, he was already reaching his limit.

    ¡®I guess the growth of our strength is also warping our perception,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. ¡®And thinking back to what Daniel pointed out, it seems that our perception of things might be an insanely important element of this new world.¡¯

    ¡°I will manage,¡± Norbert finally managed to stabilize his breath to the point where he could afford to utter a short sentence. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me,¡± he then added only to close his eyes and once again struggle to stabilize his breath.

    ¡°Make sure to call it out when it¡¯s too much,¡± Mathew added only to turn his eyes back to the road ahead.

    ¡®We are close¡­ But that also means I¡¯m more likely to fall into the near sess facy,¡¯ the young man reminded himself, tightening his fist to the point his nails cut through the skin of his palms.

    In a moment of a rtive rush, the pain was the easiest carrier for the warnings that Mathew would utter to himself.

    Mathew¡¯s group took a turn to the right, leaving the main street of the city only to enter the main local road of the district.

    ¡°SCREEEE!¡±

    It was then and only then that the mystery of all the missing zombies finally revealed itself.

    ¡®They there are,¡¯ Mathew thought when he heard a loud noise made by a huge number of zombiesing out from a nearby area.

    ¡°There is another horde stuck by the school¡¯s wall!¡± Norbert reported from the back.

    ¡°Get ready to cut through them!¡± Mathew shouted, just in case the rush of the run would make it harder for some to hear his orders.

    Everyone pulled out their weapon even before the horde of zombies entered their sight.

    Mathew pushed his upper body a little bit forward while allowing his leading hand tog behind along with the saber in it.

    They passed through the first intersection. Then a second one. And then, after taking one more right turn, they reached the direct area around the school.

    ¡°Screee!¡±

    The horde of zombies was truly stuck by the school¡¯s invisible wall.

    Some were attempting to break the physical objects that the wall was anchored on. Others were stacked in a single point, attempting to scale it over. Even more zombies were scattered all over the ce, probing every possible point of the barrier with their rotting hands.

    Yet, if there was one ce that housed the greatest number of zombies, it was the area directly around the gate.

    ¡®Thank God we kept it closed,¡¯ Mathew thought, not even daring to think what would happen if even a single zombie were to break through.

    ¡°Norbert, can you scale the fence?¡± Mathew asked, halting in his steps right around thest corner behind which his group could hide before venturing to the fully open area around thepound.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± the officer turned his eyes towards the fence surrounding thepound¡¯s grounds. He hesitated only for a moment before averting his eyes to the side. ¡°I can try, but I can¡¯t say for sure I will be able to do it,¡± he uttered his first longer sentence ever since the group started to run.

    ¡°Want me to throw you over?¡± Mathew suggested, unable to stop a small smirk from appearing on his face.

    ¡°As bad as it sounds¡­ It¡¯s still a better idea than cutting through all those zombies just to get to the gate,¡± Norbert quickly answered, ignoring his pride as a man and opting to vie for the optimal solution to the problem.

    ¡°I believe you girls won¡¯t have any problems jumping over,¡± Mathew muttered as he turned his eyes toward the rest of his group.

    ¡°No problem here,¡± Nadia reported.

    ¡°Same here,¡± Le was quick to follow suit.

    ¡°I might actually need you to help me as well,¡± Daria saidst, averting her eyes to hide a smug smirk that surfaced on her lips.

    ¡°Well then,¡± Mathew muttered, rolling his eyes as he swung his saber around to warm up his wrists. ¡°Nadia, you are with me,¡± he gave his order. ¡°We are going to clear one of the less crowded spots. Then, we will help Daria and Norbert to get over the fence,¡± he added, already scanning the area for a suitable spot to breach through the horde.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be easier to just kill them all?¡± Le suggested, the slight trembling of her weapon-wielding hand betraying how eager she was to revel in the carnage. ¡°This way, we could avoid all that throwing stuff,¡± she added, her eyes moving over Daria and Norbert only to end up resting on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°We can save it forter,¡± Mathew decided, cutting Le¡¯s hopes for some exciting fighting down. ¡°For now, we need to get to the other side of the fence. And with that¡­¡± Mathew smiled. ¡°Let¡¯s move!¡±

 Chapter 197 Battle musical

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    It¡¯s such a simple order. Itcks any finesse, depth, any real meaning behind it. It¡¯s nothing more but a call for an action to start, an action that was already introduced and exined.

    A trigger-order.

    And yet, for Mathew, saying those two simple words felt insane.

    ¡®Now I can cast aside all the worries and just focus on the simplest task in one¡¯s life,¡¯ he thought, rushing forward.

    His fingers tightly gripped the handle of his saber. His eyes moved between different potential targets so that he wouldn¡¯t be surp[rised by any zombie while fighting .

    And just like that, Mathew crashed right into the crowd of zombies.

    Mathew started his attack with a horizontal swing. This kind of warm wee made three zombies bow their heads to him, only for said heads to roll to the floor right as Mathew moved over to another enemy.

    Downward cut. Shoulder smack against a zombie to the side that dared to bare its fangs against Mathew. A kick to the left that then transformed into a sideways step with another zombie as a foothold.

    ¡®It¡¯s like a dance,¡¯ Mathew thought, squinting his eyes a little. ¡®A delicate choreography,¡¯ he continued to immerse himself in the liberating feeling of moving his body around while shing around with his saber.

    ¡®Like a song on a wind,¡¯ he thought, closing his eyespletely and allowing the mix of his body instincts and the fighting techniques ingrained in his flesh to take over.

    Every swing of his saber turned into a solo on a guitar. Every kick turned into a m on the percussion, adding rhythm to the sonata he wasposing with his moves.

    And then, barely a second after Mathew went in, several other instruments joined, turning the simple music Mathew created into a proper symphony.

    Mathew shed his saber across a zombie¡¯s chest. It was a faulty strike as it didn¡¯t lead to said zombie dying properly. Yet, while an open injury through a zombie¡¯s chest was meaningless, the force of said strike pushed the undead against Nadia.

    ¡°Hahahaha!¡± the girlughed out loud, squashing the zombie¡¯s head with her hands.

    Nadia¡¯s eyes turned red as she immersed herself in the fight.

    Her moves were starkly different from how Mathew or actually anyone else in Mathew¡¯s group moved around. Because contrary to all the others, she actually had some practice behind her back and proper techniques guiding her attacks.

    ng!

    Mathew¡¯s saber struck squarely against the metal of the fence. In just a few seconds, the small group of zombies that stood in their path was annihted, unable to resist the vicious attacks unleashed by the couple.

    ¡°Go!¡± Le shouted from the back, kicking Norbert¡¯s backside to give him some initial speed.

    ¡°Open the gap!¡± Mathew shouted, hoping that by raising his voice, he would have a shot at reaching Nadia¡¯s ears.

    ¡®I know we are pretty damn close¡­¡¯ he thought, ncing over at the girl.

    Her eyes were red, her lips were curved up and open in a crazed smile.

    ¡®But it was never about the distance, to begin with,¡¯ he thought to himself only to pull his attention away from the girl and focus it on his own task.

    Cleaning the zombies from a small area by the barrier was the easy part of the task. Keeping the main weight of the horde away from it now that the zombies around took notice of the attack was a whole different matter altogether.

    ¡®I guess I can only hope she heard me,¡¯ Mathew thought, cutting the thoughts about Nadia from his mind as he focused on the task at hand.

    Mathew shed to the right, only to follow the momentum of the attack and swirl around on his heel, using the speed of his turn to execute another attack in the same direction.

    ¡°Don¡¯t spin around like that!¡± Nadia shouted over, proving that she was actually in control of her actions. ¡°You are exposing your back for no reason at all!¡±

    ¡°Good call!¡± Mathew replied, stomping his leg on the ground to kill his angr momentum. He then turned his wrist around only to m his fist tightened around the handle of his weapon into the rotting face of the next opponent.

    ¡°We are here!¡± Le shouted as soon as she reached the barrier. A mere moment and five zombies fell by Mathew¡¯s handter, Norbert joined the group at the barrier as well, only for Daria toe running while protecting their rear.

    ¡°Throw him over!¡± Mathew called for action, taking a step back when a massive number of zombies quickly started to overwhelm him.

    The young man could kill each of the zombies with ease. Not even ten or twenty of them could pose any threat to him.

    But that was only under the assumption that not only he was in an open area with no restriction to his movements whatsoever¡­ But also with the assumption that there was nothing for Mathew to protect!

    ¡°Heavy¡­¡± Le sang from behind Mathew¡¯s back.

    ¡®Fuck off!¡¯ Mathew cursed in his thoughts, kicking the knee of the zombie that managed to sneak past his guard andtch onto his left shoulder.

    ¡°HO!¡± Le and Daria shouted. Right then, Mathew felt a small gust of wind behind his back followed by a panicked shout of a male origin.

    The zombie by Mathew¡¯s shoulder opened up its mouth and then mmed its head down, attempting to sink its teeth into Mathew¡¯s arm.

    ¡°FUCK OFF!¡± Mathew cursed again, this time out loud. Yet, rather than trying to free himself from the zombie¡¯s grasp, he simply mmed his body to the side, pushing the zombie right into the barrier.

    The rotting flesh of the zombie struck against the see-through barrier of the fortress. Yet, rather than squashing as it would against a solid surface, the contact caused sparks toe out, only for the zombie¡¯s flesh to sizzle away.

    ¡°Daria, your turn!¡± Le shouted from behind Mathew¡¯s back, allowing him to track the progress of their small mission.

    ¡°Do you need a hand?¡± Mathew asked out loud while swinging his saber to ward off the zombies in front.

    Thankfully, the enemy thattched onto his shoulder couldn¡¯t survive the force of the barrier. It continued to wriggle in what appeared to be agony for a while, all the way to the point where the barrier consumed its head as well.

    ¡°We are fi-ineee?!¡± Daria attempted to report back, only for her voice to turn weird when Le mercilessly grabbed her by her shoulder only to throw her above a roughtly two-meters tall fence.

    ¡°We are done!¡± Le reported right away, even going as far as to step forward and tap Mathew on his back. ¡°I will be going first,¡± she then added only for her presence to disappear from Mathew¡¯s instinctual radar right away.

    ¡°Your turn, dear!¡± Mathew shouted, hardly having any time to even think about his words.

    The entire attacksted for less than thirty seconds. In all meanings of this word, it was fast.

    But the horde was just a tiny bit faster.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do it together!¡± Nadia called out.

    But Mathew had no means of freeing himself from all the zombies that jumped on him.

    Sure, he could ward them off for now¡­ but with how close they were to him, he had no opening to back away and jump over the fence.

    ¡°Just a little bit lo¡­. WHA¡­¡±

    Mathew¡¯s voice cracked when an unfamiliar force suddenly grabbed him by his arm. Shocked that he allowed someone to approach his back without him noticing, Mathew froze¡­

    Only to realize that just like Le did with Daria a few seconds earlier, Nadia now ignored his own pride and threw him over the fence in the same way!

    ¡°Hey!¡± Mathew uttered a shout of disbelief, only to see the girl herself kick off the few zombies that had their attention on her before gracefully grabbing the edge of the fence and then jumping over it with ease.

    ¡°What?¡± Nadia asked as shended and dusted her knees only to grace Mathew with a smug, amused smile.

    ¡°What was that?¡± Mathew asked, gathering himself from the ground and resting his hands on his hips. ¡°A show of strength or something?¡± he demanded an answer, the heat of the short battle still clouding his mind.

    ¡°Not at all,¡± Nadia replied, her grin only widening. ¡°I just found this move to be the most¡­ efficient!¡±

 Chapter 198 Abberant

    ¡®Was it really efficient?¡¯ Mathew asked himself while entering a contest of stares with his beloved. Yet, as he kept on looking at the brightly shining Nadia¡¯s eyes mixed with the amused look on her smiling lips, he failed to keep up his resentment.

    ¡°I would argue about that,¡± Mathew mentioned, only to then shake his head. ¡°But let¡¯s drop this topic. Whatever happened, we are now on the right side of the fence,¡± he said, bringing his hands down to dust off his knees. ¡°And that¡¯s all that¡¯s matter.¡±

    ¡®And with that said,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising back to a more natural position as he turned his eyes towards the ruined wing of thepound that has long turned into the second entrance to the campus. ¡®I guess finding out where Carol is should be our next goal.¡¯

    Mathew was someone who would waste a lot of time and effort overthinking stuff due to his worry that he would miss something. Yet, once he operated within the bounds of the realm that he could understand, he disliked the very idea of wasting time over nothing.

    And so, while Nadia continued to silently chuckle while both Norbert and the two remaining girls struggled to figure out how they were supposed to react to the situation, Mathew took his first proper step towards the ruined entrance to the campus.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Norbert suddenly uttered a small cry of surprise.

    ¡®What now?¡¯ Mathew thought, rolling his eyes in annoyance as he nced over his shoulder at the man.

    Norbert¡¯s face was perfectly still, his eyes widened. He slowly breathed in and out, only to slowly move his eyes around as if to check if others were seeing the same thing that he did.

    ¡°Do you guys see it?¡± he then asked, even though his gestures were more than enough to convey the question already.

    ¡°See what?¡± Mathew asked, doing a poor job at hiding his annoyance when he finally looked in the direction of whatever took Norbert by such a surprise.

    And then, he froze as well.

    The horde of zombies was just a few meters away from them. Only the poorly made fence and the barrier of the fortress were there to keep the zombies away from the safe zone of the fortress.

    And just a few meters away, the zombies were currently shing with each other!

    ¡®What the hell is going on?¡¯ Mathew thought, weirded out by the unexpected event. ¡®Some kind of event? Or is it¡­?¡¯

    The zombies didn¡¯t fight each other for no reason at all. In fact, upon closer inspection, they weren¡¯t really fighting with the intent of defeating their fellow zombies.

    All that the horde did, right before everyone¡¯s eyes, was w its way forward with its rotting flesh, broken bones, and deformed limbs towards the one zombie that Mathew half-fried against the barrier.

    Or rather, towards the small, shiny core that was halfway stuck in the middle of the unlucky zombie¡¯s head.

    ¡°REEEE!¡± one of the zombies finally reached the prize. It pushed its broken fingers right into the brain matter of the fallen zombie, making use of the fact that half of its head was gone to the barrier.

    And with a single move, the zombie plucked the core out of its fellow zombie¡¯s head only to throw it right into its mouth!

    ¡°REEEE!¡± an even louder cry emerged from the zombie¡¯s bowels. Its rotting body tensed up in a weird position.

    And then, the color of its eyes changed a little to a more vibrant one.

    ¡®What the hell just happened?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, staring wide-eyed at how themotion died out in the instant only for all the zombies to disperse back to whatever they were busy with before.

    ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Daria muttered, unable to tear her eyes away from the gruesome scene.

    ¡°Zombies eating each other,¡± Le replied in a calm voice only to follow it up with a shrug of her shoulders. ¡°With everything, we saw in thest two days, do we really have any right to be surprised by something like this?¡±

    ¡°Guys, the zombie that ate the core¡­¡± Norbert spoke out, ignoring the whole exchange between the girls. ¡°Isn¡¯t he quite different now?¡± he suggested, turning his eyes from one person to another.

    ¡°Now that you mention it,¡± Daria muttered as she turned her eyes to the zombie that won the race and consumed the core. ¡°Is it just me or does it have some sort of aura around itself?¡± she suggested.

    ¡®Does it?¡¯ Mathew shrugged as he turned his eyes towards the zombie, only to squint them as he attempted to see something beyond normal vision.

    The one zombie, in particr, was also the only one that didn¡¯t return to its usual task of pointlessly mming itself against the barrier, only to be continuously repelled by it.

    Instead, it stood motionless in ce, still stuck in its weird, twisted pose.

    ¡®No, it¡¯s moving,¡¯ Mathew noticed.

    The movement was so slow and tiny that he would never be able to see it with just a nce. Only by starting at it for a long while was the young man able to spot how its twisted limbs slowly fell down by the zombie¡¯s sides.

    ¡®Wait, what?¡¯ Mathew tensed up when the next ridiculous thing happened. Because while he could easily ept the zombie struggling to return to a neutral pose¡­ It was impossible for its broken limbs to apparently heal up!

    ¡®I¡¯m sure its left arm was broken¡­ so why does it appear to be fine right now?¡¯ Mathew asked in his thoughts, an uneasy feeling welling up at the bottom of his stomach.

    The zombie finally returned to a fully neutral pose. If it were to raise its hands to the level of its shoulders, it would execute the legendary t-pose.

    And yet, instead of trolling Mathew and making it even harder for the young man to understand what the fuck was going on, the zombie suddenly woke up.

    It didn¡¯t rush at the barrier, contrary to what all itspatriots all around did.

    Instead, it simply stared right back at Mathew. And then, it slowly raised its hand to its gouged eyes.

    ¡°Guys¡­¡± Daria muttered in an uneasy voice. ¡°I can sense its aura concentrating on its hand¡­¡± she reported.

    ¡°How about we kill it, just in case?¡± Le suggested, brandishing her weapon.

    The zombie, though, didn¡¯t give Mathew¡¯s group any leeway to discuss their options. And before they could decide what to do about it¡­ It mmed its aura-covered hand right into the barrier!

    Only for the barrier to sh up, block the attack¡­

    And then send the zombie flying along with a wisk energy that burned it to a crisp before it could even fall to the ground!

 Chapter 199 They know, but do they believe what they know?

    ¡°I guess that¡¯s the end of the show,¡± Mathew muttered, watching how the withered corpse of the zombie turned dark only to shatter into a cloud of ash and then scatter on the wind.

    ¡°Any ideas what that was supposed to be?¡± Le asked, tightly gripping the handle of her saber.

    Two drops of sweat trickled down the side of her head while her eyes continued to scan all the zombies in proximity. Even though the strange situation now came to an end, she didn¡¯t dare to rx her hand at all.

    And yet, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but smile with a tiny bit of irony.

    ¡°Do you want to know what it all meant?¡± he asked, leaning his head over his shoulder as he smiled at the girl.

    ¡°Wait, do you actually know?¡± Le finally turned her eyes away from the fence and looked at Mathew. Her eyes were wide open as a hint of deep respect appeared at the bottom of her pupils.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t the question,¡± Mathew said, shaking his head. ¡°Do you want to know?¡± he then asked again.

    Le pulled her eyebrows together as she failed to follow Mathew¡¯s drift.

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    ¡°Well then, now you know how it feels to be me,¡± Mathew finally revealed his small ploy. ¡°I can only guess what happened. And to be fair, I believe that¡¯s how zombies might be evolving,¡¯ he added, opting to add some sugar to the mental nudge he just made. ¡°But overall, with everything we observe and fail to understand, I constantly need to make assumptions, guesses, wishes,¡± he said, shaking his head.

    Mathew then rested his hands on his hips. He then raised his chin and looked at the girl with a stern look on his face.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t want to put you down. Your question is perfectly valid. But to be honest, this lesson might be even more important than the truth about what happened,¡± he revealed only to then release a deep sigh.

    ¡°Lesson about what?¡± Le asked, her face twisting in dissatisfaction. ¡°About how there are things you don¡¯t know?¡± she suggested, only to shake her head as she crossed her hands over her chest. ¡°But didn¡¯t you mention it over and over again already?¡±

    ¡°There is one thing to say it,¡± Mathew nodded his head as he agreed with what the girl said. ¡°But to experience it on its own is another thing entirelly,¡± he exined the real reason behind the entire experiment.

    ¡°Are you guys done?¡± Norbert then joined the discussion. The look of annoyance and anxiety on his face spoke wonders about what was going through his mind. ¡°I located my sister so how about we move and get everything over with?¡±

    ¡®Oh right,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a deep breath right as the energy appeared to leave his body. ¡®I still have that girl to deal with,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth.

    The mere mention of the girl was enough to attract the attention of Mathew¡¯s girls.

    ¡°How about we go find her and then exin the situation in advance?¡± Nadia suggested, taking a step forward to enter the conversation not only with her words but with her presence as well.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew shrugged, not expecting this kind of suggestion. ¡®I thought you didn¡¯t really like the idea,¡¯ he thought, turning his eyes towards the girl. ¡°What for?¡±

    ¡°You are a man,¡± Daria stepped in as well. A silly smile appeared on her lips as she cast a nce at Mathew as if she was looking at some sort of a naive toddler. ¡°It will be easier for her to understand the situation if fellow girls exin it to her,¡± she exined.

    ¡°That¡­¡± Mathew hesitated for a moment. ¡®Wait, what am I even hesitating about?¡¯ he then realized his own mental facy. ¡®It¡¯s just the fact that things aren¡¯t going the way I expected them to, I guess,¡¯ he then uncovered the truth behind his automatic reaction. ¡°Well, that¡¯s perfectly reasonable,¡± he admitted only to nod his head toward the girl.

    ¡°In that case, give us five minutes of a headstart,¡± Nadia suggested only to turn her eyes towards Norbert. ¡°And you, where can we find her?¡±

    ¡°All the way to the back of the east-bound wing of the building, second floor,¡± Norbert gave out the location without a word ofint.

    ¡®It seems he grew to ept the situation,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to watch how the girls grouped up and rushed towards the ruins, eager to deal with the matter as soon as possible.

    ¡°You know it¡¯s likely not the only reason, do you?¡± Norbert asked, sending a slightly amused nce toward Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I know,¡± Mathew replied while rolling his eyes. ¡°There are some conflicts between the three of them already. It¡¯s given that only more of them would appear once we will have to add Carol to the equation,¡± he pointed out the thing Norbert was likely hinting at.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say it was going to be a one-time thing?¡± Norbert then countered, raising his right eyebrow to express his displeasure.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he confirmed Norbert¡¯s words. ¡°I know this,¡± he stated. ¡°You know this,¡± he then added only to turn his eyes towards the building. ¡°And they know this as well,¡± he pointed out, staring at the ruins as if they held some sort of ancient treasure only waiting for someone brave and attentive enough to discover it.

    ¡°But there is a difference between knowing and believing,¡± Mathew finished his exnation, presenting the very logic that was the source of the anxiety he was doing his best to hide.

    ¡°I believe that this is going to be a one-time thing,¡± Norbert said in a stern voice while sending Mathew an eye. ¡°No, I know it will be,¡± he then corrected himself only to stand up and take a small stroll around the open area of the school¡¯spound.

    There two

 Chapter 200 Last talk before the deed

    ¡°On one hand, I would rather stay back,¡± Norbert replied, turning his eyes towards the fence. He then stared at the zombies for a bit, only for a sudden bout of shame and anxiety to fill his face. ¡°For many reasons,¡± he added.

    His ambiguous words did a poor job at hiding the real reason from Mathew, though.

    ¡®It can¡¯t befortable to lead a man so that he can fuck his sister,¡¯ Mathew thought, hiding his own awkwardness behind a stupid grin.

    ¡°But on the other hand¡­¡± Norbert muttered.

    His gaze sharpened. His fingers curled up to form fists. Norbert then raised his eyes and looked at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°I can¡¯t really be away either, can I?¡±

    Mathew looked at the officer.

    He then took a deep breath and swallowed his saliva.

    ¡®It¡¯s just a normal guy with a bit more experience than me,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a moment to calm his agitation down. ¡®Not just some random NPC in some stupid game.¡¯

    And so, Mathew found no further need to keep the conversation up. Instead, he turned his face back towards his target before making his way through the ruins to thepound.

    ¡®It was only a single night,¡¯ Mathew thought a momentter once he reached the part of thepound that was rtively intact.

    He could see the marks of the battle he fought on the ground floor against his first evolved opponents. And yet, this ce somehow gave the young man a sense of familiarity.

    ¡®To think I could miss it after such a short time.¡¯ Mathew shook his head as he walked through the corridors to the still-existing staircase at the end of the eastern wing.

    ¡°It would be potentially useful to restore the main staircase,¡± Mathewmented once the two of them reached the central point of the building¡¯s cross-section.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that make it easier for zombies to prate?¡± Norbert replied, offhandedly picking up on the small talk.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew admitted, stretching his voice as he stopped and stared at the pile of rubble that once connected all the floors in the most convinient of ways.  ¡°But sooner orter, this ce will likely be a hub,¡± Mathew then added, only for his expression to sour.

    ¡®We can¡¯t really go far the way we currently do,¡¯ he thought, staring at the rubble for a little longer before picking the pace. ¡®There is no time and ce for personal bravado and adventures.¡¯

    Mathew closed his eyes, using just his sense of the area around him to guide his feet.

    ¡®We need to get more people involved as soon as possible.¡¯

    It was an obvious truth.

    The speed at which the zombies around Mathew evolved was astounding. Far greater than what he experienced back during his first attempt.

    ¡®Back then, there were hardly any evolved zombies or monsters around,¡¯ Mathew thought, recalling his bitter memories. ¡®And it was two damn weeks into the thing!¡¯

    Mathew and Norbert reached the stairs and started to climb up. And yet, their steps became slower the closer they got to their objective.

    ¡®The only thing that can keep up with this growth is my system,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. ¡®And there ain¡¯t no way I will fuck a thousand women in a thousand different ways!¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s current predicament was in a straight line a result of the philosophy he never really thought about before. He somehow directed all his actions towards a certain oue, one that he believed to be capable of taking advantage of.

    ¡®Are those my RTS senses tingling?¡¯ Mathew suddenly grinned to himself.

    Norbert quickly caught a nce over Mathew¡¯s changing expression. And as a result, his own face soured, giving testament to the newborn misunderstanding.

    ¡°I¡¯m not smiling for the reason you think I do,¡± Mathew suddenly said, breaking the momentary silence between the two.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Norbert mused, turning his eyes away. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m judging you, okay?¡± he attempted to drop the topic, clearly too awkward to talk about it.

    ¡°I mean it, I was thinking about something else,¡± Mathew pressured, even going as far as to take aplete spot.

    ¡®And if I want things to work out, I need to secure both Carol and Norbert,¡¯ he realized the obvious conclusion of the idea that just spurred in his mind. ¡®And for that to happen¡­¡¯

    ¡°Once everything is over with, I will likely leave this ce to you, Carol, and those survivors that wish to fight,¡± Mathew threw a massive bone straight into Norbert¡¯s face.

    ¡°Wha¡­¡± Norbert stumbled to the back in shock, saved from a trip down the stairs only by Mathew¡¯s quick save. ¡°Thanks¡­¡±

    The officer quickly shook Mathew¡¯s hand once he regained his stability.

    ¡°I believe we should switch our approach,¡± Mathew revealed, exposing the ideas and thoughts, not even his girls knew about.

    ¡®And here I promised to share everything with them,¡¯ Mathew then thought, averting his eyes before his self-directed shame.

    Mathew then turned his eyes back to Norbert¡¯s face.

    ¡°We can¡¯t afford to do everything ourselves. And I already have the means to empower others to do my bidding,¡± he added.

    Mathew then took a step back and pulled out his saber.

    ¡°For two hundred and fifty cores, I can purchase this de,¡± he revealed a small bit of info. His arm then drew a  quick swing with the saber. ¡°I can also get cheaper weapons. Macheette, katana, ax, you name it, there is a chance I can get a stronger version of it.¡±

    ¡°I think I see where are you going,¡± Norbert said.

    His demanour changed. Now that he focused on Mathew¡¯s drift, he could push aside the thoughts about what would happen to his sister in the near future.

    ¡°What about the others, though?¡± Norbert then asked, raising his hand to rub his chin.

    ¡°Those who can¡¯t or don¡¯t want to fight will soon be able to prove useful in the media building,¡± Mathew revealed. ¡°As soon as we get enough cores on our hands, they will be able to work.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Norbert squinted his eyes, ¡°quite a massive piece of news, isn¡¯t it?¡± he thenmented in a lowered voice and with his eyelids squinted down.

    ¡°I still have no idea how much it will cost, but once we are done, we will start the process of retaking this city,¡± Mathew revealed the one thought that kept on bothering him from the bottom of his soul.

    There was no way to live a safe, stable life in a fortress within a hostile city. With zombies crawling and evolving all around them, they could never be free from constant worry.

    And for that very sake, the one thing that Mathew could do to inch closer to his dream life was to conquer the entire city.

    ¡®Humans on their own were always weak,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a deep breath only to stop his steps right before the doors to the room the two of them wanted to reach. ¡®Our strength always lied in numbers, so why go against this truth?¡¯

    Mathew stood by the doors. He then took a deep breath and reached for the door¡¯s knob.

    ¡°I will try to get this over with as quickly as possible,¡± he said in a hushed voice before pushing out the doors to the teacher¡¯s shed of the ss.

 Chapter 201 What is it that you have never done in bed before?

    Mathew opened the doors and opened the teacher¡¯s shed attached to the ss.

    The main entrance was out ofmission, blocked by the rubble still left after the fighting of the first day.

    ¡®Now that I think about it, we have yet to clean this ce too,¡¯ Mathew noticed, only to shake his head and push the doors open.

    He was weed by nothing but silence and the solemn stare of three of his girls.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with,¡± Mathew urged everyone, using all of his willpower to keep his eyes straight.

    The thick air within the shed reminded the young man of one thing.

    ¡®All that strategizing allowed me to forget,¡¯ he thought, gulping down his saliva. ¡®But I¡¯m about to roughly fuck one of my damn juniors¡­¡¯

    It was a tough thing to ask Mathew to look back into the eyes of his girls. It was even harder to walk past all three of them only to stand at thest set of doors.

    ¡°What does she know?¡± Mathew asked, resting his hand against the door while keeping his eyes looking straight ahead.

    ¡°The basics,¡± Nadia replied, happy to avert her own eyes. ¡°You need to do her to grant her a system.¡±

    The girl shook her shoulders.

    ¡°I see,¡± Mathew muttered, his face darkening a little. ¡®But you forgot to convey one thing,¡¯ he then thought, closing his eyes for a second. ¡°Right, Norbert,¡± Mathew then suddenly called out, turning his head towards the officer in the back of the shed. ¡°I will need you toe inside after five minutes or so.¡±

    ¡®Because from how little I interacted with this girl, her quirks are quite¡­ vivid,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his head back towards the doors before pushing the knob and pressing them open.

    Mathew then stepped inside, closing the doors shut behind him.

    The atmosphere in the ss was insanely eerie. As it was well past midday already, the eastern exposition of the entire wing was now hidden in the shade of the building. As such, only a tiny aura of the light reached the insides, coating it in a warm,zy aura of an afternoon.

    Carol sat at the back of the ss, right on top of one of the discarded desks. She wiggled her legs on her seat while staring far into the distance.

    ¡°Hello,¡± Carol called out, turning her face to greet Mathew.

    She had a tiny, calm smile on her delicate face. It was one of the greatest weapons that one¡¯s young, cute junior could ever hope for.

    ¡°Hey,¡± Mathew replied, taken aback by the weird sense of hominess that emanated from the girl.

    She had a feeble, delicate frame. And yet, she boasted an impressive size in ces that truly mattered. To top it all up, she still wore her light school dress, keeping only a third of her legs covered. The thin shirt of her school uniform failed miserably at hiding her upper curves while perfectly enting her otherwise slim figure.

    Carol turned her head to her side. Her lips twitched, only for her smile to deepen. And just as the whites of her teeth peeked out of her perfectly-red lips¡­

    The girl pulled one of her legs up, resting her foot on the table she was sitting on, only to then embrace and hug it. Yet, by curling up like that, Carol couldn¡¯t avoid her skirt riding up on her raised thigh and perfectly exposing her panties to Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡®Couldn¡¯t avoid¡­ or didn¡¯t want to?¡¯ the young man asked himself, stealing a long nce beforezily raising his eyes to Carol¡¯s face.

    If Nadia was a warm beauty, Le a strict yet passionate lover, and Daria a clumsy slut¡­ Then in this one, single nce, Mathew recognized Carol for who she was.

    His eyes twitched a little as a small smirk attempted to make its way onto his lips.

    ¡°You sure do know how to fix the air in the room,¡± Mathew sighed, raising his hand to scratch the side of his head.

    ¡°Don¡¯t I?¡± Carol grinned, introducing a yful note to the meeting. She then raised her arms from her leg and stretched them out towards Mathew.

    ¡°Not yet,¡± the young man protested. He then shook his head to the side before nheless moving towards the girl. Yet, rather than epting her inviting arms, he sat down on a nearby desk before facing the girl.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to sleep with you, that you are aware of,¡± he said, bluntly striking the crux of the matter.

    ¡®It¡¯s not good,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth. ¡®I almost got swept away by the mood.¡¯ Mathew calmly gulped down his saliva.

    ¡°I am,¡± Carol cheerfully nodded her head. She then lowered her arms only to rest them behind her back as she leaned down a little.

    A small, smug smile appeared on her lips as she started to raise her other leg towards Mathew¡¯s crotch.

    ¡°But I think the girls forgot to mention an important detail,¡± Mathew said, ignoring the girl¡¯s advances.

    ¡®A true, full-fledged slut,¡¯ he thought, staring down at the girl¡¯s face.

    This was the notion he experienced before. The instinctual observation of a man, serving to help him distinguish between a good mating partner and a bad one.

    A sense that improved along with Mathew¡¯s growth of strength.

    ¡°And what is that?¡± Carol asked in a sweet voice, rubbing her stocking-covered foot against Mathew¡¯s crotch. She bit her bottom lip while lowering her head to look at him with upturned eyes.

    And between her raised and extended leg, Mathew could see a darker spot appearing on her thin panties.

    ¡°It will only work if we do something you¡¯ve never done before,¡± Mathew revealed, watching with satisfaction how Carol¡¯s face suddenly turned tense.

    He heard about her having a rtionship with the guy they set out to dispose of on the second day. Mathew even heard some details about its origins.

    And from those few times he interacted with the girl, he could tell she wasn¡¯t as simple as she allowed others to see her as.

    Carol bit her lips a bit further.

    ¡®No matter how hard you went at it in the past, going even further will always be scary,¡¯ Mathew thought with a strange sense of deep satisfaction.

    ¡®I guess wiping a smirk off one¡¯s face does feel good,¡¯ he thought, acknowledging this newfound dark side of his own character.

    ¡°So before we even begin,¡± Mathew jumped down from his desk only to rest his fists against his hips. It was his turn to look down at the girl with a smirk on his face. ¡°What is it that you have never done in bed before?¡±

 Chapter 202 I did everything one could do with a man (+18)

    Carol¡¯s eyes turned wide open. She stared nkly at Mathew¡¯s face for a moment only to then avert her eyes as she blushed.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± the girl mouthed, raising her hand to wipe her hair behind her ear.

    Mathew crossed his arms in front of his chest and waited for Carol to continue.

    ¡°That¡¯s something very personal,¡± the girl eventually said, suddenly sounding much more formal than before. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s appropriate to discuss such things with someone I¡¯m not close to.¡±

    ¡°Oh,e on,¡± Mathew urged her, leaning forward a little. ¡°It can¡¯t be that bad.¡±

    Carol slowly shook her head from side to side. She then raised her hand and started rubbing her temple as she furrowed her brows. It was clear she was troubled by something.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to tell you,¡± she eventually said in a small voice. ¡°It¡¯s just¡­ I can¡¯t think of anything new at this point.¡±

    Mathew moved closer until he stood right in front of the girl. He then raised his hand and ced it on Carol¡¯s shoulder before giving it a soft squeeze meant tofort her.

    ¡°There is nothing to be ashamed of,¡± he told her in a soft voice.

    ¡°I know,¡± Carol nodded her head, still avoiding Mathew¡¯s gaze. ¡°It¡¯s just¡­ I don¡¯t want to disappoint you.¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t,¡± Mathew told her, his voiceced with confidence. He then gently lifted the girl¡¯s chin with his thumb and forefinger before making her look into his eyes. ¡°I promise.¡±

    Carol stared back at Mathew for a moment before eventually nodding her head. It was clear she made up her mind about something.

    ¡°All right,¡± she said, her voice barely above a whisper. ¡°There is one thing I¡¯ve always wanted to try but never had the opportunity to.¡±

    ¡°And what is that?¡± Mathew asked, his voice equally soft and gentle.

    ¡°I never did it¡­ with two at once,¡± Carol revealed, hiding her lips behind her tightened hand and looking away to the side. Her body visibly tensed up.

    Mathew felt his heart skipping a beat upon hearing her words. He could feel his blood rushing through his veins as excitement started to build up inside of him.

    ¡®I¡¯m not going to lie, this is turning me on,¡¯ he thought, feeling his crotch harden in response. Yet, despite the arousal he was feeling, Mathew did his best to keep a straight face.

    ¡°Is that so?¡± he asked in an indifferent tone of voice, trying to downy the effect Carol¡¯s words had on him. ¡°I don¡¯t see why that would be a problem.¡±

    Carol visibly rxed upon hearing Mathew¡¯s nonchnt response. She then raised her head and looked back at him with a small smile on her face.

    ¡°I¡¯m d you think so,¡± she said before finally moving closer to wrap her arms around Mathew¡¯s waist and rest her head against his chest.

    Mathew hesitated for a moment before eventually returning the embrace. He then gently started stroking Carol¡¯s hair as he rocked her back and forth in an attempt to calm her down.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± he whispered in her ear. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure you enjoy it.¡±

    Carol nodded her head in response, her body still pressed against Mathew¡¯s. She then took a deep breath and slowly released it before finally speaking up again.

    ¡°I trust you,¡± she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

    Mathew smiled upon hearing her words. He then gently pushed Carol away from him, only to take a step forward.

    Yet, rather than approaching the girl, Mathew moved past her and then sat on the very same desk Carol shed her panties at him from.

    ¡°Now then,¡± he said as he crossed his legs and stared at Carol with a predatory look in his eyes. ¡°Why don¡¯t we start with you taking those panties off?¡±

    ¡°What panties?¡± Carol replied yfully, reaching with her hand to her hip. She then slid her fingers underneath her cloth only to pinch at something.

    A familiar piece of material then slid down her her slender legs. Taking a step forward, Carol then kicked it away only to approach Mathew and sneak between his legs.

    ¡°These panties,¡± she then said, her voice dripping with lust as she stared at Mathew with a mischievous look in her eyes.

    She then leaned closer to him, her breasts pressing against his chest as she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.

    ¡°Now, what were you saying about making me enjoy myself?¡± she asked in a seductive voice, her hot breath fanning against Mathew¡¯s neck.

    Mathew could feel his heart racing in his chest as Carol¡¯s body pressed against him. He could feel his arousal grow with each passing second, the lustful look in the girl¡¯s eyes only serving to further fuel the fire burning inside of him.

    ¡°I think I might need a little help with that,¡± he eventually managed to say, his voiceing out as a hoarse whisper.

    ¡°I think I can manage,¡± Carol replied, her voice equallyced with lust.

    ¡°But this is just the first part of the fun, isn¡¯t it?¡± Mathew then suggested. He shook off his embarrassment and advanced to take back the reins of the event. ¡°You still have to decide who else will join our little fun,¡± he then reminded the girl, lowering his hands to caress her stocking-covered thighs.

    ¡°Oh, I think I know just the person,¡± Carol said, a mischievous look in her eyes. She then leaned her head to the side while putting a lovely smile on her lips. ¡°And I bet you know what I have in mind,¡± she added with a chuckle.

    ¡°I had a hunch,¡± Mathew replied, stealing a nce toward the doors leading to the teacher¡¯s shed.

    ¡®There still is some time before he wille up,¡¯ he thought, only to bring his attention back to the girl.

    ¡°And I¡¯m sure you will enjoy it,¡± Carol told him, her voice dripping with lust. She then slid her hands down Mathew¡¯s chest before eventually resting them on his crotch.

    ¡°I have no doubt about that,¡± Mathew replied, a smile growing on his lips as he pushed forward and pressed his mouth against Carol¡¯s lips.

 Chapter 203 Invitation (+18)

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± he whispered in her ear. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure you enjoy it.¡±

    Carol nodded her head in response, her body still pressed against Mathew¡¯s. She then took a deep breath and slowly released it before finally speaking up again.

    ¡°I trust you,¡± she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

    Mathew smiled upon hearing her words. He then gently pushed Carol away from him, only to take a step forward.

    Yet, rather than approaching the girl, Mathew moved past her and then sat on the very same desk Carol shed her panties at him from.

    ¡°Now then,¡± he said as he crossed his legs and stared at Carol with a predatory look in his eyes. ¡°Why don¡¯t we start with you taking those panties off?¡±

    ¡°What panties?¡± Carol replied yfully, reaching with her hand to her hip. She then slid her fingers underneath her cloth only to pinch at something.

    A familiar piece of material then slid down her her slender legs. Taking a step forward, Carol then kicked it away only to approach Mathew and sneak between his legs.

    ¡°These panties,¡± she then said, her voice dripping with lust as she stared at Mathew with a mischievous look in her eyes.

    She then leaned closer to him, her breasts pressing against his chest as she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.

    ¡°Now, what were you saying about making me enjoy myself?¡± she asked in a seductive voice, her hot breath fanning against Mathew¡¯s neck.

    Mathew could feel his heart racing in his chest as Carol¡¯s body pressed against him. He could feel his arousal grow with each passing second, the lustful look in the girl¡¯s eyes only serving to further fuel the fire burning inside of him.

    ¡°I think I might need a little help with that,¡± he eventually managed to say, his voiceing out as a hoarse whisper.

    ¡°I think I can manage,¡± Carol replied, her voice equallyced with lust.

    ¡°But this is just the first part of the fun, isn¡¯t it?¡± Mathew then suggested. He shook off his embarrassment and advanced to take back the reins of the event. ¡°You still have to decide who else will join our little fun,¡± he then reminded the girl, lowering his hands to caress her stocking-covered thighs.

    ¡°Oh, I think I know just the person,¡± Carol said, a mischievous look in her eyes. She then leaned her head to the side while putting a lovely smile on her lips. ¡°And I bet you know what I have in mind,¡± she added with a chuckle.

    ¡°I had a hunch,¡± Mathew replied, stealing a nce toward the doors leading to the teacher¡¯s shed.

    ¡®There still is some time before he wille up,¡¯ he thought, only to bring his attention back to the girl.

    ¡°And I¡¯m sure you will enjoy it,¡± Carol told him, her voice dripping with lust. She then slid her hands down Mathew¡¯s chest before eventually resting them on his crotch.

    ¡°I have no doubt about that,¡± Mathew replied, a smile growing on his lips as he pushed forward and pressed his mouth against Carol¡¯s lips.

    The two of them kissed passionately for a few moments before eventually pulling away from each other. They then stared into each other¡¯s eyes, their chests heaving as they tried to catch their breath.

    ¡°I can fell you are ready,¡± Carol whispered, rubbing her hand up and down Mathew¡¯s bulging tent. ¡°Shall we cut the crap and just go at it?¡± she then suggested in a lovely, melty voice.

    ¡°I think that¡¯s a great idea,¡± Mathew replied. He then grabbed Carol by the hips and lifted her up.

    The girl yelped in surprise but didn¡¯t protest as she was being raised up. Instead, she wrapped her legs around Mathew¡¯s waist and her arms around his neck. Her stockings-covered things rubbed against his sides only for her stomach to hit Mathew¡¯s chest a momentter. Her impressive bosom ttened all around his neck, creating the perfect pillow for Mathew¡¯s chin.

    Carol angled her face down. Standing on her knees just above Mathew¡¯s hips gave her the higher ground, forcing this kind of bent position for her lips to remain in Mathew¡¯s range.

    Soon, Carol¡¯s tongue made a couple with Mathew¡¯s and started an borate dance.

    Meanwhile, Mathew¡¯s hands grabbed Carol¡¯s voluptuous backside. His fingers squeezed and groped, pulling the girl closer as he felt her warm body heat up against his own.

    Arousal coursed through Mathew¡¯s veins, his heart racing as he felt Carol¡¯s body pressed against his own. He could feel her heat emanating from her and it only served to further fuel the fire burning inside of him.

    Eventually, Mathew could take it no longer. Breaking away from their kiss, he then grabbed Carol by the hips.

    Reading his intentions, Carol used her own hand to uncover Mathew¡¯s dick. And as soon as it stood naked, right below the girl¡¯s crotch, Mathew pushed the girl down, slowly but steadily spreading her insides open.

    Carol felt Mathew¡¯s dick pressing against her wet pussy. Yet, despite the girl¡¯s obvious arousal, Mathew took his time. He teased and tantalized, his dick rubbing and massaging Carol¡¯s clit as he waited for her to beg for more.

    ¡°Come on,¡± Carol eventually said. ¡°I¡¯m so wet and ready. Please, just fuck me already.¡±

    ¡°Patience, my dear,¡± Mathew replied, a smug smile on his lips. ¡°Good thingse to those who wait.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to wait,¡± Carol protested. ¡°I need you inside of me. Now.¡±

    ¡°Fine,¡± Mathew relented, his own need for release bing too great to resist any longer.

    He then pushed upward, his dick slipping inside Carol¡¯s wet pussy.

    The girl gasped as she felt Mathew¡¯s dick invading her.  Her pussy tightened up around Mathew¡¯s dick as he pushed himself further inside.

    Mathew, on the other hand, felt himself sink into the girl¡¯s warm and wet body. The sensation was amazing, his dick being caressed and massaged by Carol¡¯s insides as he pushed himself deeper and deeper.

    Eventually, Mathew was fully inside. The girl¡¯s pussy was tight and warm, her body pressing against his own.

    ¡°You feel amazing,¡± Mathew told her, his voiceced with lust.

    ¡°You feel even better,¡± Carol replied, her eyes filled with lust as she stared at Mathew.

    The two of them then started moving, their bodies bouncing as they fucked each other.

    The desk they were fucking on creaked with each thrust, the sounds of their bodies pping against each other filling the air.

    The lustful look in their eyes was reced by one of ecstasy, their mouths opening up as they sought each other lips.

    Yet, for how great the experience was already, it was only the prelude to the main event of the day.

    ¡®It should be the time soon,¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing over Carol¡¯s naked shoulder towards the doors to the teacher¡¯s shed. And just like clockwork, the entrance opened up only for Norbert to walk inside.

    ¡°I thought you guys wanted to talk,¡± Carol¡¯s brother said, his face darkening as he did his very best to look strictly into Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    It wouldn¡¯t take a genius to tell he was pretty shaken by what he saw.

    ¡®I know it has to be weird for him¡­ But we have to go through with this anyway.¡¯

    ¡°And here I hoped you would be smart enough to understand what was going to happen,¡± Mathew whined, stretching his hands to the back and then resting them on the edge of the desk.

    Carol didn¡¯t really seem to mind the presence of her brother. She continued to go wild over Mathew¡¯s hips, scraping her own insides with every inch of Mathew¡¯s dick.

    ¡°The hell do you want, then?¡± Norbert asked, squinting his eyes as he somehow managed to ignore his sister¡¯s obvious charms and keep looking straight into Mathew¡¯s eyes. ¡°Are you into incest or something?¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± Carol suddenly tensed up, only to send an intense wave of pleasure down Mathew¡¯s spine when her pussy gobbled up his dick. She then pushed herself as far down and wrapped her hands around Mathew¡¯s neck. She then turned her head around, panting as she pressed her cheek against Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°In case you didn¡¯t know, we are not rted by blood,¡± she casually dropped a bomb, only to let go of Mathew¡¯s neck and reach out for her ass.

    Carol then shamelessly grabbed her buttcheeks before spreading them apart and showcasing her twitching holes.

    ¡°So it¡¯s all okay!¡±

 Chapter 204 Fourth wife (r18)

    Norbert¡¯s eyes widened when he saw his sister¡¯s gaping ass. ¡°Jesus Christ,¡± he muttered, quickly averting his gaze as he felt his cheeks flush red.

    ¡°And as you can see, we are both very much enjoying this,¡± Carol then said, her ent thickening as her orgasm started to build up.

    ¡°I can see that,¡± Norbert muttered, still not looking in the direction of his sister and Mathew.

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you join us?¡± Carol then suggested, spreading her legs a bit wider and tilting her hips back just enough to give Norbert a better angle.

    Her brother was taken aback by the suggestion. He then quickly shook his head in response. ¡°No, I couldn¡¯t possibly,¡± he said, still not looking at the two of them.

    It was clear that even if he consciously understood the consequences of what Carol just said, he was far from actually epting it.

    ¡°And why not?¡± Carol asked, genuinely curious. ¡°Don¡¯t you find me attractive?¡± she then added, spreading her legs wider as she tilted her hips back even further.

    ¡°Of course I do,¡± he quickly replied, his voice barely above a whisper.

    ¡°Then what¡¯s the problem?¡± Carol wanted to know, still not quite understanding her brother¡¯s reluctance.

    ¡°It¡¯s just¡­ It feels wrong,¡± Norbert eventually managed to say. ¡°You¡¯re my sister, after all.¡±

    ¡°But we¡¯re not rted by blood,¡± Carol reminded him, her ent thickening as her orgasm started to grow closer and closer. ¡°And besides, I¡¯m sure we can handle this like mature adults.¡±

    Norbert was taken aback by Carol¡¯s words. He then quickly shook his head in response.

    ¡°Guys, don¡¯t forget, we are not doing it just for fun,¡± Mathew reminded everyone of the true goal of the mission.

    With Norbert in the way, Mathew couldn¡¯t really see into the teacher¡¯s shed. And yet, he could pretty easily feel the staresing out from it.

    ¡°Right,¡± Carol agreed, nodding her head aggressively. She then leaned forward, pressing her chest against Mathew as she invited her step-brother even more eagerly. Her fingers pulled her soft ass open, constantly luring Norbert with the sight of her gaping, hungry hole.

    ¡°Okay, fine,¡± Norbert eventually relented, his voice barely above a whisper. He then took a step forward, only to hesitate for a moment as he looked at Carol¡¯s juicy ass onest time.

    The girl couldn¡¯t help but giggle when she saw the look on her brother¡¯s face. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± she said in her melty voice. ¡°I promise I¡¯ll be gentle.¡±

    Norbert swallowed hard as he felt his dick stirring in his pants. He then nodded his head in response and took another step forward.

    He was now right behind Carol and Mathew, thetter of whom was still busy fucking the girl¡¯s brains out.

    ¡°You sure about this?¡± Mathew asked Norbert one more time just to make sure everyone was still on the same page.

    Norbert nodded his head in response and then slowly reached out for Carol¡¯s ass with one of his hands only to lower his pants with the other.

    When Norbert finally pushed himself inside, Carol couldn¡¯t help but moan in pleasure. The sensation was amazing, her insides being filled with two thick cocks at the same time.

    Mathew, on the other hand, could feel Norbert¡¯s dick pushing against his own from behind. The sensation was new and exciting.

    With both cocks now buried deep inside of her, Carol finally let go and allowed herself to be consumed by the waves of pleasure crashing over her. She tilted her hips back and rode Mathew¡¯s dick with wild abandon, her ass bouncing back and forth in a mesmerizing fashion.

    Norbert, meanwhile, was content to just stay still and enjoy the feeling of being buried deep inside his sister¡¯s ass.

    It didn¡¯t take long for Carol to reach her climax. Mathew followed suit soon after, his body shaking with pleasure as he too reached his climax.

    Norbert, meanwhile, simply pulled out and then quickly put his pants back on before anyone could say anything.

    The cum dripping down his cock as he pulled up his pants was a testimony of just how great he felt, yet the manner in which he rapidly dressed made him look like a teenager embracing depression after jerking off.

    ¡®Moral hungover, I guess,¡¯ Mathew thought, stealing a nce at the man while using his arms to keep Carol¡¯s slumped body on top of hisp. He then rolled his eyes only to move them towards the part of his vision that was locked out for the others.

    ¡®There she is,¡¯ he thought, staring down at a new prompt within his status windows.

    Carol started all the way near the bottom at a measly fourth level. She didn¡¯t possess any ss while her statistics were oriented around her vitality and mind, with some spare points in strength, brawn, and arcane.

    ¡°It¡¯s done,¡± Mathew announced, grabbing the girl by her hips only to pull her up, freeing his manhood from the wraps of her bottom lips. He then smacked her bottom only to help her down the desk and back on her legs. ¡°Congrattions,¡± he then said, a cheerful smile appearing on his lips. ¡°You are now one of my wives,¡± he added, resting his hand on Carol¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Carol smiled brightly, not bothered by the cum dripping down her thigh whatsoever. ¡°But what exactly am I supposed to do with that fact?¡± she then asked, leaning her head over to the side.

    ¡°For now, nothing,¡± Mathew informed, shaking his head to the sides. He then dropped down from the desk himself only to start fixing his clothes. ¡°First, we need to take you to the merchant to raise your level,¡± he then exined only to move his eyes over at Norbert hiding himself in the ssroom¡¯s corner. ¡°And then, I will most likely leave this ce and those willing to fight in your and your brother¡¯s care.¡±

    [Wife #3]

    [Name: Carol Handar]

    [Age: 18]

    [Level: 4]

    [Race: Human]

    [ss: N/A]

    [Status: Exicted]

    [Level ¨C 4]

    [Vitality ¨C 15]

    [Brawn ¨C 5]

    [Agility ¨C 5]

    [Mind ¨C 17]

    [Arcane ¨C 5]

    [Total ¨C 47(0 gifted)]

 Chapter 205 Siblings role

    ¡°So what you said back then,¡± Norbert muttered, raising his eyes at Mathew. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a lie?¡±

    ¡°Why would it be?¡± Mathew asked, opening his eyes wide as the shock kicked in. ¡°I can only go as far. Rather than doing everything by myself, with just my wives to help me out, isn¡¯t it better to put all those survivors to use?¡± Mathew exined his logic. ¡°And since all I can provide normal people with are weapons, you have much greater qualifications to train and organize them,¡± he borated, only to put a respectful smile on his face. ¡°Still, due to theck of offensive skill, I need someone else to keep rein over those people. And with youcking in that regard¡­¡±

    Mathew turned himself around only to look at Carol, currently busy cleaning the cum dripping down her legs.

    ¡°As much as it bothers me, I can see your point here,¡± Norbert then released a deep sigh only to then shake his head. ¡°Okay, tell me more about those weapons you mentioned,¡± he said, taking a deep breath before raising his eyes to Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°If you want me to put in work, I need to know all the details.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m pulling the numbers kinda out of my ass, but ording to my memory¡­¡± Mathew muttered, lowering his chin only to rub it with his hand. ¡°An average weapon would be around twenty-five to fifty cores,¡± he replied after a short consideration. ¡°You could go for good ones, like my saber, for one-fifty cores?¡± Mathew then attempted to recall the correct cost of the weapon.

    With everything that happened over thest three days for everyone and exactly seventeen days for Mathew, the young man had a hard time keeping a track of all the details.

    ¡°And how many would you like recruit?¡± Norbert asked, squinting his eyes as various thoughts bustled in his mind for dominance.

    ¡°As many as there will be volunteers,¡± Mathew shook his shoulders. ¡°Combining all the survivors from both here and the media building, we should have around fifty to sixty people in total,¡± Mathew counted. ¡°Going with the cheaper option and an exact half of them, that¡¯s around fifteen hundred cores in terms of weapons,¡± he calcted only to cross his arms over his chest as he looked up at the officer.

    ¡°Do you really think Carol can fight off all of them if a pushes to shove?¡± Norbert suddenly changed the approach, throwing a stern look at Mathew. ¡°That¡¯s what you wish her to be here for, isn¡¯t it?¡± he then pointed out, raising his right eyebrow.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡°Right now, she is barely stronger than a normal person,¡± he pointed out with all the honesty he could muster. ¡°But while the levels of my group might not be all that high,¡± Mathew said only to reveal a charming smile. ¡°Right now, we could singlehandedly take over this entire city if not for the apocalypse.¡±

    ¡°How confident,¡± Norbert snorted, not really interested in Mathew¡¯s cocky remark. ¡°But that¡¯s not the point I¡¯m trying to make here,¡± he then pointed out, putting his hands on his hips as he shifted in ce. ¡°I have little confidence that Carol can even hold a weapon properly.¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± Mathew cheerfully replied. ¡°How could we expect a normal girl who never held as much as a cane in her hand to suddenly fight off zombies with ease?¡± Mathew then chuckled.

    ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± Norbert barked, annoyed by Mathew¡¯s rxed approach to the topic.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s just that we have a solution for her issue at hand,¡± Mathew shrugged. ¡°And considering the situation you are currently in,¡± he then continued with an even broader smile on his lips. ¡°You might be able to use some of it as well.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Norbert snapped, squinting his eyes as he looked at Mathew¡¯s face from afar.

    ¡°I was referring to my ss system and the weapons I mentioned previously,¡± Mathew exined while waving his hands around in a carefree manner. ¡°If Carol wants to learn how to fight and fight well enough¡­¡± He then stopped himself only to look up into the air as if looking towards something invisible above them all.

    ¡°What?¡± Norbert prompted, squinting his eyes as he waited for Mathew¡¯s reply.

    ¡°Well, first we need to take her to the merchant,¡± Mathew started only to then point at Carol with a cheerful smile on his lips. ¡°Then, we can use my level points to get her some skills that would make it easier for her.¡± He then turned himself around only of which Mathew was unaware of the fact that there were two levels above him in terms of strength and brawn.

    ¡°And with the power of exploiting how insanely rich we are for a beginner, we can raise her level above any rational number,¡± Mathew added with a lovely smile.

    ¡°You sure about that?¡± Norbert squinted his eyes at Mathew. ¡°I doubt you would be able to make her that powerful.¡±

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s not the level itself,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to a few tricks I came across while adding new skills into my system.¡±

    ¡°What kind of tricks?¡± Norbert raised his eyebrow in confusion.

    ¡°Let that be my tiny, little secret for now,¡± Mathew said only to turn his nce towards the teacher¡¯s shed.

    Because now that Norbert didn¡¯t obscure the view, Mathew could see three sets of eyes throwing daggers right into the deepest part of his soul.

    ¡°But for now, let¡¯s go visit the merchant,¡± Mathew then suggested, too wary of his harem¡¯s stares to stay in the ssroom any longer. ¡°Rather than pushing empty words, let me show you.¡± He then averted his eyes before moving towards the teacher¡¯s shed. ¡°And to be fair, I have no idea what skills will she learn, nor what build will she want to go with!¡±

    ¡°Makes sense, I guess,¡± Norbert muttered, clearly not really ready to ept the solution. ¡°But yeah, you are right,¡± he then suddenly admitted only to follow in Mathew¡¯s steps. ¡°It¡¯s better to just see how it will work out.¡±

    ¡°You sure took your time,¡± Nadia then appeared before Mathew, her hands crossed on her chest as her empty smile froze Mathew¡¯s soul to its core.

 Chapter 206 Carols first improvement

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for that,¡± Mathew said, lowering his head in apology. ¡°I just wanted to make sure they knew exactly what they were signing up for,¡± he then added, trying to push at least a part of the me to the situation.

    ¡°Do you really think I was talking about your set of reveals there?¡± Nadia then countered, leaning her head over her shoulder as she tapped her fingers against her elbow.

    For a moment, Mathew found himself unable to find the right words to use. ¡®Just what the hell am I supposed to tell now? That I enjoyed fucking Carol quite a lot?¡¯ Mathew then thought, only to close his eyes and take a deep breath. ¡®Well, I¡¯m a man so it would be weird if I didn¡¯t enjoy it.¡¯

    Mathew could rationalize his own actions all he wanted¡­ but the scar that they left on his girls would remain regardless. And even if they knew it was a necessary step, it didn¡¯t mean they were happy with it.

    ¡°Listen, dear,¡± Mathew finally opened up his mouth and said. ¡°It had to be done. It¡¯s done. Let¡¯s forget about it now, okay?¡± he suggested, ignoring how his words made Carol suddenly twitch.

    ¡°I would love it if that could be so easy,¡± Nadia replied, finally averting her eyes and lifting the pressure she put on Mathew in the first ce.

    ¡°You guys are okay with it as well?¡± Mathew then turned his attention to the other members of his harem.

    ¡°I dislike what happened but it¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to nag you about it,¡± Le said with a shake of her shoulders. Yet, the look of displeasure that she had on her face clearly proved that while her words had some truth to them, she didn¡¯t paint a full picture with them.

    ¡°How about we just drop this topic instead,¡± Daria suggested with a sigh only to shake her hands and thenb them together over her chest. ¡°We still have shit to do, don¡¯t we?¡±

    ¡°True,¡± Mathew nodded his head, too wary of the situation to push it any further. ¡°Let¡¯s go visit the merchant then,¡± he then said, only to move towards the main door that led outside.

    He didn¡¯t need to turn his head around to know what Nadia was doing behind him. He could feel her heated re on the back of his neck as he opened up the door and walked out.

    Just like it was before, the journey down to the autonomous office at the bottom floor of the school passed for the entire group inplete silence.

    ¡°I guess you didn¡¯t want to use the merchant at the top to avoid survivors from seeing the process?¡± Nadia finally struck up a conversation once the group reached the ground floor.

    ¡°Something like that,¡± Mathew replied, averting his eyes as he moved forward. ¡°I don¡¯t want anyone to see how I¡¯m adding skills into Carol¡¯s system,¡± he then exined, knowing full well that his words were all Nadia needed to calm down a bit.

    Still, the look of annoyance on her face made it quite clear that while she understood the logic behind his actions, she didn¡¯t approve of them either. And even if it was mostly just because of jealousy at this point¡­ Mathew didn¡¯t really care as long as they could implement their n without any issues at hand.

    ¡°We are here,¡± Mathew then announced once the group passed onest set of doors. And just like all the times before, the merchant awaited them in silence, calmly standing in the corner of the room while its shadows coiled underneath its hood.

    ¡°Okay, first thing first,¡± Mathew said, turning his face towards Carol. ¡°There is virality, brawn, agility, mind, and arcane,¡± he exined. ¡°They refer roughly to your health, strength, speed, and well¡­¡± he then hesitated only to spread his arms open in a sign of cluelessness. ¡°I¡¯m not really sure what mind and arcane stand for but the mind seems to increase your ability to use magical energy while arcane appears to improve the quality of what you can do with said energy,¡± he exined the basic information about the stats.

    ¡°Okay, I got it,¡± Carol replied while putting on a focused expression on her face.

    ¡°But it all leads to a simple question,¡± Mathew revealed only to look intently at Carol¡¯s face. ¡°How would you like me to raise your stats?¡± he asked. ¡°Right now, your early build is oriented towards health and mind. And while that might mean you have more potential towards those aspects, it¡¯s nothing more but a guess of mine.¡±

    ¡®I alreadymitted the sin of distributing points for the girls without asking them about their preference first,¡¯ Mathew thought, swallowing his guilt along with a mouthful of saliva. ¡®Back then, it was necessary to make the most out of the limited resources we had. But in this particr case¡­¡¯ he thought, keeping his eyes on Carol¡¯s face.

    The girl¡­ didn¡¯t reply right away. Instead, she lowered her face and closed her eyes, taking her sweet time to analyze her options.

    ¡°Raising all the stats equally isn¡¯t the best idea, isn¡¯t it?¡± she then asked, shaking herself off her daze and raising her eyes back on Mathew.

    ¡°No, it isn¡¯t,¡± Mathew replied with a shake of his head. ¡°Let¡¯s just say that your brawn is twice as high as your mind and agility,¡± he then exined the basics of his ss system. ¡°That means you would be much more proficient when ites to strength-based skills whileparativelycking in others.¡± He then pointed at Nadia who stood beside him. ¡°Nadia here is far better when ites to speed, thanks to how many points I invested in her agility.¡± He then finally turned towards Le. ¡°And Le over here has both decent brawn and agility, making her a great all-rounder. On the other hand,¡± Mathew then turned his eyes towards thest girl he officially recognized as his harem member, ¡°Daria¡¯s build is focused on mind and arcane, giving her some seriously insane powers.¡±

    This time around it was Daria¡¯s turn to lower her gaze to the ground and close her eyes as the praise rained down on her head.

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Carol muttered, scanning the faces of all the girls in the office before once again drifting off into the dreand of her thoughts. This time, however, she didn¡¯t take as long.

    ¡°I¡¯ve decided,¡± she then announced, raising her eyes and straightening her back. ¡°You said that my early statistics are focused on health and mind, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    Mathew nodded his head in reply.

    ¡°Then, those are the two statistics I want you to improve,¡± she made her decision and announced it out loud.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± Mathew said, nodding his head once again. ¡°Right now, I have five spare levels on me so let¡¯s start with those,¡± he announced only to squint his eyes before uttering the familiar sentence in his thoughts.

    ¡®I wish to donate five levels to my third wife!¡¯

    [Wife #3]

    [Name: Carol Handar]

    [Age: 18]

    [Level: 4] > [Level 4+5]

    [Race: Human]

    [ss: N/A]

    [Status: Exicted]

    [Level ¨C 4] > [Level 9]

    [Vitality ¨C 15] > [Vitality 30]

    [Brawn ¨C 5] > [Brawn 10]

    [Agility ¨C 5]

    [Mind ¨C 17] >[Mind 47]

    [Arcane ¨C 5]

    [Total ¨C 47(0 gifted)] > [Total ¨C 47(50 gifted)]

 Chapter 207 Too much on Mathews head

    ¡°And?¡± Mathew turned his eyes towards Carol, curious to see her reaction. ¡°How are you feeling?¡±

    In theory, raising one¡¯s level by five wouldn¡¯t bring all that much of a difference. And even though Mathew heavily focused on the girl¡¯s mind statistic, she had yet to grow it beyond what other members of his group already achieved.

    Yet, given how Carol¡¯s level nearly doubled in what appeared to be a single instant, asking her about how she felt about it herself could give the young man some insights.

    ¡°I¡¯m¡­ not sure,¡¯ the girl replied while putting a hesitant look on her face. She then raised her hand to her eyes as if eager to figure out just how much her strength grew.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Mathew repeated his question, moving his eyes toward the girl¡¯s hand.

    ¡°My eyesight,¡± she then admitted and lowered her arm back to her side. ¡°It seems to be better than before,¡± she then said while putting a confused expression on her face. ¡°I mean, it¡¯s not like I was having trouble seeing things before but¡­ how can I exin it?¡± she wondered out loud only to get more lost in thoughts.

    ¡°Mhm,¡± Mathew nodded his head, eager to find out more about the effects of raising one¡¯s level. ¡°Did anything else change?¡± he then asked, hoping for a better answer than what he got so far.

    ¡°Well¡­¡¯ Carol took some time to think before replying. But after a while, she finally lifted her arm and ced it on her stomach. ¡°I feel hungry,¡± she answered while rubbing her tummy.

    ¡°Really?¡± Mathew muttered only to lift his left hand and ce it on top of Carol¡¯s fingertips which were currently resting on top of each other over the girl¡¯s stomach region. ¡°And how much food do you need right now?¡± he wondered out loud only to guess just how much food their bodies actually needed when they reached the state beyond natural human growth.

    ¡®Wait, that¡¯s bad¡¯ the young man quickly realized what was going on when he could feel three separate stares digging into his back. As such, instead of investigating the topic any further, he simply retracted his hand only to lock them over his chest.

    ¡°That¡¯s a pretty weird question to ask, isn¡¯t it?¡± Carol pointed out with a small, awkward smile. She then threw a quick nce at the rest of the girls in the group before taking a step to the back in a futile attempt of escaping the spotlight. ¡°I¡¯m not sure how to quantify it but I feel like I could eat a cow whole.¡±

    ¡°Then our next destination is decided,¡± Mathew then announced, turning around and heading straight for the doors.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Carol twitched, rapidly turning her head around to follow Mathew¡¯s movements. ¡°I can hold on, though?¡± she then protested, a hint of fear appearing in her eyes.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Mathew then asked, turning his head around and staring down at the girl with his eyes wide open.

    ¡°I mean¡­¡± the girl hesitated. She then swallowed a mouthful of saliva only to open her mouth¡­

    And then have her stomach y quite an overture to express its hunger to the wide world.

    Carol¡¯s face flushed with red as she attempted to hide her blush by averting her head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need to eat right away,¡± she finally managed to squeeze a few words that threw some light on what she meant before. ¡°We came here so that I could grow even stronger, right?¡± she then pointed out, only for her face to suddenly freeze in terror. ¡°Or could it be¡­ that that¡¯s it?¡±

    ¡°No, you are correct,¡± Mathew said, closing his eyes for a moment as he took two long breaths to calm himself down. ¡°It¡¯s true that we came here to let you grow even stronger. It¡¯s also true that we are not done with that yet,¡± he exined a little, only to follow Carol¡¯s example and avert his face. ¡°But that brings us to another topic,¡± he said after a short moment. ¡°Just like back about an hour ago¡­¡±

    ¡°You forgot,¡± Nadia said in an exasperated voice only to raise her hand and use it to cover her face. ¡°You forgot that the touching grass feature only exists at the specific merchant,¡± she then borated in a small voice while shaking her head with disbelief.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ right,¡± Mathew admitted to his own faults. ¡°Which is also the very reason why I need someone to take care of this ce from now on,¡± he then added, raising his head and throwing a tense look at the sibling duo. ¡°I can¡¯t handle having everything on my shoulders. You guys could see the effects of that twice already,¡± he pointed out only to pick up his pace and reach out for the doorknob.

    ¡°The trip here turned out to be unnecessary, then,¡± Nadiamented, shaking her shoulders as she followed in Mathew¡¯s footsteps.

    ¡°Maybe yes, maybe no,¡± Mathew replied as a small smile appeared on his lips. ¡®Maybe babe I don¡¯t know,¡¯ he added in his thoughts out of mental obligation before shaking his head and focusing back on the topic. ¡°We learned that a sudden growth in your strength leads to your body craving nutrients to support said growth,¡± he pointed out only to step outside of the autonomous office area and make his way out to the main hall.

    ¡°Where are we going now?¡± Carol asked, clearly uneasy over how her situation turned into such a messy topic.

    ¡°All the way to the top,¡± Mathew replied, only for a wry smile to appear on his lips. ¡°We will have to crawl through that damned shaft,¡± he reminded everyone only to open up a little as he then shared a small grin with the rest.

    ¡°But it¡¯s a price that I¡¯m willing to pay!¡± he said, his soul filling with joy when he finally got a shot at quoting a sentence from the show that he grew up loving as a kid and then nearly worshipped as he grew more mature.

 Chapter 208 Tight space and its rules

    ¡°Were you guys using this path all this time?¡± Carol asked in a whinny voice as she struggled toe up the shaft. Even though there was adder there for an easily essible means of traversing it, it was still fitted in an extremely cramped space.

    Were any member of Mathew¡¯s group considerably bigger, they could potentially struggle with even taking this path up to the top floor.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew replied, making sure to keep his eyes locked on thedder. Even though he was climbing thedder above his new wife, he could tell that looking down could potentially disastrous oue down the line, once he would rest with his harem to sleep.

    ¡°How about making a ropedder and throwing it down the main staircase?¡± Carol then suggested, only to release an exhausted moan.

    The task of climbing thedder was simple. Yet, for someone clearly not used to strenuous physical exercise nor boasting a huge improvement in stamina-rted stats, it was still an exhausting task to climb nearly two floors up adder.

    ¡°That¡¯s not the worst idea,¡± Mathew admitted without much thought.

    ¡°But?¡± Carol then asked.

    ¡°But what?¡± Mathew yed dumb, having no wish to share the details of the small ns he had for the ce. ¡®Even if they are going to be the ones managing it, I should be able to deal with it before getting the entire settlement finished anyway.¡¯

    Just like the young man exined to his actual wives before, it wasn¡¯t that he wished to keep his ns secret. It would simply take too much time and effort only to bear little if any benefit.

    ¡°It¡¯s the way you said it,¡± another girl said from above Mathew. Yet, due to the narrowness of the shaft nowbined with six bodies filling most of the free space within, the voice was too distorted for Mathew to recognize it. ¡°Even though you agreed with her words, it¡¯s pretty damn obvious that you have something more in mind,¡± the voice added only to top the sentence off with a small sigh.

    ¡®I wonder who said it,¡¯ Mathew thought, looking up.

    Contrary to looking down, he felt pretty safe about looking in the other direction. After all, even if Daria, who was directly above him, ended up shing her pants at him, it wouldn¡¯t be anything that she should be embarrassed about at this point.

    ¡°Thanks for letting me know,¡± Mathew said, only to hear the familiar rustling of people crawling out of the hole. Yet, as the hole was small and located in a pretty inconvenient way, it also meant that Mathew soon had to stop in his track, hanging to thedder to his dear life while he waited for the people above to get out of the shaft. ¡°As for the reason, I vaguely remember there is an option to reinforce this building,¡± he then revealed.

    Now that the cat was out of the bag anyway, it was better to just spill the beans rather than stubbornly keep to his earlier decision. Since the circumstances of the situation changed, Mathew had no other choice but to adjust his decision as well.

    ¡°And I hope that doing so will regenerate parts of the building to how it used to be before,¡± he then revealed the crux of his ns without going into extensive detail.

    The situation changed. Mathew was now pretty much pressed to reveal what was going through his mind¡­ But at the same time, this very situation meant that he had no need to lead everyone through the logic that brought him to the conclusion he just shared with everyone.

    After all, Mathew¡¯s people were only interested in said conclusion, not every little hint and detail that brought Mathew to it in the first ce.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m out,¡± Nadia reported given how she was the first to jump into the shaft before.

    ¡°My turn, then,¡± Le replied, quickly jumping through the hole in a pretty reckless and athletically demanding maneuver.

    ¡®That¡¯s the fittest girl in the group for you,¡¯ Mathew thought once he could see delicate rays of light reaching the shaft from the hole, now that there were two bodies less blocking its passage.

    ¡°There we go,¡± Daria muttered to herself, seemingly levitating in the shaft as she calmly turned around. For a brief moment, she didn¡¯t hold thedder with any of her libs, and yet she managed to move up a meter before floating right above the hole in the shaft and then simply sliding through it.

    ¡®Was that her skill?¡¯ Mathew thought, baffled by the ingenious application of it. ¡®Does it mean she can use a part of that monster-like transformation of her when there is little enough light?¡¯ he then attempted to guess, following his habit of looking into the clues about this new, changed world in every tiniest detail he observed.

    ¡°Coming through!¡± Mathew announced once he climbed roughly two meters up. He then stretched his right arm to the side, locking it against the edge of the hole. With his legs still on thedder, he then twisted his upper body to the side, switching his other hand as well. And then, after dropping his legs off thedder and letting them hang freely in the tight insides of the shaft, he simply pulled himself up before pushing his body through the opening.

    ¡°Here,¡± Nadia said, squatting down and reaching out with her hand to help Mathew up.

    Even though the man got up on his own, he still epted the help with a heartwarming smile.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± he muttered, dusting off his pants in a matter of seconds. ¡°Now then, he quickly moved his eyes away from the girl.

    For some reason, seeing her in a slightly unkempt state, with dust covering her clothes and several tiny smudges of the dirt from the shaft soiling her otherwise perfect face¡­

    ¡®It¡¯s making her feel more approachable, for some reason,¡¯ Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva.

    Even though they were theoretically a married couple while being lovers at the core, the young man still faced some struggles to casually approach the girl.

    ¡®Is this the scammer facy?¡¯ he then thought, turning his eyes towards the merchant located right by the massive hole left after exploding the main staircase away. ¡®Well, who cares,¡¯ the young man decided to ignore the topic as he hurried towards the merchant.

    ¡°Okay then,¡± he muttered to himself, reaching out for the merchant¡¯s shadow right away. ¡°I will check some things out and get back before using any of the cores,¡± he then announced, grasping at the shadows before any of the girls could stop him.

    The shadows surged, only for the rest of the usual drill to follow suit. And a single momentter, Mathew stood in the shadowy realm, surrounded by several shelves filled to the brim with various items.

    ¡°And the weapon¡¯s rack is¡­¡± Mathew whispered, looking through the area.

    Even though this was the best merchant, goods-wise, that he could use, for now, it was still a long time since hest visited him. And with that in mind along with all the troubles and guesses that upied Mathew¡¯s memory, it was no wonder that he forgot itsyout!

    ¡°There!¡± Mathew then eximed, once his eyesnded on a shelf filled with weapons of all possible sorts.

    So, without any further hesitation, he stepped forward, ready to push one of his ns a tiny step further.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what would be the best fit.¡±

 Chapter 209 Picking the weapon

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what would be the best fit.¡±

    Mathew muttered to himself, looking through the assortment of weapons. The collection was impressive enough, yet it wasn¡¯t what he was looking for.

    ¡®So, where are the spears?¡¯ he then wondered, disappointed by theck of anything that would fit his needs.

    At least when ites to melee weapons, spears were one of those things that would be considered a ssic choice. Even though they had several disadvantagespared to other options such as swords or daggers, they still had a handful of benefits that made them useful in some situations.

    ¡°There!¡± Mathew then eximed, once his eyesnded on a spear that was ced back a bit further on the rack.

    He quickly stepped forward, ready to grab it with both of his hands. But then he stopped in ce and stretched out only one hand to touch the spear¡¯s wooden shaft.

    ¡®Should I?¡¯ he wondered for a brief moment before shrugging off the hesitation and simply grabbing the weapon with both of his hands.

    Now that he thought about it, there was no point in being afraid of touching things in this realm. After all, even if something bad did happen as a result, who would be harmed by it?

    With that in mind, Mathew lifted the spear off the rack and inspected it more closely.

    ¡°Hmm,¡± he muttered to himself as he looked at its tip which was made out of obsidian instead of metal like most other spears¡¯ tips were. ¡®I wonder why is that?¡¯ he then thought before shaking his head and turning his attention towards other aspects of the weapon.

    ¡°This is not bad,¡± he admitted after examining its shaft which was made out of sturdy wood while also being reinforced with thin leather strips wrapped around it tightly.

    ¡®I initially wanted a sword or maybe a saber,¡¯ Mathew thought, staring at the finely-made weapon in his hand. ¡®But those are definitely way harder to use than a spear, especially for a novice.¡¯

    Mathew then shook his head and raised his eyes towards the usual spot where the shadows of the realm were thickest.

    ¡°How much for this spear?¡± he then asked out loud, toozy to search through a long list of prices attached to the bottom of the rack where he found the spear.

    ¡°A hundred cores,¡± the metallic voice of the merchant replied.

    Its tone appeared to bepletely empty, devoid of any emotions¡­ Yet, Mathew could feel a hint of annoyance in it.

    ¡®I guess asking this kind of question when I can find the answer out myself isn¡¯t the best idea,¡¯ he thought, gulping down a mouthful of saliva.

    If there was anything that Mathew feared in this new world, angering the merchants that enabled him to fight back against the apocalypse was near the top of the list!

    ¡®And now that I annoyed it, I guess it¡¯s not the best time to try to negotiate the price, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ Mathew then thought, only to shake his head and turn his eyes back on the spear. ¡°I will take it, then.¡±

    The spear in Mathew¡¯s hands started to glow. Its shine quickly increased¡­ Only to explode outwards, blinding the young man for a second.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew cursed under his breath. ¡®I will never get used to it,¡¯ he thought, as he rubbed his eyes with his spare hand. Yet, once he opened them back up, he could see what this blinding light attempted to hide.

    Because right now, outside of the spear in his hand, Mathew could see its exact replica back where he found the original one in the first ce!

    ¡°I will test it out and likelye back for more,¡± he announced, ready to leave. Yet, as the young man turned around, his eyes just happened to move past another object that Mathew had a particr interest in. ¡°Oh right, before I go, and I¡¯m sorry for asking in advance,¡± he apologized right in the middle of his sentence, even going as far as to lower his head. ¡°I wish to buy a box with universal food supply.¡±

    ¡°That will be further ten cores,¡± the merchant¡¯s voice announced, only for a middle-sized cardboard box to appear at Mathew¡¯s feet.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure doing business with you, as always,¡± Mathew said, eager to spare some lip service in hopes of slowly improving the rtionship he had with this strange being. ¡°And now, if you could send me back to the real world¡­¡±

    Mathew hardly had the time to finish his sentence before the shadows started to coil around him, turning the merchant¡¯s subspace blurry. It then faded away from Mathew¡¯s view, only to reveal the real world back to his eyes.

    ¡°Is that it?¡± Nadia asked, stumbling on her feet when a spear and a box suddenly appeared in Mathew¡¯s hand and at his feet respectively.

    ¡°I got one to test it out first,¡± Mathew exined, swinging the spear a few times in his hand before passing it over to his first wife. ¡°Also, Carol,¡± he then added, turning his eyes toward the new addition to his harem. He then kicked the box at his feet in the girl¡¯s direction. ¡°Suit yourself.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± the girl asked, jumping back half a step when the box rolled towards her. She then quickly regained herposure only to step forward and squat down before the box. ¡°A gift? A weapon?¡± she asked, raising her eyes from the box to Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°You said you were hungry, didn¡¯t you?¡± Mathew said, leaning his head to the side. ¡°Fill your stomach first. I don¡¯t want you starving out as a result of investing a shitton of cores into your growth,¡± he advised only to turn his eyes towards Nadia.

    ¡°How is it?¡± he asked, raising his hand and pointing at the weapon the girl was ying around with.

    ¡°Pretty good,¡± Nadia reported back, spinning the spear by her right only to suddenly step ahead and lunge forward. She then quickly stepped back, taking the spear for another spin only to stop it right by her side and m its butt down on the ground. ¡°Light enough even for normal humans, easy to use¡­¡± she continued to give her feedback. Nadia then raised her eyes and looked right at Mathew¡¯s face only to then gently nod her head. ¡°For a militia, it¡¯s a perfect suit,¡± she announced only to pass the weapon back to Mathew¡¯s hands.

    ¡°I would like to ask Carol for her own input as well,¡± Mathew then muttered, epting the spear into his own hands only to throw a nce at the girl by their side.

    Yet, seeing how Carol greedily ripped apart entire packs of food only to stuff her face with its raw form, Mathew had no heart to force her to stop.

    ¡°But that can wait, I guess.¡±

 Chapter 210 Final leveling

    ¡°This is awesome,¡± Carol uttered.

    She could hardly catch a breath. Her shoulders moved rapidly to the rhythm of her desperate attempts at refilling her lungs.

    And yet, through all this time, she refused to let go of the spear¡¯s handle.

    ¡°You are not ready to y around with it like that,¡± Mathew said, shaking his head while letting out an exasperated sigh.

    ¡®For how fragile she looks, she sure has a lot of energy,¡¯ he thought.

    After stuffing herself full of fresh food straight from the merchant, Carol refused to go through the process of raising her level again. She proved her guts when she ignored all the murderous stares from the other girls caused by her denial to follow Mathew¡¯s orders. And yet, she was quick to prove the logic behind her choice as well.

    ¡°The people you want to use those weapons won¡¯t have the advantage of higher levels,¡± she pointed out when the push came to shove. ¡°If I want to set realistic expectations for them, I need to know how it feels to wield it while I¡¯m still rtively weak.¡±

    There was no denying the truth behind her words. Yet, because of her decision, Mathew¡¯s entire group wasted nearly thirty minutes waiting for Carol to reach her limits and finish her exercise.

    ¡°Did you have enough?¡± Mathew asked, doing his absolute best not to let the annoyance show on his face.

    ¡®We have so much to do, but we can¡¯t progress before we finish with this ce,¡¯ he thought, closing his eyes while waiting for the girl¡¯s response.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m ready,¡± Carol replied after taking just a little longer to regain herposure. She then raised her back only to end up standing at attention with the spear by her side. ¡°Now that I moved around, I got to digest all the food,¡± she then added with a grin.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, tensing up the muscles in his arm to fight the desire to p himself in the face. ¡®I didn¡¯t think about this at all!¡¯

    The reason why he spent the valuable cores on something as mundane as the food was because he was worried the girl would starve out. Seeing how just a few levels made her reach her limits, he was worried that pushing for the heavy leveling through buying the points for her would bring the girl beyond that edge.

    And yet, Mathew forgot a simple fact.

    ¡®It¡¯s not the act of eating but the fact of digesting it that fills one¡¯s stomach,¡¯ he thought, stumped about how he failed to think about such a simple fact.

    ¡°Very well,¡± he then said, extending his right arm and pointing it straight at the merchant. ¡°Are you ready?¡±

    Rather than discussing the topic that put him to shame, Mathew opted to focus on the task at hand instead.

    ¡°Ready as I can be,¡± Carol replied cheerfully, stretching out her boobs and even hitting the floor with the blunt end of her spear in a makeshift salute.

    Mathew only nodded his head before turning around and approaching the merchant. He didn¡¯t reach for under its hood, this time, aiming his hand at the floating silver orb instead.

    POOF!

    Contrary to transferring to the merchant¡¯s subspace, Mathew wasn¡¯t used to activating this subfeature of the merchant. And he suddenly found himself bathing in the silver light, the young man couldn¡¯t help but twitch.

    ¡®Now then,¡¯ he thought, once the startling moment passed. And then, not wasting any time, he looked towards the disyed status windows of his entire harem.

    ¡®Back when I raised everyone¡¯s level, I added five levels to all three of the girls to¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, only for his face to turn stale when he realized a certain problem. ¡®I can¡¯t really remember why I did that!¡¯

    He used the touching grass feature of the merchant along with a rule as to how he should be purchasing those points. And yet, while he could remember the steps of doing so, the logic behind it eluded the young man.

    ¡®Well, fuck it,¡¯ he then thought, rolling his eyes. ¡®Being efficient or not, I¡¯m still going to pay the same, whether I do it in the right order or not,¡¯ he then realized.

    The entire level purchasing scheme was aimed at making the most out of the cores Mathew had at hand at the given moment. Yet, as the prices of levels didn¡¯t appear to be affected by one¡¯s existing level or any other factors, it wouldn¡¯t matter in the long term if Mathew nailed the best mathematical way of raising the levels or not.

    In the end, after all, those levels would always cost the same.

    ¡®Or in other words, the order of raising the levels only matters if I want to use up all my cores,¡¯ he thought, only for a devilish grin to appear on his lips.

    Mathew then shook his head before reaching out to where he could remember the ess point to the merchant¡¯s storage to be.

    ¡®How many cores do I have left?¡¯ he then asked, once he could feel his consciousness connecting yet another realm.

    ¡°You have eighteen hundred and forty-three cores left,¡± the merchant¡¯s voice replied in its usual, monotone voice.

    ¡®That means¡­¡¯ Mathew then turned his eyes back towards the status window of Carol. Then, he quickly ran the simple math problem through the gears of his mind. ¡®I can give her around ten levels, for eleven hundred cores.¡¯

    For such simple math, Mathew didn¡¯t even need to use a calctor. And yet, he then cautiously pressed his fingers on the arrows disyed on Carol¡¯s status window, counting every click to ensure his math was correct.

    ¡®There it is,¡¯ he thought, smiling nicely when the cost disyed at the bottom of the window matched his own calctions. And then, without any further ado, Mathew confirmed the transaction, wasting more than two-thirds of his entire fortune just to give Carol the means of fulfilling the job he designated her for.

    [Wife #3]

    [Name: Carol Handar]

    [Age: 18]

    [Level 4+5] > [Level 14+5]

    [Race: Human]

    [ss: N/A] > [ss: Mage]

    [Status: Exicted]

    [Level 9] > [Level 19]

    [Vitality 30] > [Vitality 50]

    [Brawn 10] > [Brawn 20]

    [Agility ¨C 5] > [Agility ¨C 15]

    [Mind 47] > [Mind 87]

    [Arcane ¨C 5] > [Arcane ¨C 25]

    [Total ¨C 47(0 gifted)] > [Total ¨C 47(50 gifted)]

 Chapter 211 First mage of the earth

    ¡®So that¡¯s how you be a mage,¡¯ Mathew thought once the changes he picked for Carol applied to her status. ¡®I had a hunch this might be the case, but it¡¯s nice to confirm it,¡¯ he rubbed his chin, ¡®but what exactly is the actual condition for one to get this ss?¡¯

    Carol¡¯s mind level didn¡¯t cross any round numbers that other members of Mathew¡¯s group wouldn¡¯t achieve before.

    ¡®Does one need to get seventy-five points into mind? Or maybe they can¡¯t have any other ss already?¡¯ he attempted to figure out the possible reasons.

    Yet, Mathew didn¡¯t dare to spend that much more time just trying to figure out one, small detail.

    ¡®Contrary to a merchant¡¯s subspace, using this feature does not affect the time,¡¯ he thought, only to shake his head before wishing to leave the bath of silvery light.

    The light that surrounded the young man started to move. It concentrated towards a singr point of space as if something was sucking it in. And in a mere sh, all the light disappeared, forming the ball of shiny light floating above the floor while simultaneously taking down the veil that hid the rest of the world from Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Ugh¡­¡±

    The first thing Mathew heard upon getting back to the real world was an unpleasant sounding from Carol.

    She was currently down on her knees. Her body trembled a little while she kept her hand by her mouth, stopping herself from throwing up.

    ¡°I guess letting her stuff herself full wasn¡¯t the brightest option after all,¡± Mathewmented, trying to use his questionable quality humor to lift everyone¡¯s spirits.

    ¡°I will be¡­ fine¡­¡± Carol uttered through her teeth, still fighting with the convulsions that shook her body every now and then.

    Thankfully, the girl proved to be quite capable, oveing her feeble state in a short moment. Yet, as soon as she finally shook her head before raising it as she attempted to stand up¡­

    Carol froze.

    ¡°What. The. Hell. Is. This,¡± the girl uttered. Her eyes widened in shock as she stared off into the distance.

    ¡®No, that¡¯s not it,¡¯ Mathew quickly noticed the dissonance between his initial observation and the small detail he missed at first.

    While it was true that the girl appeared to look at something far beyond anyone else¡¯s vision¡­ Her eyes moved way too quickly to track something far enough. What¡¯s more, there were hardly any windows in the area they were in and Carol didn¡¯t even try to bring her eyes close to any of them.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Mathew suddenly eximed when a simple idea appeared in his thoughts. ¡°Let me guess,¡± he started the conversation with a knowing smile. ¡°You can see a bunch of windows with text, don¡¯t you?¡±

    Carol froze in a single instant. She then slowly turned her head to the side, resting her widened eyes on Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°How did you¡­¡± she whispered, her voice full of disbelief. ¡°How did you¡­¡±

    Mathew couldn¡¯t help but let out a small chuckle, unable to contain his amusement.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± he said once he realized Carol actually appeared to struggle with words for the first time in the few days he knew her. ¡°While I don¡¯t know what you see, I do see a fair share of things that others do not.¡±

    Mathew summed up his words with a simple shrug of his shoulders. For him, being able to not only observe but also interact with the system windows was a norm.

    ¡®And yet, I can somehow understand why she was so startled, even if she knew about the system¡¯s existence since a while ago.¡¯

    ¡°The text says that I can now control four basic elements at the expense of my mana¡­¡± Carol then revealed with a straight face.

    ¡®Oho?¡¯ Mathew raised one of his eyebrows a tiny bit. He then covered his baffled expression with a gentle yet superior smile. ¡®How much of this is true, I wonder,¡¯ he then thought, refusing to ept the girl¡¯s words at their face value.

    Contrary to the rest of his harem, Carol had no ce in Mathew¡¯s ns for the direct future of those around him. Her role would be important, yet as she would fulfill by managing the school, she couldn¡¯t follow Mathew and his girls on their frontier adventures.

    ¡®I already announced I would give her a lot of autonomy. As such, she might not be too interested in revealing her entire hand all at once,¡¯ the young man warned himself, perfectly aware of his natural human drive not to analyze the situation too deeply.

    ¡°It also says that the easiest method to control this new power of mine is to assign each spell Ie up with a mix of words and gestures that wouldter be necessary to activate the said spell,¡± Carol continued to reveal her hands.

    Whether it was naivety, pure desire to set herself bare before Mathew, or maybe just an attempt at hiding the important parts by revealing ones that bore no significance¡­

    Mathew couldn¡¯t tell.

    ¡°That¡¯s great,¡± Mathew finally spoke up after giving Carol ample timeframe to speak her own mind. ¡°Now, I believe we should focus on two things,¡± he then said, ready to stop wasting time on the topic they dealt with already.

    ¡®It feels like we barely woke up and I can tell there are only a few hours of daylight left,¡¯ Mathew thought, a wave of anxiety rising through his soul.

    ¡°How should we proceed, then?¡± Nadia asked while stepping forward to enter Mathew¡¯s direct line of sight.

    ¡°First, Norbert,¡± Mathew said, turning his eyes towards Carol¡¯s sister who silently followed them ever since the event on the lower floor. ¡°I need you to take Carol west of the ruins to help her test her new abilities,¡± he announced only to turn his eyes towards his second wives. ¡°I want the two of you to kidnap a few zombies and hold them at bay within the barrier,¡± the young man said only to turn his eyes towards Norbert.

    ¡°I need you to keep an eye on them as well. If something happens, hit me up immediately.¡±

    ¡°It will be done,¡± Norbert finally spoke up, nodding his head as he epted his role in Mathew¡¯s ns.

    ¡°What about me?¡± Nadia then asked.

    She appeared to be full of confidence¡­ yet Mathew could see the telltale signs of restlessness that sunk into her body.

    After all, despite being the first wife, she would be, for some reason, thest to receive her assignments.

    ¡°You are going with me, dear,¡± Mathew replied, turning his eyes towards his lover and smiling gently.

    Then, a hint of viciousness appeared in his eyes.

    ¡°I need someone to cover my back while I exin the new reality to the survivors!¡±

 Chapter 212 Who doesnt work, doesnt eat

    ¡°He is going to kill half of us now, trust me,¡± a voice reached Mathew¡¯s ears as he moved deeper into the open space of the floor.

    ¡°I bet he will turn all the girls into his sex ves¡­¡± another one joined the choir of the former students.

    They were all cuddled up in the corner of the open space, as far from the broken areas as they could. Yet, even though there were several ssrooms that they could turn into their living space, it appeared as if they didn¡¯t seem happy with such an obvious idea either.

    ¡®Well, who am I to judge how they live in this shitty world?¡¯ Mathew asked himself, ignoring all the whispers as he approached the survivors and stood his ground.

    ¡®They are terrified,¡¯ he then thought once taking his time to slowly scan all of their faces.

    Mathew could see the girls that were used by the vicious group of students on the first day. He could see some of those vicious students trying to hide as far away from him as possible too.

    ¡®There are less than thirty of them,¡¯ he thought, only for his expression to darken. ¡®Less than half appears to have any predisposition forbat, and even less than half of those are trustworthy enough to provide them with weapons.¡¯

    Mathew¡¯s silent judgment was as quick as it was harsh. Yet, in the reality they all found themselves in, the young man had no wish to appear merciful at the cost ofpromising the safety of both his people and his ns.

    ¡°Everyone, listen up,¡± Mathew finally spoke out once he made sure that no survivor appeared to harbor any vile thoughts. ¡°Contrary to what I can hear you guessing, I¡¯m not here to pick some infants to eat for breakfast,¡± he said, only to cross his arms on his chest as he shook his head to the sides in fake disbelief. ¡°But yeah, I¡¯m going to make your life much harder from now on. So unless you fear hard work or do not wish to contribute in exchange for all the resources I wasted on you already¡­¡±

    Mathew gave the crowd a momentary pause to let them slowly digest his words. Yet, cutting his sentence on such a threatening note as he did, Mathew allowed the tension to rise up as well.

    ¡°Unless you are either of those two kinds of people, you generally have nothing to fear,¡± he then revealed, spreading his arms out as if to showcase just how obvious this was.

    ¡°Ummm¡­¡± one of the girls sitting roughly in the middle of the group fearfully raised her hand. ¡°Excuse me¡­?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡± Mathew nodded his head as he looked towards the girl with a calm, neutral expression on his face.

    ¡°What are you going to make us do?¡± the girl asked, her hand barely moving any higher than her head. Yet, even while curled up as she was, her body still trembled as she spoke out.

    ¡°It¡¯s simple,¡± Mathew said, attempting to calm both the girl and everyone else by speaking in a in voice. ¡°I¡¯m going to put you all to work. I¡¯m not going to punish you if you refuse to help, so you don¡¯t need to worry about that,¡± he then added, finally saying enough to burst open the ball of the survivors¡¯ anxiety and give them some peace of mind.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to provide for anyone who cks off, though,¡± Mathew then quickly added.

    ¡®ying on the bnce between hope and desperation¡­¡¯ he thought, urately judging the truth behind both his words and then their pacing. ¡®Am I turning into a viin or something?¡¯

    ¡°But I guess that doesn¡¯t satisfy your question, does it?¡± Mathew then openly smiled while keeping his eyes on the one girl that proved to be the bravest of the crowd. ¡°In short, I need five people to volunteer for a hunting unit. Everyone else will be turned into workers tasked with cleaning, fixing, and then improving this ce to turn it into a proper fortress.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s n was simple.

    With the current amount of cores in his hand, he could only afford to equip five fighters. While this number could be increased bypromising on both the quality and the type of weapon he would choose for them, the young man hardly saw any point in wasting cores on something that would be too weak to be of any use.

    ¡°And what if someone has usable skills?¡± one of the guys that didn¡¯t belong to the group from the first day spoke out.

    ¡°And what it is that you can do?¡± Mathew bounced the ball back, genuinely happy to hear the question.

    After all, for more than half of the workers, he already had a future in mind. Yet, as it would onlye true once they would go beyond the stage of just establishing fortresses, he saw no point in revealing the truth just yet.

    ¡°I can cook really well,¡± the young man stood up as he answered, only to turn his right hand into a fist and then m himself squarely on his chest. ¡°And I mean, REALLY well,¡± he then added.

    ¡°Good,¡± Mathew replied with a smile. ¡°Then, from now on, you are tasked with cooking for everyone.¡±

    The whole area then turned silent. It appeared as if the girl and the young man duo managed to sap all the courage the survivors here had in them.

    ¡°Oh, I forgot to mention,¡± Mathew smiled at everyone, only to steal a nce towards his back to where Nadia stood.

    Sensing his nce, the girl took a step forward, stopping only half a meter away from Mathew¡¯s back. And then, before Mathew could even say another word, she openly rested her right hand on the handle of her saber hanging down from her side.

    ¡°The hunters will receive two times as many resources as the normal workers. People with a specialization,¡± Mathew turned his eyes to the young man from before, ¡°like our new cook or,¡± he then turned his eyes towards the junior that helped hime up with a mathematic form for leveling up earlier, ¡°our new ountant,¡± he said, only to suddenly turn silent.

    ¡°Fifty percent more than the workers sounds reasonable, I think,¡± Mathew then added after a short while only to then move his eyes back to their neutral position, trying to take the stock of the changes happening to every survivor¡¯s face.

    ¡°And those who refuse to work?¡± a voice from the crowd reached Mathew¡¯s ears. And due to him trying to look at everyone at once, the owner of the voice somehow managed to avoid Mathew¡¯s attention.

    ¡°It¡¯s like I said before,¡± Mathew said with a smile only to feel Nadia pressing her chest against his back as she came even closer. ¡°They won¡¯t receive a thing and will be free to do whatever they want¡­¡±

    Mathew then raised his chin and released a small chuckle.

    ¡°They will be free to do whatever they want, but won¡¯t be allowed within the areas under my control anymore.¡±

    Mathew allowed another moment for his words to seep deep into everyone¡¯s soul. Yet, right as he was about to open up his mouth, massive mayhem sounded from the direction he sent Carol and Norbert to.

    ¡®I guess if it¡¯s the start or the conclusion of Carol¡¯s training,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to roll his eyes and then bring them back on the crowd. ¡°Now then, do we have any volunteers for the hunting squad?¡±

 Chapter 213 Pussies all around

    ¡°I wish to apply,¡± one of the male survivors stood up the moment Mathew¡¯s words rang out. ¡°I wish to be a hunter,¡± he said, looking straight into the young man¡¯s eyes.

    ¡®Why do you wish for that?¡± Mathew then asked, leaning his head to the side as a small smile emerged on his lips.

    ¡°I¡­ huh?¡± The student initially failed to answer, taken aback by the sudden question. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want five volunteers?¡±

    Mathew¡¯s smile grew just a tiny bit bigger than before.

    ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± he said, nodding his head. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m willing to ept everyone,¡± he pointed out, leaning his head over his other shoulder. ¡°That¡¯s why I will ask again. Why do you want to join the hunting squad?¡±

    This time, the first volunteer didn¡¯t answer right away. He moved his eyes to the side instead, raising his arm to scratch the side of his head.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Mathew¡¯s former ssmate then opened up his mouth, only to fail to properly exin himself. Yet, before long, he moved his eyes back before locking them right on Mathew¡¯s face. ¡°Early bird gets the worm, doesn¡¯t it?¡±

    Mathew raised his eyebrows upon hearing the answer. He then inhaled some air through his nose¡­

    Only to end upughing out loud.

    ¡°Hahaha¡­¡± he didn¡¯t hold hisughter back at all. ¡°Well, you are right, I will give you that,¡± he finally admitted as he raised his hand to wipe a single tear from his eye.

    ¡°Does that mean¡­¡± the man was quick to push the topic, unwilling to let it go now that his hunch was confirmed.

    ¡°First off, what¡¯s your name?¡± Mathew asked, ignoring the question that his former ssmate failed to finish.

    ¡°Oh,e on!¡± the man protested, leaning his head to the back. ¡°We were together in the ping pong group in the first year and now you im you don¡¯t know my name?¡± he protested. Yet, seeing how Mathew remained silent and motionless, the guy quickly conceded.

    ¡°It¡¯s Frank,¡± he said.

    ¡°Good,¡± Mathew finally opened his mouth again. ¡°While I can¡¯t say you will be chosen yet, I will make sure Carol will consider your candidacy,¡± he promised only to turn his eyes away from Frank and move them back to the rest of the survivors. ¡°Is there anyone else interested in this job?¡±

    This time, however, no further volunteers came forth.

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Mathew muttered, lowering his chin as he took some time to think. Yet, when he raised his face again, all the sympathy and kindness disappeared from his expression, reced by a cold, emotionless look. ¡°Then, I guess you guys should know that if I won¡¯t have at least four more volunteers, I will personally pick the people I believe are suited for the task.¡±

    Despite Mathew¡¯s threat, no one dared to raise their hand, stand up or apply for the job in any other way.

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Mathew then repeated himself, only to shake his head. ¡°Onest thing before things will get ugly,¡± he stated right as his lips twisted in an evil grin. ¡°Look at the people around you. The guys to the left, the girls to the right,¡± Mathew suggested, ignoring the fact that the survivors before him didn¡¯t really follow any arrangement when gathering on the spot.

    Thankfully, despite their reluctance to ept the risky job, they at least followed Mathew¡¯s words.

    ¡°Is this really necessary?¡± Nadia whispered in a hushed voice, one just loud enough for Mathew and only Mathew to hear.

    ¡°It is,¡± Mathew replied. ¡°If they don¡¯t get their act together now¡­¡±

    ¡°Then they will never have a chance to survive?¡± Nadiapleted his words.

    Mathew nodded his head without saying a word, only for Nadia¡¯s expression to turn into one of doubt.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I understand what you are trying to aplish with this,¡± she then said. ¡°You want them to band together? To fight for survival?¡± she asked, looking straight into Mathew¡¯s eyes as if attempting to find some answers there.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want them to do anything,¡± Mathew replied, no longer keeping his voice low. ¡°They have to grow up and take the reins of their life,¡± he exined. ¡°And at a current rate, they are all going to die in two weeks tops.¡±

    Mathew¡¯s logic was simple. With the rate at which the zombies evolved and grew in power, it was only a matter of time before the fortress barrier would be insufficient to keep them at bay.

    ¡®The very fact that I can improve the level of this barrier is enough evidence to back up this im,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth in annoyance.

    Because of how distressing it was, Mathew was currently out of options.

    Everything he said, every seemingly stupid order that he just gave was nothing more but his bid at buying more time.

    ¡®If no one elsees forward, I won¡¯t have any other choice but to start picking them at random,¡¯ he thought, doing his absolute best to keep his face free of the signs of emotions that stormed in his soul.

    ¡°What¡¯s cooking in here?¡± a new voice suddenly entered the scene.

    Mathew turned around, only to see Carol and Norbert returning from their tiny exercise. The girl was sweating all over as if she just finished a damn marathon¡­ Yet, despite the obvious hints of how exhausted she was, she had a wide smile of satisfaction on her face. Coupled with the firm grip in which she held her spear as if it was some sort of mage¡¯s staff, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but be genuinely impressed by the power of her entrance.

    Yet, as Mathew¡¯s eyes moved over to Carol¡¯s brother¡­

    ¡®Why is he terrified?¡¯ Mathew couldn¡¯t help but ask, only having his habit of keeping silent about his thoughts to thank for not letting this question out of his mouth. His surprise died out soon after, leaving him with the only logical answer to the question. And as Mathew¡¯s eyes gravitated toward Carol again, the realization struck him.

    ¡®Is she so powerful to make Norbert, someone who saw more than any of us, look like a frightened puppy?¡¯

    Mathew then shook his head, stopping himself from getting sidetracked.

    ¡°I¡¯m picking the people for your unit,¡± Mathew then exined as he answered Carol¡¯s question. ¡°I expected at least some of them to have balls so that I could give you some choice¡­¡± he said, only to shake his head in exasperated disbelief.

    ¡°But they are all pussies who only know how to act strong around those weaker than them,¡± Carol concluded before Mathew could even reveal the progress of his task. Then, an evil grin appeared on her lips as she stepped forth, passing by both Mathew and Nadia only to stop a single meter away from the first line of survivors.

    ¡°Not all of them,¡± Mathew managed to say right as the girl raised the de of her spear to point it out at the crowd and opened up her mouth. ¡°We have one real volunteer,¡± he then added, beckoning at Frank to stand up.

    ¡°Him?¡± Carol asked. She then turned her eyes to the one volunteer who took the hint and stood up. ¡°Well, he will do. Then,¡± she muttered only to start moving the tip of her spear around, pointing at different people in the crowd, seemingly at random. ¡°You, you, you and you,¡± she said, not wasting any time carefully thinking about the selection process. ¡°From now on, you are under my care,¡± she said only to turn around and look at Mathew. ¡°Is that enough?¡± she asked.

    ¡°We still need to pick the leader for the workers, someone whom you will borrow your strength to give him authority to oversee all the work,¡± Mathew said, only for a cheeky smile to appear on his lips. ¡°But worry not,¡± he added as he turned his eyes towards a specific junior of his that caught his attention yesterday.¡±I already have someone in mind.¡±

 Chapter 214 No idea for the title, sorry

    Bang! ng! Kaching!

    ¡®I never thought that metal and concrete can make so many different noises,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a look behind his shoulder where the four unlucky hunters and one volunteer swung around the spears that Mathew provided them with. Yet, rather than striking them down against zombies, they continued to mash them into the rubble left on the topmost floor, pushing it down the massive hole in the middle of the entire floor.

    ¡°Faster!¡± Carol shouted in a deep, perfectly wrathful voice. ¡°This trash does not move so why the fuck do you hesitate?!¡± she scolded the man nearest to her like some sort of seasoned drill sergeant.

    ¡°To think that she would be such a great fit,¡± Mathew muttered under his nose, bringing his head back to its natural position only to observe how the very same junior that came up with the leveling scheme was now doing his very best to manage all the other survivors with just his feeble voice alone.

    ¡°Come on guys, I know it¡¯s not fun but we still need to clean this ssroom!¡± he cried out,cking as a leader in every way one could possibly attribute to the role.

    Just like Mathew assumed before, the two ssrooms that the survivors had ess to in the part of the floor they were in were used for two distinctive purposes. One served as the toilet with a makeshift pool of shit created from stacked-up desks and chairs while the other room served as both the storage for their supplies and a dining room.

    Yet, with Mathew¡¯s ns for the fortress, they were now tasked with the unpleasant job of clearing all of it up so that those two rooms could be given a real purpose.

    ¡°You will never get them to work hard like that,¡± Carol said, suddenly appearing by her schoolmate¡¯s side.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Mathew¡¯s junior jumped when the girl appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, by his side.

    ¡°I was told to help you out, so watch and learn,¡± Carol grinned when seeing the reaction of the feeble nerd from the same school year as her. ¡°Hey,¡± she then shouted, turning her attention to the rest of their surviving schoolmates who clearly couldn¡¯t put any heart into their shitty work. ¡°I don¡¯t give a fuck whether you are a girl or a man!¡± the girl screamed out from the bottom of her lungs. She then mmed the butt of her spear against the floor. ¡°If those ssrooms are not cleaned out perfectly by the sunset, you lot will all sleep in the one you picked for a fucking bathroom!¡±

    Mathew raised his eyebrows.

    Ever since he gave power to this junior of his, she continued to positively surprise Mathew over and over again. First, with her eagerness to be of use, then by her talent to order others around, and now, with how easily she managed to achieve what her year mate failed to do at all.

    Hearing Carol¡¯s threats made all the survivors that she didn¡¯t pick for the hunting squad suddenly start working.

    ¡®The question is, how much of this enthusiasm will be left once she turns her eyes away and goes back to training her team,¡¯ Mathew pondered, stealing a nce at the junior of his that was supposed to be the leader of all the workers.

    ¡°I¡­¡± the young man muttered, only to lower and then avert his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t really have the ability to make them work,¡± he said, tightening his fists as he lowered his head in preparation for his own share of scolding.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Mathew said, waving his hand over how little he cared about the topic. ¡°Do you think I knew how to fight when I first stood face to face with a zombie?¡± he then asked, keeping his eyes on the survivors rather than pressuring his junior by staring him down. ¡°Or do you think that any of my girls were the kind of crazy fighters when they had to pick up their own weapons?¡±

    The young man¡¯s eyes inevitably moved over to Carol, who by now was back to overseeing her hunting squad. He then moved his eyes back and brought them up to Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°Well, yeah,¡± this time it was Mathew¡¯s turn to avert his eyes. ¡°Carol appears to be pretty much special,¡± he admitted, ncing over at the girl currently insulting the entire lineage of the very man that was the only one to volunteer for the job.

    She was happy to have someone join her squad of their own volition. But that didn¡¯t mean Frank wouldn¡¯t get his fair share of dragging through the mud.

    ¡°But I have faith in you,¡± Mathew then said, turning back to the young man who was still looking at him with a mixture of disbelief and hope on his face. ¡°You are the first person from our year toe up with an idea so bright it temporarily blinded me,¡± he admitted, patting over his shoulder. ¡°Trust me when I say that you have more potential than anyone else.¡±

    The younger boy¡¯s eyes started glowing after hearing such wordsing out of Mathew¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Now go,¡± Mathew ordered as he took one step back, wanting to give the kid some space to himself.

    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± Mathew¡¯s junior replied. The few words of praise that Mathew offered apparently sufficed to lift the young man¡¯s spirits, reigniting his desire to prove himself that was buried under the thickyer of anxiety.

    ¡°And with that said¡­¡± Mathew muttered, escorting the back of his underling with his eyes for a moment before turning around and taking a look out of the window. ¡°I guess I will have to hurry Carol up a bit,¡± he then added, watching how Daria and Le continued to run in circles by the ruins of the southern wing, chased by the few zombies that they managed to kidnap.

    For now, everything that Mathew wanted to achieve within the school fortress was now either done or in the process of beingpleted. Even the zombies for training the hunting squad awaited to meet their fate, currently busy with Mathew¡¯s girls.

    And that meant only one thing.

    ¡°Carol!¡± Mathew shouted, not moving an inch from his spot by the window.

    ¡°Yes, my dear husband?¡± the girl replied, appearing by Mathew¡¯s side right away as if she wasn¡¯t a mage but a damned sprinter.

    ¡°I won¡¯t bother toment on that husband part,¡± Mathew replied, only to shake his head and then point at the courtyard with a prod of his chin. ¡°Get your people ready. I need to free the two of them so we can go out, and I don¡¯t feel happy with the idea of letting those five zombies roam freely around the school.¡±

 Chapter 215 Baptism of blood (part 1)

    ¡°Are you for real?¡± Carol protested Mathew¡¯s n. ¡°They are¡­¡± she added in a loud voice, only to nce over her back for a second and then turn her tone down to a mere whisper. ¡°They are not ready yet!¡±

    Rather than waiting for the hunting squad to get familiar with their weapons by striking pieces of rubble down the hole, Mathew pulled them all along as soon as he ensured the workers knew what to do. And now, after taking some time to get everyone down to the ground floor of the school, he had no other choice but to listen to Carol protesting his decisions.

    ¡®At least she is wise enough not to do it out loud,¡¯ Mathew thought while the girl continued to whisper her opinions in a voice just loud enough for him to hear yet silent enough for it not to reach the hunting squad tagging behind them.

    ¡°Okay then,¡± Mathew said out loud once he reached the edge of the southern wing where the proper school building turned into a field of ruins. He then turned around on his spot and faced the future hunters that followed closely behind. ¡°Just beyond those ruins, all of you will have to go through the baptism of blood,¡± he announced.

    Even though the hunting squad consisted only of five members and Carol, a noiseposed of all of them either gasping for air, clenching her teeth, or whispering the prayers reached his ears right away.

    ¡°In other words, I need you to go and kill the few zombies that my wives brought within the barrier,¡± Mathew then announced, only to nce over his shoulder as he looked past the ruins in search of what he just brought up.

    Yet, be it ack of luck or a simple coincidence, the ce where Daria and Le continued to y tag with the six zombies they kidnapped wasn¡¯t visible yet.

    ¡°You guys can train all you want, but not a single one of you has any experience of fighting the zombies,¡± Mathew then said, resting his hands on his hips as he looked past everyone¡¯s faces, eager to see whether someone in the squad was dumb enough to challenge his words. ¡°Right now, you guys believe them to be some sort of monsters, unkible entities, a product of nightmares,¡± he said only to shake his head and breathe out.

    ¡°But that¡¯s not what zombies are at all. And today, all six of you need to learn this simple fact by hand,¡± he then added only to turn back towards the ruins before taking a step through the opening in the barricade that he set up with the girls all the way back in the first day of the apocalypse.

    ¡°All six of us? Doesn¡¯t that means that she didn¡¯t kill any either?¡± Mathew heard a whisper from one of the hunters, clearly aimed at Carol.

    ¡®I know it¡¯s not a good idea to reveal how Carol is the same as them¡­ But I need her to realize this fact as well,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he struggled to move through the ruins at a pace slow enough for the others to keep up. And a mere few minutester, a short window of time that extended nearly into infinity in Mathew¡¯s personal perception, the group finally reached a point where they could see the zombies Mathew¡¯s wives kidnapped.

    The girls were leisurely jogging in a circle, talking about something to each other while a group of roughly ten zombies continued to do their very best to catch them.

    ¡®This is the first lesson,¡¯ Mathew thought.

    He didn¡¯t even need to turn himself around and steal a nce at the hunters to see how baffled they were by this sight.

    In their experience, zombies were this unavoidable threat that one could only escape from. And yet, right before their eyes, they could see a small group of them¡­ struggling to keep up with a leisurely jog of the girls!

    ¡°Oh, you guys are here!¡± Daria shouted once she took notice of their presence. She then raised her hand and enthusiastically waved it at the group. ¡°About time, you know?!¡± she shouted only to take a nce over her shoulder at the zombies who struggled to move any faster than an old man with a cane.

    Their flesh was already rotting. All of them had some of their bones broken with only two of the zombies keeping all their limbs up to this point.

    In other words, they weren¡¯t anywhere close to the image of zombies that the newbie hunters had in their minds about them.

    ¡°Now then, every zombie is worth between one to five points,¡± Mathew announced, not bothering to turn towards the hunters this time. Instead, he brandished his weapon and stepped down from the ruins, finally revealing himself to the zombies. ¡°And by the end of the day, I want everyst one of you to amass at least a hundred points.¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t wait for the reaction of the hunters, opting to step forward first. And as an effect, the zombies that saw no other targets than the two girls suddenly found a new potential source of human meat they craved.

    ¡°Right now, as long as you guys stop pissing your pants, you will be able to deal with all of them¡­ all on your own,¡± Mathew announced only to rest the dull side of his saber over his right shoulder before topping in his tracks and turning his head towards the hunters. ¡°But just for convenience¡¯s sake, let me show you how it¡¯s done first.¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t bother to waste any more words of his. Instead, he leisurely walked towards the small group of zombies with his weapon still resting on his shoulder.

    Step by step, he got closer to the undead. Step by step, the zombies continued to crawl their way forward. By the time only about three to four meters separated the young man from his nearest opponents, the zombies started to reach out, ready to grab and then consume his flesh.

    And so, Mathew took a single step forward with his left only to swing his right hand and slice the nearest zombie from its right shoulder to its left hip. His de went through the rotting flesh and weakened bone as it would through butter. Yet, rather than pushing forth and fluently transitioning to another attack to keep the onught going¡­ Mathew retreated.

    ¡°Whoever scores the most points against those will get the bonus of the points from the zombie I just downed,¡± he announced only to turn around and jog back toward the rest of the ruins. ¡°Oh, and before I forget,¡± Mathew spoke up as soon as he reached the group while turning his eyes toward Carol. ¡°In this fight, you are banned from using your magic.¡±

    ¡°Wha¡­?!¡± Carol opened up her mouth wide, ready to protest Mathew¡¯s decision again.

    ¡°You need to feel how it is to kill a zombie,¡± he announced. ¡°Not safely from a distance but with your own hands and weapon,¡± he exined only to turn around again and steal a rxed nce at the zombies steadily approaching the group.

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know about you guys, but fighting with zombies in front and those messy ruins to your back¡­ I don¡¯t think this is the best option,¡± he added only to raise his hand and inspect the state of his fingernails.

    ¡°¡­¡±

    Not a single of the hunters reacted. Not even Carol dared to make the first move.

    ¡®She might have received a massive boost to her power, but she still has yet to feel how easy it is to fight those zombies off,¡¯ Mathew thought while releasing an inner sigh.

    ¡°L-let¡¯s go!¡± Frank suddenly shouted, raising his spear above his head. His voice was full of reluctance, his teeth gritted against each other. And yet, he still charged forward, unwilling to let the others take the lead in the situation.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so hasty!¡± Mathew shouted after the man. ¡°Rather than speed, what you need in this fight is patience!¡± he yelled his advice, only for the rest of the hunters behind him to finally cut the ck and follow suit.

    ¡°Nadia, dear,¡± Mathew then whispered, finally addressing the silent figure that followed him without a word ever since he created the hunter¡¯s unit.

    ¡°Yes, my dear husband?¡± Nadia replied with a smile and in an openly mocking tone.

    ¡°Keep them safe, would you?¡±

 Chapter 216 Baptism of blood (part 2)

    The hunters reluctantly rushed forward.

    They didn¡¯t interact with Mathew much but they already knew him more than enough to know they didn¡¯t really have any other choice.

    Frank took full advantage of the initiative he took. After running for a moment, he heeded Mathew¡¯s advice and buried his feet in the ground. He slid for a bit only toe to aplete stall. Yet, rather than just holding his ground, he firmly stood on the ground before fixing his hold over the weapon.

    And then, with a simple, swift move, he pushed both of his hands forward, thrusting the spear right into the head of the nearest zombie.

    The undead itself walked right into the de,cking the intelligence necessary to avoid the attack. And as the de went right through its skull, it twitched once¡­ and then stopped moving for half a second before slumping down and falling to the ground.

    ¡°Pull the de out!¡± Nadia shouted, jumping only to kick Frank away, saving him from the two zombies that paid no heed to their fallen brethren and continued their slow advance.

    For a second, it appeared as if Nadia would have no other choice but to cut down some zombies to make her escape¡­ Only to prove everyone¡¯s expectations wrong when she skillfully avoided three different zombies targetting her, dancing right between their stretched-out limbs and avoiding even the tiniest injury.

    ¡°Back to you, guys,¡± she then said with a smile before retreating to the back while keeping her eyes on the situation.

    The hunters charged forward. And as they shed with the undead, they quickly realized that fighting zombies was not as difficult as they initially thought.

    The zombies were slow and their attacks easily predictable. As long as the hunters avoided getting surrounded, they had little to no trouble taking them down one by one.

    It didn¡¯t take long for the newbies to fulfill the baptism of blood that Mathew scheduled for them, sessfully taking down all the zombies within the group.

    ¡°Hahaha!¡± Frankughed out loud once he confirmed that no zombie managed to survive the ughter. ¡°I can do this all day!¡± he then eximed, eager to prove his worth to the cause and thus potentially score some brownie points with Mathew and Carol.

    ¡°Yeah, you can do it all day in here,¡± Mathewmented, rolling his eyes over the man¡¯s naivete. ¡°But what about a situation when there won¡¯t be anyone like Nadia to keep you safe? What about the situation when you will end up swarmed by a horde of zombies?¡±

    All the hunters initially shared Frank¡¯s enthusiasm. Yet, as Mathew¡¯s words dawned on them, they quickly came to realize that the reality wasn¡¯t as forgiving as they saw it in this specific, controlled scenario.

    ¡°Guys, I¡¯m harsh with you because I don¡¯t want you to grow arrogant. You did well cleaning those few zombies,¡± Mathew said, pointing at the small pile of corpses left to rot on the ground. ¡°But once we will go out, things will take a massive turn for worse,¡± he added, taking a look towards the gate himself.

    ¡°Wait, do you mean to say we are already going out?¡± Carol grew up from out of nowhere by Mathew¡¯s side, once again ready to challenge his decisions and authority.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Mathew confirmed the girl¡¯s worst expectations. ¡°But for the rest of today, you won¡¯t be hunting alone,¡± he announced only to turn his eyes towards Daria and Le watching the show from a safe distance.

    ¡°Girls!¡± Mathew shouted.

    The two of them first turned their head toward each other only to both nod their heads a little. And then, they rushed forward, running up to Mathew only to drop on one knee and lean forward, mming their fists against the ground.

    ¡°We are ready and willing to serve, sir husband!¡± they then screamed out in unison, proving that the entire act was well-through and prepared.

    ¡°¡­What?¡± Mathew was left baffled, not expecting this kind of y at all. Yet, between him and the hunters who witnessed this scene¡­ there was no denying that he ended up having it easy.

    ¡°Look at him, having them be so subservient to him,¡± one of the hunters muttered, clearly not aware of Mathew¡¯s improved hearing as his voice easily reached Mathew¡¯s ears.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t they popr beauties too?¡±

    ¡°I wish I had a girl like that too¡­¡± someone else admitted.

    ¡°They are with him way longer¡­ is that why Carol is the way she is?¡± someone else noticed a valid point.

    ¡®So that¡¯s what it was all about,¡¯ Mathew thought, closing his eyes as a wave of respect washed through his soul. ¡®They noticed how Carol didn¡¯t follow up my words without question and came to make a huge show out of it!¡¯ he realized, using nearly all of his willpower not to end upughing out loud.

    What he considered a silly y actually turned out to be a valid social tactic, or so Mathew was led to believe by the reactions of Carol¡¯s very own group of hunters!

    ¡°Rise up,¡± Mathew ordered, opting to y along with the girls¡¯ little ploy. ¡°You did well kidnapping those zombies,¡± he then praised the girls only to sheathe his saber, take a step forward and rest his hands on each of the girl¡¯s shoulders. ¡°I will make sure to reward you once the nightes,¡± he then added, only to ignite even further mes of jealousy and enthusiasm in the men within the hunter¡¯s squad.

    Mathew then took a step back before turning his eyes toward the hunters.

    ¡°A time wille when you will be core members of the highest ss within the society we will build on the ruins of this city,¡± Mathew then addressed the hunters with a sly smile on his face. ¡°And I don¡¯t think I need to articte how will that affect your chances of gettingid as you wish,¡± he then added, shamelessly ignoring all the cultural theory about love and sex that everyone would otherwise have to consider.

    And a sound of all the men gulping down their saliva in unison that followed Mathew¡¯s statement was enough of a proof that his words brought the result Mathew desired.

    ¡°For now, though, let me exin the rules of your work,¡± he then smiled before taking a step towards the zombie corpses before smashing one of the skulls with a swift stomp of his foot. Mathew then squatted down and plucked the core hidden within the zombie¡¯s brains out only to then stand up and sh it at all six of the hunters, Carol included.

    ¡°Are those¡­¡± Carol muttered. As the one who already saw the power of the cores, she was better off than everyone when it came to understanding their true worth.

    ¡°Those cores are the true currency of this world. And to make it easier for you, let¡¯s call them points. ¡°And just like I said before. I expect all of you to harvest at least a hundred points worth of cores every day,¡± Mathew then announced, only for his smile to turn vicious. ¡°And trust me, this is the worst part of the deal!¡±

 Chapter 217 Unsavory deal

    ¡°Worst part of the deal?¡± Carol said, repeating Mathew¡¯s words while leaning her head to the side. ¡°What exactly do you mean by that?¡± she then asked, squinting her eyes as a hint of suspicion appeared deep in her pupils.

    ¡®I guess I managed to surprise her quite a bit,¡¯ Mathew thought, a small smirk hanging at the edge of his lips. ¡®Still, it¡¯s astonishing how quickly I got to wipe that smug attitude of hers away,¡¯ he then added before himself only to shake his head and refocus on the topic at hand.

    ¡°Every spear that you guys hold is worth a hundred cores,¡± Mathew said out loud, directing his words not to Carol alone but toward the entirety of the hunting squad. ¡°I picked them because of a few reasons. They are easy to use for beginners. They are of pretty good quality¡­ but most of all, they are all rtively cheap,¡± he said only to allow an open grin to appear on his lips. ¡°But the fact that I call them cheap, means they are cheap in my eyes. And once we get out of the gate, you guys will understand that it¡¯s not that easy to gather a hundred cores for a single spear, not to speak about six hundred I used to get one for all of you.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± Carol nodded her head as she rolled her eyes. ¡°You used a lot of resources on us, resources that you don¡¯t really have any to spare. Sail to the shore, sailor,¡± she added in a slightly condescending tone, clearly trying to build up her authority within the hunting squad at the cost of their respect toward Mathew. Yet, what she likely didn¡¯t notice with her eyes, even if it was obvious to anyone involved, was the instant look of scorn that her words earned her from the rest of Mathew¡¯s wives.

    ¡®Should I call her out on this¡­?¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a fraction of a second to analyze his situation. ¡®I can¡¯t allow her to uproot my own authority within the survivors,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth only to take a quick breath as he ultimately opted to keep the topic aside for now. ¡®There will be more than enough time to beat obedience into her once we get to real hunting.¡¯

    ¡°I can see where you areing from, but that wasn¡¯t the reason why I¡¯m speaking about all of this at all,¡± Mathew then repelled Carol¡¯s usations, pretending as if not a single word of hers rang true. ¡°Getting a single spear for you guys cost me a hundred cores. Now, add the daily cost of about fifty cores that goes into food, water, and utilities within the school that support both you and the rest of the survivors¡­¡± Mathew left his sentence open, making it obvious that he could go on and on if that was his desire. ¡°But I¡¯m diverging from the point I want to make. What I really want you guys to understand is that those spears in your hands¡­ are just the beginner¡¯s set I got for you.¡±

    ¡°I hope that doesn¡¯t mean they are going to have better weapons than us,¡± Nadia muttered from a single step behind Mathew¡¯s back. ¡°I mean, if we didn¡¯t use all of our resources to set up the fortresses, we could afford much better arms, wouldn¡¯t we?¡±

    Mathew heard Nadia¡¯s words and acknowledged them with a quick nod. Yet, he didn¡¯t bother to reply to her words just yet.

    ¡°From now on, just like I told you before, I expect each and every one of you to obtain at least a hundred points worth of cores per day. What¡¯s more, half of the cores that you gather beyond that will be taken aspensation for all the stuff my group provides you with.¡±

    The instant Mathew finished his sentence, he could see a wave of discontent washing over everyone¡¯s faces. No one liked the idea of taxes, after all, no matter how logical they were. And given how, save for Norbert silently tagging along, there wasn¡¯t a single adult in the group, they had no prior experience of actually paying said taxes, something that the government of the old world made sure to make as a-transparent as possible to avoid upsetting the public.

    ¡°It sounds harsh, I know,¡± Mathew nodded his head, acknowledging the unrest that his words created. ¡°I do believe that once you think about it, it will start to make sense. So rather than exining it right now, let me move on to the sweeter parts of the deal,¡± he then proposed, despite having no intention of doing otherwise, even if requested.

    ¡°What good coulde in such a skewed-up deal?¡± one of the hunters muttered just loud enough for Mathew to hear, instantly causing the entire group to shut up.

    What was quite interesting, was how Carol instantly dropped her attitude towards Mathew, throwing the perpetrator an instant murderous look.

    ¡°With the cores that you guys will be left to your name, you will be able to request the purchase of better weapons,¡± Mathew then announced, only to rest his hand on the handle of his saber before pulling it out and taking a few swings around. ¡°This baby costs me a quarter of a thousand cores. And after checking out those spears of yours¡­¡± Mathew said, only to allow a small smirk to the surface of his lips, impervious to the unsettlingment one of the hunters gave. ¡°And no matter how much you look at it, it¡¯s far better than just being two and a half times stronger than your spears.¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t bother to continue the topic, for now, opting to approach the nearby corpses instead. He then beckoned at Frank to approach as well, only to pass him his very own de before pointing his hand at the nearest head of the zombie.

    ¡°I saw you struggle to pull out the de of your spear after piercing it through a zombie¡¯s skull,¡± Mathew pointed out what he saw with his very own eyes. ¡°Try to do the same with this de,¡± he then ordered only to take a step back and cross his arms over his chest.

    ¡°Uhmm¡­ sure?¡± Frank hesitated only for a second as his masculine side quickly took over, filling Mathew¡¯s schoolmate with tion at holding a clearly powerful piece of a de.

    Frank then took a deep breath to calm himself down before opening up his eyes wide and sending his right leg forward, stepping up as he thrust the saber straight into the nearest skull.

    Despite his movement being several grades below what Mathew himself was capable of, the saber still disyed no signs of struggle or effort as it pierced right through the thick bone at the front of the zombie¡¯s skull, offering no resistance when Frank pulled the weapon back either.

    ¡°This is¡­¡± the man then stood in ce, staring wide-eyed at the now bloodied de. Only after a considerable moment of sheer admiration did Frank shake himself out of his daze. He then used the bottom of his shirt to clean the blood off the de before respectfully passing it back to Mathew.

    ¡°This is the power of a weapon just a single grade above your spears,¡± Mathew said as he epted the de only to sheathe it right back to his side. ¡°True, it was seasoned with zombie¡¯s blood, but still,¡± he smiled, ¡°it¡¯s just a single grade better than your spears.¡±

    Mathew heard a murmur of several voices washing over the group of hunters. This time, however, it had no hints of dissatisfaction in it. Yet, rather than rejoicing at how sessful his persuasion appeared to be, Mathew took a quick nce towards the sun, only to bring his eyes right back on the hunting squad.

    ¡°But that¡¯s it for the exnations. We are running out of time and I want you all to gain some real experience before the sun will set,¡± he announced only to turn around on the spot and march towards the gate of the school¡¯s fence.

    By the time Mathew traveled the short distance that separated him from the main entrance to the school grounds, all three of his wives already found themselves to be right by his side, ready to support him in whatever action he would endeavor at.

    ¡°We are going to clean up most of the zombies by the gate so that you can safely get out and join the hunt,¡± he said, not caring in the slightest for the possible fear and hesitation of the hunters. ¡°And with that said,¡± he added, only to rest his leg against the wing of the gate, ¡°I hope you guys are fucking ready,¡± he said, before kicking forth and inviting hell into the safety of the school fortress.

 Chapter 218 Battle at the gate

    The wings of the gate swung open, throwing the zombies right by it out of bnce.

    Such was the force of Mathew¡¯s leisure kick.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Mathew shouted, rushing in to make the most out of the momentary confusion that his action caused within the horde gathered by the school¡¯s barrier. And just like he said, he did.

    Mathew kept his saber resting on his shoulder for the first few steps that he made, traversing the space opened up by the swinging wings of the gate. Only when he reached just a single meter away from the nearest zombie did he pull his hand down, swinging the de of his weapon down at the unlucky zombie.

    Just like when he showcased the power of his weapon to the hunting squad, Mathew¡¯s de sliced the zombie with ease. Be it flesh or be it bones, it was all the same when faced with a quality weapon supported by the powerful force of Mathew¡¯s swing.

    Mathew swung his saber down. Yet, contrary to how he did it just a moment ago, this time he twisted his wrist before pulling it up, slicing the next zombie from its crotch up.

    The hit itself was aplete failure. It failed to reach the one vital point of the zombie nor did it render it immobile. Yet, for the purpose of the current excursion, slicing off the entire left side of its bottom half was actually perfect.

    ¡®Now that we have a cleaning squad behind us, we don¡¯t need to kill all the zombies with a single swing,¡¯ he thought, moving his attention towards the next zombie.

    Yet, before Mathew could swing at another enemy, two of his girls rushed right past him, eager to join in on the fun.

    Yes, fun. Because with no evolved monsters in sight, ying this entire horde wasn¡¯t even a challenge for them anymore.

    ¡°Kill them all!¡± Nadia shouted when she leaped forward. She flew right past the first few rows of the zombies that were quickly starting to gather by the gate, softlynding in a less congested area. Nadia then bent her knees to kill the momentum of her drop. She also swung her saber sideways, cutting at the knees of the few zombies that were in front of her.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get too excited!¡± Le shouted over, mming her body right into the area where there the zombies gathered.

    For a normal person, this would be a suicide move. Yet, even though Le instantly had to pay for her recklessness with several scratches, she didn¡¯t appear to mind the cost at all.

    Several zombies managed to bring their hands, ws, teeth, and broken bones to her skin¡­ but this was the ultimate reward they could get. Contrary to everyone else in Mathew¡¯s group, Le was right in her element when surrounded by tightly packed enemies.

    ¡®This surely does look encouraging,¡¯ Mathew thought when chunks of rotten meat started to fly all over the ce from where Le joined the fight. With the saber in one of her hands and the machete in the other, she wouldn¡¯t waste a single movement of her body, shing and cutting with everything she had.

    Even though not a single zombie within the horde was strong enough to be her opponent, she gave the fight her all nheless.

    ¡°I will just help you out,¡± Daria then said in a meek voice, reaching Mahtew¡¯s side and cutting the few zombies that attempted to move around his side and nk him. ¡°I can¡¯t really be as shy as the two of them in the daytime, after all,¡± she then added, intentionally keeping her face away from Mathew¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°There is nothing to be ashamed about,¡± Mathew encouraged the girl, shing the head of the nearest zombie only to kick away another one, swirl on hisnded foot, and cut across the chest of yet another one. ¡°We are all doing whatever we are best at,¡± he then added, only to cut at thest of the zombies in his direct proximity.

    With Le and Nadia cutting down the zombies several meters ahead, Mathew alone was enough to keep their numbers by the gate rtively constant. And with Daria now doing her best to keep his back safe, the number of zombies that managed to get close to the open gate quickly started to dwindle.

    ¡°Guys!¡± Seeing that his group managed to get the situation under control, Mathew turned around. ¡°It¡¯s your turn to join now!¡±

    The squad of hunters has yet to join the fight. And it wasn¡¯t something that Mathew could find fault with them for.

    After all, there was a massive difference between cutting down a limited number of zombies within the safety of the school¡¯s barrier and fighting off an actual horde with no real protection to hold their numbers down.

    ¡°Come on, you cowards!¡± Carol shouted, only to proceed to push and kick the men that failed to break free from chains of fear right away. ¡°Do what you are here to do!¡± she screamed from the bottom of her lungs.

    ¡°Guys,e on!¡± Frank quickly joined, rushing forward himself.

    ¡®This guy¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing at the man in between cutting down the zombies that mindlessly wandered within the reach of his de. ¡®Isn¡¯t he actually quite good for a random survivor?¡¯

    Mathew saw scores of people like Frank in his first run of the apocalypse. That is, he saw them during the first three days, only for their number to quickly dwindle as wave after wave of zombies approached the school.

    ¡®Back then, people like him had no support whatsoever,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth at the mere feel that the unsavory memory brought him. ¡®But now, it¡¯s different,¡¯ he thought, cutting down a group of three zombies and letting Daria finish the two more that followed. And within the short break that this quick skirmish granted him, he nced to the back¡­

    Only to see Frank finally reaching the frontline of the battle only to pierce his spear right into the skull of a zombie that managed to sneak past Mathew.

    ¡°Die!¡± Frank shouted, forcing his spear to the back only to take a step to the side and swing it around, using it like a polearm to smash the side of the head of another zombie nearby.

    ¡®It¡¯s good to see that there are some quality people within this group,¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his eyes back to his own proximity only to ward off what appeared like a coordinated attack of two more zombies.

    Mathew stepped forth, lunging forward only to trust his saber into the head of the nearest one. He then retracted his weapon with a quick pull, only for Daria to finish off the other zombie before Mathew could even attempt to cut it down.

    ¡°No problem,¡± Daria said with a small grin only to recover her weapon and take a step back, obediently falling back to her role as Mathew¡¯s support.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Mathew nodded his head, turning his attention back to the zombies in front. ¡°At this rate, we will be able to¡­¡±

    Yet, before Mathew could finish his sentence, his entire body froze.

    And in a single instant, he could sense a massive projectile flying right above his head only to crash right into a group of seven zombies several meters ahead.

    ¡°I¡¯m here too!¡± Carol shouted with a crazed look in her eyes.

    She stood a few meters behind the gate with several pebbles the size of a football floating above her. Yet, rather than relying on throwing chunks of earth at zombies, she somehow invoked fires around her hands only to then coat the ze over her earthy projectiles.

    ¡°And I will burn them all!¡±

 Chapter 219 Casuality...?

    ¡®This idiot!¡¯ Mathew opened up his eyes wide.

    He noticed what Carol was doing toote to stop her. And as such, he could only watch how she raised her hands, and with an unhinged look on her face, she shoved them forward.

    Following her movements, the burning stones that the girl created flew forth. They passed right through the school¡¯s barrier with no trouble only to loop around the first few rows of the zombies before crashing right into the sides of the horde.

    BOOM!

    As if someone threw out a stick of dynamite, Carol¡¯s projectiles exploded into hundreds of pieces, each of which continued to burn any and all that was unlucky enough to stay in its path.

    ¡®Does she want to burn an entire district?!¡¯ Mathew screamed out internally. Yet, rather than just whining about the situation, he turned around on his feet. ¡°I¡¯m leaving this ce to you for a sec,¡± he informed Daria only to bolt back toward the safety of the school¡¯spound.

    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Carol screamed out from the bottom of her lungs, already forming a new set of projectiles.

    ¡°STOP IT, YOU FUCKING IDIOT!¡± Mathew screamed out,nding right by the side of the girl.

    And then, without any hesitation, he sent his fist right toward her stomach.

    It was soft. As soft as it was as when he gripped it only about an hour prior.

    Yet, the softness that Mathew enjoyed quite a lot before now turned into a fatal w.

    ¡°Gheeee¡­¡± Mathew¡¯s attack squeezed all the air out of the girl¡¯s lungs, instantly distracting her and forcing the girl to lose her focus, dropping her shards of earth and stone back to the ground. ¡°Do you want to burn this entire city down?!¡± he then screamed out right in her face.

    ¡°Haaa¡­¡± Carol let out all the air from her lungs as she fell to her knees. She then prompted herself on her hand, unable to keep herself stable even when kneeling down.

    ¡°You can use those stones all you want, but don¡¯t go overboard. What will you do if this barrier won¡¯t hold against fire that you could cause?¡± he scolded the girl, only to turn right back on the spot.

    Mathew¡¯s detoursted only for a few seconds but it was more than enough for the zombies at the gate to quickly start overwhelming the defenses consisting of Daria and the newbies from the hunting squad.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± Carol uttered in a surprisingly meek voice once she managed to recover herself from Mathew¡¯s physical scold. ¡°I¡­ I didn¡¯t think about that.¡±

    ¡°You better do in the future,¡± Mathew replied in a cold tone only to rush right back towards the gate.

    He ran forth, readying his saber as he ran.

    ¡®I was away only for a second but it¡¯s already bad,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth only to use the momentum of his dash to kick the zombie that made it the furthest inside thepound right back into the horde.

    Mathew¡¯s kick ended up heavy enough to throw the screeching zombie back¡­ and then topple several more of them when they crashed into each other.

    ¡°Right in time,¡± Dariamented half-heartedly, too focused on warding off the attacks of several zombies at once to properly address her husband.

    ¡°Sorry for that,¡± Mathew said, brandishing his de and cutting through the zombies the girl was fighting with.

    ¡°AARGH!¡± a desperate scream then reached from his side.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew cursed in his thoughts, leaving Daria to her own devices again only to rush towards the voice and cut open the head of the zombie whose teeth sank into the shoulder of one of the hunters. ¡®Tsk,¡¯ he clicked his tongue, kicking the properly dead corpses away only to turn around on the spot and send his foot right into the injured hunter¡¯s stomach, sending him flying through the air back towards Carol. ¡°Cauterize the wound!¡± he shouted, only to realize the problem with his order.

    In the heat of the moment, using high-end words like that was akin to not giving orders at all.

    ¡°Burn his shoulder out!¡± he then screamed out again, only to rush ahead, making his way right into the crowd of zombies.

    ¡®If the fire will stop the spread of the virus, there might still be enough time to save that guy,¡¯ he thought, making his way through the zombies by shing left and right, seemingly without any real n.

    ¡°Nadia! Le!¡± he then shouted once he got close enough to the girls ahead. ¡°We need to retreat for now!¡± he then shouted, only to turn right back and start cutting his way through the zombies that already managed to fill the hole he made when pushing forth.

    ¡°On it!¡± Le shouted back. On the other hand, Nadia simply appeared right by Mathew¡¯s side, proving that not even a horde could stop her from freely moving around.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Nadia asked in a bathed breath, too busy cutting down zombies to utter more words in a sentence.

    ¡°We got a casualty,¡± Mathew replied, stopping in his tracks to avoid four different zombies grabbing at him only to then push ahead as soon as said zombies lost their stability and thus rendered themselves unable to attack again for a short while.

    ¡°That sucks,¡± Nadia admitted right as the two of them passed by the open wings of the gate.

    ¡°Can you close the gate on your own?¡± Mathew asked shortly, turning around to check Le¡¯s progress.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Nadia replied right away. ¡°Go and try to help the poor guy. If we lose someone right away, no one will dare to go hunt again,¡± she then proved that she understood what Mathew was really worried about.

    In the world of apocalypse, death turned from a sad novelty into a depressing reality of one¡¯s everyday life. And for the nearly twenty days of the apocalypse that Mathew survived through, he grew more than numb to the notion of losing friends andpatriots.

    ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± Le shouted a momentter once she dropped down right by the two of them. ¡°We will take care of the gate, you can go!¡± she then shouted, only to turn around on the spot and start grinding through the iing zombies.

    ¡°Thanks!¡± Mathew shouted only to turn around on the spot and dash toward Carol. ¡°How is he?¡± he then asked, taking a quick look at the guy lying down by the girl¡¯s feet.

    ¡°He lost consciousness so far,¡± Carol reported. The look on her face made it clear that in the current situation she left the former conflict aside, focusing on the actual problem at hand. ¡°But he didn¡¯t turn yet,¡± she then said, only for the poor hunter¡¯s body to start trembling as if to spite her words.

    ¡°Hold him down for now,¡± Mathew then ordered, turning himself towards thepound only to bolt forward. He ran as fast as he could only to use the ruins as a stepping stone before jumping up and towards the window on the second floor. ¡®The merchant allowed me to help Nadia,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth while midair only to then tense his body up to prepare for the impact. ¡®That means, there is still hope for that guy!¡¯ he thought, right as his body mmed into the ss of the window, shattering it into thousand pieces.

 Chapter 220 Zombie Cure One

    BANG!

    The ss of the window shattered, allowing Mathew inside the building. Yet, as he fell down on the floor, the shards of the broken ss¡­ did absolutely nothing against his skin reinforced by all the stats leveling he went through so far.

    ¡®I need to hurry,¡¯ he thought, scraping his feet against the floor as he rushed ahead, bursting through the closed doors of the ssroom as if it was nothing only to run down the corridor.

    A short hiketer, Mathew arrived at the usual spot only to slide inside the hole in the wall. His movements were so rapid that he actually failed to grab the rails of thedder, falling down a good meter before his hands finally managed to grip the support.

    ¡®Faster,¡¯ he thought, climbing up thedder. ¡®Faster,¡¯ he urged himself, sneaking through the upper opening in the tunnel only to roll down on the floor of the topmost floor of the building. ¡®FASTER!¡¯ he internally screamed out, rushing ahead and reaching out for the darkness coiling underneath the merchant¡¯s cape.

    The shadows surged around him, separating him from the reality that he knew and immersing him in the subspace he was already familiar with.

    ¡°Do you, by any chance, have any antidote for the zombie virus?¡± Mathew asked right away, even though there was no further need for him to be in any hurry.

    After all, within the merchant¡¯s shadowy realm, time flew in a different way than it did in the outside world.

    ¡°The first level of the zombie cure can be purchased for fifty cores,¡± the metallic, emotionless voice of the merchant filled the shadowy realm just as it filled Mathew¡¯s soul with relief.

    ¡®So it exists,¡¯ he thought, taking a deep breath and slumping down to the shadowy floor.

    ¡°Do you wish to purchase it?¡± the merchant asked, not showing any signs of empathy even though Mathew¡¯s shoulders were trembling.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Mathew replied almost instantly. ¡°Yes, I wish to purchase it,¡± he then repeated only for his vision to start blurring as a notification window popped up right in front of him.

    *Do you wish to buy Zombie Cure [1] for 50 cores? Y/N*

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew shook in his ce. ¡®What the hell?¡¯ he then asked himself, confused to the end of his wits.

    It was the first time for the merchant to actually use the system features to propose a purchase!

    ¡®Does that mean¡­¡¯ Mathew took a moment to think only to then raise his eyes and look towards the usual spot where he imagined the core of the merchant to reside. ¡°Is it possible to find this particr item anywhere on the shelves I can see?¡± he then asked, unwilling to just ept his own guess for this particr topic.

    Because in the situation he was in right now, the value of the zombie cure was of massive significance.

    ¡°Zombie Cure belongs to a special grade of items and as such cannot be disyed for the customer to see,¡± the merchant then replied, finally giving Mathew the one thing that he constantlycked in this new, changer world.

    A proper confirmation for his guess.

    ¡°Then, I wish to¡­¡± Mathew started to speak, only to cut his sentence short.

    ¡®Isn¡¯t it going a bit too easy?¡¯ he asked himself as a feeling of suspicion roused at the bottom of his soul. He then gulped down his saliva before taking a deep breath and opening his mouth again. ¡°Does this zombie cure one¡­ No, how does this zombie cure one works?¡±

    This time, the merchant didn¡¯t reply right away.

    Mathew felt a cold sweat trickle down his spine, even though due to his tight clothing it wasn¡¯t something physically possible.

    Seconds extended into minutes. Minutes appeared to turn into hours¡­

    ¡°The zombie cure one stops the growth of symptoms of the zombification.¡±

    Mathew closed his eyes and lowered his head. He then took a few breaths, doing his best to calm himself down. Then, he once again pried his eyes open and looked up toward the merchant¡¯s core.

    ¡°Then, how much does zombie cure two costs, and how does it work?¡± he asked.

    The merchant was an entity that Mathew considered to be more or less objective and fair. And unless he himself wasn¡¯t trying to cheat it out of the cores it desired, the merchant didn¡¯t appear to have any will toward making things hard for the young man.

    And yet, right at this moment, Mathew realized just how shrewd it actually was.

    ¡°The information is currently blocked. You need to advance your general level to unlock it,¡± the merchant then informed, saving Mathew the long wait he had to endure before.

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Mathew then replied, standing up from the floor and stretching his body out. ¡°Then, I wish to purchase the zombie cure one,¡± he informed, only for a wicked smile to appear on his lips as he opened them up again. ¡°What¡¯s more, do you by any chance have a long rope in stock?¡±

    ¡°You can purchase a ten-meter-long rope for the price of five cores,¡± the merchant replied. ¡°As you could see by actually checking out the stock disyed on the shelves,¡± it then added in a voice containing a slight hint of annoyance.

    ¡®I guess I¡¯m pushing my luck by asking about everything,¡¯ Mathew realized. And then, just like the merchant pointed out, he actually moved towards the shelves present within the realm,bing through them for a moment before finally figuring out the location of the item in question. ¡°Is it possible to deduct the cores directly from my storage?¡± he then asked, raising his eyes from the rope in his hands towards the merchant¡¯s core.

    ¡°It can be done.¡±

    ¡°Then, I want to purchase this rope using the cores left within my storage,¡± Mathew said.

    The rope that acted like a somehow interactable hologram in his hands suddenly materialized properly.

    ¡®I have everything I need,¡¯ Mathew thought as a small smile crept up on his lips. ¡®Now all that¡¯s left is to hope that it will work,¡¯ he thought, taking his time to wrap one end of the rope around his hips before securing it with a simple yet quite unbreakable knot. Yet, before leaving, Mathew reached out with his hand towards the merchant¡¯s core¡­ and just waited.

    This time, the merchant didn¡¯t waste its words on its customer. Instead, it somehow invoked the usual y of blinding light that then receded only to reveal a small syringe lying t on the top of Mathew¡¯s palm.

    ¡°I wish to leave,¡± Mathew then announced, bending on his knees as he turned around and oriented himself towards where he expected the nearest window to be back in the original world.

    The shadows surged and coiled and then the entire realm fell apart, throwing the young man back to the real world.

    Yet, rather than taking his time to calm down, Mathew instantly rushed ahead. He ran forward, bolting towards the nearest window. Yet, rather than jumping out of it right away, he used the momentum of his run to smash his elbow into the ss, shattering it in nearly the same way as he did to the window on the second floor. Then, using the frame of the window as support, Mathew wrapped the other end of his rope around it. A few movements of his handster, another knot made its appearance, securing the point of contact between the rope and the school¡¯s building.

    ¡®Now, all that¡¯s left is to hope the window won¡¯t break,¡¯ Mathew thought, saying a prayer in his thoughts right as he stepped up on the window¡¯s edge before jumping right down into the abyss below.

 Chapter 221 Desperate rush

    Mathew jumped out. And for a fraction of a second, he became the freest man in the world.

    The winds surged past his ears, they pushed against his eyes. And after the short moment of extreme liberation, the rope Mathew wrapped around his hips tensed up before digging hard into his flesh and stopping only when it coiled around his bones.

    ¡°Ugh,¡± Mathew uttered a pained sigh when his freefall stopped, reced by the torture of the rope threatening to cut him in half. Yet, for how awful of a feeling it was, the rope did its job of stopping Mathew¡¯s fall and forcing him back toward the building¡¯s wall.

    Thump.

    Mathew¡¯s feet struck the wall, transfering some of the force of his jump to his knees. And after another instant of torture of the bacsh caused by his jump, Mathew finally stabilized roughly four additional meters above the ground.

    ¡°You served me well,¡± Mathew muttered, releasing his de only to cut himself free of the rope with a single sh.

    Mathew entered a freefall for yet another fraction of a second only tond down on the ground and roll forward, alleviating some of the force of his drop with a forward roll.

    ¡®It worked,¡¯ he thought as a tiny hint of relief spread throughout his body.

    But this wasn¡¯t the time for Mathew to fully rx. Not yet.

    ¡®I better get going,¡¯ Mathew thought, raising up from the ground only to bolt forward in the direction he could hear the fighting still going on.

    ¡°On three!¡± a familiar voice of one of his wives reached the young man¡¯s ears. ¡°One¡­ two¡­ THREE!¡±

    Mathew passed by the edge of the eastern wing of the schoolpound right as the girls attempted to close the gate. And while he wanted to observe their valiant deed, he had no time to do so.

    ¡®Please, let me be on time,¡¯ he thought, rushing past two of the hunters desperately fending off the attacks of at least thirteen different zombies.

    And yet, contrary to how Mathew expected the fall of one of theirpanions to affect their morale¡­ they actually stood strong.

    ¡°Don¡¯t let them pass you!¡± Frank shouted, directing the efforts of the hunting squad at slowing down the advance of the zombies that made it past the line of Mathew¡¯s wives. ¡°As long as they are in front, we can stop them!¡±

    Frank¡¯s voice was devoid of fear and full of determination.

    His face wasn¡¯t filled with courage, though. It had nothing but cold determination reflecting on it as he continued to stab his spear forward only to then violently pull it back and then repeat the process.

    ¡°I¡¯m back!¡± Mathew shouted, sliding thest few meters that separated him from Carol and the fallen hunter. When he left, the unfortunate victim of a zombie¡¯s attack was starting to tremble. And now, there was foam forming all over his mouth while his body rocked up and down, with nothing but Carol¡¯s feeble frame pinning him down to the ground.

    ¡°Right in time,¡± Carol whined heavily, unable to even turn her head to face Mathew in fear of her hold failing to keep the man pinned down. ¡°Hurry up¡­ please,¡± she then moaned, right as a powerful jerk of the unfortunate hunter nearly knocked her off him.

    ¡°Go to sleep!¡± Mathew screamed out from the bottom of his lungs, pinching at the cover of the syringe¡¯s needle only to then stab its tiny de right into the man¡¯s throat.

    Whatever was causing people to turn into zombies would turn their innards into a disgusting mush, something that Mathew could see in the uncountable number of zombies he brought down. Contrary to that, their brains would remain roughly the same as before, with the exception of an energy core forming inside of them. As such, whatever magical syrup was inside the syringe, had to be delivered as near the brain as possible.

    ¡®And I don¡¯t think stabbing him in the eye is a reasonable thing to do,¡¯ Mathew thought, pressing the cylinder of the syringe and pumping all its content into the poor hunter¡¯s bloodstream.

    The man shook violently on the ground. His jerk was so powerful that he finally managed to shake Carol off him. His hands wed down at the ground¡­ And then, all his violent symptoms came to an end, as if some sort of a magical wave washed the curse off his soul.

    ¡°Did it work?¡± Carol asked, not minding the bruise caused by her unexpected fall to the ground. She ignored how unlucky she was for her cheek tond right on one of the few stones one could find on the ground, too focused on the state of her underling to care about the tiny injury to her own face.

    ¡°It looks like it did,¡± Mathew muttered, only to shake his head and stand up. ¡°But I can¡¯t say for sure. For now, keep an eye on him. Even if he starts acting like a zombie it might still not be toote for him,¡± he then informed the girl only to raise back up to his feet and turn around.

    Mathew exhausted all the methods he could use to save the poor guy. And ording to the merchant, the first grade of the syringe only could stop the progress of the symptoms. As such, as long as the man didn¡¯t fully turn into a zombie yet, a time woulde when Mathew could purchase the medicine that could potentially revert the effects that already took ce in his body.

    For now, though, it was nothing but a song of a wishful future.

    ¡®And for this future toe to be¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, turning his attention away from the man and towards the gate where Le desperately attempted to hold back an entire horde by herself while Nadia and Daria attempted to shut the wings of the gate down against the pressure of all the zombies trying to make their way inside.

    Mathew swung his saber in the air, warming up his right wrist as he started to move towards the gate.

    ¡°Do you need some help, I wonder,¡± he muttered, bolting forward only to m himself against a group of several zombies, pushing them off with the sheer force of his body m. ¡°Well,¡± he then added, a vicious grin appearing on his lips as he allowed his hunting instincts to take over his mind, guiding his de through several zombies¡¯ heads at once. ¡°I will help either way!¡±

 Chapter 222 We did it!

    ¡°You are back,¡± Nadia muttered when she noticed Mathew emerging from the small group of zombies only to leave them behind as they started to fall down to the ground at aically slow speed.

    ¡°I am,¡± Mathew replied, rushing to the other side of the gate where Daria was straining herself just to keep it in ce, not to speak about actually pulling it back and closing it. ¡°Go and help Le!¡± he ordered quickly, taking her own spot and grasping at the wing¡¯s frame.

    ¡°On it!¡± Daria didn¡¯t hesitate to follow Mathew¡¯s orders, letting go of the gate as soon as she ensured Mathew was holding it in her ce. She then changed her grip over her saber which she held previously in her offhand before rushing towards the spot right in the middle of the gate to take care of Le¡¯s back.

    ¡°On three!¡± Mathew then shouted, kicking away the zombie that attempted to jump on him. ¡®There is actually no reason to close both wings at once,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he tensed up his muscles in preparation for the heavy-duty ahead.

    ¡°One!¡± he started the count, using the spare time before the attempt to swing his saber with his left hand, cutting down two more zombies that dared to approach.

    ¡°Let us help!¡± Frank suddenly appeared at the gate.

    ¡°Two!¡± Mathew shouted, taking a nce to the back only to see that all of the zombies that snuck through the gate to this point were already dealt with, all with small wounds to their heads.

    ¡®This guy¡­¡¯ he thought, as his eyes opened up slightly wider in admiration for how much of a great catch Frank turned out to be. After all, not only did he manage to ovee his fear of zombies in the very first real battle of his, he even stepped up his game and acted out as a proper leader for the rest of his squad!

    ¡°THREE!¡± Mathew then shouted from the bottom of his lungs, throwing his saber to the back only to grab the gate with both of his hands, dig his feet into the ground and start pulling.

    At first, the gate didn¡¯t budge. Stuck between the wave of the zombies the wing of it had no space to move at all, forcing Mathew to contend with the resistance of all the zombies stuck between the wings while trying to close it.

    And then, it moved by just an inch.  And then another. And as his effort continued, Mathew finally managed to bring the gate to its breaking point where the zombies pushing at it from outside actually started to help him.

    ¡°Keep the zombies at bay!¡± Frank shouted, stabbing his spear in a frenzy at all the animated corpses that dared to approach. To his side, there was another hunter, who did just the same, although at a considerably slower rate.

    ¡°I¡¯m almost there!¡± Nadia shouted from a few meters away, straining her voice just to ensure Mathew could hear her.

    ¡°Same here!¡± Mathew called back, ignoring the burning pain in his arms as he continued to pull the gate towards himself with all his mind, sparing no attention to any of the zombies that continued to approach in frenzy.

    The task was challenging. But once both wings reached beyond their tipping point, the gate suddenly started to close seemingly on its own. And then, at a speed that forced everyone to jump to the back, the gate mmed itself shut so hard it trembled in its frame.

    ¡°Safety check!¡± Mathew shouted, recognizing the signs of instant rxation in the people by the gate, especially the freshly formed hunting squad.

    ¡°What?¡± one of the hunters turned his eyes to Mathew, clearly failing to understand his intentions.

    ¡°Check for any zombies left inside!¡± Mathew then reiterated his order, still holding on to the gate in fear that the impact of its closing could somehow lead to its natural lock failing to set itself in ce.

    ¡®I know the horde itself will keep the gate shut¡­ but it¡¯s better to be safe than sorry,¡¯ he thought, moving towards the middle of the gate while leaving the task of securing the insides to his wives.

    Mathew leaned over the gate, letting out a deep breath as he ensured the lock was safely in ce.

    ¡°It¡¯s safe,¡± he then muttered, turning around to face his wives only to see they were all in a state of mild exhaustion. ¡°Good job,¡± he added with an approving nod, before turning his attention toward Daria and Nadia who were at the back of the group.

    ¡°Is everyone okay?¡± he inquired about their well-being, prompting all of them to turn around only to see the girls slowly nodding their heads in confirmation.

    ¡°We are fine,¡± Nadia was the first one to reply. ¡°But I¡¯m afraid we won¡¯t be able to close this gate by ourselves if another hordees our way,¡± she said only to slump down on the ground, not paying any mind to the blood that dirtied it.

    ¡°I got a few scratches,¡± Le then announced in a calm voice, as if she was talking about an annoyance rather than a potentially life-threatening injury. ¡°But from the looks of things, I don¡¯t think I¡¯m going to turn,¡± she then added in a calm voice, not perturbed by the news she brought up at all.

    ¡°With all the leveling we did, you should be easily able to ignore small injuries like those,¡± Mathew replied yet he approached the girl anyway. ¡°Where?¡± he then asked only to look around the ce before grabbing the girl by her sides and moving her around a little so that his body would shield her from the eyes of the hunters. ¡°Show me,¡± he demanded.

    ¡°On my neck, here,¡± Le then pointed out at a small bruise only to then raise her left arm and showcase two round marks of teeth.

    They were imprinted unto her skin¡­ but thankfully, the zombies that managed to gnaw at her hand failed to even do as little as to prate her skin.

    ¡°You will be okay, they didn¡¯t even cut your skin open,¡± Mathew announced while a wave of relief washed over his body.

    It was one thing to lose a random survivor that he didn¡¯t really care about all that much. But losing one of the few people that he truly cared about was an entirely different topic altogether.

    ¡°I¡¯m all okay,¡± Daria then reported from the inner part of the gateway only to stomp her leg against the skull of one of the few zombies that were left to be finished. ¡°And there are no more zombies left alive within the barrier,¡± she added as she raised her leg only to kick it off with all the strength she had, letting the inertia carry most of the blood and brain matter off her shoe.

    ¡°Does anyone has any injuries here?¡± Mathew then shouted, scanning all four of the remaining hunters.

    A quick set of four ¡°nos¡± followed, finally allowing the young man to calm down.

    ¡°It almost turned into a disaster¡­ but we did it, everyone,¡± he then announced in a loud voice only to raise his bloodied saber above his head. ¡°We did it!¡±

 Chapter 223 Heated argument and the bet

    ¡°We did it!¡±

    It was such a simple shout. Whether one would consider it from the point of semantics, philosophy, or even sentence construction, there could hardly be any simpler sentence.

    And yet, in this precise moment, Mathew judged this simple set of three words to be right on the money.

    ¡°We did it!¡± Frank quickly picked up the chat, raising his spear in a triumphant gesture. ¡°We did it!¡± he shouted again, this time making two of his fellow hunters follow suit.

    And soon, everyone outside of the school started chanting with not a single soul paying attention to how it only agitated the zombies who failed to make it through the gate.

    ¡°Yay, we did it!¡± Nadia shouted as she approached Mathew¡¯s side. ¡°And what exactly are we celebrating?¡± she then whispered to his ear, not wanting her question to act like a bucket of cold water for everyone¡¯s celebratory mood.

    ¡°The conclusion of the first fight of the hunting squad,¡± Mathew whispered back, rolling his eyes.

    His gesture wasn¡¯t aimed at the girl, though, but at the truth that she hinted at with her question.

    ¡°I¡¯m d you didn¡¯t name it a victory,¡± Nadia then chuckled lightly only to pull herself away and then shake her head. ¡°But someone has to bring down the reality on them,¡± she pointed out, turning her eyes to the celebrating bunch only to shake her head with a look of pity in her eyes.

    ¡°It would be best if either Carol or Frank realized the truth on their own,¡± Mathewmented, only to turn his eyes to his most recent wife.

    And as it turned out, she was the only one who actually didn¡¯t tune in to the celebration. Instead, she continued to hold down the body of the one hunter who didn¡¯t get to celebrate with the rest, cautious of any signs of his potential turning.

    And contrary to all the times that Mathew could observe her before, there was no smirk of hidden superiority on her face. Instead, her expression was dark, most likely caused by the face of her former schoolmate of hers who she continued to stare at.

    ¡°How long are you going to scream like a bunch of fucking kids?!¡± Carol, as if following Mathew¡¯s orders, erupted. Yet, from the look of extreme anger on her face, she was genuinely upset. She then stood up and took a few steps away from the motionless body of the unlucky hunter only to point her hand at it before making her way forward as if with the intention of confronting everyone else.

    ¡°Does this look like a reason to triumph for you?!¡± she screamed out, instantly cutting the celebration as she eyed down any and everyone who dared to keep having fun. ¡°There were only five of you and you lost we lost one of us in the very first fight we took part in,¡± she said in a sudden cold andposed voice. Carol then lowered her head and took a few breaths¡­ Only to rapidly raise her head with a maddening fire at the depth of her eyes. ¡°At this rate, you will all fucking day before the week¡¯s end!¡±

    ¡°What the hell do you want from us?!¡± one of the hunters that were previously celebrating cried out, clearly upset by Carol¡¯s words. ¡°It was our very first fight,¡± he then continued in a somewhat calmer voice. ¡°We were defending against an entire damn horde, for fuck¡¯s sake! And by all ounts we were sessful,¡± he then added, looking around as if searching for approval of his words only to realize everyone was staring at him with looks of disapproval and disappointment.

    Now that Carol¡¯s words forced everyone to confront reality, the rest of the hunters weren¡¯t that eager to keep celebrating anymore.

    ¡°You want to know what I think?¡± Carol asked, approaching him slowly but surely in spite of her considerable weight disadvantage. ¡°I think you forgot something in the rush that came with your sess.¡±

    Carol then moved her hand up and pointed it towards the gate.

    ¡°There are hundreds, no, hundreds of thousands of zombies only waiting for even the tiniest mistake of ours,¡± she imed. ¡°And starting from tomorrow on, Mathew and his wives won¡¯t be here to keep us rtively safe!¡±

    ¡°So what?!¡± the arrogant hunter decided to double down on his take. ¡°He was either unlucky or simply unfit to be a hunter,¡± he imed only for a wide smug to appear on his lips. ¡°I don¡¯t know how many he has killed, but I finished at least twenty of them!¡± he proimed in a proud tone. ¡°TWENTY!¡± he then shouted to reinforce his point.

    ¡°Oh, you killed twenty zombies!¡± Carol repeated after the man in a mocking tone. ¡°What a man you are, aren¡¯t you?¡± she then added only for her expression to turn into a mix of amusement and disgust. ¡°What now, maybe all the girls within the survivors¡¯ group should open their legs for you and beg for your dick, for how much of a hero you think you are?!¡±

    ¡®Okay, now she lost me,¡¯ Mathew thought, observing the situation with quite a bit of curiosity.

    ¡°Hey man, you should stop it,¡± Frank then joined in, talking in a hushed voice to the arrogant hunter.

    ¡°Fuck off!¡± the man shouted at the only volunteer in the squad only to shove him aside before turning his eyes back to Carol.

    ¡°I killed twenty zombies,¡± he stated once again, this time in a perfectly calm voice. ¡°And I didn¡¯t get to fuck that guy,¡± he pointed his hand at Mathew, ¡°to get some magical powers as you did!¡± he then added, turning his fingers towards Carol¡¯s face. ¡°But still, tell me something,¡± his lips twisted up in a deranged smile of victory. ¡°How many zombies did you kill in this fight?¡±

    ¡°I have no idea,¡± Carol replied without even a second of hesitation. ¡°I was too busy keeping the waves of iing zombies thin enough to bother counting,¡± she then added, cleverly attacking the man from the side he didn¡¯t expect. ¡°Andter on, while you were finishing off the zombies that others cut down, I was too busy making sure ourpanion wouldn¡¯t turn into a zombie only to then attack us from the back!¡±

    ¡®That¡¯s stretching the truth a bit,¡¯ Mathew thought. Yet, even though he could see the falsehood in Carol¡¯s words, he smiled lightly instead of correcting her out loud. ¡®But it wouldn¡¯t do any good to deprive her of her authority right now.¡¯

    ¡°Hey, shouldn¡¯t we stop them?¡± Nadia then asked in a hushed voice, her forehead starting to wrinkle as she observed how the celebratory mood from before first went to shit and now threatened to turn everyone against each other.

    ¡°No,¡± Mathew denied Nadia¡¯s suggestion. ¡°This is something Carol has to deal with on her own,¡± he then imed, crossing his arms on his chest as if to gesture with his body that he wasn¡¯t interested in interfering with the conflict.

    ¡°Empty words¡­¡± the arrogant hunter hissed, tightening his hands into fists. What¡¯s more, he still held a Mathew-provided spear in his right, the de of which now threateningly moved in the direction of Carol¡¯s face.

    ¡°It seems like you really think you are something big,¡± Carol then said only to release an exhausted sigh. She then threw a quick nce at Mathew, only to turn her eyes back as soon as she noticed his expecting stance. ¡°Then, let¡¯s see who got bigger balls here,¡± she then said, taking a step forward as if she didn¡¯t mind the de pointing right at her stomach at all.

    ¡°What?¡± the man barked, unknowingly moving his spear aside, clearly not tough enough to keep up with his tough-man ruse.

    ¡°I bet Mathew and his girls are going to hunt more zombies tonight,¡± Carol then stated only for a wide smile to appear on her face. ¡°So we will go out with them and whoever will bring back more cores will be the winner,¡± she then gave out an innocent suggestion. ¡°Is that alright?¡± Carol then asked, ignoring the man in front of her and turning her eyes towards Mathew.

    ¡°Fine by me,¡± Mathew replied and gently nodded his head.

    ¡°What¡¯s the bet about?¡± the man raised his chin, looking at the girl along the line of his nose. ¡°What¡¯s the punishment for the loser?¡±

    This time, it was Carol¡¯s turn to reveal just how vicious her smile could be.

    ¡°Whoever loses, then for the next month, they will take three hours a day,¡± she stated only for all the negative emotions to disappear from her face as she gently smiled at the man. ¡°Will be afort station for all the other survivors, no questions asked.¡±

 Chapter 224 The bet is approved

    ¡°Whoever loses, then for the next month, they will take three hours a day and they will be afort station for all the other survivors, no questions asked.¡±

    Carol¡¯s proposition forced everyone in the area to shut the fuck up.

    Not only because of how happy it would make all the men in the school¡¯spound if she were to lose but also because of how humiliating of a defeat it would be for the other hunter if he were to be the one losing.

    Yet, there was one more element that everyone realized once they moved over the idea of potentially having the privilege of sleeping with someone as beautiful as Carol. And it was the fact that she, at least nominally, was Mathew¡¯s wife.

    ¡°Is this okay?¡± Nadia whispered, taken aback by the suggestion. ¡°I mean,¡± she then shook her head only to lean over Mathew¡¯s ear and whisper, ¡°what if it will lead to her losing the status of your wife and thus the benefits of the system?¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t reply right away. Instead, he simply stared at the girl for a moment while analyzing the situation in search of the best possible answer.

    ¡®I guess this is what I get for letting others make decisions on their own,¡¯ he thought, only to release a heavy sigh. Mathew then twisted his upper body around just to raise his hand and gently pat Nadia on her shoulder.

    ¡°Then we will learn that¡¯s possible to lose the system benefits,¡± he then whispered in a rxed voice, only for the right corner of his lips to twitch a little. ¡°And between having someone fuck Carol and knowing that someone fucked you or the two of them,¡± he muttered, ncing over at where Daria and Le stood, ¡°trust me, I wouldn¡¯t hesitate even for a second to make such a choice.¡±

    There was no denying that Mathew enjoyed himself when he got a shot at nailing Carol. Yet, contrary to how his rtionship was with his other wives, that was the full extent of his rtionship with Carol.

    A pleasure and loyalty in exchange for power and means to survive in this rotten world. A simple transaction as opposed to his genuine feelings for Nadia and the sense of attachment that grew up between Mathew and both of his second wives over the time they fought and schemed together.

    ¡°If you say so,¡± Nadia replied, her tone hinting at how unconvinced she was. And yet, she held back her own doubts, opting to trust in Mathew¡¯s ns. ¡°It would be a pity to lose all those cores we invested in her, though,¡± she then pointed out only to take a step back and let Mathew take back the reins of the situation.

    ¡°I approve of this bet,¡± the young man then stated out loud. He then crossed his arms over his chest as he took a step forward to harness everyone¡¯s attention on himself. ¡°Carol, if this will result in you losing your benefits of being my wife, you will have to pay us back all the cores we invested in you,¡± he then stated only to turn his eyes towards the other participant of the bet.

    ¡°As for you, you damn idiot, I hope you are aware that there is no way I will allow you to run if you turn out to lose the bet,¡± he stated only for a vicious smile to appear on his lips. ¡°Also, you might think that theck of gays amongst the survivors might work for you, but trust me,¡± Mathew said as he took one more step towards the man only to then grace him with a genuine, lovely smile, ¡°a lot of men won¡¯t mind it once they grow hungry for it enough.¡±

    The arrogant hunter¡­ gulped down his saliva.

    After being forced to listen to Mathew for just a short while, coupled with the shock of Carol¡¯s ridiculous bet, he managed to once again take the rein of his emotions. And now that he did so, he realized just how bad his situation was.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡± he released a small moan and took a step back. A look of terror appeared on his face when he looked around at the faces of the other hunters in the squad¡­ Only to see them either avoid eye contact or ignore his eyespletely, judging the value of his ass instead.

    It was also at this moment when he truly knew that he fucked up. Because not a single person present on the scene appeared to believe in him having any chance ating out of this bet victorious!

    ¡°With that said, I want everyone to focus on gathering all the cores that are on this side of the gate,¡± Mathew then announced, rxing his hands and allowing them to fall down along his sides. ¡°I want to see them neatly stacked in a single pile before the sun sets!¡± he then ordered only to turn around, grab Nadia¡¯s wrist and then pull her towards the ruins. ¡°Call me when it¡¯s done. Daria,¡± he then looked towards the first of his second wives, ¡°I¡¯m leaving you to look for the gate. If anything extraordinary happens, feel free to raise hell. Le,¡± he then said, turning his eyes towards thest of his official harem members. ¡°I want you to oversee those kids. If you see even a single one trying to hide a core for themselves¡­¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t need to finish his sentence. Even though he knew the girl for just three days, he already saw how she reacted in various scenarios.

    And seeing how an unhinged look shed on her face only to disappear when Le reced it with a knowing smile and nodded her head, he was assured he made the right choice.

    ¡°Come,¡± Mathew then muttered silently, tightening his grasp over Nadia¡¯s wrist as he moved towards the ruins.

    This time, however, Mathew didn¡¯t bother heading inside the school. As surprising as it could be, the ruins were far cleaner than the insides of the school. And after a short moment of search, Mathew managed to find a spot with several pieces of broken furniture scattered over a small area.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Nadia asked as soon as the rubble hid them from everyone¡¯s eyes. She wrestled her hand free from Mathew¡¯s grasp¡­ Only to see him move forward on his own and gather several pillows and nks only to throw them in a single ce and arrange them into a makeshift bed. ¡°Wait, are you horny or something?¡± she then asked while opening her eyes wide.

    ¡°Not really,¡± Mathew cut the conversation,ying down on the bed of his making only to stretch his hand out towards Nadia. ¡°Come,¡± he requested¡­ No, he pleaded in a weak voice, unbing of the figure that he made himself to be ever since he started to interact with the survivors at the school.

    ¡°Dear¡­¡± Nadia whispered gently, stepping forward only toy down by Mathew only to snuggle up to his side. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± she then whispered again.

    This time, however, rather than curiosity and disbelief, a genuine worry rang in her hushed voice.

 Chapter 225 How to help a man to relax (r18)

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Nadia asked, snuggling up to Mathew¡¯s side. Her worry was written all over her face, even though Mathew didn¡¯t really exhibit any behavior screaming he had some sort of problem.

    ¡°Is there a need for there to be something wrong for me to want to spend some time with you? Mathew asked, his expression souring a bit despite howfortable he was with Nadia cuddling up to his side.

    ¡°There is no need for it at all,¡± Nadia replied with a small smile only to change her position a little and snuggle her head up to Mathew¡¯s chest. ¡°But I can tell.¡±

    The girl didn¡¯t borate on what she could tell. And Mathew didn¡¯t need her to say it out loud either.

    The rtive silence filled the area, with only the distant echo of the hunters working to gather the cores reaching them from the distance. And yet, Mathew couldn¡¯t find peace.

    ¡°I just dislike crowds,¡± he finally admitted, sneaking his hand underneath Nadia¡¯s bloodied shirt and then running it up and down her spine.

    Contrary to having her snuggled up to his side, feeling the direct connection between his and her skin finally brought some desired effects on Mathew¡¯s psyche.

    ¡°I have never been very good with people,¡± he continued, his expression slowly returning back to one that Nadia was used to. ¡°Buttely¡­¡± he trailed off before turning his eyes towards the side and releasing a heavy sigh.

    ¡°Lately?¡± Nadia prompted gently, lifting her head up only to then rest her chin on Mathew¡¯s chest as she looked into his eyes.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mathew shook his head slightly. ¡°With all these people around me¡­ I feel suffocated by them sometimes.¡±

    Talking about his feelings wasn¡¯t Mathew¡¯s good side. Yet, with the warmth of Nadia¡¯s body melting down the coldness of his heart, he somehow managed to do it.

    ¡°I would ask why did you bother organizing all those survivors,¡± Nadia muttered, ¡°but I already know the answer,¡± she finished, shaking her head. Then, she rose up on the primitive bedding Mathew organized so that he could see a small, yful smirk that grew up on her face. ¡°I do think I know how to make you feel at ease, though.¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Mathew leaned his head to the side, looking right into Nadia¡¯s eyes. And because of this very reason, he only noticed her hand sneaking into his pants when he actually felt its movements right on his crotch.

    ¡°Do we really need to simplify everything to sex?¡± he then protested when Nadia wrapped her fingers around his dick and slowly started to massage it.

    ¡°Of course, we don¡¯t need to,¡± Nadia replied with a precious, cheerful smile on her lips. She then went the extra mile by moving up only to sneak her legs underneath Mathew¡¯s head. ¡°But resting on myp, watching my bust shake all the while letting me stroke you¡­¡± she whispered, only to leave her lips slightly parted as her own breathing hastened.

    ¡°It feels great,¡± Mathew finally admitted, turning his face away as if he suddenly found this kind of act embarrassing. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna deny it, okay?¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you deny it or not,¡± Nadia whispered, bending her body in a way that shouldn¡¯t be possible, all to cover Mathew¡¯s lips with hers and close them in a kiss. She then pulled her face just a few centimeters away. ¡°Because I would know it would be a lie anyway,¡± she added, caressing Mathew¡¯s face with the breath she used to utter those words.

    ¡°That makes me feel that we skipped several steps,¡± Mathew then said, only to close his eyes. His body then tensed up, sending wave upon wave of pleasure down his spine as he neared his climax.

    Yet, rather than allowing Mathew to reach fulfillment, Nadia suddenly tightened her grasp, recing the pleasure of her handjob with the pain of restraining Mathew¡¯s desire.

    ¡°Auch!¡± Mathew involuntarily let out a voice of protest, opening his eyes and looking at the girl with a puzzled expression.

    ¡®She was the one to initiate it and now she wants to stop?¡¯ he thought, baffled. ¡®Is this her way of making excitement work like a coffee for me?¡¯ he attempted to guess.

    ¡°This is one of those rare moments when I¡¯m not exactly sure what thoughts are going through your head,¡± Nadia admitted with a cheerful smile, only to bring her other hand and run her fingers through Mathew¡¯s hair. ¡°But I just don¡¯t want to dirty your pants,¡± she exined only to raise Mathew¡¯s head and pull her legs from below it.

    Nadia then gently ced Mathew¡¯s head back on the improvised sheets only to turn herself around and grab at the edge of his pants before sliding them down.

    ¡°You really don¡¯t have to,¡± Mathew attempted to protest. Even though she just cockblocked him, the stress of thest few hours was still quite a lot for him to deal with.

    And escaping into the pleasure of her lips felt like¡­ cheating.

    ¡°I know,¡± Nadia replied softly. She then freed her clean hand and reached out for Mathew¡¯s cheek. ¡°But is it wrong for me to want it too?¡± she then asked, only to reveal a small grin before moving her head over Mathew¡¯s crotch and wrapping her lips around the shroom of his dick.

    Mathew¡¯s eyes simply rolled to the back of his head, and his body tensed up face to the sky. He then groaned loudly as Nadia started to give him a blowjob that was nothing short of heavenly.

    Mathew finally allowed himself to rx and just enjoy Nadia¡¯s lips working around his cock. His breathing evened out, and his heart stopped racing in his chest.

    ¡°You really know how to make a man feel at ease,¡± he muttered, only for Nadia to chuckle softly in response.

    ¡°Is that so?¡± she asked before continuing her work with even more enthusiasm. And before long, Mathew could do nothing but moan in response to the pleasure that started washing over him once again.

    Soon, the twitching of his hips spread to his entire body, hinting at theing burst of tion.

    The time appeared to skip. Mathew tensed up, his hands involuntarily finding their way to the back of Nadia¡¯s head.

    Following the signals of her partner, Nadia pushed her lips even further down Mathew¡¯s shaft, recognizing the hints and preparing herself for what was about toe.

    And then, the time snapped back to its usual rate, right as Mathew emptied his balls out directly into Nadia¡¯s throat.

 Chapter 226 Nightly agreement (slightly r18)

    *Gulp*

    Nadia kept her mouth wrapped around the base of Mathew¡¯s cock while he emptied out his load directly into her throat.

    She didn¡¯t bother to move at all, tensing and rxing her mouth to help the cum flow down to her stomach and free her airways.

    For a brief moment, she took a moment to breathe through her nose before starting to suck again, just to make sure everyst drop would leave Mathew¡¯s system. Then and only then did she slowly pull her lips up Mathew¡¯s shaft before kissing the top of its shroom and finally raising her head.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew thought, watching how the girl brought her hand to her lips, scooping a stray strand of cum from her face only to then put it into her mouth as well before gulping all that she didn¡¯t swallow already down.

    ¡°You really are something else¡­¡± Mathew muttered, unable to stop his dick from twitching when Nadia summed up the entire experience with a victorious smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m just a quick learner,¡± she then said only to lean over Mathew¡¯s face and open up her mouth as wide as her jaws allowed, showcasing that there wasn¡¯t even a single drop of cum left behind her lips.

    The girl then slid up a little only to sneak her hands behind the back of Mathew¡¯s head. With a single pull, she acted as if she wanted to choke him with her breasts. Yet, as soon as Nadia secured her hold over Mathew¡¯s head, she then rolled to the side, putting him on top of her instead.

    ¡°What are you¡­?¡± Mathew asked. He was puzzled by the girl¡¯s actions yet he trusted her enough to just follow whatever she was doing without even a hint of hesitation.

    ¡°I only emptied your balls for now,¡± Nadia then whispered, her hand moving up and down Mathew¡¯s head as she caressed his hair. ¡°But I have yet to empty your mind, don¡¯t I?¡±

    This time, the girl didn¡¯t need to be precise for Mathew to understand her intentions. And so, with Mathew¡¯s face stuck right on top of her soft bosom, she wrapped her legs around his hips, keeping him in ce while lulling him down with the steady sound of her beating heart.

    ¡°This is¡­ strangely awesome,¡± Mathew muttered after a moment. ¡°But it also feels weird to be on the receiving end of such care,¡± he then added, unable to hide the blush that then exploded on his cheeks.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Nadia spoke in a soft voice. ¡°Even though you never let it out, I¡¯m aware of just how much you care about us,¡± she then whispered, moving her right hand to caress the earlobe of Mathew¡¯s ear. ¡°It¡¯s fine to let me do the cuddling from time to time,¡± she said, only to bring her lips down and ce a gentle kiss on top of Mathew¡¯s forehead. ¡°And I¡¯m enjoying it myself quite a lot too,¡± she then added, only to bring her right hand back to the back of Mathew¡¯s head before hugging it close to her heart.

    Mathew let out a deep breath, parting his lips to say something. Yet, the words never reached his brain and the next thing he knew was Nadia¡¯s regr breathing lulling him down into deep slumber.

    The rtive peace didn¡¯tst long, though. Just as soon as Mathew caught himself snoring loudly and drooling all over Nadia¡¯s left breast, she gently shook her head before twitching her nostrils a few times and waking herself up from the brief moment of drowsiness that took over her mind.

    ¡°They areing,¡± she whispered while gently shaking Mathew¡¯s shoulders.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Mathew muttered, the coziness of his human pillow making it hard for him to shake off his drowsiness.

    ¡°Look at those two lovebirds,¡± Le then barked even before Nadia could help Mathew regain his senses. ¡°To think you two would be getting yourself busy like that while we were on our guard all this time¡­¡± she thenmented, revealing the source of her rtive anger.

    ¡°Can you let us off the hook, just this once?¡± Nadia then protested, wrapping her hands tightly around the back of Mathew¡¯s head and once again making his face sink into the soft flesh of her breasts.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you im that we need to work on our rtionship?¡± Nadia then pointed out before Le could even respond in any way or form. ¡°Don¡¯t make me remind you of the difference between you and me,¡± she then added, her expression twisting when the spirit of confrontation filled her soul.

    ¡°No¡­ I¡­¡± Le hesitated, clearly not prepared to be faced with such a fight-ready response. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she then apologized, turning her head to the side instead of actually nodding it in apology, ¡°I got jealous seeing the two of you like it,¡± the girl admitted, a blush of embarrassment appearing on her cheeks.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Nadia hesitated for a second only to then rx her grasp over Mathew¡¯s sleepy head. ¡°I apologize, I went too hard at you too,¡± she then said.

    ¡°Wha~~¡± Mathew moaned a little, the exchange between the girls threatening to properly wake him up.

    Both of the girls froze when Mathew moved his head around only to rest his ear on Nadia¡¯s chest, stuffing his head right between her boobs. Yet, while it was obvious just howfortable he was in such a position, Mathew¡¯s two wives also could see a side that he, so far, refused to show to them.

    And it was the face of extreme mental exhaustion, only a hint of which Mathew allowed Nadia to see when he dragged her away.

    ¡°Damn¡­¡± Le then whispered, finally mindful of the level of her voice. She then heavily gulped down, unable to tear her eyes away from his face. ¡°He looks so cute like that¡­¡± she admitted only to purse her lips together and bring her hand to her chest, pressing it hard right above where her heart was.

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t want us to worry about him,¡± Nadia whispered her own take on the situation, allowing her hand to gently run through Mahtew¡¯s hair to make sure he would promptly return to deep sleep. ¡°If letting him sleep on my tits is all it takes to help him recover, even if only for a bit¡­¡± she then bit her bottom lip, her Mathew¡¯s centered worries appearing surfacing over on her face.

    ¡°I understand,¡± Le nodded her head. ¡°I won¡¯t bother you for the time being,¡± she then said, turning around on the spot and about to leave.

    ¡°Wait,¡± Nadia softly called out, struggling to model her voice to be just on the edge where it would be loud enough to reach Le¡¯s eyes yet silent enough not to disturb Mathew. ¡°You came here for a reason, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Le stopped in her track yet she didn¡¯t turn around to look at the two lying on the makeshift bed. ¡°All the cores are gathered and counted. That stupid hunter and Carol are both ready to start the bet. Daria also says that she can now enter her morphed form,¡± Le quickly reported everything that she initially came here to inform Mathew about.

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Nadia muttered. She then looked down at Mathew, ready to wake him up again¡­ Only to give up on the idea as soon as her hands fell down on his shoulders. ¡°Excluding Carol, her opponent, and the injured guy, we have three hunters left. Make them take turns watching the gate while allowing others to catch up on some sleep,¡± she then gave out her orders.

    ¡°Are we going to put the bet for tomorrow?¡± Le then asked, turning her head around and throwing a disappointed look at the lovebirds¡¯ duo.

    ¡°No,¡± Nadia shook her head only to rest it back on the bedding, rxing her body to make it even morefortable for Mathew to sleep on. ¡°I want to let him sleep for a while. But I will wake him up in a few hours so that we can still clean the zombies around the barrier before the night¡¯s end.¡±

 Chapter 227 Harsh wake-up call

    ¡®Huh?¡¯ Mathew first thought that managed to sneak past the barrier of his sleepiness was just a simple surprise. ¡®What am I doing? Where am I?¡¯ he thought, before even being able to open his eyes.

    This moment of extreme carelessness was also the fuse that caused the young man to boot up his ¡°awake¡± procedure right away, jumping up by strongly pushing himself out of whatever he was lying at.

    It was a standard technique for Mathew at this point. After all, for his senses to alert him while he was asleep, something had to be terribly wrong. And if something was terribly wrong, rapidly changing one¡¯s location was just the basic form of defending against an unforeseen threat.

    ¡°Auch!¡± a moan of pained protest followed Mathew¡¯s desperate measure at escaping whatever danger was looming. And it was this voice that finally erased most of the sleepiness that fogged his brain, allowing him to open his eyes and properly read what was going on around him.

    And it was just in time, as he was about to m right down on poor Nadia who made the innocent mistake of trying to gently shake his shoulders to wake him up.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew cursed in his thoughts, shooting his hands and legs to the side.

    It was, once again, a desperate measure. Thankfully, he managed to do it right in the nick of time, ending up on all fours with his limbs missing Nadia¡¯s body by a mere inch on all sides.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Mathew asked, opting to ask the girl rather than trying to figure it out himself.

    ¡°Nothing¡­¡± Nadia replied, looking at his face with a weirded look on her own. ¡°I was just trying to wake you up¡­¡± she then muttered to Mathew¡¯s dismay.

    ¡®What the hell¡­¡¯ he released a heavy sigh only to lower himself on his joins before gently resting his head on top of the girl¡¯s breast only to theny the rest of his body down. ¡°Next time, just tap my shoulder twice, that will be enough,¡± he then added, exining the small arrangement that he had with the girl in his previous life and that he was already used to.

    ¡°Will do¡­¡± the girl muttered, only to then raise her hand¡­ and tap the man on the shoulders twice.

    ¡°I¡¯m already awake, you don¡¯t need to do it anymore,¡± Mathew exined, taking a moment to take a deep breath of the aroma hanging right above the girl¡¯s skin. He then pressed his lips against the side of the girl¡¯s tit, leaving a wet kiss on it before finally raising up on his limbs and rolling to the side, freeing the girl from underneath his body.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t look like you were awake,¡± Nadia protested, pushing her upper body down only to then reach for the buttons of her shirt before fixing her cleavage.

    If there was anything that Mathew was pretty strict about, it was keeping the beauty of his wives away from the eyes of the other survivors. And while it initially came off as just his insecurity, Nadia had no problem abiding by this tiny jealousy of his.

    Mathew then stood up from the improvised bedding and quickly fixed his own attire.

    ¡®Dang,¡¯ he then thought, feeling his dick suddenly peeling off from the sticky part of his pants. ¡®I would love to wash those clothes,¡¯ he thought, only to shake his head and turn around. He then offered his hand to Nadia and helped her get up from the makeshift bed.

    ¡°We need to move,¡± Nadia then said, turning her eyes towards the direction where they came from several hours prior. ¡°There are only a few hours left before the sun will start to rise and we need to make the most of the time we have left,¡± she said, ncing over her shoulder only to catch Mathew staring nkly at the bedding they just stood up from.

    ¡°Fuck it,¡± Mathew suddenly cursed only to kick at the construction he created himself, shattering it back into the rubble and broken pieces of furniture that it was made from.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Nadia shook, taken aback by the unexpected behavior of her husband. ¡°Was there anything wrong with the bed?¡± she asked, puzzled to no end.

    ¡°Ah,¡± Mathew almost jumped when confronted about his own behavior. ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± he then added, looking away as he eagerly moved forward.

    ¡°It¡¯s something,¡± Nadia countered, refusing to take Mathew¡¯s words for truth. ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t want to tell me¡­¡± she then attacked in a way that she knew Mathew was pretty weak against.

    ¡°I¡­¡± the young man hesitated for a moment only to avert his eyes, even though the girl was behind him anyway. ¡°I just didn¡¯t want any of the perverts left in the school to sniff this bed or something,¡± he then revealed the source of his silly anxiety.

    ¡°Why would they want to do something like this?¡± Nadia asked with her eyes wide open, baffled to the end of her wits by the sudden suggestion.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± Mathew barked, his embarrassment somehow turning into unprovoked anger. ¡°Your scent is mine and mine alone. I don¡¯t want anyone else in the world to enjoy it,¡± he then revealed, only for his voice to fade into lower tones with each word he uttered.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Nadia hesitated, unable to find the right words to put her thoughts to. And then, rather than straining her brain for words, she simply chuckled. ¡°That¡¯s okay, dear,¡± she then reassured Mathew only to jump him from the back and wrap her hands around his chest. ¡°I¡¯m all yours and yours alone,¡± she stated, burying her head in his wide back.

    ¡°Can we drop this topic?¡± Mathew then pleaded. ¡°You said we need to hurry up and go to work, didn¡¯t you?¡± he then pointed out only to roll his eyes before offering the girl a hand, something Nadia didn¡¯t need at all despite the true darkness of the night unspoiled by any of the lightsing from the city around them.

    ¡°Fine,¡± Nadia chuckled again, only to ept Mathew¡¯s hand and then follow him through the ruins back to the open space before the gate.

    There was only one person out in the open, standing on a makeshift tform and staring off in the distance in the direction of the gate. Beyond the school¡¯s barriers, the zombies continued their usual hobby of smashing their rotting limbs against the barrier in the pointless struggle to break it open.

    ¡°You guys are up,¡± the hunter on the tform said, turning his face around only to reveal his identity.

    ¡°Good job guarding the gate, Frank,¡± Mathew replied, giving the man a nod of gratitude.

    Even if there was absolutely no reason to do so, it certainly was reassuring to all the survivors hiding within the building to have someone look after their safety while they slept.

    ¡°Just doing my job,¡± Mathew¡¯s schoolmate smiled before nodding his head in response. ¡°Do you need me to do anything?¡± he then asked, properly reading the atmosphere.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nadia nodded her head as she emerged from behind Mathew and looked towards the school. ¡°Go and wake up the rest of the girls and that idiot who got himself into that stupid bet,¡± she ordered only to look towards the gate herself and smile nicely. ¡°It¡¯s time to thin out the herd.¡±

 Chapter 228 The darkest place is under the candle

    ¡°We can rely on just the system alone,¡± Mathew muttered, sitting down directly on the bloodied ground while doodling with his finger directly on the ground. ¡°If we had someone capable of watching our backs with a gun, maybe we could avoid getting that unlucky guy to the state he is in,¡± he said, ncing over at the school building.

    As the entire area was now more or less safe, the unlucky hunter ended up held in one of the ssrooms on the first floor of the school, within the wing opposite to the one where Daniel carved out the wall with his fist to make the shaft essible.

    In theory, the level-one zombie cure was supposed to hold the unlucky guy in his current state, stopping his symptoms from getting any worse. Yet, knowing how wicked the merchant could be at times, Mathew didn¡¯t dare to take any risks.

    As such, if the worst were toe to be, the survivors in the school would likely be safe from the singr zombie roaming around while both the hunters and Mathew¡¯s direct group would easily notice such a zombie roaming around.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t think about that guy too much,¡± Nadia whispered, snuggling up to Mathew¡¯s side as she looked down at his doodles. ¡°It wasn¡¯t your fault,¡± she then added, trying to raise his spirits.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m not ming myself,¡± Mathew replied with a smile. He then shook his head to get rid of the unpleasant thoughts. ¡°I¡¯m just trying to use this unfortunate event as a lesson.¡±

    ¡°What did it teach you, then?¡¯ Nadia asked, leaning her head on Mathew¡¯s shoulder while actively encouraging him from the side.

    ¡°That we can¡¯t just skip all the benefits our society brought to this world,¡± the young man replied impassively. ¡°Our small group can use the touch grass feature to heal¡­ but what if someone breaks an arm? Gets infected? Or even goes down with a normal cold?¡±

    ¡°They would be pretty much fucked,¡± Nadia admitted.

    ¡°The same goes with guns, food or you name it,¡± Mathew said only to doodle down the list of things he could see worthy to salvage from the city from the top of his head. ¡°Even if we can obtain some if not most of those things through merchants,¡± he raised his eyes from the doodle and nced over at the girl stered all over his arm, ¡°wouldn¡¯t it be better to just obtain that kind of stuff without wasting cores for it?¡±

    ¡°That would definitely make saving up the cores easier,¡± Nadia agreed, nodding her head only to then raise it up as she immersed herself in her thoughts. ¡°If I do recall, there should be a hospital rtively nearby,¡± she then added, turning her eyes towards the direction the hospital would be.

    Yet, as soon as she turned her eyes away, Nadia¡¯s expression soured. She then brought her eyes back only to lower them to the ground.

    ¡°That ce, just like anything towards the town¡¯s center, will be swarming with zombies,¡± she muttered and shook her head. ¡°No matter how useful it would be to get those resources, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s worth risking our lives for it.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, you are right,¡± Mathew nodded his head. ¡®We are already lucky that this school is on the rtive outskirts of the town,¡¯ he thought, only to look in the opposite direction to where Nadia looked. ¡°How about points of interest towards the edge of the town?¡± Mathew then suggested, lowering his hand over the ground with the intention to draw some sort of map¡­ Only to realize that he had no ability to do it at all.

    ¡®To think I woulde to miss online services so quickly,¡¯ Mathew thought, rolling his eyes over his own naivete. ¡®Thinking about this, we didn¡¯t really look for useful stuff around the school at all,¡¯ he then realized, only for his face to tense up a secondter.

    ¡°The convoy¡­¡± Mathew muttered.

    ¡°What convoy?¡± Nadia asked, pushing her upper body forward and then leaning her head to the side to get a proper look at Mathew¡¯s face.

    ¡°The convoy that wasn¡¯t here in my original run,¡± Mathew replied, shooting up to his feet and grabbing Nadia¡¯s hand. ¡°The very first thing that changed about this version of the events because of my own actions,¡± he added, fighting off the desire to smack himself in the head.

    ¡®I was talking and interacting with Daniel and Norbert for three days straight¡­ How could I forget about their own equipment?¡¯ he thought, ready to scout the situation despite the near imprable darkness of the night.

    ¡°Are you guys ready?¡± Le¡¯s voice stopped Mathew in his tracks.

    ¡®Right, there is still this bet to do,¡¯ the young man recalled, twisting his lips in an ugly grimace. Yet, before the annoyance could settle properly in, his expression rxed only for a small smile to appear on his lips. ¡®Rather than getting annoyed by it¡­ can¡¯t I make use of this opportunity?¡¯

    Mathew turned around only to see the rest of his harem along with Carol and the arrogant huntering down the ruins of the southern wings.

    ¡°Yes and no,¡± Mathew replied, allowing a small smile to creep up on his lips. ¡°We are ready to fight, but we are not ready to start it just yet,¡± he said, shaking his head only to reaffirm his grasp over Nadia¡¯s hand before pulling her along the school¡¯s barrier.

    ¡°I don¡¯t even want to ask what sort of n did youe up with,¡± Le muttered, beckoning the rest of the people to follow her only for the girl herself to follow right in Mathew¡¯s footsteps.

    Their journey didn¡¯tst long. As soon as they circled around half of the school¡¯s perimeter, Mathew came to a stop, standing right by the tiny gateway at the back of the school¡¯spound.

    ¡°There they are,¡± he muttered, looking down at the bloody scene of a carnage that urred right outside of the school¡¯s premises on the very first day of the apocalypse.

    And then, his lips formed one of his rare, genuine smiles.

 Chapter 229 Division of labour

    ¡°This is the ce,¡± Mathew said out loud, making sure his voice would cut through all the noises the zombies were making while stubbornly trying to break through the barrier surrounding the school.

    ¡°What are those cars?¡± Daria asked, baffled by the scene.

    She was already used to the sight of abandoned vehicles randomly blocking most of the streets. She was familiar with the sight of both abandoned cars and those that ended up crashing and then burning out.

    But what awaited them only a few meters away from the other side of the barrier, wasn¡¯t just a set of few cars.

    It was a battlefield.

    ¡°I guess we didn¡¯t notice all those sounds because of how busy we were ourselves,¡± Mathew muttered, going back with these thoughts all the way to the first day of the apocalypse.

    Standing right by the gate, he could only see parts of the picture. And yet, even from the few glimpses that the young man got whenever the zombies would move out of his line of sight, the area witnessed some pretty sorry events.

    The huge, ck, and bricky cars used by the special force stood in a half-circr array, right at the entrance of a street striking the road going by the school¡¯s side at a right angle. And right in front of them, even after all the zombies passed through the gaps, there were literal mountains of munition shells¡­ all died in the dried-up crimson of the blood that ended up spilling on them.

    ¡°This used to be the headquarters for the police that came to stop me when I pretended to be a crazy kid about to start a school shootout,¡± Mathew revealed, aware that not everyone in the group knew about the circumstances of his first day.

    ¡°Wait, what?¡± Carol and the hunter looked at Mathew¡¯s face with a visible hint of fear appearing in their eyes.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that,¡± Mathew protested, blushing under the assault of all the res. ¡°It¡¯s not the time to talk about the past either,¡± he said, deciding to cut the topic before it would lead to wasting the precious time they had on their hands.

    ¡°Anyway,¡± Mathew turned his eyes back to the scene before them. ¡°I guess this is where the officers that didn¡¯t enter the school made theirst stand,¡± he said. A hint of sadness mixed with respect appeared on his face for but a moment. And then, a wide smile cast Mathew¡¯s former expression into oblivion. ¡°And this means, there is a chance for some of the weapons to be left.¡±

    ¡°So you want us to look for guns rather than go through with the bet?¡± Carol¡¯s opponent suggested, jumping at the first opportunity he noticed to sneak his way out of the current arrangement.

    Now that his emotions cooled off, he appeared to understand just how impossible it was for him to get one better over the girl boosted with damn magic powers.

    ¡°Not at all,¡± Mathew shook his head. ¡°Your bet will proceed as usual,¡± he said. ¡°I want the two of you, with Daria¡¯s help, to clear the zombies in the area,¡± he then gave the orders, already splitting the tasks between the members of his temporarily expanded group.

    ¡°Fine by me,¡± Carol said, pping her hands against her hips to warm them up a little. ¡°Do you want me to nt some fires to make it easier for everyone to see?¡± she then asked,ing forward with an actually interesting suggestion.

    ¡°That would be lovely, but the risks are too high,¡± Mathew reluctantly denied the suggestion. ¡°We don¡¯t want any of the weapons to go off. The zombies would swarm the ce in an instant,¡± he exined his train of thought only to look around the area.

    Just like in every other part of the school, there was a considerable distance between the main building and the outer fence on which the barrier protecting the entire area was anchored.

    ¡°What are you looking for?¡± Nadia asked.

    ¡°Something to make it easier to get over the fence,¡± he replied. ¡°I¡¯m not really into the idea of pushing through this small gateway,¡± he added, pointing at the back entrance to the school. ¡°Contrary to the main gate, this one opens to the inside. One slip-up and we could lose the entire school to the zombies.¡±

    Mathew was pretty confident that he alone could hold all the zombies that could move through the gate. It was only as wide as your regr doors, making it impossible for more than three humans to fit through at the same time.

    ¡®But if a single evolved one appears¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, biting down on his lips as he hesitated a little. ¡®What¡¯s more, I can expect this rotting bunch to behave in the same way as humans.¡¯

    It was true that at most three slim people could move through the gateway at once. Yet, depriving those people of all the reason and a stampede that would follow could easily cause five, six, or maybe even seven of them to push their way through the opening at once.

    ¡°You can leave it to me,¡± Daria then said, taking a step forward only to m her right fist over her bouncy chest. She then took a deep breath only for the darkness to coil around her body, transforming the girl into her shadowy form. Contrary to thest time when Mathew saw her, though, she didn¡¯t form a four-legged, animalistic projection.

    This time, Daria¡¯s shadows turned her into just a slightly bigger version of herself, preserving her ability to act and fight as a person would.

    ¡°Cutting open a path for the rest of you would be a breeze,¡± she said, raising her head even though with her new form she could down at everyone else even without this pointless gesture.

    ¡°Fine then,¡± Mathew said, taking a deep breath before looking around his group. ¡°Le, second line. Nadia, you are going to go scavenge with me,¡± Mathew ordered only to take a step to the side to where Daria stood before climbing up on his toes and reaching out for her now elevated ear.

    ¡°And just in case that guy finds a gun,¡± Mathew whispered, ¡°feel free to kill him if he as much as points it towards any of us.¡±

 Chapter 230 Nightly escapade

    ¡°Okay, guys!¡± Mathew shouted, taking a step away from Daria and pulling out his saber only to then swing it through the air, using the gesture to force everyone¡¯s attention on himself. ¡°Daria, just like you wanted, you are up to clearing the path once we open the gate. Le, Nadia, I will leave helping her out to you,¡± he gave out his orders only to lower his weapon and approach the small gate within the fence, standing on the side of its hinges.

    Mathew reached out for the simple knob of the locking mechanism, raising it up and getting ready to pull it back. He then looked toward the rest of his group. ¡°Are you guys ready?¡±

    ¡°We are!¡± the only other man in the group reported, trying to prove his worth by showcasing his willingness to fight. On the other hand, not a single girl bothered to speak up, each of them opting to just ready their weapons for an answer.

    ¡°Here we go, then,¡± Mathew said with a small smile, pulling the knob to the back.

    He didn¡¯t need to push the gateway open. The zombies that kept on pushing on it from the outside were more than enough to make the openable part of the fence swing inside, instantly crowding the small opening, eager to sink their teeth into the flesh of those who were stupid enough to make way for them.

    ¡°Here I go!¡± Daria shouted, leaning forward only to jump ahead, straight into the crowd of zombies. And then, rather than trying to defeat a considerable chunk of the entire horde in the contest of strength, Daria¡¯s shadowy form did exactly what Mathew was worried the zombies would do themselves.

    Daria jumped up, sneaking right above the first few zombies that just happened to be close enough to the opening to be the first ones to pass through it. She jumped, leaped over the zombies¡­ and right as she flew over them, Daria reached out with her shadows, sliding her elongated hands through the zombies¡¯ necks and heads alike.

    Some of the zombies fell down right in the gateway, their bodies no longer of any use once their heads started to roll. Others simply ceased to exist, freed from the torture of this wannabe second life of theirs when Daria¡¯s shadowy hands crushed right through their skulls, plucking out the cores that powered their movement in one, single swoop.

    ¡°Push them out!¡± Mathew shouted, moving past the swinging door of the gate with a pirouette only to use his angr momentum to add the strength of the sh he then executed.

    The worst scenario that Mathew low-key feared¡­ didn¡¯t happen. The pressure exerted by Daria alone turned out to be great enough to knock most of the zombies out of the gateway, allowing everyone else to safely pass through it. And once the girls got to work, Carol and her bet opponent quickly removed the few corpses that fell within the doorway, allowing Mathew to shut it close before pushing his fingers through the gaps in the fence to push the locking knob back into its ce.

    ¡°Okay, that was the hardest part,¡± Mathew muttered, only to turn around right on the spot and then join the fight.

    At this point, shing with the zombies wasn¡¯t anything extraordinary for him anymore. And rather than getting himself excited whenever such a fight was about to happen, Mathew¡¯s experience dulled out, turning it into nothing more but an annoying chore.

    ¡°It¡¯s too damn easy,¡± Mathew¡¯s only malepanion in the current group shouted with a smug smile when his spear prated the skull of a zombie only for the man to pull his weapon back and swing it around, using the butt of the spear to push away the corpse that too close for hisfort.

    ¡®He is not all that bad,¡¯ Mathew thought, ncing over at the man as he leisurely proceeded to cut down seven zombies in the time that it took for hispatriot to kill one. ¡®But he isn¡¯t all that better than average either,¡¯ he judged, rolling his eyes only to focus back on the task. ¡®Which means, his pride is nothing less but unfounded,¡¯ he thought, before tightening his grip over his saber only to execute a powerful downward cut, splitting an unlucky zombie right in the middle.

    ¡°Push forward!¡± Mathew then shouted.

    Even though this excursion was initially aimed at simply obtaining the cores, now that its objective changed, it wasn¡¯t enough for them to stay in ce and farm the zombies for the cores they held in their brains.

    Bit by bit, Mathew¡¯s group followed his order, pushing away all the zombies that stood in their path. And with Daria¡¯s shadowy form wreaking havoc ahead, everyone else simply had to focus on keeping their tiny formation integral, stopping any zombies from attacking their sides and backs.

    ¡°Almost there,¡± Mathew shouted a mere momentter when Daria broke through the imaginary line connecting the two outer-most police cars. Yet, as soon as the girl singlehandedly cleaned out all the zombies within the perimeter of the car formation established by the police officers, she suddenly disappeared only to reappear right by Mathew¡¯s side.

    ¡°I need to rest a bit,¡± Daria said, not waiting for approval before falling down to her knees and closing her eyes.

    ¡°Everyone, stop!¡± Mathew ordered right away. ¡®She exhausted herself pretty quickly,¡¯ he thought, only to raise his eyes and take a look at the effects of her rampage. He then nced over at the system windows hiding in the very corner of his vision.

    A wry smile then appeared on his face.

    ¡®If she managed to grow so much by feeding on those weaklings alone¡­¡¯ he thought, shaking his head before seeing the girl¡¯s exhaustion in a new context. Yet, before Mathew could as much as take two breaths after giving hisst order, Daria stood back up only to wink at him before turning back into her shadowy form right away.

    ¡°Secure the car line!¡± Mathew then screamed out, pushing forth himself to lead not by words but by example.

    And in a mere minutes after the entire adventure began, Mathew¡¯s group not only reached but also loosely secured the half-circle made out of the police cars, cutting down all the zombies within the area while pushing all those outside a fair distance away.

    ¡°Now, everyone!¡± Mathew shouted again, this time raising his spear as well. ¡°To your designated roles!¡± he then ordered, cutting his saber down for nothing more but an artistic gesture.

 Chapter 231 Rotting mess

    ¡°Perimeter secured!¡± Nadia shouted, barely managing to hold back her smirk.

    Even if they turned into efficient zombie hunters in the span of just a little bit more than three days¡­ They weren¡¯t any sort of military. And yet, ever since Mathew started to use this kind ofnguage, Nadia didn¡¯t really mind humoring him and following his example.

    ¡°Everyone, good luck!¡± Mathew then shouted. He then swung his saber, casting the blood off its de before putting the weapon back into its sheathe.

    Securing the area was only the first step of the n. It was good that they managed to achieve it so quickly, but it wasn¡¯t a real reason to celebrate yet.

    ¡°May your harvest be bountiful!¡± Le shouted back while giggling, only to move to the back of the half-circle of the cars, ready to intercept any and all zombies that would pass either through the barricade of cars from the front or through Daria and the two hunters to the back.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get to work, then,¡± Mathew nodded his head before hurrying it up towards the outermost car on the left. ¡°You take the right!¡± he then shouted towards Nadia only to start kicking away the corpses thaty near the vehicle.

    ¡®There is hardly anything on the outside,¡¯ he thought after pushing aside most of the obstacles only to see nothing more but bloodied asphalt of the road. ¡®Let¡¯s try the vehicles then,¡¯ Mathew decided, raising his eyes towards the thick steel of the bricky car right beside.

    Mathew first moved towards the front of the car, grabbing at the handle of the passenger doors only to wrestle with it for a second.

    ¡®Nothing,¡¯ he soon realized, ¡®it¡¯s locked.¡¯

    Mathew released a long sigh. He then used his sleeve to wipe the blood off the car¡¯s window before ncing inside.

    And just like one could sadly expect, it wasn¡¯t empty. On the other hand, it was stuffed full of rotting mess and two zombies that caused it.

    ¡®They were trying to hide in the car from the zombies without realizing they got someone infected inside as well,¡¯ Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    Not a single death caused by the zombies was nice. But being stuck with them in the narrow space of the front of the car was one of the worst fates he could imagine. And judging how there wasn¡¯t a single piece of human he could recognize within the mess beyond the two zombies who now pressed themselves against the ss¡­

    ¡°Well then, I can at least grant them revenge and think about burialter on,¡± he muttered, taking a step back before raising his saber.

    Mathew then closed his eyes for a second, taking a deep breath before driving his weapon down, shing not at the door as a whole, but right at the ce where it connected to the door¡¯s frame.

    The locking bolts were likely to be too thick even for Mathew to sh with a single cut. Yet, the same couldn¡¯t be said about the part of the doors that they were attached to.

    GRRRIT!

    The unpleasant, high-pitched sound of metal cutting metal filled the area. And before Mathew could even raise his saber again, the zombies pushed the now cut doors open, falling right towards Mathew¡¯s feet.

    And two cutster, Mathew could allow himself the leisure of raising the neck of his shirt to his nose, doing his best not to puke right away from the wave of intense odor that came from within the car.

    ¡°Disgusting,¡± he muttered. Yet, rather than walking away due to this unpleasant inconvenience, Mathew pushed his saber inside, moving it through the rotting mess of half-digested meat and bones in search of something that could strike his fancy.

    Ting.

    Mathew¡¯s saber bounced off something buried deep into the rotting mess.

    ¡®It feels like something metallic,¡¯ he thought, moving around his saber in an attempt to pull whatever he found out of the pool of the rotting mess. Yet, even after several attempts, whatever that item was, it still eluded Mathew¡¯s attempts at salvaging it.

    ¡®This won¡¯t work,¡¯ he thought. And while he could simply use his hands to try to free it out, the prospect of obtaining a gun wasn¡¯t enticing enough for Mathew to bury his hand in such a mess.

    ¡®Maybe Carol could help,¡¯ he then thought, taking a step back and looking at how the backline of their formation was holding on.

    The only other male in the group was doing¡­ more or less as Mathew expected him to. Le didn¡¯t seem to be doing much at all, obediently sticking to her task of only maintaining the security of the perimeter Mathew and Nadia needed to scavenge the area in peace.

    If there was anyone who was the star of the show, it was Daria. From the single nce that Mathew spared her, she could singlehandedly stop all the zombies from approaching them through the open space between the back of the car barricade and the school¡¯s barrier. And judging from how she intentionally ignored some of the zombies that she could easily take out, she not only kept everyone safe but also made sure both Carol and her opponent would have enough zombies to hunt.

    ¡°Daria!¡± Mathew called out, causing the shadowy form of the girl to stop in her track nearly instantaneously. ¡°I need Carol for a while!¡±

    ¡°On it!¡± the girl replied in a strange, low voice, clearly affected by her transformation.

    And just like Mathew expected, the number of zombies that managed to pass by Daria instantly decreased to only two or three in each wave that approached. And it was a number that the hunter behind her could easily tackle all on his own as well.

    ¡°Carol!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± the girl shouted, sliding on the bloodied road when she rushed back to Mathew¡¯s side.

    ¡°I need you to flush it clean,¡± he ordered, pointing his saber at the insides of the car.

    ¡°Ugh, disgusting!¡± the girl protested right away, only to then shake her head and turn her face towards her quasi-husband. ¡°I can do it, but unless you want all that filth spilling to the safe zone, I will need you to open the other door as well,¡± she pointed out, proving that she could not only maintain a level head in the heat of the ongoing fight but was also someone doing more than just following stupid orders.

    ¡°Le,¡± Mathew called out, turning his head over his shoulder. ¡°Will you be able to handle it if zombies start leaking through the cars?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m busy anyway,¡± Le replied with a confident smug on her face. Yet, when faced with Mathew scolding nce, she quickly nodded her head. ¡°Yeah, it shouldn¡¯t be that hard.¡±

    ¡°Okay then,¡± Mathew nodded his head back to the girl. ¡°Just be aware of this potential danger,¡± he added only to take two steps of wind-up before jumping over the front of the car, shing at the few zombies that were stuck behind it.

    With the school attracting all of them, hardly any zombies were left on the other side of the car barricade, making Mathew¡¯s job far easier than he initially expected.

    And then, with a single sh of his saber, he cut the lock on the doors to the driver¡¯s seat before pulling it open and taking two steps to the back.

    ¡°Flush it all out!¡±

 Chapter 232 Salvaging the vans

    ¡°Water, rise,¡± Carol whispered right as she took a step to the back to stabilize her position.

    The girl brought her hands down with her palms directly facing the ground. And then, she started to slowly raise her hands up.

    And following her gesture, the blood on the ground dried out, letting out all the water contained inside. Then, the ground itself dried out, deprived of the water that the girl stole.

    Finishing her spell took Carol only about ten seconds, by the end of which a huge pillow-sized ball of water floated in the air, right at the same level as the girl¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Water, burst forth!¡± the girl then whispered her second order, raising her palms so that their bottom would face the direction she wanted the water to go.

    And just like one could expect from the words she used to mark her spells, the water contained within the massive bubble rushed forth as if someone attached a hose to it and ramped up the pressure to maximum.

    The radius of the ball of water Carol created was just short of half a meter. And when it burst forth, it only took about three seconds to empty out, with all of it turning into a stream that flooded the insides of the car¡¯s cabin.

    ¡®Damn,¡¯ Mathew gulped down the saliva that formed in his mouth when he watched the event take ce. ¡®I sure wouldn¡¯t want to be on the receiving end of this kind of shower,¡¯ he thought, watching how the pure water raised by Carol washed off most of the filth from the inside of the car.

    And surely enough, once most of the water flew out of the car and carried the filth away, Mathew could spot several interesting pieces inside.

    ¡°Not only a gun but also a radio?¡± he muttered to himself, sliding over the top of the car to get back to its cleaner side. And then, ignoring the disgusting remains of the filth that ended up stuck on the car¡¯s frame and now mostly dissolved into the water that remained, he reached out and pulled out an assault rifle.

    ¡®This also exins why I couldn¡¯t pick it up with my de,¡¯ Mathew realized when he had to jerk the gun a few times to free it from the position it was locked in. Yet, as he looked around, he ended up gritting his teeth. ¡®I guess asking for some spare ammo would be too much,¡¯ he thought, pulling the gun out before gently cing it down on a rtively clean patch of a road nearby. ¡®As for the radio¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, looking down at aptop-like piece left in the middle area between the seats. ¡®Well, it¡¯s not like I know how to pull it out. Even using it would be a challenge,¡¯ he thought, only for his face to darken a little.

    ¡°I guess it means we will need to bring Daniel here,¡± Mathew muttered only to do a quick check through all the car¡¯spartments before sliding out of the cabin. In the end, besides the gun he already moved away, he only found some res, a set of two walkie-talkies, and an opened medicinal kit.

    ¡®Not great, not terrible,¡¯ Mathew thought, bringing out the loot before stockpiling it on a small pile where he left the gun. He then turned his eyes toward the back of the car.

    As it wasn¡¯t just your simple patrol car but one that brought an entire anti-terrorist unit to the school, there was a chance that the insides would hide some pretty valuable equipment. That, or just a bunch of zombies waiting for someone to free them so that they could unleash their wrath upon the outside world.

    Sadly, as there were no windows connecting the driver¡¯s cabin with the back box, Mathew had no other choice but to pull himself out of the car before moving around to its back. He then stood to the side of the winged doors, grabbing at the handle and pulling on it.

    This time, however, the doors offered no resistance, allowing the young man to freely open the piece.

    ¡®That went surprisingly easy,¡¯ he thought, waiting a second for any potential zombies toe out with his saber ready to strike them down. Yet, when nothing happened after some time, Mathew finally moved around the opened wing of the door and nced inside¡­ Only to release a disappointed sigh before mming the door shut.

    ¡°Nothing?¡± Carol asked, leisurely staring at Mathew¡¯s actions while waiting for further orders.

    ¡°There might be something in there but we don¡¯t really have the time to properly check it all out,¡± Mathew replied.

    In truth, the insides of the back cabin of the police¡¯s van were nothing less than a treasure trove full of straps, protective clothing, and all sorts of equipment that people of the apocalypse would be willing to kill for. Yet, in Mathew¡¯s eyes, there wasn¡¯t anything inside that he was willing to risk the entire operation for, especially with seven more cars that his team had to go through.

    ¡°If we leave it open, zombies might get inside and dirty it all over,¡± he stated as he ensured the doors were safely closed before moving to the next van in line. ¡°It¡¯s not thest time for us to visit this ce, so it¡¯s best to just snatch the most important and readily useful stuff,¡± he exined his approach as he moved on to the second van.

    ¡°How is it on your end?¡± Mathew called out to Nadia who was still busying herself with the first van on her end.

    ¡°I can see some boxes inside this one,¡± the girl shouted back. ¡°Some of them are open and emptied out but there I can¡¯t see any markings to figure out what those boxes are for!¡±

    ¡®I guess asking for a huge stockpile of munitions would be a bit too unrealistic,¡¯ Mathew thought, noticing the w in the logic that made him organize this expedition.

    The police that arrived on the scene were surely well equipped for their task. But how many bullets would an anti-terrorist force need to subjugate a single potential threat? Even when taking Mathew¡¯s request to bring out the heavy guns, the answer wouldn¡¯t change all that much.

    ¡°I guess we can only hope for some asional loot after all,¡± Mathew muttered to himself as he looked inside the driver¡¯s cabin of the next van. Thankfully, though, this one waspletely empty with nothing more but the standard equipment inside. And from theck of any diodes or other electric light, it was pretty clear that whatever was inside, was long dead.

    Mathew took a step back before repeating the simple procedure of aiming his saber before cutting off the part of the door with the locking bolts. And then, all it took to open the car doors was a single, rapid pull.

    The young man then rushed to check out all thepartments inside.

    ¡®Speed gun, some more res, radio,ptop¡­¡¯ he muttered in a mute voice as he rummaged through the insides. Yet, besides the properly sealed med kit, there was hardly any loot worth mentioning inside. Just to make sure he didn¡¯t miss anything, Mathew threw onest look around the cabin, only to notice one thing that made this van different from the one he checked before.

    This time, there was a small, grated window that allowed one to peer inside the back cabin of the van.

    And through this small window, Mathew could hear some faint winninging out!

 Chapter 233 Struggle to open up

    ¡®Survivors?¡¯ Mathew thought, his eyes opening up wide at the mere notion of the idea.

    For someone to survive being stuffed into the back of an armored police van for thest three days¡­ It was a feat more incredible than one could imagine.

    ¡®Unless they had some food and water in there, they are likely to be on the edge of dying,¡¯ he thought, climbing further into the car only to raise and nce through the barred window.

    Yet, it was still the middle of the night. And while the light of the stars and moon that cut through the smoke hanging low over the city was enough for Mathew to see the silhouettes of the stuff on the outside, the back of the van was covered inplete darkness.

    ¡®There is a chance it¡¯s just a zombie winning,¡¯ Mathew thought, trying to consider all the possibilities. Yet, it was just as unlikely as it sounded. After all, the zombies that acted differently from the others were evolved ones. And while Mathew already knew how an evolved zombie could appear¡­

    Just what kind of evolution would it have to undergo for its added ability to be that of winning instead of its usual groaning?

    ¡®Well, there is a very simple way to find out,¡¯ Mathew thought, only to curl his right hand into fists before mming it a few times against the metal frame surrounding the window.

    ¡°If you are still alive, we are going to get you out of here!¡± he called, only to sneak out of the driver¡¯s cabin before rushing to move around the car. Yet, reality quickly brought another challenge upon him.

    Because contrary to the first Van that he checked, the back of the second one was tightly pressed against the front of the one behind him.

    ¡°Getting to them through the doors will be hard,¡± Mathew muttered. He then took a sweeping look around, trying to figure something out by feeding his brain random information.

    ¡°Did you say there are some survivors in there?¡± Nadia approached Mathew, stopping only to drop two sealed boxes near the pile where her man dropped all of his loot.

    ¡°It appears so,¡± Mathew admitted, gritting his teeth as he looked towards the car at the very edge of the blockade. ¡°We will have to try to pull that one away,¡± he then said, hiding his weapon in his scabbard and approaching the back of the police¡¯s truck. ¡°I might need your help with that,¡± Mathew then admitted as he looked for just the right ce to firmly grab at the truck.

    If they were to randomly grab at one of its elements, the chances were they would simply end up breaking said element apart rather than moving the truck.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you just lift the hand brake?¡± Carol then suggested, still waiting for her next orders to arrive.

    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t you have your bet going on right now?¡± Mathew asked, turning his eyes towards the girl, changing the topic to hide his embarrassment caused by missing such an obvious point.

    ¡°I¡¯m keeping count of the number of zombies he killed so far,¡± Carol replied while waving her hand as if to showcase how little she cared about the bet. ¡°I can still top him off with one or two spells,¡± she then announced. ¡°But I get the hint,¡± she then added only to wink at Mathew before turning around and heading back to help with the fight.

    ¡°I will go raise the brake,¡± Mathew then said in a hushed voice, too embarrassed to admit that he simply forgot about this. With just a few steps he was back in the filthy cabin, reaching out for the huge handle of the braking mechanism of the van. Yet, even after he pressed the button at its very top¡­ he didn¡¯t have enough strength to lower the handle.

    ¡®Is it broken?¡¯ Mathew thought, looking around the van¡¯s cabin in search of inspiration.

    ¡°For fuck¡¯s sake!¡± he then shouted, using the annoyance to power the strike that he brought down on the handle. And surprisingly enough, even though the button on the handle wasn¡¯t pressed¡­ his strike managed to somehow release the brake, allowing the handle to fall to its neutral position.

    ¡°I somehow did it,¡± Mathew announced as he snuck out of the cabin only to move towards the back of the truck, grab it by the handles of the doors of its back cabin and then dig his feet into the street.

    At first, the truck resisted his attempts. Yet, as Mathew pushed his muscles closer and closer to the current limit of his strength, the van¡¯s wheels finally budged a little only for the truck to then slowly move to the back, nearly catching Mathew¡¯s legs between its chassis and the road.

    ¡°Woah,¡± Mathew jumped to the back, escaping the self-imposed trap in the nick of time. ¡°I¡¯m getting a bit too hasty,¡± he thenmented on his failure only to step away from the truck before approaching the now unlocked back of the next van in line.

    Yet, rather than getting to opening it up right away, Mathew mmed his fist into the metal of the doors in three bursts of three hits. The first and thest of the bursts were quick, with the second round of knocking taking him a few seconds to aplish.

    ¡°SOS sign?¡± Nadiamented, standing right by Mathew¡¯s side and ready tounch herself at whatever woulde of the van¡¯s locked back.

    ¡°Imagine yourself being stuck in this kind of cramped space, with zombies constantly moving all around, with no food or drinks to keep you alive,¡± Mathew replied. ¡°Even with all the knocking I did, they might just spray and pray the second we open the doors,¡± he added, his face darkening a little.

    He never went through this kind of experience in his past life. Yet, he bore witness to the peak of human desperation more than enough times to learn what they would turn into when the conditions were harsh enough.

    And to all of his knowledge, there could hardly be any worse circumstances for whoever was potentially locked inside.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to open the doors now,¡± Mathew announced while pulling his saber out. ¡°Warn everyone, could you?¡± he then asked, ncing over at Nadia.

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± the girl smiled only to run off right away, jumping at the other man in the group, grabbing him by the cor before throwing him away from the potential line of fire that coulde from the soon-to-be-opened doors of the van.

    ¡°Girls, watch out! They might start shooting from that Van soon!¡± Nadia then shouted, openly showing favoritism towards the female part of their group.

    ¡°Here goes nothing, then,¡± Mathew muttered to himself, taking a deep breath as he raised his saber.

    And then, with a single swing, he ran it right across the tiny gap between the two wings of the back doors to the van, cutting through the bolts that kept it shut.

    Ting!

    This time, Mathew failed to finish the task in a single swing. He could feel several bolts giving up under the slice of his de, yet, barely after reaching half of the door¡¯s height, the de lost all of its momentum, failing to prate any further.

    ¡®Again,¡¯ Mathew thought, pulling his weapon back before returning back to his stance.

    ¡°Zombie to the right!¡± Le then shouted, distracting Mathew for a second as she rushed to take care of the undead that managed to push itself through the underside of the car.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Mathew nodded his head before taking another breath. He then fixed his stance before tightening his grip over his weapon.

    ¡®This time, I will cut it through,¡¯ he thought, tensing up his muscles before dropping the saber down.

    And just like he told himself, this time, Mathew managed to achieve what he wanted, cutting all the remaining bolts in half.

    ¡®Now then,¡¯ he thought, lowering his weapon and taking a step to the side of the vehicle. ¡®Let¡¯s see what¡¯s inside,¡¯ he thought, locking the tip of his saber against the underside of the door¡¯s handle before pulling one of the wings of the doors open.

    The metal hinges squeaked in a high pitch as the back of the van opened up.

    Mathew¡¯s entire body tensed up as he prepared himself for a barrage of bullets¡­

    Yet, nothing happened.

    The young man waited for one more moment before his curiosity got the better of him. He then slowly walked around the vehicle so that he wouldn¡¯t just pop out of nowhere in the vision of whoever was inside.

    And he finally got to nce at the insides of the van¡­ Only for his eyes to open up even wider than when he saw the filthy content of the driver¡¯s cabin of the truck behind.

 Chapter 234 Necessary touchy-feely moment

    ¡°We have survivors here!¡± Mathew shouted, turning his eyes away from the gruesome sight within the truck to alert everyone.

    The excursion was aimed at two things. Gathering supplies that could allow them to use fewer cores to sustain the already existing survivors and then go through with the bet between Carol and the hunter. But now that they found some people who were left alive after the apocalypse, all Mathew¡¯s ns from before turned to void.

    Because just like he realized earlier, the thing that theycked the most right now wasn¡¯t weapons. It wasn¡¯t the cores either.

    It was the number of people.

    ¡°Can you move?¡± Mathew turned his face towards the insides of the truck.

    They were all covered with blood as if someone exploded from within. And yet, within this disaster-like scene, there was a group of three people, two women, and one man, lying on the bloodied floor and whining.

    If they could, they would likely scream out into Mathew¡¯s face how they had no energy to even speak properly, not to talk about moving around. But transmitting this message through whining, which was the top limit of what they were currently capable of, was a pretty damn daunting task.

    ¡°I guess you can¡¯t,¡± Mathew muttered, only to climb up to the insides of the backside of the van. ¡°Nadia, dear, I¡¯m going to carry them to safety, make sure no zombies can approach while I do so,¡± he ordered only to approach the nearest of the lucky survivors.

    ¡°..a.e¡­¡± one of them muttered, only able to spell the letters that didn¡¯t involve moving his mouth a lot.

    ¡°Hold on for just a little longer. We have water and food in the school,¡± Mathew whispered, quickly searching through the poor victim of starvation and dehydration for any sort of injuries that would imply he could turn into a zombie.

    ¡®Even now, we don¡¯t know how the process of turning works. It wouldn¡¯t be fun to have him bite down on my neck as I carry him away,¡¯ Mathew thought, ignoring the guilt of taking his time to search through the man¡¯s clothes and exposed skin.

    ¡°Okay, there are no bite marks,¡± he said only to sneak his hands underneath the man¡¯s knees and back before lifting him up with ease.

    The man¡¯s eyes widened when he realized that a scrawny young adult like Mathew actually managed to raise a heavily built adult like him without any struggle. His eyes widened even further when Mathew¡¯s lightly jumped out of the van before jogging towards the gate.

    ¡°There is another waveing,¡± Nadiamented, looking to their left as she apanied Mathew on his path towards the school¡¯s back-side gate.

    ¡°Can you open it up for me?¡± Mathew then requested only to shake the man in his hands a little. ¡°I don¡¯t really have my hands to do it.¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± the girl threw back, pressing herself right at the gate and forcing her hand through the gaps in the fence only to grab the lock before flinging it open. ¡°You are in!¡±

    Mathew didn¡¯t spare any further words. He kicked the small gate open before rushing for just a few steps inside. Then, he lowered himself to his knees before gently cing the man down on the grass.

    ¡°Just wait for a little bit longer. We need to bring everyone here before we will be able to look after you,¡± he said right as he turned around and sprinted past the gate, back towards the van.

    A momentter, Mathew was ready to repeat the same process as before. This time, however, before searching through the body of the next survivor, he looked up at her face only to lower his head.

    ¡°For touching you all over like that, I apologize in advance,¡± he said, ounting for the fact that the other two survivors left in the van were actually women.

    And then, as if he was a long-time lover of the female, Mathew ran his hands across her entire body, quickly searching for any marks signaling that she could be a massive problem in the future. Then and only then did he sneak his hands underneath the middle-aged female before raising her up with ease. ¡°We are going back for you,¡± he said, taking a moment to nce at thest survivor left in the van before sprinting back towards the school.

    ¡°That¡¯s two,¡± Mathew muttered a short momentter when heid down the woman on the ground, only to be met with the sight of the man he just saved currently busy licking the dew off the grass.

    ¡°Carol!¡± Mathew then called out, turning his eyes towards the side of the street where the zombies continued to approach only to crash into the trio of Daria¡¯s shadowy form, Carol, and the opponent of her bet. ¡°Get that hunter of yours toe back!¡±

    ¡°My name is fucking Kasper!¡± the only other man within the group then shouted back, clearly annoyed by the fact that up until this point, not a single person in the group bothered to use his name at all.

    ¡°Good, Kasper, you fucking moron!¡± Mathew quickly applied the new knowledge for his own benefit. ¡°The bet is off, go and fetch food and water for those poor people!¡± Mathew ordered, turning his head right away only to run out of the gate and head back towards the van.

    Yet, while still out in the open of the street, Mathew couldn¡¯t help but notice how their time was running out. Because while Daria alone was easily capable of holding up her own against all the zombiesing from one end of the street¡­ There was actually no one to keep the blockade on the other end of it!

    ¡®We only have a minute left, tops,¡¯ Mathew thought, rushing back into the van. This time, however, rather than getting to work right away, he was faced with the realization of where all the blood within the van came from.<!--

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 Chapter 235 Cant keep up

    ¡°You cut your own hand off,¡± Mathew muttered, opening his eyes wide when he finally noticed a makeshift bandage covering the stump that used to be the woman¡¯s hand.

    ¡®I¡¯ve heard of stuff like this happening back in my old life¡­ But damn, it takes some determination to go through with it.¡¯

    The awe shed in Mathew¡¯s eyes¡­ Only for him to shake his head before approaching the lifeless woman on the van¡¯s floor.

    ¡°You should know the drill already¡­¡± Mathew then muttered, only to omit the entire searching part and focus on grabbing the attractive young adult of a woman into his hands before carrying her out of the van and moving towards the gate.

    ¡°Everyone, we are pulling out!¡± he then shouted, alerting all his wives still on the field.

    ¡°Can¡¯t we keep on hunting?¡± Le protested, appearing right beside Mathew¡¯s side. ¡°We killed a lot of zombies but we didn¡¯t really bother to gather the cores yet,¡± she pointed out. ¡°And if your guess about the evolved monsters is correct, leaving all those corpses out in the open¡­¡±

    The girl didn¡¯t need to finish her words.

    ¡°You are right,¡± Mathew muttered right as the two of them reached the gate and passed through before letting the hand-deprived woman down on the ground. This time, however, rather than cing her right beside the other two, Mathew made sure to leave several meters of space between her and the others.

    ¡°Where the hell is Kasper,¡± Mathew then cursed, looking around in hopes of seeing the hunter returning already.

    Yet, Mathew¡¯s expectations this time were far too great for the reality on his hand. The time he had to take to pull a single person out of the van and bring them back was far smaller than the time a normal person needed to first climb all the way up to the top floor of the school and then go back while moving around between different means of climbing up.

    ¡°Mat, decision, we need it now!¡± Le then called out. She stood guard by the small gate, still refusing to close it back.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Mathew cried out only to stand up and brandish his saber. ¡°We are going out!¡± he then shouted, making his way out of the gate only to nearly instantaneously sh with the wave of the zombies appearing from the now right side of the street.

    And so, rather than taking care of the survivors that were in a dire need of help and supplies, Mathew ended up cutting and shing like usual.

    ¡®This isn¡¯t enough,¡¯ he quickly realized when he was forced to take a step back due to all the zombie corpses pilling up and making the ones behind them climb up and attack him from above. ¡®I guess it¡¯s time for me to use it again,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth as he prepared for the bacsh of using his ability.

    ¡°Mind¡¯s flesh!¡± Mathew then shouted, following the example set by Carol whenever she would invoke her own abilities. And as soon as his mouth opened, Mathew focused all his mind on the picture of gathering the cores from the corpses lying all over the ce.

    ¡°Ugh¡­¡± a dull, pained moan then escaped from Mathew¡¯s mouth. His body slumped down for but a second, as if the gravity of the entire world reversed and the weight of the entire now rested upon his shoulders.

    The unpleasant side effects were kind enough to vanish after just a short moment, allowing Mathew to raise his weapon and deflect the iing zombie¡¯s hand right in the nick of time.

    Or actually, he turned out to be toote to do so. This time, rather than his de, it was his vitality that warded off the attack, preventing the zombie¡¯s sharp nails from cutting his face open.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew thought, standing back up to his legs and cutting the daring undead down, ¡®that was close.¡¯ He then raised his saber and started to cut the zombies open again.

    And then, the burden that he willingly took on himself finally started to bring some results, as a plethora of about twenty shadowy hands suddenly grew out of his back.

    Mathew didn¡¯t need to control them at all. He already infused them with his intent. And while he continued to produce more and more work for his mind¡¯s flesh, the hands diligently rushed to rip the skulls of the fallen zombies open before tearing the cores out of their brains.

    The blood sttered all over the street with pieces of skulls and brains flying in every possible direction. And soon, this gruesome sight rewarded everyone with a picture of a nicely tacked pile of cores, only waiting for someone to take them and make proper use of them.

    ¡®Not enough,¡¯ Mathew thought after stealing a quick nce at the situation around. ¡®We are killing them faster than I can gather the cores,¡¯ he thought, gritting his teeth.

    In the short term, it meant that unless the zombie waves were to suddenly exhaust and stop, they would continue to gather as many cores as they could ever need. Yet, if the waves were not to stop but intensify instead, there would be no telling just how many evolved monsters would appear right at the school¡¯s barrier!

    ¡°I¡¯m back!¡± Kasper shouted, appearing at the backside gate of the school¡¯s fence. ¡°I brought stuff and woke everyone up, they areing here now!¡± he called.

    ¡®And that¡¯s how we can salvage the situation,¡¯ Mathew instantly connected the dots.

    Even with his mind¡¯s flesh, even with the girls helping out whenever they weren¡¯t busy warding off the zombies, they couldn¡¯t keep up with the number of zombies entering the ughterhouse on the street. But with fifty hands ready to help them out with the task¡­ the situation would change!

    ¡°Once theye, make them wrap some cloth around their hands. And whether they like it or not, if they want to live, they have to help us out!¡±<!--

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 Chapter 236 Frome excursion to a huge operation

    ¡°The push on the left is withering!¡± Daria called out when she retreated from the frontline to take a minute of rest. She epted a bottle of water offered by one of the school survivors, taking a long sip of the liquid.

    ¡°Do you want to switch sides?¡± Mathew asked, turning his head around only to wink at the girl and get right back to fighting.

    It was still a time deep into the night, and yet, opposite to whatmon sense would dictate, everyone from the school was now working out in the street, right between the two waves of zombies pushing towards them.

    ¡°If you asked me this half an hour ago¡­¡± Daria replied, only to cut her sentence and shake her head. ¡°I¡¯m too tired to handle so many of them on my own, sorry,¡± she said before lowering her head in what appeared to be a shame.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Mathew cheered the girl up. ¡°You already did enough. On the other hand,¡± Mathew took a step back, swung his saber across a group of three zombies, decapitating the two of them only to lodge his de into the skull of the third one. He then kicked the third of the zombies, forcing it back into the zombie wave while letting the worker survivors smash the still-moving heads with some makeshift tools before extracting the cores out of their brains. ¡°How are those new survivors?¡±

    Daria took one more sip from her bottle before resting it on the ground and standing up.

    ¡°Thest time I checked, they were all asleep,¡± she said, ncing over in the direction of the school¡¯s fence.

    In theory, that alone should be enough to check up on the trio that Mathew and his group saved from the police vans¡­ yet, with nearly forty people in total now busying around, it was challenging to keep a straight line of sight over anything.

    ¡°We need two more guys to move the cores behind the barrier!¡± Someone shouted from within the crowd. Even though it wasn¡¯t rted in any way or form to what Mathew was talking about, it somehow served as the kick in the butt he needed to focus back on his task.

    ¡®Fuck,¡¯ Mathew cursed when two zombies slipped past his guard. Yet, before they could reach the worker survivors, the two hunters from Carols¡¯ group rushed in to intercept them, quickly bringing their spears through the zombie¡¯s skulls.

    ¡°Sorry for that!¡± Mathew called out, only to turn back towards the waves and get back to slicing away.

    ¡°We¡¯ve reached three hundred cores!¡± another shout came from the direction of the school¡¯s gate, where a small number of survivors busied themselves with organizing and then counting up all the cores brought inside by those working directly on the street.

    ¡°Assuming most of them are worth five cores at the merchant, we can already afford another fortress,¡¯ Mathew thought, kicking at the zombie that attempted to nk him from the left and pushing it back into the crowd of zombies behind. ¡®And the waves are already starting to thin out,¡¯ he then thought, turning his eyes back towards the right side of the street.

    When the entire excursion began, it was on the left side where most of the zombies came from. It was also the ce where Daria operated, killing twice as many zombies as the cores she directly absorbed during her fight.

    ¡®On that note, the intervals at which she needs breaks¡­¡¯ Mathew thought, stealing a nce at the girl who finished her round of stretching and invoked her shadowy form again. The survivors around her parted, opening a path for her to return to the second frontline where Carol, Frank, and Kasper alone held back the zombies for a moment.

    ¡°I would use someone else here as well!¡± Mathew then called out, quickly turning his face back towards the approaching zombies, unwilling to let any of them pass by him again.

    ¡°What, am I not enough?¡± Nadia suddenly appeared by his side.

    She was currently covered in blood from the soles of her feet to the tip of her head. Her de was already showing signs of being used up, proving that it was high time for Mathew to rece it for her.

    ¡°Most of the zombies areing from this side anyway,¡± he added only to nce over at the third front, one blocked by all the police cars. Thanks to this obstruction and a rtively small number of zombiesing from the direction of the town¡¯s outskirts, Le alone was enough to hold that front.

    And then, came the one report that Mathew longed to hear for quite some time already.

    ¡°We¡¯ve harvested and moved all the cores!¡± the same math genius that approached Mathew roughly two days ago to help him out with the form now fearlessly stepped through the piles of rotting mess zombie¡¯s corpses while holding a small notebook in his hand. ¡°There might be a few of the cores left, but not on the scale that could cause a problem down the line,¡± he added, privy to some more information than the rest of the survivors due to his managerial position within the school.

    ¡°Finally,¡± Mathew released a sigh of relief only to take a step back and cut the hands of the zombie that attempted to grab him. He then took a deep breath.

    ¡°EVERYONE!¡± Mathew shouted from the bottom of his lungs. ¡°Stop killing them!¡± he ordered. ¡°Maiming is enough!¡±

    Now that most of the cores on the ground were harvested, it was time for all of the nonbatant survivors to get back within the safety of the school¡¯s barrier. And in order to stop the leftover cores leading to the birth of a new army of evolved monsters right by their doorstep, everyone had to hold back their natural instincts of killing the zombies that kept on attacking.

    Mathew turned his head to the young manager of the school. ¡°Call everyone back, we are pulling out,¡± he ordered only to put his focus back on the fight.

    Between how the horde looked when the excursion started and how it appeared now that it turned into a fully-fledged operation that involved everyst surviving soul within the school was extremely different. When it all first started, the zombies were crowding to the point they couldn¡¯t really fit all within the entirety of the road¡¯s width.

    And now, while more and more of them continued toe out from the small alleys and areas deeper into the town, they could no longer even be called a proper crowd. The gaps between each of the zombies turned from millimeters to two and three meters, allowing just two or three people to hold an entire frontline.

    And despite all of that, Mathew judged it was high time to retreat.

    Not because they were all exhausted and couldn¡¯t hold on much longer.

    It was simply because he was too curious about what the police survivors had to say to keep on the boredom of this easy fight!

    ¡°All the workers are behind the barrier!¡± Frank shouted from by the gate, as the one tasked with ensuring no one was left behind.

    ¡®That¡¯s a relief,¡¯ Mathew thought, taking a step back. ¡°Run the usual check!¡± he shouted, slowly starting to give up more and more ground.

    The area that they secured with so much effort now continued to shrink, with zombies filling up the gaps in the space.

    ¡°Carol, bring all of yours back too!¡± Mathew then ordered the weakest of thebatants off the field of a still ongoing battle.

    And a mere momentter¡­

    ¡°We are safe!¡± Carol shouted.

    ¡°Well then,¡± Mathew looked to the side to where Nadia continued to enjoy throwing herself into the state of a rampage. Yet, despite how crazed she appeared while pulling the legs out of the zombie¡¯s hips or tearing their arms apart¡­ She held herself back from properly killing even a single one of them.

    ¡°Shall we go back?¡± the girl then looked towards her man, with a wide smile decorating her lips.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mathew said, nodding his head. And then, after retreating for two more steps, he shouted, ¡°Pull out!¡±

    They did enough for one night. And with the first rays of sun slowly starting to appear, it was only a matter of few moments before Daria, their greatest fighting power in the night, would revert back to being the weakest link in the chain.

    ¡°It¡¯s time to enjoy the spoils of the fight. Retreat!¡±<!--

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 Chapter 237 The Ballsy Woman In Charge

    "Good job, everyone!" Mathew called out as soon as one of the survivors locked the gate behind him. And then, to Mathew''s surprise, they actually came in with what looked like the long benches from the gym area of the school before probing the gate up with them adding additional although unnecessary security to the potential weak point.

    What they failed to consider, though, was that the physical features of the fence itself had absolutely nothing to do with how the school was defended.

    Sure, the barrier was anchored on the fence and as such, breaking it open would cause either a section of said barrier or the entire thing to fall and copse.

    ''Or maybe someone saw us both locking and unlocking the gate from the outside?'' Mathew then thought.

    In this scenario, adding more security made total sense. Yet, it was only assuming that they were worried about humans attacking the ce, as no zombie could push its hand through the barrier to unlock it.

    ''Well, as long as they feel better with this added security, I have nothing toin about,'' Mathew thought, only rolling his eyes over what he considered an unnecessary effort and feature.

    "We have gathered a total of four hundred and twenty-two cores," Mathew''s junior approached his side while looking at the notebook that he covered with all sorts of data. "Do you want us to move it to the top floor?" he then asked, eager to prove his usefulness.

    "That would be much appreciated, thanks," Mathew replied, nodding his head to show gratitude. "Guys, once we deal with the stuff at hand, I will be sure to bring out some sweets and drinks for everyone to enjoy!" Mathew then called out to everyone. "After a hard and dangerous job like this, you guys deserve this kind of reward!"

    "Yeah!" the crowd cheered up, raising their hands to the sky.

    ''Just like I thought,'' Mathew smiled a little when he saw the reaction of mostly underage kids to the prospects of getting something to get themselves drunk with. ''Well, they worked hard yesterday and then during the night, so I might cut them some ck,'' he thought, dropping the topic before it could be a moral problem in his mind.

    "Are you done yet?" Nadia asked, approaching Mathew from behind.

    She had some sort of cloth in her hands that she used to wipe most of the blood from her face.

    "Let me guess, you want to get yourself cleaned out, right?" Mathew asked, aware of how awful it was to have blood all over himself. "Just make sure to wipe all the points of contact before getting to the merchant up top," he then requested only to walk through the open area between the school''spound and the fence to where the workers dropped off the three survivors from the police vans.

    "Sir!" a worker whose job was to take care of those people for the time being shot up to his legs when he saw Mathew approaching with Nadia and then Le following closely after. "They are asleep as of now!" he then reported, stretching his chest out and barely managing to stop his hand from raising to his forehead in some sort of personal salute.

    "Which one do you think has the highest rank?" Mathew then asked, ignoring the quirks of the worker and looking down at the trio of pitiful survivors.<sub> </sub>

    They were all filthy. The blood they got sttered with when one of the women cut off her hand roughly at the height of the middle of her forearm now dried out and only added to the filth of their dried-out sweat, piss and shit.

    Such was the reality for a group of three people stuck without food and water in a closed-off cage. And while Mathew recalls seeing some signs that they attempted to keep their shit away from where they were, once they lost the energy to move around, it didn''t matter anymore, turning their efforts futile.

    "It''s the handicapped one, sir," the worker pointed out at the woman''s chest. "I used to y around with clothes a lot so I can tell there used to be more stuff seemed to her chest than to the uniforms of others."

    "I wonder if that''s true..." Mathew muttered, squatting by the three sleeping not-beauties before shaking his head. He then closed his eyes and waited for a while before finally sensing a familiar presence. ''Can you confirm that?''

    Norbert was one of the very few people in the entire school poption that didn''t participate in the operation down on the ground. Or rather, he did, but from the safety of the top floor of the school.

    His task was simple. It was to monitor the situation all around and be ready to send a messenger, another of the two people that remained in school, to warn everyone in case something bad were to happen. And now, Mathew saw no point in forcing him to make the journey down, especially with how everyone would soon upy the logistic bottleneck of the shaft leading to the top floor.

    ''That guy is right,'' Norbert then replied, speaking directly to Mathew''s mind. ''It might take you by a surprise...'' the police officer''s ghost hesitated for a moment only to reveal a truth Mathew truly didn''t expect.

    ''But she was the one in charge of the entire operation when we came here.''

    "Do you really believe I could be bigoted enough to assume only a man could take charge?" Mathew then muttered under his nose as he shook his head while still keeping his eyes closed. "Even with my girls proving to be more capable at various tasks than I am?"

    ''No. I assumed you wouldn''t believe the leader of the entire police unit would be not only one of the few survivors but also the only one to survive despite being bitten,'' Norbert exined the logic behind his thoughts.

    ''It''s the opposite,'' Mathew revealed how he himself perceived the situation. ''She''s young. She doesn''t seem to be some kind of martial artist monster either,'' he pointed out only for a small smirk to dance over his lips. ''Which means, her balls had to be big enough for big and scary people like Daniel to respect her authority,'' he pointed out only to open his eyes and nod his chin toward the stump of the woman''s arm. "And you can see that she had balls by the sheer fact she was decisive enough to cut the bitten part so quick, the virus didn''t get to spread throughout her system," he said out loud so that Norbert could perceive his words despite Mathew opening his eyes.

    "And that sadly means, we have no other choice but to wake her up," he then added only to turn his head towards the temporary caretaker of the survivors before giving him a meaningful nce.

    "I don''t like where this is going," Nadia muttered while crossing her arms on her chest. "You are thinking about adding her to the harem, don''t you?" she suggested.

    "I''m thinking of ways that could make a proper adult like her listen to what she''s bound to consider as mere kids," Mathew countered only for a wicked smile to sh on his lips for a second. "And restoring her arm... It does sound pretty good for bait, doesn''t it?"

 Chapter 238 The Policewoman Wakes Up

    "Okay then," Mathew muttered once the menial task of carrying the new survivors inside the school waspleted. "Thanks, everyone, but I need you to go away now," he then said, giving everyone an eye.

    There were only a few workers left within the area, to begin with, so clearing it out from all the unnecessary people took only a moment.

    "Nadia, dear." Mathew turned his face to his main wife. "Could you wake her up?"

    "Sure thing," the girl said as she nodded her head and moved forward. "Before I wake her up, though," she said as soon as her hand reached out for the woman''s healthy side. "Why did you excuse everyone else?"

    "If you were her," Mathew locked his eyes on the police leader''s rtively cute face, "how would you react to an audience of tens of kids?"

    Mathew left his question to hang in the air for a bit. And Nadia didn''t see a point to dig deeper.

    Now that Mathew pointed out his thoughts, she could easily see herself in the woman''s shoes.

    "Let''s wake her up," Mathew said, hurrying the girl up a little. The night was already gone and the sun was beginning to rise.

    ''And if we want to somehow control the other two, dealing with the leaderes first,'' he thought. Then, his expression darkened. ''And having her be crippled... as cold as it might be, I cannot see it as anything but an opportunity.''

    Nadia shook her head and moved her hand by thest few centimeters. She then shook the woman''s shoulder, making sure it was strong enough to pull her out of her sleep while remaining too weak to further strain her crippled arm.

    "NO!" the woman screamed out as soon as she opened her eyes. Her body shoot up while she reflectively attempted to shake Nadia''s hand off.

    Then, the woman froze. She stared at the wall of the school''s courtyard with her eyes wide open before slowly moving her head to the sides.

    ''Don''t say a word,'' Mathew thought, hoping for some miracle to transmit his thoughts to the rest of his group.

    Right now, the maimed policewoman was taking the reality in. Her willingness to trust their words would plummet to the abyss if anyone were to disturb it.

    "Where..." the woman muttered, only for her body to suddenly rx, lose its stability and cause her to fall to the back.

    She shot her hands behind her in an attempt to support herself... But she clearly wasn''t used tocking one of them.

    As such, while she managed to rest her right hand on the ground, her body only twisted before she fell back right onto her primitively bandaged wound.

    The cloth that she used to cover her stump was soaked in blood. And when this red premature ending of her arm struck the ground...

    "ARGH!" the woman screamed out while intense pain twisted her face. And coupled with her backward motion, she failed to stop herself from falling down, striking the ground with an entire side of her face.

    "First off, you are safe," Mathew said, standing right where he was when the woman woke up. "And yes, we have water and food for you and those two others you were in a car with," he said.

    Mathew then turned silent, giving the woman some time to process the information.

    First off, the woman clenched her teeth to fight off the intense pain of straining her wound. She then raised her head and looked at Mathew and gritted her teeth.

    ''Not good,'' the young man realized. ''This kind of intense hate...'' he gulped down his saliva while being on the receiving end of the wrath contained within the woman''s eyes.

    Misunderstanding or some fault of his that Mathew wasn''t aware of, it didn''t matter. What was important, was that this woman clearly wasn''t happy to interact with him.

    "The others..." she finally spewed out, raising her back only to hug her wounded arm to her chest.

    "To your right," Mathew said, pointing his hand at the two bodies lying on the floor roughly two meters to the side of the woman.

    The policewoman nced over to the side only to bring her eyes right back to Mathew''s face.<sub> </sub>

    "Are they...?"

    She didn''t need to finish her sentence.

    "Dehydrated and starved," Mathew revealed. "We gave them a tiny bit of water before letting them sleep in peace. You are the only one we woke up," he exined the situation.

    The hate in the woman''s eyes subsided a little. Yet, it didn''t mean it vanished without a trace. Her rage continued to smolder at the bottom of her soul, it simply didn''t turn into fires great enough to sh at the back of her pupils.

    "Who are you?" the woman asked.

    "I''m..."

    As soon as Mathew opened his mouth, the woman turned her head to the side. Yet, rather than getting annoyed by her apparent rudeness, the young man couldn''t help but smile.

    ''Making me talk so that I would be less likely to jump on her when she''s looking away,'' he thought. His eyes widened a little, prompted by the genuine respect this smart ploy earned the woman in Mathew''s soul.

    The woman then turned her face back. This time, however, her facial muscles rxed aspared to how she was before.

    ''And she really does seem to care about her people,'' Mathew continued to silently judge the amputee before him.

    "I''m Mathew," he then said. "The guy that pretended to be a school freak to bring you all over before it all started," he then revealed.

    The woman''s face tensed up upon hearing those words. And there was nothing Mathew could do about it.

    In a certain way, he was responsible for how life yed out for her. There was a chance she wouldn''t lose her arm if she were cooped up in the base with the others.

    But there was also a chance that she would be long dead, caught unprepared for anything as opposed to when she brought a huge force to deal with the problem Mathew faked.

    The young man gave the woman some time to digest the news, aware of how massive they had to be for her.

    "Where are the others?" the policewoman then asked, squinting her eyes as she looked at Mathew. "An entire unit of our best went into the school. Where are they?"

    "Your best?" Mathew repeated a selected part of what the woman said. "Then I have both good and bad news for you," he said, only to lean back and support himself on his hands.

    "Both Daniel, the negotiator, and the young one going by the name of Norbert are still alive. The former should be here any moment," Mathew revealed without any hesitation.

    "And the others?" the woman pushed the topic.

    Yet, after a moment of prolonged silence, she realized that both wouldn''t receive the answer... but also figured out the meaning behind said silence.

    "Did you..."

    "No," Mathew cut the woman''s words before she could even put them out. "I saw some of them die while we fought together to defend other survivors. Others..." he shook his head before turning it towards Nadia.

    "Others died when they bought me and two others the time to escape from a group of savages that saw them as obstacles stopping them from doing whatever they wanted," Nadia exined her part of the story.

    "What about others hiding in the rest of the cars?" the woman then asked, turning her eyes back from Nadia to Mathew...

    Only to notice how their faces froze on the spot.

    "Betty!" Norbert suddenly came storming in, running out of the eastern corridor. He ran past Mathew and his wives only to slide down on his knees as he neared his former leader. "You are alive!"

 Chapter 239 Norberts Crush

    "You are alive!"

    The joy in Norbert''s voice was so genuine, so vivid, it simply couldn''t be faked. And despite the massive bomb that the woman just dropped on everyone, even she failed to stop herself from smiling a little when showered with this kind of emotional reception.

    "Norbert..." the policewoman muttered. She then pressed her stump even harder against her chest, causing her expression to sour. She then averted her face to the side. "How many times have I told you not to call me like that?"

    ''Dang,'' Mathew froze for the second time. Even though the woman averted her eyes and turned her face away, he stood in a different ce than Norbert. And as such, he could easily see the blush that the woman attempted to hide from her colleague.

    ''Could the two of them be a thing?'' he then asked himself, gritting his teeth as he realized what that could possibly mean.

    ''I guess this is what politics is all about,'' he then thought, taking a breath before shaking his head. ''It''s all about weighing what options are most favorable. But before that...''

    "Yeah, yeah, Beatrice," Norbert said, not minding the changing expressions on Mathew''s face. "How is your arm?" he then asked to the woman''s clear and obvious dismay.

    And yet, for how much of an all-seeing eye he had, he failed to notice that it was one of the sore spots that the woman didn''t want to talk about.

    "I..." Beatrice hesitated for a second. She then nced at Norbert, gulped down her saliva, and ended up averting her eyes again. "I will manage..."

    "Hey, I know this will sound bad, but man," Norbert said, turning his face to Mathew. "Is there any chance you could restore her arm?"

    "What?" Mathew and Beatrice said at the same time. And while the woman instantly turned her eyes to Mathew as if to verify just what the hell her subordinate was talking about, Mathew directed his wide-open eyes at Norbert.

    "You surely do know what would need to happen for me to do it?" Mathew said, sending a quick nce at Beatrice only to move his eyes right back to Norbert.

    ''How could he be so eager to have her sleep with me?!'' Mathew screamed out in his thoughts. ''Is he some sort of cuck?''

    "We are all adults here, are we not?" Norbert replied, raising one of his eyebrows as if weirded out by Mathew having any sort of problem with what his request entailed. "That price is nothing whenpared to restoring her arm!"

    "What the hell are you guys talking about?" Beatrice uttered with bated breath. Her eyes were wide open and struggling to decide whether to lock on Mathew''s or Norbert''s face.

    "You are right," Mathew said, nodding his head as if to endorse Beatrice''s words. "Whether I can restore her arm or not, we can''t say for sure. But for now, there is something else we should focus on. And we actually might need your help with it too."

    "What is it?" Norbert asked, squinting his eyes in an unhappy expression.

    He was just reunited with a girl that was likely his crush. And from Beatrice''s reactions, she appeared to like him back as well.<sub> </sub>

    As such, it was no wonder he was pretty unhappy when Mathew suddenly forced him to turn his attention elsewhere.

    "I need you to sit down and figure out which of the cars do have some survivors left in them," Mathew then revealed the problem only to nce over at the female officer. "She''s the one who told us there are more survivors so I believe we should trust her."

    "There is more?" Norbert opened his eyes wide. "But how?" he then turned his eyes towards Beatrice. "There were only five of you left when you sent everyone inside. And at least two had to die in the first car!"

    ''Wait, it doesn''t make sense...'' Mathew suddenly realized the inconsistency. ''If there were only five of them... how did they get to move all those cars into the formation?''

    There was only a tiny time frame during which the police cars could be arranged in this specific kind of formation. Just a quarter of an hour into the apocalypse and the streets would likely turn too busy for such precise maneuvers. And for all the cars to align so perfectly...

    ''Unless they wanted to...'' Mathew finally realized what the real purpose of that arrangement of the cars was.

    Initially, it wasn''t supposed to hold the zombies at bay from all directions. It was only an attempt of Beatrice at establishing a stronghold for the men she sent into the school.

    "I guess you attempted to call everyone back," Mathew suddenly said out loud, right as Norbert ignored his own concerns and sat down on the floor before closing his eyes. "Didn''t you?" he asked, looking right at Beatrice''s face.

    "I did," the woman answered while a little bit of shock shed in her eyes when she looked back at Mathew. "No one answered.... but wait, how did you know?"

    "I figured it out," Mathew replied, shaking his head. "I just couldn''t help but wonder why would anyone put those cars in this formation while leaving both sides of the main street open. And a presence of a group of men with heavy guns seems like the only possible exnation."

    "Okay," Norbert opened his eyes before Mathew could get any further into exining the situation. "There are two more officers in one of the cars. And five more civilians still alive in another one," he exined only to raise his eyes at Mathew. "Are you going to save them?"

    "There are no zombies inside, right?" Mathew asked, ignoring the puzzled look on Beatrice''s face.

    "Guys, what the hell are you talking about?" she asked once she couldn''t stop herself anymore. She then looked right at Norbert''s face. "There should be twenty-five of them!"

    ''Ouch,'' Mathew gulped down his saliva, already aware of what that meant.

    "Bett... Beatrice..." Norbert muttered, only to avert his eyes, unwilling to look at his crush while breaking the bad news to her. "The people in the cars to the right..."

    "What? Did you see them or what?" she said out loud, still not aware of what Norbert''s skill was.

    "Yes, I did see them," Norbert replied, turning his eyes back and bravely looking the woman right in the eyes. "But they are all either dead or turned by now."

 Chapter 240 What Is There In It For Us

    "They are all either dead or turned."

    Mathew opened his eyes a bit wider than usual when he heard Norbert reveal the harsh truth to his former leader. He opened his eyes not because he was shocked by the news but because he was curious.

    Curious as to how Beatrice would react to that news and, more importantly, how she would react to Norbert seeing stuff that he wasn''t anywhere near.

    "What the hell are you talking about?" the woman asked while raising both of her eyebrows. "There is a limit to what kind of bullshit I can take," she then added, pushing her body forward only to then use the swinging momentum at her hips to push herself up and to her legs.

    For a moment, the woman managed to stay upright, although on wobbly knees, only to then plummet right down, with only Norbert''s quick reaction saving her face from striking squarely against the floor.

    "You are too exhausted to move right now," Norbert said only to turn his head over at Mathew. "Can we get her something to fill her stomach?"

    "Le, could you?" Mathew then turned his eyes to the one wife of his that happened to use the least of strength in the recent fight. As someone who ensured the car barrier would remain free of zombies, she only had to kill a few of those who not only stumbled down the street but then managed to somehow move either underneath or above the line of the cars.

    "I will be right back," Le replied, standing up from the shadow she was hiding at only to run back the same way Norbert came to their current ce.

    "I don''t even want to ask where you guys get your food," Beatricemented under her nose while refusing to look Mathew in the eye. Then, she shook her head only to move her eyes back to Norbert. "Now, how the hell could you know what happened to those civilians we hid in the cars?"

    "Oh right, you don''t know yet," Norbert said, finally realizing the point that made Mathew curious all along.

    "Don''t know what?" Beatrice barked in response.

    Norbert looked at the woman for a moment only to then sigh and turn around, showing her his back.

    "Put your healthy hand behind your back and erect a random number of fingers," Norbert said.

    ''So that''s how he is going to prove it,'' Mathew thought, a small smirk dancing in the corner of his lips.

    "Huh?" Beatrice twitched. "Sure?"

    She clearly had no idea what was going on¡­ but decided to simply go with the flow anyway. She then allowed her wounded arm to just hang by her stomach while pushing her healthy hand behind her back.

    Then, she threw a suspicious nce all over the room, as if expecting to find Norbert''s helper or some sort of mirror mechanism allowing him to see whatever was behind her back.

    "If you are that worried, then you can hide your hand under your shirt," Norbert said with a sigh.

    "What?!" Beatrice opened her eyes wide as she shook her head back towards her former underling. "How did you¡­"

    "I can see everything," Norbert said while shaking his head to the sides. "Five, three, five, fist, fist, one, fist¡­" he then started to give out seemingly random numbers in rapid session.

    "How the hell¡­"

    "As I said," Norbert repeated himself. "I can see everything. Or rather, right now, my point of view is hanging roughly a meter away from your back," he exined.

    "I¡­ I see¡­" the woman muttered, clearly not convinced.

    "Now that I think about it, didn''t you kill even a single zombie early on?" Mathew asked, rejoining the discussion while looking at the woman with a strange look on his face.

    "What do you take me for?" she replied angrily, throwing an annoyed look at Mathew. "Or what, do you think that since I''m a woman I cannot do anything to protect myself?"

    Mathew only rolled his eyes.<sub> </sub>

    "Then let me reiterate the question," he said only to lean forward and cup his hands together before resting his chin on top of them. "Excluding the use of firearms, did you manually kill even a single zombie early on?"

    This time, the woman remained silent.

    "I¡­ I did not," she then replied, turning her eyes to the side. "When I ran out of bullets¡­" she then waved her bloodied stump around. "I guess you can tell what happened."

    "And that''s why you still can''t believe your subordinate," Mathew sighed only to stand up from the piece of rubble he was sitting at. He then grasped his hand at the air before squinting his eyes.

    ''Barrier of lights,'' he thought, calling forth one of the very few abilities that he had in store.

    Thankfully, fate didn''t bother to make him look stupid by temporarily denying him the use of the ability. And just like back when he first used it, a wall of light appeared all around the young man, separating him from the rest of the world.

    ''Enough, disperse,'' Mathew then thought a momentter, allowing the light to vanish and returning back to the same area where everyone else was.

    "This is the power of the system," Mathew said, staring right down the woman''s shocked eyes. "I mean, what I just showed you is pretty meaningless and useless in a fight," he said while shrugging his shoulders, "but it''s the thing that''s easiest for me to manifest."

    "I¡­ I see¡­" Beatrice muttered before gulping down her saliva. She then looked towards Norbert. "And your¡­ system?" she then asked.

    "I can create a ghost of sorts and move around with him however I wish," he stated. "I can slip through any gap that I can see through. My range is roughly half a kilometer away if I don''t want to strain myself. Oh, and I''m pretty useless in a fight," he then added, finally revealing most of what there were to his system-given abilities.

    "Okay, I understand," Beatrice said, only to turn around when Le finally returned with her hands busy holding up all kinds of foods. Yet, what she quickly came to realize, was how everyst package was either directly a can or a cardboard box that implied its insides were still packed within one.

    The woman then brought her hand down to her stomach. The sight of food had to remind her just how long did she go without any proper meal.

    Yet, her focus on the foodsted for but a short moment. And right when Le started to stack the cans right by the woman''s side, she already managed to ovee her bodily weakness and raise her eyes back on Mathew.

    "Assuming I believe what Norbert said about the other survivors, there are still people more left alive," she said, oveing her desire to stand up again.

    "Just shut up for now and wait for food to be ready," Le stopped the woman before she could finish what she wanted to say.

    She then grabbed one of the green-colored cans only to smash a special capsule at its bottom before dropping it down to the ground by the woman''s legs.

    "It should be warm enough in a minute or two. And I hope I don''t need to remind you not to gobble it all up in one go," Le said before standing up and moving from Beatrice''s side to Mathew''s side.

    "Be it as it may..." the policewoman looked at the stic wrap that started to grow in size as if someone pumped air inside. And through this stic and partially see-through wrap, she could see the food inside warming up under the influence of the chemical heating agent that Le smashed.

    "But still," she said, raising her eyes back to Mathew and oveing her hunger to focus on the task she considered to be even more important. "Seeing how you guys managed to pull the three of us out, I hope you can do the same for the other five that are still left alive."

    "If that only was so easy," Mathew said only to turn around and move away from the woman. He took a few steps away, only to then turn around and look at the policewoman with his squinted eyes. "Pulling you all out took thebined effort of nearly forty people, ten of which had to risk their lives for hours."

    "So it''s not going to happen, is that what you are trying to say?" the policewoman asked while Norbert turned his head away.

    "No," Mathew replied, shaking his head sideways. He then paced right back to the ce he was formerly sitting only to lean over the woman and grace her with a gentle smile. "We can help them. And I can actually see us doing it," he stated.

    Mathew then turned around on his spot, as if he didn''t want to look at the woman while saying his next bit.

    "But there is one thing that I need to ask," Mathew stated before raising his eyes toward the ceiling of the floor. "What is it in us to risk our lives for the sake of some random civilians?"

 Chapter 241 Discussing The Deal

    "What is it in us to risk our lives for the sake of some random civilians?"

    Mathew forcefully restrained his face from showing up an unpleasant grin as soon as he uttered this question. It wasn''t easy for him to act so cold-heartedly, not even after everything he went through.

    "What do you want?" Beatrice barked, taking the hint hidden behind Mathew''s words.

    "It''s simple," Mathew replied, leaning his head over his shoulder while smiling at the policewoman. "I want you," he stated only to then nce over at the two other policemen still asleep by her side. "And I want the two of them as well."

    Both Beatrice and the two men that she was stuck in a car with were left behind when Daniel requested reinforcements.

    There was a chance they were told to stay back so that the field headquarters of the operation would have some manpower to defend against some sort of attack...

    ''But let''s not forget this wasn''t some sort of high-stakes anti-terror operation,'' Mathew thought ''They all believed they were going to take down a single teenage freak. Which means...''

    "Just like you, they are good administrators, are they not?" Mathew then asked. Yet, rather than hoping for an answer, he simply shed some light on the meaning of his request.

    "And here I was about to turn quite judgemental of you," Beatrice sighed only to shake her head before grabbing at the stic package with food rations.

    She then brought the entire thing to her mouth only to bite at the wrapping and then tear it off.

    "Oh, don''t get me wrong," Mathew said as soon as the womanid the still-hot package on herp before spooning a bit of the rice with her finger and stuffing it in her mouth. "I''m likely going to do something to you that you have never done before," he said.

    "Hah?"

    Beatrice was stuck without food and water for three whole days. Right now, she finally got to eat something... Only for her mouth to stop moving at all as she looked up and stared down at Mathew''s face with her eyes wide open.

    Gulp.

    The woman swallowed the tiny amount of rice she managed to get before blinking her eyes a few times.

    "What the hell do you mean by that?"

    "I said the bad news first," Mathew replied only to p his hands against his hips. "Norbert has the system that allows him to be a ghost and move freely around. Daniel, who is currently overseeing another ce, has a system that allows him to strike stuff," Mathew exined, only for his face to twist as a sudden question appeared in his mind.

    ''Wait, I wonder what his system actually does,'' he thought, taking some time to analyze all the memories he had about the man fighting.

    And if there was anything that struck him about Daniel''s fighting style... it was how rhythmical it was.

    "Well, whatever," Mathew muttered. He then shook his head, pushing the non-topic stuff out of his mind as he focused on the woman before him again. "On the other hand, my system allows me to take wives and grant them the benefits of my own system."

    "Speaking of Daniel, I would really like to meet with him," Beatrice muttered only to lower her head. Then, rather than picking the topic that Mathew started, she opted to move her healthy hand back into the task of scooping rice and sauce out of the package and then stuffing it into her mouth.

    "Here," Le then approached the woman with a spoon she snatched from another package. And as soon as the policewoman took the utensil, Le tore out a small piece of cloth from her shirt before passing it over as well.

    "Eating with your hand so oily can''t befortable," she said, showing a surprising degree of empathy.

    ''Is she trying to make her less wary of us?'' Mathew thought, observing the girl with one of his eyebrows slightly raised.

    ''I saw her parade through a corpse-filled corridor as if she was on some flowery in. And now she is pretending to be a nice, thoughtful person?''

    "Okay then, why do you want me to take me as your wife?" Beatrice swallowed the food she had in her mouth before lowering the spoon and focusing her eyes on Mathew''s face.

    "To potentially restore your hand," Mathew replied without hesitation. "Listen, I know how it sounds..."<sub> </sub>

    "Wait for a moment," the policewoman raised her healthy hand to stop Mathew from speaking. "I''m aware of how it sounds. But I''m also aware of how little I understand about how the world changed."

    The woman then took a deep breath and even stopped herself from snacking on the food.

    "You want me to work for you. Not for the sake of killing zombies but for the sake of managing the survivors," Beatrice said.

    "That''s right, but..."

    "How did I know it?" Norbert''s crush smiled, cutting Mathew''s words before he could even pose his question. "You gave me enough hints for that already," she stated only to then put a cute smile on her lips before leaning her head to the side. "I bet the three of us working under you was the condition for you saving the rest of the survivors, right?"

    Although initially surprised, Mathew quickly overcame his shock before showcasing a small, satisfied smile.

    "I never expected you to be able to ept the different reality and then process the information so quickly," he admitted, not holding back from praising the woman. "It also proves I was right when deciding it''s worth trying to recruit you."

    "Come on," Beatrice smiled as well as if the two of them turned into conspirators of some sort. "It wasn''t the muscles that got me the job I had before everything went to shit," she stated, tapping her temple with her spoon only to bring it back to the food ration as she resumed her task of filling her starving stomach. "So," she then added, raising her stump and waving it in the air. "Can you really fix it?"

    Mathew took a deep breath... only to then release a long sigh.

    "To be honest, I don''t know," he admitted. "I have no idea how a certain service we obtained works. Maybe it will register the state you are in when you be my wife and always bring you back to it?" he suggested only to shake his head. "Or maybe it heals you to the state you believe to be perfectly healthy?"

    Mathew shook his head again, bitting down at his lips when the degree of how little he knew about the stuff he used dawned upon him again.

    "I don''t think it''s the first option," Nadia then spoke out, breaking the silent mood she was in ever since the conversation started. "If that were to be the case, wouldn''t our levels revert every time we used the touching grass feature?"

    Nadia''s suggestion filled Mathew''s mind with another bout of analysis while making Beatrice twist her face in a weird grin.

    "Touch grass...?" she muttered, squinting her eyes as she looked at Norbert in hopes of getting some answers.

    "I will exinter..." Norbert replied with a helpless look on his face.

    "Anyway," Mathew said, pping his hand together to produce a sound that drew everyone''s attention back to him. "I can''t say for sure it will work. But by bing my wife, you will get the benefits of my system. And that means, we will always be able to restore you to..." he attempted to say something, only to cut his words short and avert his eyes.

    "To a state that you cannot exactly describe now," Beatrice finished Mathew''s words for him. "I understand the uncertainty," she then stated only to look at everyone''s faces while she took a moment to think.

    "Okay, fine. What do I need to do, then?" she asked, turning her eyes back to Mathew''s face. "Kiss you? ept your proposal?" she asked, raising her eyebrows as she stared right at Mathew''s face.

    "If only it was that simple..." Mathew muttered, averting his eyes to the side when he felt the burning nce of Nadia drilling right into his cheek.

    "Just say it," Beatrice pressed. Yet, as the silence prolonged, she finally got the hint that something was amiss. And as she looked over to Norbert in hopes of getting some answers only to see a flustered look on his own face, the policewoman finally realized that things weren''t as simple as she took them to be.

    "It''s what I said before," Mathew finally took a deep breath before opening up. "It''s either doing something you''ve never done before in your life or something that I''ve never done before with anyone," he stated.

    Mathew then shrugged his shoulders and then moved his eyes back to the woman. "Or maybe it''s something that fulfills both of the criteria at once?"

    "Don''t push your luck," Nadia muttered in a guttural tone. "Assuming she is not the kind of slut that Carol is, you can start from a far lower bar of the esctiondder," she pointed out.

    "Ah, that''s right," Mathew admitted as he realized how else his suggestion could potentially be taken by others. "I didn''t mean to imply anything. But since we are only doing it to get the system to her, I hoped to limit the number of attempts," he then added.

    ''If anything, I''m not really into older women at all,'' he thought, starting right into Nadia''s eyes with the intensity he rarely could produce. ''This time it''s strictly business. Even if she''s cute, I''m not attracted to her at all,'' he thought, hoping that his first wife could somehow read his mind this once.

    "I''ve never done it in public," Beatrice then said, quickly averting her eyes from Norbert''s face. "Does a cuckold y works for you?" she then suggested, turning her eyes to Mathew and staring right into his flustered face.

 Chapter 242 Im The One To Decide Who Can Afford Privacy!

    "That escted quite quickly," Mathew said after he was done being shocked by Beatrice''s proposition. "Still, doesn''t that kind of y require a certain factor to be in ce?" he then asked while raising one of his eyebrows and meaningfully turning his stare to Norbert.

    "Huh?" the younger of the police officer that was already by Mathew''s side raised his eyebrows as he alternated his eyes between Beatrice and Mathew. He then finally settled on looking at the girl while still keeping his eyes wide open. "Are you out of your mind?!"

    "Doesn''t look like a proper reaction for someone who just did his not-blood-rted sister in the ass only a few hours ago," Mathewmented in a hushed voice.

    Yet, regardless of whether it was his intention or not, the main hall of the school, now that it was deprived of the stairway in its middle, proved to have pretty bad acoustics.

    Or in simpler terms, Mathew''s hushed voice wasn''t anywhere as silent as it needed to be for others not to hear it.

    "And to think you only found out you guys weren''t rted literally moments before the deed was done..." Mathew then pressed the topic, proving that keeping his words to himself was never his intention.

    "Mathew!" Nadia called out, mming her hand down against Mathew''s shoulder. "You are going too far!"

    "No, I''m not," Mathew opposed the girl, something he didn''t really like to do. "I just need everyone here to understand one, extremely important thing," he said only to even go as far as to p his hands together to get everyone''s attention.

    "When ites to situations like this, sex is no longer something you guys can enjoy between yourself. Not when my systemes into y."

    "If that''s the case, why don''t I see you letting others fuck your women?!" Norbert barked at Mathew, clearly too upset by the direction the topic was going to keep himself calm. "Or what? Are you going to pawn one of your girls off to me just to cate me now?!"

    "You sure do run your mouth for someone who doesn''t need any of your limbs to stay useful," Mathew said in a dark tone while his face twisted in an expression of wrath.

    The atmosphere in the school hall turned so tense one could bring out a knife, cut it down, and then let it hang in the air.

    ''Calm down, this topic was bound to surface someday,'' Mathew quickly told himself, taking a short yet deep breath to quell his emotions.

    "I will allow this only once. I know how disturbing this situation must be to you. But don''t you dare to even suggest something like this ever again!"

    For the first time ever since the apocalypse started, Mathew openly allowed his rage to brim in his voice as he spoke.

    It was the side of himself that he wanted to keep just for the bloody moments of battles with zombies and monsters. But right now, he found a use for it when interacting with other humans as well.

    "In this camp, I''m the only one who can decide who can afford privacy when ites to intimacy," Mathew then announced in a stern yet calm voice. "And before you even ask me why, it''s all because it''s my system that I can share with others, not yours, not Daniels nor anyone else''s."

    Mathew''s words rang true. They were harsh, but he did utter no lie.

    If he were to decide against it, not a single person would be able to get the benefits of his system.

    "Guys, calm the fuck down," Beatrice then said in a stern voice.

    There was something in her tone that made even Mathew shut his mouth close and let the woman speak.<sub> </sub>

    "I don''t care what happened before. Right now, we can''t afford the luxury of debating over it. Things like privacy are no longer something we can afford," she stated. "That''s my understanding of the situation so far," she said only to turn her eyes to Mathew. "Am I wrong?"

    "Yes, you are," Mathew countered right away, although in a much calmer voice.

    Even if he was the one with most of the chips in the hand, he found it hard to refuse the innate authority that Beatrice wielded with just her voice alone.

    "Not a single person will every their hand on Nadia, Le, or Daria. No one but me," he announced, reaching out to grab Nadia''s hand before giving it a tight squeeze. "And the only reason why I ever endorsed the idea of using sex to gift system to others is that we can''t afford not doing so if we want to survive."

    "Are you sure you just don''t want to fuck more pussies?" Nadia mouthed in a voice so tiny that only Mathew could hear it.

    "Haaaa....." Mathew released a long sigh before taking a long breath to calm himself down.

    "Dear, do you recall thest night we spent together?" he asked in a hushed voice.

    Nadia twitched, proving that she could remember it pretty well.

    "Do you think I''m really naive enough to look for more pussy when I struggle to handle just the three of you?"

    Nadia pursed her lips and looked away.

    "I... I guess not," she replied after a moment. "I''m sorry," she then added, refusing to look at Mathew''s face while hiding her own expression from his eyes.

    "Don''t be," Mathew said with a sigh. "I can only imagine how hard it is on you," he said only to turn around, ignoring the ongoing conversation, before bringing Nadia into his arms.

    "I think I would burn the entire world if someone else were toy their filthy hands on you," he whispered, his own shoulders trembling at the very notion of something like this happening. "I wish it all yed out differently, in a way that wouldn''t force me to trade my dick for greater chances of survival..."

    "But you cannot help it, can''t you?" Nadia then whispered back, only to wrap her hands around Mathew''s waist as she returned the hug. "I''m sorry for what I said. I allowed my emotions to get the better of me," she admitted before releasing a long sigh. "I''m aware of the situation you are in, so don''t let my feelings make it even harder on you."

    "Are you guys done?" Beatrice asked out loud as soon as the two of them moved away from each other, signaling that their private moment was now over.

    "Good," the policewoman replied when Mathew gave her an annoyed look for a reply. She turned her eyes to Norbert. "I liked you since around a year ago. And from how the situation ys out, you seem to like me as well," she stated, only to see Norbert avert his eyes as he realized just how embarrassing it was to have such confession y out right in the open for everyone to enjoy.

    "I... I do like you quite a bit," he admitted after gathering his courage for some time.

    "Thene," Beatrice said, changing the way she was sitting only to spread her legs open and reach out with both her healthy arm and her stump to Norbert. "I might... not be in my perfect state, but I hope I will still be able to satisfy you."

    Norbert gulped down his saliva. And then, he hung his head low as he started to walk toward the woman.

    "And you," Beatrice then turned her eyes back to Mathew. "Since all we need is to have the act done, you should get ready yourself," she suggested, only for her expression to mellow down as she looked at Nadia by his side before moving her eyes to the uneasy expression on Le''s face. "Don''t make your wives see more than absolutely necessary."

 Chapter 243 Fifth Wife

    "Le, Daria,e here," Nadia said in a low voice as soon as she saw Norbert take a first step towards the policewoman. "For now, the least we can do is to give them some privacy," she added only to turn her face to Mathew before reaching out and bringing her hands to his cheeks.

    "I''m not trying to go against you here. But I don''t want you to stare at them while they are getting busy either," she then said, looking directly into Mathew''s eyes.

    "What made you think I ever wanted to watch them?" Mathew asked, leaning his head to the side with a cheeky smile.

    He then closed his eyes and allowed himself to immerse in the pleasure of having his head caressed like that.

    "Don''t forget about us," Le added as she approached the two of them with Daria following right behind.

    "I wouldn''t dare," Mathew nced over to the side where the girls wereing from, only to spot Norbert finally reaching his own spot and getting into Beatrice''s arms. "So, how do you girls want to start?"

    "First off, we need to make sure you will be ready when the time is high," Daria pressed herself to Mathew''s back before whispering right into his ear. Then, she pushed her lips ever further, enclosing them upon Mathew''s earlobe as she gently munched on it.

    "And that''s why, you can leave it all to us," Nadia said, joining in from the front and pressing herself against Mathew''s chest, effectively sandwiching him between her and Daria''s busts.

    "You are too damn fast," Le muttered, dissatisfied that she ended up being the one left alone. "So I hope neither of you will mind if I do..." she muttered, only to sneak her hand between Nadia''s and Mathew''s stomach only to then slip it into Mathew''s pants, "this!"

    "Ah!" a sweet moan reached Mathew''s ears as soon as he could feel Le''s fingers grabbing at his dick.

    ''Damn,'' he then thought, closing his eyes as he allowed his mind to immerse in the carnal pleasure. ''Even though we were talking about fucking for quite a while, I didn''t even get hard at all!''

    Mathew went through quite the journey. From a man who only got to ever kiss his crush once less than four days ago to someone who wouldn''t be excited by the idea of fucking a girl in front of the eyes of someone she liked and who liked her back.

    "I really wish there was a way to do it some other way," Mathew couldn''t help but mutter... Only for all three of his girls to suddenly freeze.

    "What do you mean?" Le was the first one to react, coiling her fingers around his dick a little harder than before.

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Mathew muttered as he tilted his head to the back and gnashed his teeth in reaction to a sudden bout of pain caused by Le''s careless action. "It sucks that I still have to use my dick to share my system," he then stated.

    Le''s hand rxed. And before Mathew could even breathe out a sigh of relief, it was joined by Nadia''s hand first and then by both of Daria''s hands as well.

    ''What the hell is this...'' Mathew released an exasperated moan.

    Having four different hands desperately vying to im the privilege of stroking his dick...

    ''If this isn''t what you would call living the life, then I don''t know what else would,'' he thought.

    Mathew''s dick soon grew as the blood rushed down his loins. And before long, he could also hear Norbert and Beatrice''s moans mixing with the sound of their bodies pping against each other as they got busy several meters to the side.

    "I will go first, okay?" Nadia muttered, pulling her hand out of Mathew''s penis... only to grab at the edge of his pants and pull them down. She then raised her left knee up while allowing the twopanions of her to put Mathew''s dick in a proper position.

    Then, Nadia simply pushed herself forward, allowing Mathew to prate her already wet hole.

    And yet, as if it wasn''t enough, Daria quickly took hold of Nadia''s ankle, only to pull her leg to the back, forcing Mathew''s first wife to impale herself even deeper over him.

    "HAAAH!" Nadia cried out when Mathew''s shroom knocked against the gates of her womb. Her body then lost all its tension. Only with a desperate throw of her arms and locking them behind Mathew''s neck did Nadia manage to stay upright.

    "I really doubt I will ever get enough of it," Nadia then whispered right to Mathew''s ear... Only for Le to move behind her and ce both of her palms right at Nadia''s shapely ass.

    The girl in Mathew''s arms twitched, not expecting this kind of intervention.

    "But I really prefer it when there are only the two of uuUUS?!" she attempted to whisper only for Le to sink her fingers into the soft flesh of her ass before raising it up only to drop it down a momentter.

    "Fuck no!" Mathew squeezed two words through his tightened teeth.<sub> </sub>

    Everything was happening so fast and in such a forced way that he simply couldn''t control his own excitement.

    And when Nadia''s surprise and embarrassment caused by being touched by another girl caused her insides to swell and coil around his dick, Mathew nearly nked out.

    "Yes, yes, yes!" a quick series of moans reached Mathew from the side, indicating the other pair was about to be done.

    ''I can''t finish yet,'' the young man screamed inwardly out, tensing all his muscles to stop his body from reaching fulfillment.

    "Haaaa...." a momentter, a moan of ecstasying from Beatrice proved everything was now in its ce for the quick trade.

    "Okay, that''s enough," Le informed, only to move her hands to Nadia''s waist before pulling her up and out of Mathew''s dick.

    "No!" Nadia cried out, refusing to rx her hands locked around Mathew''s neck as she couldn''t stop her desire from taking over. She cast an extremely longing look at his face... Only to then purse her lips together and look away before rxing her hands and letting him go.

    "I will be right back," Mathew then said, raising his hand to caress Nadia''s cheek.

    He then turned around, brushing his wet, erect dick across Nadia''s thigh only to walk over to where Beatrice was still panting after being done by Norbert.

    "Just make it quick," Norbert muttered, looking away only to get pushed to the side by Mathew''s hand.

    The young man didn''t bother to be nice. He simply grabbed Beatrice''s legs before forcing them apart.

    ''Disgusting,'' he thought, noticing a strand of Norbert''s cum flowing out of her gaping hole.

    And so, he raised his eyes on Beatrice''s face as he positioned his own hips between her legs.

    "That''s how you do it, son," he then added, doing his best to y the role while putting most of his mind into ignoring the unpleasant sensation of going second at a girl.

    He then pushed himself inside the policewoman, only to have her tense all over his dick right away.

    "AH!" Beatrice screamed out, way louder than she did even when reaching her fulfillment with Norbert a moment earlier.

    Mathew was just released from the state when he was about to cum. And as such, it took him only a few swings for his cum to start welling up in his balls...

    Only for his system to kick in and for a new status window to appear in the corner of his mind.

    ''Good,'' Mathew thought, instantly pulling himself out of Beatrice''s hole only to move over her lifeless waist only to p his dick right on her face.

    "Clean it up," he ordered, before even letting anyone know that the deed was already done.

    The policewoman gave Mathew a quick look... She then took a deep breath only to close her eyes and open her mouth.

    ''You would have to be sick to think I would get back to my girls with that guy''s cum all over my penis,'' he thought, pushing his dick into Beatrice''s mouth.

    And the woman, clearly knowing what he expected her to do, obediently started to suck his dick clean.

    The bout of pleasure... was actually nothing. Feeling the stares of his real wives at his back, Mathew couldn''t really feel anything at all. As such, as soon as he thought his penis was clean enough, he suddenly pulled himself out.

    "It''s done," he said, standing up and turning his eyes to his girls. "I''m going to wash now," he said, clearly implying what he expected his partners to do. Yet, rather than borating on the topic, Mathew then looked over at Norbert.

    "Get her to the merchant. I can''t wait to see whether he can heal her hand or not."

 Chapter 244 System Advancement Perks In A Foul Mood

    Mathew walked through the school''s corridors in silence.

    He fixed his clothes to the bare minimum that wouldn''t break the moral code of the world a week prior, unable to be bothered to do even the tiniest bit more to fix his attire.

    He didn''t wait for his girls to join him either, even though he had no doubts they would be eager to do so, especially after the recent heated fight.

    And yet, he still walked forth, unable to focus on any of the details of the ssrooms he was passing.

    ''At least they already cleaned the corridors up,'' he thought after several moments, unable to think about anything else but what was right before his eyes.

    Mathew then closed his eyes and allowed the memory of how the corridor looked to guide his steps forward.

    ''Why do I feel like that?'' he asked himself once his foot struck the concrete step, making him start raising his feet so that he could climb the stairs.

    ''Why do I feel like aplete filth?''

    Mathew knew the answer to those questions. He could answer them without even thinking about the right response.

    But knowing something by heart and epting it with his mind... were two entirely different things.

    ''I guess theck of morals is catching up to me,'' he then thought, only to open the doors to the one and only washroom in the entire school.

    Mathew then ripped his clothes off before barging into the shower area, moving underneath one of the showerheads before twisting the knob of the shower off.

    The rain of icy-cold water that followed made him twitch... But after the initial shock, Mathew quickly got used to the initially unpleasant sensation.

    ''Doing it with Nadia was awesome. Doing it with Le and Daria... it initially felt wrong, but I got used to it.''

    He recounted the steps that he took in terms of going through the process initiated by his wives system.

    ''Double-teaming on Carol felt... It was nice but weird at the same time.''

    A rain of cold drops of water continued to strike down at Mathew''s naked flesh.

    Yet, with all the improvements to his system, he could no longer feel bothered or shocked by it.

    "Haaa...." Mathew sighed as he shook his head sideways before reaching out and turning the shower''s knob.

    Since using the icy-cold water to push his unpleasant thoughts aside didn''t work anymore, there was no use subjecting him to this tiny torture anymore.

    "With all that in mind, why doing that policewoman, even though it was necessary, made me feel like it?"

    Mathew voiced his mental struggle out loud. Yet, the only answer he received was the rhythmic tap, tap, tap of the water that formed into small streams on his body only to fall down and strike the ground in the form of fat water droplets.

    ''It made me feel so disgusted with myself that I can''t even enjoy all the perks,'' he thought, ncing over at the system hiding in the corner of his vision.

    There was a new status window depicting the powers of his new, fifth wife. Yet, besides that particr addition, there were several more messages and windows that he never saw before.

    [You reached the necessary number of wives for your system''s level to advance!]<sub> </sub>

    [Please, focus on the attachment to see the full list of all the benefits!]

    Mathew nced at the message at the very top of his vision, only for it to expand and present him with a list of perks that he, just an hour ago, would fuck the devil himself to get.

    [System advancement perks:

    decreased the power level necessary to advance levels by killing the zombies by 20%

    decreased the cost of all-around leveling by 20%

    Raising one''s stats now allows granting the same amount of stats to a wife of your choosing

    20% of the wives'' attributes will contribute to the host stats

    Adding a progress bar to the leveling of each wife

    The host can now pick his own ss

    The host can now pick the sses for his wives]

    Some of the bonuses Mathew could only roll his eyes over.

    ''Decreasing the cost of leveling by twenty percent... It sure does help, but it''s just a drop in the ocean given how costly it is after just the initial levels,'' he thought. ''Same with leveling up by killing zombies. It''s nice that it''s faster now, but it was already slow and it will only get slower as we all grow stronger.''

    Other perks of the system advancement were confusing.

    ''Raising one''s stat now allows granting the same stats to one of my wives? Isn''t it what I was doing since the very beginning?'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes as he attempted to analyze the situation. ''Or maybe now the efficiency of doing so is doubled, now that it''s an official feature rather than just an exploit?''

    There were things that couldn''t be called anything else but convenience changes, the level progress bar being the top example of it.

    All in all, there was only one system perk that Mathew could full-heartedly enjoy. And it was the fact that from now on, all the statistics of his wives would be added to his own.

    ''Is this why I got so thoughtful as soon as I imed Beatrice as a wife?'' Mathew thought, only to nce over at his own status window.

    And sure enough, all his stats around the board exploded to numbers he never expected to see.

    ''I guess I could go and smash right through the horde all on my own,'' he thought, blinking his eyes a few times as even looking straight as his increased stat wasn''t enough for him to ept such an increase.

    ''Just my vitality alone went from around a hundred to over four hundred fifty,'' Mathew thought, shaking his head only to then release a deep sigh.

    ''Maybe it''s the increase in my mind that caused me to be so moody?'' Mathew then attempted to guess, only to then shake his head again before dropping the topic.

    ''All in all, it''s great... but why don''t I feel like my power increased by leaps and bounds?'' he then asked, only to close his eyes again, focusing on the drops of now hot water crashing into his head...

    And on the sound of the shower room doors opening only to be reced by the wet tapping of the three of his girls stepping over the wet floor as they approached him.

 Chapter 245 Nothing Makes Any Fucking Sense

    "Are you okay?" Nadia asked as she stepped into the shower where Mathew was busy trying not to lose his mind. And soon enough, the rest of the girls followed, all equally worried by Mathew''s unusual behavior.

    "I will be okay," Mathew said, remaining in the very same position that he was in for thest several minutes. With the hot drops of water constantly falling down his head and his eyes stered to the floor.

    "That''s not exactly the answer to my question," Nadia replied, stering herself over Mathew''s back and cing her ear right above his heart.

    For but a moment, she simply listened to Mathew''s heartbeat, as if to try to guess his internal state from that one thing alone.

    In a sense, it was a genius move. For how much Mathew could keep his face straight, it wasn''t possible for him to alter the way his emotions influenced his heartbeat.

    Yet, ultimately, the heartbeat was just that. A rate at which his heart was beating. Just a number. And it was pretty damn hard to guess the intricacies of one''s internal state from just a number.

    "You are not going to tell us what happened?" Daria asked, sitting down on the wet floor and wrapping her hands around her knees as she threw a nce at Mathew''s ass. "You know, no matter how much you want to hide it, we can see something is wrong."

    "I dare not assume otherwise," Mathew replied, leaning his head to the side as he threw a small smirk at his girls. "Even with what happened, all of it, I dare not to even attempt fooling you."

    "Matty¡­" Nadia muttered, pushing herself away from his back only to then move past his, sneaking under his arm and then sliding between the shower''s wall and Mathew''s contemtive position. "Look at me," she ordered, cing her forehead against Mathew''s chin before slowly raising her head, forcing him to raise his eyes as well.

    "What happened?" Nadia then asked, lowering her head as soon as Mathew''s eyes moved to a normal level. "And I''m not going to take any excuses for an answer."

    "A lot of it," Mathew replied. "Some stuff that makes me feel mentally filthy. Other stuff makes me baffled. And there are a lot of things that simply don''t make any fucking sense!"

    Mathew''s voice suddenly burst out, finally revealing the intricate mix of emotions that was hiding deep below the surface of the mask he usually kept on his face.

    The girls in the shower room turned silent, taken aback by Mathew''s sudden outburst.

    It wasn''t the first time for them to see him act out on his emotions. But it was the first time for any of them, save for Nadia, to notice just how much of them was he bottling up in his soul.

    "Matty¡­" Nadia whispered, looking right into his soul through the window of his eyes. And yet, rather thaning up with anything witty, she simply pushed her arms open before hugging him close.

    Le opened up her mouth, clearly hoping to put in two cents on her own. Yet, a quick, harsh nce that Nadia gave her from over Mathew''s shoulder was enough to put Le''s ambitions to rest.<sub> </sub>

    "It will be okay," Nadia muttered, running her hand up and down Mathew''s naked spine. "Just take your time to think it all through. And once you are ready¡­" the girl stopped her words, taking a moment herself to think what was the right way to convey what she was thinking about.

    "And once you are ready, you can take your time to exin it all."

    "Exin it?" Mathew muttered, closing his eyes. He then took two breaths before shaking off his motionless state of mind. He moved his hands up, grabbing at Nadia''s waist only to push her against the wall of the shower in one, quick motion.

    "Huh?" Nadia released a small moan, more of a shock than pain.

    After all, with all the levels Mathew pumped into her vitality, his system would be worthless if such a casual m would be enough to cause her any pain.

    "How the hell am I supposed to exin stuff that doesn''t make any sense?!" Mathew screamed out right into Nadia''s face.

    Yet, as soon as his shouts left his mouth, his face tensed up.

    ''I failed to control myself,'' he thought, gritting his teeth as he stepped a single pace to the back.

    "I''m sorry," he muttered through his tightened lips. He took another step to the back, only to nearly slip on Le who was standing behind him all this time.

    "It''s okay." Nadia took a step forward, slowly chasing after her man.

    There was no hint of rejection or even anger at what just transpired. She didn''t appear to mind it at all¡­ if not for the worry that Mathew could clearly see in her eyes.

    "If you don''t understand something or if something doesn''t make sense to you¡­ How about trying to share it with us anyway?" Nadia suggested in a calm, peaceful voice.

    A voice of a trainer trying to invite a scared animal to get closer.

    "Ever since I imed the fifth wife, my system evolved again," Mathew said, raising his eyes and looking Nadia directly in the eyes. "Amongst the different perks that I received, my stats now are a sum of what I had on my own and¡­ all of your stats," he revealed the one thing that made the least sense.

    ''There is no use trying to talk with them about how I feel,'' Mathew thought, rejecting the idea of revealing the moral quagmire he found himself in. ''That''s something I would need a proper, male friend to talk through. And as it just so happens¡­'' he paused his own thoughts when his body nearly shook from the foul amusement that exploded in his soul. ''It''s something I never had. And with a huge percentage of the world''s poption sumbing to the zombie virus, I can hardly expect to get one anytime in the future!''

 Chapter 246 Class Limit

    "Your stats are the sum of all of ours now?" Nadia uttered in a weak voice, too shocked to use her proper tone.

    She then inadvertently took a step back.

    Nadia was the one who was with Mathew the longest out of all the girls. Her level and general power onlygged behind what Daria was capable in her shadow form during the night.

    As such, she was the one who experienced the power that came from one''s stats the most.

    She couldn''t know the exact stats of the other girls in the group. She didn''t know Mathew''s stats either. But what she knew, was thatbining the power of everyone in the group and then pouring all that might into Mathew''s flesh...

    "I don''t believe it," she muttered. "No, it''s not possible," she then added while shaking her head.

    "Do I look like some sort of a monster to you, now?" Mathew asked, turning his head around and giving his love a nce.

    "Wait, no," Nadia nearly jumped when she saw Mathew''s dark expression. "That''s not what I meant at all!" she protested only to lower her head and rest her chin on her hand as she lowered her eyelids. "Wait, just out of curiosity, how much did your agility increase?"

    Hearing Nadia''s voice... Mathew froze for a second.

    It wasn''t the voice of a girl terrified of what her man turned into. It was a voice... that Mathew himself would use whenever trying to slowly build a logical foundation for a statement he wanted to prove.

    "Ugh, let me recall it..." he muttered, taking a look at his status window.

    ''I can tell the current number, but to tell how much it increased...'' he thought.

    Then, his eyes widened a little.

    Because the numbers on his status window... changed.

    The usual form of having the name of the statistic and a number attached to it within a single bracket was still the same. Yet, rather than showcasing the updated number after the upgrade of his system... it continued to show exactly the same number as before.

    The only difference was that it now had a separate bracket right by its side that showcased the stat level whenbined with the strength of his girls!

    "So that''s how it is..." Mathew muttered, finally finding an answer to one of the questions that were baffling him since he started reading through the bonuses of the system upgrade.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level - 3/3]

    [Vitality - 102] > [447]

    [Brawn - 60] > [335]

    [Agility - 60] > [309]

    [Mind - 50(50)] > [277]

    [Arcane - 100] > [310]

    [Total 1678]

    [umted Levels - 38/43]

    [Avaible points: 70]

    "My agility went from sixty to a tiny bit over three hundred," he revealed, shaking his head before turning around to properly face the girls.<sub> </sub>

    If anything, having something to think about was the best cure for the momentary depression that the recent events brought upon his soul.

    And even though Nadia has yet to make the point of her discourse, Mathew could already see the general idea of what she wanted to prove.

    "So your agility increased over five times," Nadia summed up, ignoring the need for precise numbers. "And yet, when you walked away, you didn''t move that much faster than before!"

    ''Just like I thought,'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

    "You want to say that if I really were to go through such a sudden and explosive growth, I wouldn''t be able to properly control my newfound strength?" Mathew suggested, reading into Nadia''s boration.

    "Strenght? I was talking about agility though?" Nadia replied, giving Mathew a cute smile as her eyes wandered down toward his crotch.

    ''Right, I''m standing all naked before them,'' Mathew realized, hardly feeling any shame over that fact.

    He would be burning away from embarrassment just a few days ago. But now?

    After the girls thoroughly inspected and caressed everyst inch of his body? What else had he to be ashamed of?

    Still, there was one matter that Mathew had to deal with right away.

    "Those eyes..." he muttered and then shook his head. "Dear, no, dears," he stated, raising his eyes. "I''m sorry, but I don''t think I will be up to the task today," he announced.

    "I understand," Le joined in on the discussion. "I will go and grab everyone''s clothes then," she then added, quickly turning around and walking out of the shower cell.

    "Anyway," Nadia rolled her eyes as she brought them back to Mathew''s face to look at him properly. "Despite what your system says, I don''t think the increase to those stats of yours really applies to reality," she put out a statement.

    "I don''t think so too," Mathew replied, taking a step back to rest himself against the wall of the shower... Only to realize that he forgot about the existence of the faucet that dug into his back.

    "Fuck," he cursed, nearly slipping on the floor as he escaped forward.

    Mathew then shook his head and glossed over the momentary embarrassment.

    "Still, my system has never lied to me before," he said, moving his eyes back to the girls in the shower room once he moved to the side and properly rested his back against the wall.

    "Maybe you''ve missed something?" Daria suggested, leaning her head to the side while locking her arms over her chest.

    Yet, rather than simply standing in afortable position, she pretty obviously attempted to hide her tits from Mathew''s eyes, eager to obey his wish not to push into any sexual topics for the day.

    "Missed something?" Mathew replied after the girl, taking a quick look at all the messages from the system he has yet to go through.

    And as if reacting to his wish, one of them popped out to the forefront of his eyes... while still remaining hidden in the corner of his vision.

    [You''ve reached the statistic limit for the ''husband'' ss (111). Do you wish to change your ss?]

    Mathew''s eyes widened for a moment.

    ''Right, I can now change my ss too,'' he thought.

    Yet, right as he was about to look into the details of doing so, a single thought passed through his head.

    ''But doesn''t ss change means.. that I will lose all the benefits of the system I''ve got so far?''

 Chapter 247 To Change The Class Or Not To, Thats The Question

    "It appears you were right on the money," Mathew said before releasing a heavy sigh. "But it might be far worse than you expected."

    Nadia and Daria tensed up a little. Mathew''s words were enough to put them on the edge, but his rtively rxed, resigned tone also served to limit just how wary they turned.

    "What''s wrong?" Nadia asked.

    "There is a limit to how strong I can grow as a husband," Mathew said in a serious tone and with a serious face. And then, right as his words reached his own ears, his lips turned into a wide smile as heughed out loud.

    "Is this some sort of metaphor?" Daria asked, leaning her head over her shoulder with a confused expression on her face.

    "No, I mean it literally." Mathew shook his head a little to calm himself down. "I can only bring my stats up to a hundred and eleven points before I will have to change the ss to grow them any further," he exined.

    ''And that also exins why I didn''t really feel much difference,'' he thought, taking another look at his statistics. ''Brawn and agility both grew by fifty-one points, so the difference is less than a half in stats alone.''

    Each of those two of Mathew''s stats grew by fifty-one points. Basically, it reflected one''s growth after dumping the benefits of five levels all into one stat.

    ''And given how I''m not twice as fast or strong as I was before, it seems that the returns from the higher numbers are diminishing.''

    "What''s the problem, then?" Daria asked, squinting her eyes in confusion. "Isn''t a ss change a good thing?"

    "For you or any other wife of mine, it sure is," Mathew said and nodded his head. "But that''s the problematic part. I can''t say for sure that it''s the same for me."

    "Because you don''t know what are the exact benefits of the ss you already have," Nadia chimed in, pointing out the exact reason why Mathew was bothered by the situation his system attempted to push him in.

    From a gamer''s perspective, changing sses was most often than not something to look forward to, not something to be wary about.

    ''Assuming that this entire system is built around the data from this world, it wouldn''t make sense not to go through a ss change,'' Mathew thought, still unable to decide between the two possible choices. ''But the same can''t be said when your primary ss is bugged and allows you some massive exploits!''

    The idea of bing far stronger than he was with just a single decision, potentially obtaining some overpowered abilities or something as simple as unlocking the full potential of the statistics he had...

    ''It''s pretty appealing, I''m not going to lie,'' Mathew thought to himself. ''But the risk is too great. This might, very well, be the system''s attempt at fixing the bug by turning it obsolete.''

    "Guys, I think you are forgetting about one thing," Le said as she appeared at the entry to the shower cell. She already pulled her own clothes up while holding both Mathew''s and her co-wives'' shit in her hands. "I understand your worry about the downsides of changing your ss," she said, passing the clothes to the other girls, "but shouldn''t you check what you can change into first?"

    Mathew opened his mouth, ready to reply... Only to realize he had no proper words to respond to Le''s suggestion.

    She was right. Almostpletely right. And yet, there was something, a gut feeling, that told him not to proceed too hasty.

    "Worst case scenario, you won''t have to decide on any of the new sses," Le pointed out, throwing Mathew''s clothes right at his chest.

    "So even if the window won''t close after opening it... I can just ignore it," Mathew muttered, taking his time to analyze Le''s idea.<sub> </sub>

    "Wait," he added, lowering his eyes and raising his hand. His eyes turned nk as he focused all his attention on the topic at hand. "But what if the system won''t allow... No, that doesn''t make sense."

    "Mathew!" Nadia called out, a small bit of irritation appearing in her voice. "How many times have we asked you not to keep your ideas to yourself?"

    "Oh, right," Mathew said and shook his head. "We agreed that there is some sort of... intent behind this system, didn''t we?" he asked, using the same deduction tactics that Nadia used on his earlier on.

    "That''s the most reasonable exnation we could find for it," Le agreed while nodding her head. "But just like with everything else..." she left her sentence open while spreading her arms out to the side and then shaking them.

    "It''s just a conjecture." Daria smiled.

    "Still, going with that exnation," Mathew glossed over the girls'' point, "if there was an intent trying to get me to stop abusing the exploits we found, wouldn''t it just remove my ability to do so rather than trying to go in such a roundabout way?"

    The shower room turned silent. The girls looked at each other before all zeroing their looks on Mathew.

    "There are times when I doubt your intelligence," Le said, not holding her words back at all. "But man, this clearly isn''t one of those times," she then added, turning her insult into a semi-praise.

    "That, or it has limitations to how much it can influence it that we don''t know of," Nadia pointed out, cutting the spark of enthusiasm that appeared within the group.

    The room turned silent once again. This time, however, for quite longer than before. And for some time, only the constant tapping of the water from the showerhead Mathew forgot to turn off filled the area.

    "Welp," Mathew pped his hip. He then shook his head before throwing his pants on the wet floor and casually getting his shirt through his head. "I guess we can drop this topic for now," he announced. "We managed to learn quite a lot and I feel a bit better thinking about it," he admitted before turning his eyes toward Daria.

    "Thank you," he said only to move his eyes toward Nadia. "Thank you," he said again before moving his eyes to Le and repeating the process, "Thank you."

    "For wha..." Le attempted to bite at him with a tiny smirk on her face.

    "No problem," Nadia cut into her words, gracing Mathew with a gentle smile.

    "For now, there is no need for me to change the ss," Mathew then announced. "Be it as it may, I grew stronger by an equivalent of..." he took a moment to nce over at his status window, "eighteen levels at once."

    Mathew smiled, using the joy of raising his strength to divert his thoughts away from the feeling of filth that brought his mood down so much only recently.

    "Saving it for a time of absolute need does sound like a n," Nadia backed up Mathew''s decision with a wide smile. Her eyes, then, moved down to his still unclothed crotch only to move back to Mathew''s face right away.

    "Oh, right," Mathew muttered, realizing that he forgot to wear his pants. "There is a chance we might get a merchant to tell us more about what this ss change will entail. And for now..." Mathew''s smile instantly soured as his eyes moved to the side, where a massive number of messages still remained for him to read through.

    "I guess I need to read all of the info that my system gave me when it evolved."

 Chapter 248 High-Orbit Sanctuary (Correct Chapter, Correct Novel, No Mistake Here)

    [Vitarian Sanctuary Vessel: High Earth orbit]

    "This damn fucker!" Castor cursed at the screen disying the events of sector AH AB 42069. "I gave you such a convenient way to fix this bugged mess and you are not jumping on it like the idiot you are?!"

    Castor''s hand fell down on the table, repelled by the very energy barrier that made it up.

    "So it didn''t work either?" Catlea muttered under her nose while trying her best to hide her annoyance.

    "At least I contained his unprecedented growth," Castor replied, running his two fingers across the main holo screen and switching the view to the energy ne. "Your idea of limiting his growth and forcing him into a solution if he wants to ovee it was brilliant, thanks," he said, turning around on his levi-chair and nodding his head to his assistant.

    "Dully noted," Catlea replied, rolling her eyes only to pick up her pagebook right where she left it.

    "Would it kill you to be nice for once?" Castorined.

    "I''m a nice person," Catlea replied, her focus already moved back to the several other subjects she was monitoring on her handy device. "It''s your fault for dragging me out here for this mission," she countered.

    "What I''m worried about is how clever this damn guy is," Castor opted to focus on the topic rather than on the girl''s antics. "If he goes to the tribunes to find out the details about the solution Iplied..." he cut his words short only to slump down in his levi-chair.

    For a moment, the entirety of the small space sanctuary the two of them was in turnedpletely silent.

    In reality, it wasn''t silent at all.

    The roaring of the engines was deafening. The constant ticking and cking of all the servoprocessors and aptimeters continued to fill the air with unbearable noise.

    The only reason why the two of them didn''t care less about it... was the audio blockers installed in their brain that fully filtered all the noise out, leaving them infortable silence.

    "Any other brilliant ideas?" Castor asked. This time, whoever, his voice turned meek.

    He even went for the length of turning around on his chair and looking at the girl.

    Yet, with most of her brain processing power oriented at managing the army of clones that hot-tuned the modification to the below them, the girl couldn''t care less.

    "Thanks for nothing, you nerd," Castor then barked out, turning his chair back to its natural position and moving his physical eyes back to the main screen of the sanctuary.

    Contrary to the personal holoscreen Castor was using to observe AH AB 42069 sector, the main screen disyed a lot more data. Yet, for how informative it was, its information was rted to the as a whole rather than just a buggy case of a single specimen.

    "Two more weeks, huh?" Castor then muttered, looking down at the progress bar shing in red on the screen.

    It was the countdown to the arrival of a powerful mana wave. It headed for the below them at a merciless speed. And it was the very reason behind the sudden cessation of Castor''szy life in his private sanctuary and transfer to this imperator-forsaken outpost.

    Unable to bear the time pressure, Castor moved his eyes to the other parts of the disy.

    "At least the general percentage looks good enough," he muttered to himself, taking a look at the percentage progress depicting the conversion of the''s poption. "Unless that guy fucks up a big time again, we should be able to make it in time. Maybe even have a day spare," he muttered, using the general situation to avert his thoughts from the massive mess of one of the three sectors that didn''t want to work properly at all.

    "Oh right," Catlea suddenly pulled herself up from her levi-bed. "I forgot to mention, I managed to find out the initial bug''s frame," she announced in a casual tone.

    "..." Castor turned his entire levi-chair around and stared down at the girl.

    His eyes widened as fury took over his mechanical soul.

    "And you didn''t find it important enough to tell me?" he asked in a strangely calm, passive tone.<sub> </sub>

    "It''s not like knowing what happened will change it," Catlea countered, rolling her eyes before swiping her fingers from her pagebook to Castor''s personal screen.

    The scene disyed was of a pretty low quality. It was also riddled with fissures and artifacts, showcasing just how deep the girl had to dig to recover it.

    It disyed a small shack with two specimens barricading themselves from the beta type of specimen.

    "It never ceases to amaze me how unlucky those guys are," Catlea muttered, her face filling with sadness.

    Even though they were the ones responsible for fulfilling the orders that ultimately robbed seventy percent of the''s poption out of their sanity and self-awareness and in effect deemed a further twenty percent to a less-than-desirable fate... It was something that she had no say in whatsoever.

    ''In the end, if we did nothing, they would all die once the mana-wave would wash over the,'' she thought, fighting off the massive feeling of guilt that still lingered in her soul.

    Hoping to avert her thoughts from the genocide-born guilt, Catlea turned her eyes and attention back to the data she recovered...

    Only to see the two specimens express their desire for each other.

    And yet, rather than getting down to the reproductive business, a behavior that Catlea found as strange as it was cute...

    The two of them simply brought their primitive bodies together.

    And then, a surge of power exploded outwards, originating right from the core developed within the troublesome subject''s brain.

    This was the reason why this simple mission turned so troublesome. A single instance, only two hours prior to when everything woulde to an end, brought them back to the beginning while depriving their station of nearly half of its resources.

    "What the hell was that?" Castor asked, baffled by the video that just ended.

    He never invested his basic benefits into the mind upgrades that Catlea did. As such, he would take years to realize the same things that she could figure out with a single nce.

    Hisck of mind upgrades was also the sole reason why Catlea, his closest of kin, was forced to follow him on the mission as support. Which, coincidentally was also the sole reason for the massive anger in Catlea''s manasoul.

    "That guy is a born bugger," Catlea muttered.

    Now that her mind switched its analytical mode on, she couldn''t help but feel impressed.

    "That kid turned back time for nearly two weeks," she revealed. "I don''t know how, yet, but he used your operating system to do it," the girl said only for a smirk to appear on her lips. "Maybe next time try to do your job properly?" she suggested, all too happy to put a pin into Castor''s ass.

    "Maybe next time mind your own fucking business," Castor barked, feeling the burn of the girl''s mental poke. He then shook his head, turned back his chair, and swiped his hand away, removing the video from his personal holoscreen.

    Ping, ping, ping...

    A series of extremely annoying noises suddenly filled the room, easily oveing the audio blockers the two of them had installed.

    "What now?!" Castor nearly screamed out when the noise made his head feel as if it was about to deconstruct itself. Yet, as soon as he looked at the sanctuary''s main screen, his face froze.

    "They areing..." he muttered, unable to move even an inch from his seat.

    "Who is?" Catlea asked, already back to her task of overseeing several thousands of specimens on the below at the same time.

    "The tribunes..." Castor muttered, only to swallow a gulp of mechanical oil that his servo-jaws squirted out into his mouth. "No..." he then added as his breath escaped from his mechalungs. "It''s the auditor himself," he added as terror filled his face.

 Chapter 249 Bigger Than The Local Gas-Giant (Double Chapter)

    The Vitarian Sanctuary vessel was one of the smaller spaceships operated by the Vitarian Hegemony. All of its engines, fuel storage, living quarters, and other necessarypartments were fitted into a ship barely the size of what the destroyer ships coursing through the waters of the below.

    In terms of space vessels, it was no bigger than an Antraxan fart.

    "Fuck, they areing," Castor cursed, clenching his teeth as he checked up all the straps that held him stuck on the chair. "Get ready!"

    Auditor''s ship wasn''t anywhere near the sanctuary. And yet, the small ship already started to creak as its structure wasn''t designed to withstand the massive changes of gravity preceding the approach of a true monster of space travel.

    All holoscreens and other mana and electrical applicancies within the sanctuary turned nk when the ship''s artificial management system redirected all its power into the integrity support program.

    The sanctuary started to violently shake like a beast doing its best to free itself from the chains.

    ''The engines are up,'' Castor thought, gritting his teeth when the vibration threatened to undo all the tiny screws keeping his mechanical parts together.

    Despite Sanctuary''s engines quickly turning on a full burn, its orbit or position didn''t change at all, save for the natural movement within the gravitational equation of the local star system.

    And the reason for that was simple.

    The energy passively generated within the ship was nowhere near enough to keep it from breaking apart.

    The shaking quickly came to a stop when the full power of the sanctuary''s engines was redirected to the integrity support. Coupled with the increased intensity of the gravity distortion, it gave the two passengers a moment of peace.

    And then, the shaking started once again when even the full power that the sanctuary could generate proved to be insufficient to make up for the violent changes in the space it was in.

    "They are here," Castor muttered through his gnashed teeth.

    The holoscreens of the sanctuary came back online once Auditor''s capital ship got so close the sanctuary entered its gravity exclusion zone.

    The screens came back online, showcasing the beautiful view of the space... now reced with a singr color of the capital''s ship hull.

    "I can never get over just how massive it is," Catlea muttered, staring at her pagebook while gulping her saliva down.

    Yet, neither of them was happy with the sights. Because the magnificence of the secondrgest type of ship within the entire hegemony was countered by the meaning behind its presence here.

    [Launching transporter. Dock upon arrival.]

    A voice appeared in the mind of the two passengers of the sanctuary. Then, they could see a ship fifty times more massive than their small space kayak. Its only source of eleration came from theunch itself. And as it reached the outer parts of the gravity exclusion zone, it gradually came to a stop only several kilometers away from the sanctuary.

    "I will leave the maneuver to you," Castor muttered, gulping down his saliva.

    The sanctuary jerked when the power of its engines once again worked in the way thews of the universe intended. And within two short minutes, their ship docked at one of the extendable ports of the transporter.

    In the end, their sanctuary was way too small to directly approach the gas-giant sized-vessel of the auditor. As such, they had no other way but to dock to the intermediary which was actually the tiniest version of the weakest teleported in the entire known universe.

    "This is going to be bad," Castor muttered once he moved past the narrow corridor of the connector and walked down the equally as narrow corridors within the ship.

    The transporter''s interior design was the effect of the coborative genius of the greatest minds from several gxiesbined. Yet, its rtively tiny size came at the cost of extreme inconvenience to those using it.

    ''Using such a small transporter...'' Castor thought, pretty much aware of the meaning behind this. ''We are fucked.''

    Auditor''s Capital ship housed hundreds of transporters of all kinds. And given the cost of moving the entire monstrosity of a vessel right to them rather than summoning them to the ship instead would make the cost difference of using a bigger, morefortable transporter less than the marginal error.

    Castor and Catlea took roughly an hour to reach the middle of the teleporter. Upon reaching the core, the two of them grabbed special handles before inserting their feet into designated shoes.

    A single explosion of lightter, the two of them appeared in a much bigger area. Rather than holding onto the handles to their dear lives, they simply fell down on soft cushions.

    "The auditor is awaiting you," a high-ranking officer of the fleet nodded his head as soon as Castor turned his head to look at him. He then pointed his hand to the side at the entrance to a small inner-ship entrance. "You took long enough to get here so we shouldn''t make him wait any longer," he added in a voice so cold it nearly made the air around him freeze.

    ''There goes nothing,'' Castor thought. His hand involuntarily moved to the side, searching for the warmth of Catlea''s fingers.

    They argued a lot and didn''t see eye to eye quite a lot. But right now, she was the only support that he could hope for in the entirety of the local pocket of the universe.

    Castor took a few steps before climbing up the steps to the ship and turning around to help Catlea up as well.

    ''She might have all her mind upgrades but she iscking in physical enhancement quite a lot,'' he thought, helping the girl up.

    "Please, take your seats," the officer pointed them towards a wide, ck sofa made from the skin of an ancient space monster. He then proceeded to take a seat on the other side of the interior of the ship before raising his hand and knocking on a wall behind him.

    The doors to the ship slid shut without even the tiniest of the noise.

    ''This quality...'' Castor thought, biting down on his lips.<sub> </sub>

    His audio blockers weren''t tuned in for the vehicle he was in. In other words, it operated without making even the tiniest noise.

    ''This doesn''t make any sense,'' Castor then thought. ''Why put us through the torture of that transported if you are going to bring us closer with such a ship?'' he thought.

    Yet, Castor was aware of his own mental limits. Just like he had an easier time climbing the steep step of the ship, Catlea should have easier time figuring the situation out.

    He turned his eyes to the girl, hoping to see an expression that would calm her down.

    Just as expected, there was no sign of fear on the girl''s face. Yet, what shocked him, was that she didn''t appear to be calm either.

    If there was one word to describe Catlea''s expression... it was bewilderment.

    ''She doesn''t understand it either?'' he thought, a hint of innate terror ringing in his mechanical soul.

    Castor could do nothing but gulp down his saliva again. Knowing he had no chance of figuring out what was going on, he turned his eyes to the officer.

    Yet, the man''s empty expression made it obvious he wasn''t here to humor them with small talk. Castor then turned his eyes towards the ship''s window, observing how they rose above several levels of the industrial infrastructure of the ship.

    Then, the market areas came. On its own, it held more workers than the entire poption of the below. Then, the lodging levels, the development levels, science levels, military levels...

    For several minutes, Castor''s face continued to darken as they prose to the higher portions of the ship over and over again. And with each level that they passed by, the importance of the person they would meet with increased as well.

    ''This is getting pretty worrying,'' Castor thought when they passed by the military level. ''No, dangerous,'' he changed his mind when they moved above the intelligence areas.

    His mind went nk when they moved even higher, to the area where tribunes operated.

    And by the time the ship came to a halt andnded in front of a small area of greenery with a mansion in the very middle of it, Castor''s mind left the room, leaving his body to the auto-drivers.

    "The auditor is awaiting you in the main hall," the officer announced as soon as the two of them got out of the ship right by the mansion''s doors.

    The auditor. The quasi-owner of the ship that was bigger than the most massive gas giant in the local system. The person directly below the universe''s hegemon.

    "This is a good day to die," Castor muttered, turning his eyes to the girl by his side. "I''m sorry for dragging you into this," he said, smiling sadly at the sight of terror reigning on Catlea''s face.

    He picked her as his assistant because of the years of history they shared. In a sense, it was his revenge for the girl breaking up with him two centuries prior. It was also the reason why they didn''t seem to merge well during the mission.

    But now, at the end of his line, all Castor felt was regret for dragging her into this mess.

    "Don''t talk to me," Catlea barked in a small voice.

    ''So she wants to cut her ties with me as much as she can,'' he thought, swallowing the bitter pill.

    He couldn''t judge her. She was already dead anyway. Her aim, right now, was most likely to make her passing as painless as possible. Maybe even stop her punishment from affecting all of her kin.

    Castor closed his eyes. He then took a deep breath.

    Surprisingly, the officer that led them here didn''t bother to hurry them up.

    Castor opened his eyes.

    ''I made a lot of mistakes... but I can''tin about the life I had,'' he thought.

    And then, he stepped forward, pressing the doors to the mansion open.

    With his heart in his mouth, Castor stepped inside the most luxurious room he has ever seen in his entire life.

    The walls were made with materials that lost their name to history. The carpet on the floor was at least half as costly as Hegemony''s standard battle fleet.

    ''As expected from amander of a capital ship,'' Castor thought, not daring to swallow his saliva anymore.

    Yet, as he brought his eyes up...

    "What are you waiting for?" a calm, sympathetic voice reached his ears.

    There was only a single person inside. And that person was sitting at one end of a rtively small table with only four chairs by it.

    And that person, no one else but a fucking auditor, reached out with his hand, pointing the two of them towards the chairs by his table.

    "Don''t stand there shocked; the food will get cold!"

 Chapter 250 You Will Be The One To Decide Her Fate

    "Don''t stand there shocked; the food will get cold," the man by the table said while pointing with his hand at the chairs on the opposite end of the table.

    Castor turned his head to the side, stealing a short nce at Catlea.

    ''Damn it,'' he thought as soon as he noticed his own habitual reaction. He stopped his head from moving at thest moment... even if there was no way for the Auditor to miss such an obvious detail. ''She wants to be as far detached from this matter as possible, so I have to do everything in my power to make her wishe true,'' he thought, gulping down his saliva.

    ''That''s the least I owe her,'' Castor decided, taking a breath to prepare himself before stepping forward.

    The man by the table... Didn''t appear to be any different than the thousands of people Castor saw in his past. He was so normal... that upon closer inspection it weirded the overseer out.

    ''No bioimnts, full in flesh, no external pods...'' he thought, taxing the man with his eyes.

    Normally, such an intense stare could easily be taken for ack of respect if not a direct insult.

    ''But I''m dead already so what does it matter?'' Caster thought, grabbing the chair and pulling it out before sitting down by the table.

    The auditor raised his eyes from his own te, throwing Castor a curious nce. His eyes then moved to Catlea who followed suit and sat down by Castor''s side.

    It wasn''t that she had much choice. Even though there were two chairs to the sides of the table, she knew better than to try to vie for such a high-importance spot.

    "Not going to pull the chair for your assistant?" the auditor asked in a in, casual voice while taking a small, bite-sized piece of meat off his fork and into his mouth.

    "She didn''t have anything to do with it," Castor started, trying to push his agenda right away.

    "You are not going to pull the chair for your assistant?" the auditor replied, raising his eyebrows and putting his cutlery down on his ce while he gave Castor an intense stare.

    ''Gulp.''

    "Yes, sir," Castor muttered, standing right up.

    The look on Catlea''s face turned even darker when she stood up as well and moved away from the table. And then, as if they were some kids whose parents decided to teach them manners, they sat down at the table again.

    This time, however, Castor properly pulled the chair out for Cat and helped her to push it forward once she sat. Then and only then did Castor dare to take his ce again.

    "I said it already, but the food will get cold if all you do is stare at it," the auditor said, picking up his cutlery and going back to his meal.

    ''No,'' Castor thought, fighting off the desire to cast a quick nce at the woman by his side.

    ''Is this a trap? An borate form of mental torture?'' he thought, gritting his teeth as he lowered his eyes over to the table.

    The food on the disy was of extreme quality. Every finest detail was taken care of. The drops of sauce created literal art on the side of the meat. The finely cut vegetables turned into impressive structures.

    All in all, even if he were to see such a table in a friend''s garage during a party, Castor wouldn''t dare to touch it for fear of ruining the job that went into preparing this disy.

    And yet... This time, he had no other choice. Refusing to obey Auditor''s orders was the worst thing he could do, after all.

    Castor picked up a fork from the side of his te before helping himself to some of the meats and vegetables.

    ''Is this going to be some sort of poison? A way to give me hope only to turn it into despair?'' he thought while raising the piece of meat to his mouth.

    He then bit down... only for the meat''s juice to explode in his mouth, filling its every nook and cranny with an extremely delicate, herbal aroma.

    "It''s..." Castor uttered with the piece still in his mouth.

    The auditor raised his eyebrow.

    Gulp.

    Castor properly swallowed, ignoring the sense of sacrilege caused by swallowing something so unimaginably good.

    ''It''s real meat,'' he thought. An article that only the highest of the highest ranks of the hegemony could enjoy, normally limited to only the popce living on the surface of arables.

    An article one had to give up when deciding to go into space.

    "I bet you guys are terrified to be here," Auditor said, finally showing a small smile while raising a napkin to clean an imaginary speck of dust from his extremely normal mouth. "So before we begin, I will let you form a plea," he said, turning his eyes to Castor. "Is there anything you wish to plead for?"

    Castor looked at the auditor''s raised eyebrow. He then lowered his eyes and swallowed the extremely tasty juices left in his mouth.<sub> </sub>

    ''At least I got the best kind ofst meal one could ask for,'' he thought before taking a deep breath and raising his head.

    "She didn''t do anything wrong. Whatever crime Imitted is mine and my alone. As such, I wish to assume full responsibility," Castor uttered, staring right into Auditor''s face.

    The man''s expression remained unchanged, causing Castor to lower his eyes.

    ''It seems... I failed,'' he thought.

    The memories he shared with Catlea shed through his mind. From their childhood shenanigans through the years of passion they enjoyed together, all the way to the tense yet cooperative job in the sanctuary.

    "Is what he said true?" Auditor asked after turning his nce over to the girl by Castor''s side.

    "Your Auditorial Highness..." the girl muttered, unable to keep her face straight under the scrutiny of the man''s eyes.

    She then stole a quick nce at Castor before her face twisted in terror.

    "That''s correct, Your Auditorial Highness," she said, hammering down thest nail to Castor''s coffin.

    "I see..." the auditor muttered. And then, as if nothing happened at all, he returned to his meal.

    For the next few minutes, the two of them were forced to watch in silence and anticipation as one of the highest officers of the hegemony casually continued his meal.

    "Let''s see," the auditor said once he ate enough. He then cleaned his mouth with a different napkin than before. And then, he jerked his hand to the side, only for a pagebook to materialize right in his palm.

    ''Physical summoning!'' Castor''s mind went nk. ''What a disy of power!''

    Mana was extremely abundant in the world. Yet, living beings were even more so. As such, most people would only ever use mana through extremelyplicated devices that all aimed to limit its waste.

    And here this man wasted quite a lot of it... just to pick up something he found himself toozy to stand up and walk over to get in a normal way!

    "I''ve seen your records," the auditor muttered. He then raised his eyes, looking right into Castor''s eyes... only to then move them over to Catlea''s face. "Yet, I still gave you a chance," he said, cing the pagebook down on the table.

    Snap.

    Snapping his fingers together was all it took for the auditor to summon two massive elites out of nowhere.

    This time, however, it wasn''t a mana summoning. It was just a disy of those elite skills of remaining hidden in in sight.

    ''So that''s how it ends,'' Castor thought, lowering his head and getting ready for his life to be forfeited.

    "Take her to the re-education center," he then ordered.

    Castor waited... but no hand touched him. Instead, a smallmotion appeared right by his side, where the elites grabbed Catlea by her arms.

    "Or wait," the auditor changed his mind as soon as the men pulled Catlea up by her arms, ready to drag her away despite her powerless struggle. The man then pushed the pagebook towards Castor, clearly encouraging him to take a look.

    "You weren''t summoned here to be punished," he stated, forcing the man to look up even before he could even read a single letter. "Through no fault or achievement of your own, you managed to discover something of extreme importance," he informed.

    "Huh?" Castor shook. "I did?" he then asked, too shocked to watch his mouth.

    "I''ve summoned here to relieve you of your duty as the management of this will be transferred away from you," the auditor informed. "Yet, as I was thinking about how the fleet shouldpensate you for the trouble, I happened to chance upon those records," he added, raising his hand and pointing it at the pagebook.

    "As for you," Auditor muttered, turning his eyes towards the shocked and terrified face of the girl who hung on the arms of the fleet elites. His face also visibly darkened. "Assistant will offer their utmost to support the operators in their endeavor," he muttered a string of words that made no sense to Caster.

    And yet, those words made Catlea''s face turnpletely nk.

    "I was willing to overlook your transgressions against the fleet''s moral code," he stated. "That''s what this entire ruse was all about," he added. "But just like I expected," he shook his head, "you were so eager to save yourself, you were willing to throw your operator under the bus, even going as far as to guilt-trip him into trying to save your unworthy skin."

    "Wait!" Castor shot up from his chair, mming his hands against the desk. "She didn''t do anything!" he screamed out, ignoring two more elites that appeared right behind him when he dared to abruptly move.

    "You really are not a fast reader," Auditormented, his voice suddenly turning weak and... sad?

    "I''ve changed my mind again," he then stated, looking over at Catlea. "You won''t be taken to a reeducation center. Instead," he turned his eyes back to Castor. "You will be the one to decide what fate awaits her," he announced, only for a devilish grin to appear on his lips. "After you read the entirety of those records, that is!"

 Chapter 251 True Face

    "I will be the one to decide her fate," Castor muttered, repeating Auditor''s words in a slow, silent voice.

    The man didn''t order him. He didn''t put a burden on him either.

    The Auditor simply informed Castor about the new reality that he had no other choice but to ept.

    That was the level of difference between the two of them. Castor was just an insignificant worker in the beehive. And the Auditor, s not the queen, was a being that transcended Castor''s ability toprehend.

    In short term, the auditor was barely different from a god to someone like Castor.

    ''First, I need to read this document,'' earth''s overseer thought, following the orders and lowering his eyes to the pagebook on the table.

    "Evaluation report of Catlea Numbrain [AHE93:ER197:AN3301 991478329:14129:18]" the title said.

    The code Castor was actually familiar with. Just like Catlea, as someone who ventured into space, he was assigned one as well.

    The first set of characters described the location the girl came from. AHE stood for the code of the string that described the local thicket of mass within the entirety of the universe. The number reflected the hegemon in charge of the said sector, pinpointing a singr area of influence, an area that one could map without using mana and relying on a standard physical model and its uses.

    Or to put it in terms of the primitive civilization on the below, it was the area of the entirety of the observable universe.

    The following code reflected the sector of gxy mega clusters and the number that followed described a particr supercluster within.

    ''Following the earth''s naming system that would be respectively Laniakea mega cluster and then Virgo supercluster,'' Castor thought, recalling what little he knew about the primitive civilization on the below.

    Thest of the location numbers reflected a particr local group within the supercluster and then a specific gxy inside said, local group.

    In other words, the first part of the entire code could be read, as the humans on the below called it, a milky way.

    The second set of numbers described a person themselves, with the settlement number, ss number, and then personal number pinpointing the certificate a person received when obtaining permission to venture into space.

    Or to put it all in short terms, it was a unique identification code that everyone who moved beyond the atmosphere of their home would receive.

    And just like one could expect from childhood friends, Castor''s number changed only in thest two parts of his personal ID, with his ss number preceding Catlea''s by two and apletely different certification number.

    ''It''s about her, there is no denying it,'' Caster thought, moving his eyes below the title and at the several articles highlighted on the girl''s profile.

    Reading through the entirety of the report would not only be a monstrous task, as it detailed records of her entire life in space. That''s why, for convenience''s sake, all the important bits were conveniently arranged on the first few pages.

    Castor was a slow reader. He didn''t particrly enjoy this kind of duty.

    And yet, once he started reading, he glued his eyes to the pagebook.

    Soon, all the colors left his face. His hands started to tremble.

    A momentter, his eyes filled with rage, disappointment, and extreme sadness. Yet, rather than vanishing as he continued his lecture, those three emotions simply switched ces from time to time as he discovered more and more about the girl that he used to like so much.

    "Subject bugged the academy''s interface to mix the records, effectively stealing credit points from Subject ID:[...]" Castor unknowingly whispered as he read.

    "Subject engaged in explicit rtionship within the Orcana cult despite partaking in official engagement with Subject ID:[...]" Castor muttered as he read.

    "Subject falsified the reports of Subject X, taking the credit for..." this time, the report already switched from showing Castor''s ID by assigning him a number personal handle. It was an urrence often used to limit the data by granting personal handles to the people of importance within a particr person''s life.

    By the time Castor finished his lecture, all the emotions were void from his face.<sub> </sub>

    Whatever connection he believed to have with Catlea turned out to be false.

    She wasn''t his childhood friend. She was a maniptive viper that first wrapped him around her finger before iming all the benefits that were supposed to be assigned to him.

    Her mind upgrades were a reward for the blueprint contest Catlea won after switching her submission with Castor''s.

    The reason why she broke up with him was to hide the degradation of her genitals and then her genital socket.

    ''Degradation of genital socket...'' Castor thought, gritting his teeth. ''This is something rare even in fucking brothels!''

    Pssst...

    A sound of a syringe emptying reached Castor''s ears. He didn''t even bother to turn his head to look, recognizing the wave of insane relief that the medicine brought with it.

    ''That''s some top-grade stuff,'' he thought once the chemical blockers separated him from an abyss that his newly obtained knowledge threw him into. ''As expected of an Auditor''s supply,'' he thought, raising his eyes to look the man in the eyes rather than wasting time having his brainmit self-termination.

    "Are you done?" the auditor asked once Castor took a deep breath and raised his eyes from the pagebook.

    "Yes, sir," Castor replied, not showing any signs of terror or even anxiety.

    The residual hate, self-disrespect, and overwhelming depression now turned into but a shadow, a residue that only served to feed the multiplication of blockers, feeding into the positive feedback loop that made said blockers such an ingenious invention.

    "What do you wish to do with her, then?"

    Castor turned his eyes and looked at the girl for the first time since starting his lecture.

    And Catlea... couldn''t really decide what face she was supposed to make.

    Her empire of lies that she built over thest three thousand years came all crashing down on her. And against information provided by the auditor, she had no means of refuting them.

    Yet, when she saw the empty look in the eyes of the man that she exploited so much, more often than not just to put him down just for her own personal amusement...

    Rage was what she chose.

    "Who the fuck do you think you are to look at me like that?!" Catlea erupted, her mind imnts failing to contain all her emotions. "Just sit back and die for me, you filthy piece of shit!"

    Even the elites that held the girl up in the air were shocked by her sudden outburst.

    It was one thing to be the worst type of person possible, the type that was bound to appear in the world of plenty that the hegemon cultivated. It was another to then try to me their victim once all their lies saw the light of day.

    But it was a whole different matter to act so rashly in face of a damned auditor!

    "Sir, with all due respect..." Castor said, standing up before bowing his head deeply before the auditor. "I im not to be able to deliver a sound judgment along the lines of the fleetw standards," he reported, shedding the responsibility for the girl.

    "What do you want me to do with her, then?" the auditor asked, ignoring Catlea''s outrage.

    "May Sir judge her as Sir sees fit," Castor requested, bowing his head even deeper.

    "Fine," the auditor smiled, finally granting Castor his request. He then turned his head and looked towards the elites keeping the girl at bay.

    "Send her to the abyss."

 Chapter 252 Weirdo

    The abyss.

    Contrary to its name, it wasn''t a specific ce within the universe. It was just a generalized name for the highest tier of prisons developed by the hegemons for a very specific group of people.

    For those whomitted crimes but felt no remorse whatsoever.

    One could find themselves in the abyss for something as small as snatching groceries on a regr basis, something average like bullying, big crimes like rapes and murders all the way to high crimes like treason or espionage.

    Because in essence, it was wrong to call the abyss a prison. Calling it a resocialization center was more on the point.

    On their own, abyss locations appeared like your average self-sufficient stations floating in space while maintaining only minimal contact with the rest of the universe. And even that was just to ensure its operations were going smoothly.

    Yet, the insides of each of the abyss were chock-full of the highest grade of technology. Connectors, simtors, drug stores, all the cream of the top of what universal humanity came up with.

    And those who were sentenced to the abyss, all went through a simple, uniform procedure.

    First, the sentenced subject would be infused with stimnts that brought their perception of emotions, feeling, and physical experiences to a much higher degree.

    Secondly, their data would be infused into the chamber they would be serving their time.

    Andstly, they would be put into a shallow sleep and forced into a simtion that would put them on the other end of the equation of their crimes.

    As such, a shoplifter would be forced to go through the annoyance of constantly updating the loss log while losing his mind over the costs it incurred.

    An intellectual theft perpetrator would be forced to experience the anguish of having their hard work, sweat, and blood reduced to nothing while being forced to keep on going.

    A rapist would go through the pain, both mental and physical, that he inflicted on their victims.

    A spy would experience the organization he believed in fall apart due to its information leaking out.

    "Send her to the abyss," the auditor said, snapping his fingers and sending his elites out of the mansion.

    It was only at this moment that Catlea realized what awaited her.

    She served Castor for three thousand years of desperation, depression, and deep pain. And now, deprived of all her memories in the simtion, she would have to go through an endless lifetime worth of the same pain that she inflicted on him.

    Contrary to Castor, however, as soon as her sentence would conclude with the reveal of all that others would do to her in her simtion, rather than being served top-grade blockers, she would be forced to repeat the entire scenario over and over again.

    Castor looked at the two elites dragging the struggling girl away. And with his brain filled to the brim with top-grade blockers, he simply turned his eyes back to the auditor.

    "What am I to do now, sir?" he asked politely.

    "I said that we will transfer you out of your current job... but the situation isn''t as easy as it sounds," the auditor replied, picking his cutlery back up before returning to his meal. He then nodded his head forward, inviting Castor to do the same.

    "If we attempted to rehash the mana root now, it wouldn''t properlye into effect in time to fulfill its purpose," he exined while filling his te with some fresh-looking cabbage.

    "Sir, the current system should suffice to bring a necessary number of people through the mana wave," Castor reported. "It''s broken, bugged, and unstable... but as long as it receives enough resources, it could be patched up."<sub> </sub>

    "I know." The auditor smiled. Then, he snapped his fingers again, somehow sending a different message for this time it wasn''t the elites that showed up but a massive levi-holoscreen. "One of the reasons why we used that absolute transporter to bring you is was because it operates on thest-century beam. It allowed us to send someone into your sanctuary while you were beamed here," he exined right as the holoscreen lit up.

    It disyed a look at the insides of the control room of Castor''s sanctuary. Yet, rather than being empty, it was currently upied by a cute female donning a simplistic fleet uniform.

    "How is it going, Alice?" the auditor asked.

    "This entire thing is a mess stuck together with shit and fueled by prayers and hopes alone," the girl replied, not minding her tongue at all. She didn''t even bother to raise her eyes to the lenses of the local camera, refusing to move them an inch away from the pagebook she was furiously tapping at.

    For a few more moments, the girl was upied with her job, ignoring the fact that the auditor himself was looking and waiting for a report. Only after a long while did she put her pagebook away and looked at the camera.

    "Whoever made it work is a freaking genius. No academy procedure would work here, with that few resources and this mess of supporting systems," she eximed while shaking her head.

    "You hear that, young man?" Auditor looked at Castor. Yet, any satisfaction that Castor could feel from those words of undeniable praise ended up erased, serving as fodder for his blockers. "I know you can''t feel a thing right now, so make sure to dedicate those words to your memory."

    "Wait, you are with the operator right now?!" Alice freaked out, dropping her pagebook and lunging forward. From Castor''s perspective, her hands shoot to the sides only for the camera to shake when the girl pressed her forehead against its lenses.

    [Video rerouting detected. Do you wish to allow it?]

    A system message appeared right in the middle of the holoscreen.

    "I allow it," Auditor said in a somewhat tired voice. "What do you need to fix it?" he then asked.

    "A fuckton of mana to begin with," Alice said as soon as the system message disappeared from the holoscreen, reced by a small reflection of what the girl now could see through her soul imnts. "This system is so crude it doesn''t need much processing power so a standard processor should suffice," the girl muttered as she went back and dropped on Castor''s levichair.

    The seat plunged down towards the floor before its gravity engines managed to ovee the sudden change to its weight, bringing itself back to its designated spot.

    "Oh, and bring me that guy who made it," the girl then requested. "It will be a lot easier to fix it if I have him exin the deets."

    "I''m afraid it won''t be that simple," the auditor shook his head with a look of disgust on his face. "There are more blockers in his blood than there are in the factory liquid," he added, referring to the special environment where the blockers were cultivated, or in simpler terms, produced.

    It also happened to have a perfectly optimal density of blockers per unit of liquid.

    "Looking at this mess, I can''t say I''m surprised..." the girl whispered, her face turned sour as she continued to tap on her pagebook. "Bring him here," she then ordered, ignoring the fact that she was talking to someone who outssed her way more than a king would outss a peasant. "It''s the fleet''s fault for not cleaning out that viper before so I will do my best to take responsibility and help him get back on track!"

    "We will do just that, then," the auditor said. "Now, focus on your job, we will send him over soon," he added before swiping his hand through the air, causing the hololscreen to turn off before levitating away.

    "Son," the auditor said in a low, patronizing voice when he turned his eyes back to Castor. "The fleet wronged you. And yet, you ended up finding a treasure hegemons would dly go to war over," he added.

    The auditor then stood up and walked around the table before cing his hand on Castor''s head.

    "Once the blockers will dissolve, you will have to face the trauma anyway," he said, rustling Castor''s organic hair, something he opted never to rece. "That girl might be a weirdo..." he took a short pause before raising his hand and taking a step back. "But she will definitely help you heal."

    The auditor then took another step to the back. He raised his hand and snapped his fingers for the third time since the meeting started.

    "Send him back."

 Chapter 253 Soothing Voice

    Castor''s return to the sanctuary was a whole different experience from how he moved out of it.

    Instead of using the same,st-century technology of beaming, he was transported by auditor''s personal taxi to the hangar where only the blockers stopped his jaws from dislocating and dropping to the floor.

    The hangar was the size of a small moon, filled to the brim with ships of all sizes. Yet, as if it wasn''t enough, the hangar itself turned out to be a separate construction docked to the capital ship.

    "Follow me," one of the two elites that gave him a ride said before moving into a corridor that should belong to a mansion rather than a fleet''s warship.

    Then, Castor ended up taking several lifts, both vertical and horizontal, before ending up in a ustrophobically small capsule, roughly half the size of his sanctuary.

    ''How is it going to work?'' he asked himself, his shock and curiosity getting one over the blockers. "This ship is way too small to be a transporter, isn''t it?" he suggested, turning his eyes towards his extraordinary guides.

    "That''s because it''s not a transporter," the more talkative of the elites replied. "It''s a transportation vessel. So you better strap on and get ready for the ride," he instructed.

    The elite then patted Castor on the arm before leaving the capsule and standing by a console right on the outside.

    "Tell me when you are ready."

    Castor, still pretty much unable to care about anything, followed the orders and brought the seat''s arm over his chest. A press of a buttonter, the te covered his entire chest only for a strange liquid to shoot out from it, covering the rest of his flesh.

    "You are one of the very few people who can use it without ending up on some deserted with rockets flying all over your head," the elite remarked as soon as he confirmed Castor was properly secured in his seat. "Instead of dropping you to the warzone, we will drop your ass right by your tiny ship. And with that," the elite said as he turned his head to Castor and smiled, "safe travels!"

    The elite pressed the button on his console, causing the doors of the capsule to slide in and then press outwards, locking themselves in ce. The capsule then started to fill out with a simr liquid to the one Castor was already fully covered in.

    Only once everyst iota of air left the vehicle and the pressure of the liquid reached the designated point did the insides turn bright from all the inner lights turning green.

    And then, the ride began.

    ''What is going on?'' Castor asked himself impassively. And as if responding to his thoughts, a holoscreen appeared right before his eyes with a video monitoring the state of the capsule from the outside.

    A robotic arm grew up from below the capsule''s docking port, turning it to the side before moving it over to an area with nothing but a circr, open space.

    "Ugh..." a small moan escaped Castor''s lips when inertia suddenly threatened to turn his flesh into a pancake.

    The robotic arm that caught the capsule before now started to spin it around in the open space at the rate of eleration that top-grade engines could only hope to achieve.

    "Velocity satisfied."

    A voice filled the insides of the capsule, bing the only handle allowing Castor to keep himself conscious.

    ? "Destination marked."

    The voice continued to confirm every step of the procedure.

    "Gravity well prepared."

    Castor gulped his saliva down.

    "Launch in three, two, one..."

    The inertia that squeezed Castor''s insides vanished. From an extreme difort, he suddenly found himself perfectly fine, with no external forces affecting his body.

    The liquid within the capsule started to drain as well. And once breathable air filled the insides again, the security over Castor''s straps finally came undone, allowing him to rx on his seat.

    "What the hell was that," he muttered to himself.

    The fact that he could use a light curse meant that the blockers in his blood reached their half-life.

    With the newfound curiosity, Castor then rewind the video on his holoscreen, watching how his capsule was spun at mind-boggling speeds only to be then released in a specific direction.

    "Approaching transfer lock."

    The operating system of the capsule announced. "Prepare to disembark."

    The video of theunch disappeared from Castor''s holoscreen, reced by the sight of his sanctuary growing within the lens of the capsule''s outer camera.

    ''What is it that slows us down?'' he then asked himself.

    They were in space. There was no air to kill their velocity and the natural gravity would only bring him toward the. And yet, his capsule slowed down before gently touching the docking port of the sanctuary.

    Whoosh!

    ''Was it the gravity well?'' Castor guessed, right as the sliding doors of the capsule unlocked, revealing a hand.

    A hand that reached for Castor''s cor.

    "Get inside, quick!" the voice behind the hand urged him while the hand pulled him through the docking port.

    A mere momentter, the dock shut closed, before releasing the capsule.

    Still shocked by all the events ying out before his eyes, Castor could see through the sanctuary''s window how the capsule then started falling back towards the capital ship in the distance, as if the ship''s gravity itself was pulling it back.

    ''Gravity well it is,'' he thought before finally gathering himself and turning around to take a look at whoever was inside.

    "I''m Alice, it''s nice to meet you." The hand that pulled him inside now let go of Castor''s cor only to then arrive at the level of his chest.

    "I''m Castor, likewise," earth''s overseer replied in a slightly confused voice, burdened with the rapidly returning emotions. And yet, he found enough peace of mind to reach out and grab the hand before shaking it.

    "First off," Alice started, "your blockers should be about to wear off. Can you confirm it for me?" she requested in a pleasant, casual voice.

    "Huh?" Castor shook his head, unable to wrap his head around the weird state of his brain.

    His emotions returning made him feel a strange sense of euphoria, just like someone waking up from a drug-induceda. And yet, as those emotions started to return, he couldn''t help but recall all the things that he read about in Catlea''s report card.

    "I..." Castor hesitated for a second. "I don''t feel too good..." he muttered, grabbing at the ship''s frame to stop himself from falling over.

    "I know," Alice replied, shooting her arms out and locking them behind Castor''s head.

    Her smell suddenly reached Castor''s nostrils, exploding in a fruity, citrus-like nuke in his brain.

    "I know this is sudden," the girl whispered while dragging Castor deeper into the sanctuary. She then fell down on formerly Catlea''s sofa before pulling the man over herself. "But this is the best way to help you ovee the drawback of the blocker''s decaying," she whispered in a sweet voice, raising her legs only to lock them behind Castor''s hips.

    "Wait, what?" Castor attempted to protest. The image of his former me was way too vivid in his brain for him to ept thefort of a woman he just met. "I don''t even..."

    Castor failed to finish his words when Alice forcefully pressed her lips against his. And as her finger touched the back of Castor''s brain, his mind exploded, suddenly merging with the head of the girl below.

    "It''s okay." Alice''s soothing voice filled Castor''s soul,ing straight from her soul that he was now connected to. "You didn''t deserve any of what happened to you." Her words melted through the barrier of mental pain that was starting to appear around Castor''s core. "So let me show you just what wonders you actually deserve."

 Chapter 254 Alices Therapy

    ''What the hell is going on?'' was the only thought that Castor was capable of.

    From one, physical end, he was in heaven.

    Alicia''s body turned out to be far greater than he ever expected a woman''s flesh to be capable of being. She singlehandedly broke out the idea that Catlea was the greatest woman he could ever meet, proving itpletely wrong before she even got to take off her uniform.

    Not a single one of the defects that Catlea forced Castor to believe to be normal was present on Alice''s body.

    Her sizeable breasts didn''t cause her waist to be the width of her ribs, making it a perfect ce for Castor to rest his hands rather than a slime that would potentially swallow his fingers never to let them back.

    Her ass was perfectly fine and soft yet it didn''t sag down, something Castor was somehow aware to be caused by Catlea''s constant sitting and lying around and apleteck of exercise.

    And Alice''s technique...

    Even without the connection that she established and allowed them to share their experience and thus seek out the greatest pleasure as soon as the other party would form a single desire at the very bottom of their mind, Alice easily proved to be a woman entire leagues above Catlea.

    And yet...

    Despite how insanely pleasant the encounter was, Castor couldn''tpletely focus on it, constantly assaulted by the returning memories of his time with his former girlfriend and then a friend.

    Having Alice work on him with all her mind surely helped, slowly erasing all the lies that Caltea used for her own convenience.

    Yet, just like they shared the pleasure of the encounter, Castor knew Alice''s connection made her aware of his state of mind. And this, in turn, made it extremely awkward for him to go through the returning memories of what he could remember and then the contrast of what he learned about those memories from the rapport.

    "Shush, it''s okay," Alice whispered as soon as a memory of the academy appeared in Castor''s mind.

    It was a recollection of the time when Castor''s project ended up being disqualified from thepetition that could change his life by a massive margin. And as if the memory of failing at the greatest opportunity he had in his life wasn''t bad enough, Castor was now aware that it wasn''t his fault, but the malice-prompted actions of Catlea that led to this result.

    "I saw the project that you actually submitted," Alice whispered. "It wouldn''t make the cut in the ranks of the fleet... but you weren''t in the fleet back then" she muttered, raising up on Castor''s his and grabbing his head between her hands.

    "Listen," she stated, forcing Castor to look her right in the eyes. "If it was a fleet exam, you would fail by around ten percentage points," she revealed. "And you weren''t even a graduate back then!"

    ''If it''s true...'' Castor thought, his depression and anguish turning into wrath. And then, it transformed into lethargy as he realized all the opportunities he forever lost because of Catlea''s interference.

    After all, a fleet exam was something that only fledgling officers of the fleet could take to confirm their status as the managerial body of the army that kept the entire wide universe safe!

    "I can''t offer you a job right away," Alice said, shaking her hips to and fro while reaching out to the back of the sofa. A dispenser then projected a semi-corporeal ss right into her hand before splurting clean water into it.

    The girl then leisurely took a sip, somehow managing to keep the cup stable despite wildly riding Castor down. Then, her movements slowed down to a point of a caress while she helped Castor up and fed him some water as well.

    "But your talent is undeniable," she praised right as she threw the cup to the side, allowing it to dematerialize out in the air. Her hands then returned to Castor''s chest only for her hips to start moving up and down again. "So once this mission ends," she said, mming her hips down right when Castor reached his limit.

    "Haaa...." Alice then released a long, sweet moan as Castor''s dick filled her up to the brim with his sterilized cum. "Once this mission ends, I will rmend you for a special course," she then said, dropping a massive bomb right as Castor''s body rxed in the moment of the height of pleasure.

    For how cold it might seem, Alice''s actions were all calcted. She did feel some pity and genuine respect for all the things that Castor went through, yet the way she acted...

    Wasn''t just something she did because she felt like it.

    She was a lower officer of the fleet, an existence easily capable of erasing entires if she deemed it the best course of action and happened not to have a superior officer oversee her decisions at the moment.

    For a being like her, acting out on behalf of her own state of mind was something she couldn''t even fathom.

    As such, the timing of her praises was aimed at the moment when Castor''s memories would return, striking his soul down.

    This was also the reason why she established the personal connection from the get-go, all so that she could sense those moments and time her counterattacks.

    Yet, for how cold it all sounded, it was actually a well-known therapy for people threatened by SPTSD. A mental sickness that included all the deviations caused by the changes that technology, mana, and divine forces could bring upon one''s flesh, mind, and soul.

    Rather than just hugging Castor in the worst moments in his life and hoping that her physical and mental support would empower him to fight the scars on his soul on his own, Alice proactively overwrote whatever dragged Castor''s heart down with pleasure, praise and reassurance.

    And with how not a single of Castor''s regrets managed to lodge itself into his soul to be a thorn that would stop his future potential, she was quite good at what she was doing.

    "Can we even waste time fucking around like that?" Castor suddenly asked when Alice took a moment to let her body recover from the orgasm by taking a short rest right on top of his chest. "Aren''t you on the clock to fix up the mess I made?" he asked.

    ''Isn''t this the main reason why you are here in the first ce?'' he thought.

    "Normally," Alice smiled, prompting herself on her hands and smiling at Castor. "Normally, I would say damn this entire and focus all on you," she assured while reaching out and caressing Castor''s cheek. "But this..." she then bit her lips as she looked at the holoscreen disying the blue and green ball far below them.

    "This is something else," she then muttered, lowering herself back on Castor''s chest. "This is something that even I''m not privy to know everything about," sheined a little only to suddenly pull herself up and ce a gentle kiss right on top of Castor''s forehead.

    "Don''t you worry, though," she then cheered, lowering herself a tiny little bit to bring her eyes right to the level of Castor''s pupils. "I fixed most of the mess that this whore left," she stated, her voice turning wrathful when she cursed.

    In the end, her connection enabled her not only to feel the pressure but all the feelings that Castor now had for his former friend as well.

    "As for the permanent fix for the system," she grinned, "I already bought us enough time to take it easy," she informed before lowering her hips and going for yet another round of therapy.

 Chapter 255 Healing Beatrice (Back To The Main Storyline)

    "Okay guys, chop chop!" Mathew called out as soon as he returned to the ce where he got traumatized by getting yet another woman. "We will be moving out soon, so get ready!"

    Both Norbert and Beatrice raised their heads and turned them towards Mathew. Judging from what the young man could see, they didn''t go back to fucking, or at the very least, they didn''t continue doing so all the way to the point where he returned.

    ''They were just talking?'' Mathew thought, raising one of his eyebrows. ''Well, what do I care?''

    "Mathew, tell me one thing," Norbert said while getting up to his legs. "What''s your n for rescuing the people left in those cars?"

    Mathew looked at Norbert''s face... only to then turn his eyes towards Beatrice''s hand.

    Or rather, the stump that formerly would be her wrist.

    "Why isn''t she healed yet?" Mathew asked, ignoring the question and asking one of his own. "We were away for quite a while. To be honest, I expected you guys would already be back!"

    Norbert already proved that people with a system were capable of taking over merchants along with all the benefits that came with them. As such, there was no need for Mathew to go out of his way to get Beatrice''s hand healed!

    "Because we were busy discussing the strategy!" Beatrice cried out with anger in her voice. "The fact that you got so far by risking everyone''s lives... It''s nothing more than dumb luck!"

    "Well..." Mathew muttered, cutting his reply short. ''I guess iming that if it worked so far then there is no need to change our approach would be kinda out of ce now,'' he thought.

    After all, excluding his wives and other system users, Beatrice was right.

    It was just dumb luck that there weren''t any casualties after thest raid. And now that the sun was up making Daria unable to use her stronger form...

    "So you were discussing strategy, didn''t you?" Mathew then reiterated what he heard from them a little earlier. "Good," he then nodded his head. "You can tell me about it while we are going to get your hand healed," he informed.

    Norbert and Beatrice looked at each other. Then, Norbert turned his eyes back towards Mathew. "I will be the one helping her to climb up," he said, squinting his eyes as if to hide the suspicion that appeared on his expression.

    Mathew only rolled his eyes.

    "It''s fine," he said while shrugging his shoulders. "Just in case you forgot, sleeping with her was a one-time thing. Oh, but try not to sleep with her before we heal her since we don''t know if that will revoke her wife''s status," Mathew then warned before turning around and heading right back into the corridor he came from.

    "Is it really okay?" Nadia then asked as she grabbed Mathew''s arm and wrapped herself around it. "To so easily allow them to fuck?"

    "And why wouldn''t it be?" Mathew asked, looking down at the girl''s face with a puzzled expression on his face. "If it will mean reverting all the changes to the system I got from obtaining a fifth wife... Ah, I get it," he quickly changed his approach.

    In theory, reverting the changes to the system that came with its evolution would potentially mean removing the cap over how much Mathew''s stats could grow. Yet, at the same time, it would mean depriving him of all the stats that he already got from his wives!

    "Are you going to change your mind, then?" Nadia inquired.

    "Not at all," Mathew replied while shaking his head. "Sure, it would be a pain to lose all the advantages the evolution offers but, at the same time, it would tell us whether we can let Carol loose," he exined.

    Up to this point, there was no telling what would happen if Mathew''s wife were to sleep with someone else. There was also no telling if that would mean removing her wife''s status and then what degree of intimacy was necessary to do so.

    Would simple intercourse be enough? Maybe a deration of love would suffice? Or maybe whoever wanted to overwrite one of Mathew''s wives'' status would have to do more than Mathew did while iming her?

    There were so many questions and too few answers. And given the specifics of Beatrice''s situation along with her rtion to Norbert, she was the perfect fit to be used to find the solution to all those questions.

    "Anyway," Mathew muttered as they reached the first set of stairs, "I don''t mind letting the two of them test it all out. We just need to make sure it won''t happen before we will have the leeway to get weaker."

    The now increased group of Mathew, his wives, Norbert and Beatrice climbed up the stairs without a problem. After all, Beatrice was a hand behind everyone else, not a leg or foot.

    The problems began when they reached the second floor and the hole in the wall. There, Beatrice ended up going first but instead of climbing... she practically ended up sitting on Norbert''s shoulders while helping out with her one healthy hand as much as she could.

    In the end, the entire group reached the edge over which the merchant was situated nearly half an hour after their theoretically simple journey began.

    And then...

    "Well then, you should all pray for it to work," Mathew requested while wrapping his arm around Beatrice''s waist before stepping forward and reaching out for the silvery orb of light that floated near the merchant.

    Just like the few times he used it before, the orb of light exploded before turning into some sort of strange liquid that then crawled all over them.

    For a moment, Mathew had no other choice but to ept his temporary blindness when the light solidified and not only covered his entire body but also created a strange barrier that separated the two of them from the rest of the world.

    ''Now, did it work?'' he thought, turning his head to the side.

    "Oh my god," Beatrice muttered, her eyes going wide and her entire body tensing up.

    All she did was simply raise her arm, eager to see whether Mathew''s ridiculous ims would actually turn true.

    And just like Mathew announced, rather than looking down at a set of bloody bandages covering her stump, she looked directly at her formerly missing hand.

    ''That will be all,'' Mathew thought, giving the order to the ''touching grass'' function.

    The silvery light shed again before fully receding from his view and condensing back into the same orb that he touched before.

    And now, it wasn''t only him that could see the change in the police officer.

    "It worked!" Norbert screamed out, proving to be the one most enthusiastic about the change. He then rushed forth and wrapped his hands around Beatrice''s still tense body, pulling her into a bearish hug that belied his rtively slim body shape. "It really worked out!"

    "Yeah, it did," Beatrice muttered, too shocked to produce anything greater than a small, shaky voice.

    And then, a strange change happened to her face.

    The woman pushed Norbert out, as if in an attempt to test the strength of her recovered hand.

    "It''s just as it was only a few days ago," she muttered, unable to tear her eyes out of her hand.

    Yet, rather than celebrating, she quickly brought her eyes to Mathew, forcing him to experience the sudden shift of her expression.

    Right now, this wasn''t the weak, malnourished woman that he saw after she woke up and her initial wariness passed.

    Right now, it wasn''t Beatrice that stood before him.

    It was themander of the anti-terrorist unit that brought heavy guns into the school and had both the balls and the wit to follow his requests once she realized how umon the situation was.

    "Now then," Beatrice spoke out, her voice turning stern and ragged. "Here is what we are going to do."

 Chapter 256 I Would Gladly Give Up On That Burden

    "Here is what we are going to do," Beatrice said. Her face and voice both reflected themander of an elite police unit that she used to be. And in the heat of the moment, even Mathew ended up focusing, ready to receive his orders.

    Then, he raised one of his eyebrows and slightly leaned his head to the side.

    "Ah," Beatrice twitched, "Sorry, my bad," she quickly apologized. "Old habits die hard I guess," she then added with a small smile.

    "I don''t really mind. As long as you have a good n, I''m all up to hear it," he said.

    They were supposed to discuss the strategy back in the shaft... but the trouble of bringing Beatrice up when she still had yet to recover her hand took away all of everyone''s attention. As such, rather than talking about their ns in the confines of the shaft, they ended up out in the open with other survivors all around.

    ''But that shouldn''t be a problem,'' Mathew thought, casting a quick nce across the open area of the top floor. ''It''s not like I ever wanted to be the one calling the shots,'' he thought before focusing on the woman''s face.

    "Here is what I think we should do, then," Beatrice said while turning her head all around in search of something. Soon, her eyes caught on a small pile of rubble that the survivors have yet to clear.

    Contrary to what could be found on the lower floors, the rubble on the top floor was limited to just bricks and broken pieces of concrete that the explosions from day one shoot upwards. Everything else obviously ended up following gravity and either falling all the way to the bottom of the building or crashing into some of the floors on the way down.

    "First off, am I right to assume that zombies are dumb?" Beatrice asked while raising her eyes to the rest of the group at the top of the school survivors'' pecking order.

    "They follow simple stimuli and don''t really organize themselves," Mathew replied while nodding his head. "Keep in mind, though, this only applies to simple zombies. A single evolved one can turn a horde into an army," he added.

    "For real?" Beatrice opened her eyes wide, taken aback by the revtion.

    "It''s something we went through already, in that old media building four blocks away," Nadia filled in the details. "Thankfully, once we took care of the leader, the rest of the zombies turned back to how they usually act."

    "That''s quite troubling," Beatrice muttered, standing up from the pile of rubble with two bricks in one hand and several smaller pebbles in the other.

    "There is no need to think about it too much," Mathew quickly added before the woman could get the wrong impression of the situation. "So far, the evolved monsters and zombies are quite rare. And most of the ones we encountered so far evolved in the direction of personal strength instead," he pointed out.

    There was a massive difference between an organizer type and a battle type. While thetter one was definitely harder to take down on one''s own, it was the organizer type that was the bigger pain in the ass.

    After all, the battle-type evolved monsters or zombies were simply stronger than their unevolved counterparts. On the other hand, the organizers either evolved or somehow managed to retain their intelligence, making them that much harder opponents.

    ''Just looking at how humans took over the entire is sufficient proof how wit is more important than brawn,'' Mathew thought, rolling his eyes. ''If it was all about strength, we would be elephant''s pets instead of it being the other way around.''

    "Is it safe to assume we won''t encounter them?" Beatrice then asked, clearly hesitating over whether to reveal her n or not while unsure about the detail she wasn''t aware of before.

    "Yeah," Mathew nodded his head, "I will be able to tell if there will be any evolved ones nearby before we start," he then added while taking a quick look at the merchant just nearby.

    With its map functionality, no evolved monster could hide from Mathew''s eyes!

    "Then, thest question." Beatrice shook her head and raised her eyes to Mathew''s face. "Are you really fine with me nning the action?"

    There was no hesitation, doubt, or anxiety in the woman''s eyes. She was simply curious. That, or she wished to ensure there would be no insidious opposition to her ns once they would be set in motion.

    "We bruteforced things before because that was the only way," Mathew admitted. "With only a few of us, we could rely on the overwhelming strength of our levels to somehow push through. But ever since we started to include others..."

    Mathew took a moment to look around the area.

    Even though no survivor dared to just stand in ce and openly listen in on the conversation... There was no doubt that all of the ones who happened to be close were eagerly using every opportunity to remain within the range of Mathew''s and Beatrice''s voices.

    "If you can contribute to everyone''s safety and decrease our casualties even by the tiniest number," Mathew said only to then shake his shoulders. "Then I don''t see why we should refuse your help. I was deciding on everything so far not because that was my wish but because that''s what the situation called for."

    As the only one who had an extensive experience with the apocalypse, Mathew held a massive advantage over everyone else.

    Yet, only four days into the second run of the disaster, the situation drastically changed. The zombies were evolving at a rate far faster than they did in Mathew''s first life and his group has long surpassed anything he managed to achieve in his previous attempt.

    In other words, all the advantages that Mathew had over others stemming from his prior knowledge of the apocalypse... were now gone.

    "Is that an invitation to help with your decisions...ter on as well?" Beatrice raised one of her eyebrows, genuinely taken aback by Mathew''s hidden suggestion.

    "Why not?" Mathew replied with a question of his own. "If you can take even a part of the decision-making burden off my shoulders, why would I refuse such an offer?"

    There was an obvious difference between offering this kind of privilege to someone random and to Beatrice herself.

    Yet, her job, Norbert''s adoration for her, her actions so far... Everything that Mathew could tell about the woman made her more than trustworthy.

    At least, when it came to doing things in a way that would benefit the survivors in the long term. And that alone was enough for the young man to make his decision.

    "Okay then," Beatrice sighed before kneeling down on the ground and starting to ce her makeshift prompts on the floor. "This is the school," she ced the first brick," and this is the car blockade with the survivors."

    The two bricks formed the basis of the n that Beatrice hatched in her mind.

    "We will need some sort of distractions here, here, and here." The woman scattered several pebbles all around the school, notably ignoring the area around their target.

    "We found some grenades while scavenging the first two cars," Nadia reported, recalling the details of one of the reports she received before they even returned to the school''s building.

    "We didn''t bring any frags, so they are either smoke or sh ones," Beatrice muttered in response. Then, a small smile crept up on her lips. "That''s even better. But in both cases, we will need something that will keep attracting the zombies away from our target," she added, looking back down at the makeshift n of the area.

    Mathew twitched. Then, his eyes ran to the side for a moment. Andstly, he turned his eyes back and raised his hand.

    "I think I will be able to help with that."

 Chapter 257 To Positions!

    "All the hunters, we need you back on the ground!" Le ran around the school shouting.

    She wasn''t the only one. All of Mathew''s girls were tasked with the same job, that is with alerting everyone of theing operation.

    This time, however, it wasn''t only hunters that would be involved. Even the survivors tasked with cleaning the school grounds ended up employed, all for the sake of decreasing the burden of the hunters whose task would be the hardest.

    And soon enough, before the sun even reached the topmost point on its journey through the sky for the day, all the survivors gathered at the bottom floor of the school.

    "Remember guys!" Mathew called out, using the position of authority he established within the group to convey the n. "We are going to do everything as silently as possible. But if the rm goes off..." he said, turning his eyes towards the group of hunters gathered to the side of everyone else.

    Then, a wide, warped smile appeared on his lips.

    "If the rm goes off, we are not going to hold back and will have to force our way through the task."

    To say that the group of hunters under Carol''s management turned into a unit of experienced warriors after just a single mission... would be a gross overestimation.

    A single battle was way too little for them to gain enough fighting experience for Mathew to rest his confidence with them.

    Yet...

    There was no denying that they were no longer the scared survivors that they were when they were first recruited into the group.

    And the uniform smiles that appeared on their lips after Mathew''s announcement were the biggest proof of that.

    "With that said, stop wasting my time and gather up on your positions!" Mathew ended up the briefing with a quick hastening message before getting down the pile of rubble he stood upon and running to his own tasks as well.

    Contrary to nearly everyone else, he didn''t move closer to the school''s fence, though. Instead, he rushed to find the one person that could help him with the task he picked for himself.

    "Hey, man!" Mathew called out as soon as he noticed the familiar face. "Wait up!"

    Mathew''s junior and the supervisor of the worker survivors turned around. At first, he simply wanted to see what themotion was about.

    Yet, as soon as he noticed Mathew''s eyes, the young man stopped in his tracks, turned around, and ran to intercept Mathew.

    "How can I help?" he asked with no unnecessary pleasantries.

    "I need you to calcte something for me," Mathew replied right away.

    He knew what his task would be. After all, he was the one who suggested it in the first ce. But to know how exactly to execute it...

    "Shoot." Mathew''s junior didn''t waste even a second.

    ''Just a single day of being in power and he already changed so much,'' Mathew thought, raising his eyebrows. The change to his junior was surprising... but as great of a surprise it was, it was a weed one.

    "I''m going to produce a pir of light at the southern street by the fence," Mathew revealed. "I need to know how high it needs to be to be visible for two to three blocks out."

    "That''s..." the junior gasped for air, looking at Mathew with a bbergasted look on his face. "Isn''t that just a simple Pythagorean application?" he then suggested with his eyes wide open.

    "It might be," Mathew nodded his head.

    He needed to know how high the barrier of light he was going to erect should be. It had to be high enough to be visible in all of the nearby areas yet not as high as to not draw too much attention.

    "Give me ten minutes," Mathew''s junior then replied. It was clear, from the look on his face, that he could argue about the simplicity of the task. Yet, at the same time, he knew better than to question Mathew''s decision to leave this task to him.

    "Sure thing," Mathew said with a nod of his head before turning around and walking a few steps away.

    ''Now then,'' he thought, closing his eyes and focusing all of his attention on the second part of his task.

    ''I didn''t use my abilities all that much in the past. Now, it''s time to change it,'' he thought, gathering all of his willpower before directing it at a random set of doors before him.

    For a moment, nothing happened. Yet, before Mathew could fully gather all of his attention, something detached from his mind...

    Only for the doors to end up ripped out of their frame and pushed inwards into the ssroom only to them smash into the ss of the window and end up falling outside!

    "Damn!" Mathew uttered an exasperated gasp, baffled by the immense power of the skill hergely ignored up to this point.

    A quick look into his system then proved the skill didn''t even take enough mana for the change to be reflected on his status window.

    ''Let''s try this again,'' Mathew decided, turning his focus towards the wall by the hole left after the ripped-off door.

    For the next few moments, Mathew yed around with his ''Mind''s flesh'', ripping the structure of the building with ease at nearly no cost to his mind.

    "I''m done," his junior then reported. "The re needs to be roughly half-time higher than the first row of buildings past the street," he said, pointing at the residentialplex right by the school''s southern side.

    "Just keep in mind, I eyeballed everything so I can''t say how urate this result is," he pointed out while raising his hand with his forefinger extended.

    "That will do," Mathew said, smiling in response. "Thanks," he added only to turn around right away, heading to the assembly point by the northeast corner of the school area.

    The gathering point, even though Mathew was only a few minutester than everyone else, changed by quite a bit. And it wasn''t only a matter of all the survivors of the school gathering there.

    The main differences were how most of the area was now fully cleared out while the other was a simple elevated tform constructed out of the rubble.

    Beatrice stood right on the tform without even a single piece of weapon to herself.

    ''Amander through and through,'' Mathew thought as he approached the stand.

    "I''m ready," he reported.

    Beatrice spared Mathew only a single look before turning her eyes back to the crowd in front of her and below the stage.

    "We confirmed seven more people to be still alive," she then muttered in a low voice. And, without turning her face, she added, "Good luck. You are up as soon as you hear the bang."

    "Sure thing," Mathew said, nodding his head and turning around, ready to leave for his designated spot on the other side of the school.

    "Wait!" a sudden call stopped Mathew in his tracks. And he didn''t even need to turn around to confirm who did it belong to. "What about my bet?!" Carol screamed out her question, dissatisfied with how long everything went without this topic getting its proper solution.

    "Are you for real...?" Mathew opened his eyes wide, taken aback by the girl''s insistence.

    It was true that the recovery of Beatrice and then the n to save the others pushed the topic of her bet onto the second n. It was true that it''s been a while since anyonest mentioned it.

    "Don''t worry, I didn''t forget about it," Mathew said only to then release a deep sigh. "But let''s talk about it once this operation is over," he then insisted only to turn his head around and throw Carol an annoyed look.

    "Or are you that itchy for a dick it should take priority over saving seven people?"

 Chapter 258 Storm Of Lights And Noises

    "Or are you that itchy for a dick, your desire should take priority over saving seven people?" Mathew asked, staring Carol down with a cold expression on his face.

    "Wait, what?" Carol replied in a confused voice, failing to follow Mathew''s words. "How is my wish to end this silly bet tranted into an itch?" she asked in a surprisingly calm manner.

    "That''s the only reason why you would possibly be so eager to ignore the lives of others over a silly bet like this," Mathew replied with the same, cold voice.

    ''I know I don''t make much sense, but right now I don''t have the time to y around with her,'' he thought, stopping his eyes from rolling around.

    "How about my wish to ensure no one would dare to challenge my authority in the hunters'' squad?" Carol then pushed back, raising one of her eyebrows while giving Mathew an annoyed look.

    "If you need a bet for something like this, then I have some bad news for you," Mathew said, bouncing the ball back. "Authority doesn''te from a bet or two. Ites from power," he stated, turning around on the spot, ready to leave. "And between this expedition and thest, if you can''t prove your power, you don''t deserve such authority in the first ce."

    In theory, potentially antagonizing one of his wives, one that proved to have an extremely useful set of skills at that, was a poor idea. Carol was far stronger than any of the mortal hunters and could achieve far more.

    Yet, between letting her do whatever she want or influence the decisions Mathew already made and giving her a piece of mind, the young man didn''t need to think hard to figure out which was better.

    ''I said enough,'' Mathew thought, turning on his feet and leaving for the assembly point, leaving Carol to think over what he told her. And to his pleasant surprise, the girl didn''t dawdle for long. Instead, she turned around on the spot and started walking back towards her spot within Beatrice''s expedition n.

    ''I need to hurry now,'' Mathew thought, hastening his steps as he moved to the southernmost part of the school''s fence. There, he climbed up the fence, staying literally an inch away from where the zombies outside could reach before striking against the barrier.

    And then, he waited.

    ''Is she taking all the stragglers into ount?'' Mathew thought after several minutes have passed. ''Or maybe something...''

    Before he could even finish his bored line of thought, a distant, loud noise reached his ears.

    BANG!

    A sound that he only knew from games up until this point. Yet,bined with the sh of light that came from all the way on the other side of the school, he couldn''t be mistaken.

    It was a stun grenade going off. Or in other words, a signal for the operation to begin.

    "Let''s see how will it all work," Mathew muttered to himself while ignoring the zombies nearby and closing his eyes. Then, he climbed up a little bit higher on the fence to where no zombie could reach.

    And then, with his eyes still closed, he pushed his right hand out of the school''s barrier.

    ''Barrier of light,'' he thought, wishing for a huge re of light to appear roughly in the middle of the street outside of the school''s bounds.

    And before Mathew could even properly focus, he could sense another explosion of light through his closed eyelids. This time, however, the light wasn''t present in an instant but turned into something that persisted in the world.

    "Woah," Mathew released a small moan of awe as soon as he opened his eyes.

    Rather than a re, his creation turned into a massive pir of light, as wide as he himself could be with his arms spread out and nearly twice as high as the nearby line of buildings.

    ''Wait, that''s no good,'' Mathew quickly regained his wits, manipting the spell and decreasing its height. Only when it reached roughly one hundred and fifty percent of the nearby buildings'' height was he satisfied, allowing himself to jump down the fence.

    ''Now, the main question,'' Mathew thought, taking a deep breath... and then taking a single step to the back.

    Yet, the barrier stood as it was, without any shimmer to its light at all.

    So, encouraged by his sess so far, Mathew took another step to the back. And then another.

    And then, lights and sounds started to assault his senses when nonbat survivors started to unleash their stun grenades all over the school''s perimeter.

    ''Damn, that''s quite annoying,'' Mathewined inwardly while moving back and keeping his eyes on the pir of light of his own making. Yet, no matter how far he retreated, the spell didn''t show any signs of disappearing, filling Mathew''s soul with relief and renewed confidence.

    ''Now then,'' Mathew thought, turning around and rushing across the school''s perimeter to get to the deployment point.

    The young man passed by several groups of nonbatants busy counting down the time between their scheduled tosses of stun grenades.

    ''Just how many of them did we recover, I wonder,'' Mathew thought, rushing past everyone all the way to the assembly area where all the hunters and wives of his awaited his arrival.

    "The re is up!" Mathew announced, digging his feet into the ground to kill his momentum.

    "Norbert, you are up," Beatrice said as soon as Mathew finished his report.

    "The remaining survivors are in the third and fourth car from the right and the one in the very middle," Norbert said while stepping forward and showcasing a simple drawing made on a broken piece of a school desk. "There are some useful items in the cars to the sides of the middle one, so if we will have the time, you should look for them too."

    "Okay guys, any questions?" Beatrice then asked, looking over everyone''s faces.

    Yet, no one raised their hand or voice.

    This expedition was as simple as it could get. And Norbert already provided them with all the information they needed.

    "Well then, we don''t have much time," Beatrice then said, patting her hands against her hips before nodding her head forward. "Let''s finish this as quickly as we can!"

 Chapter 259 Beatrices Operation

    "Let''s finish this as quickly as we can!" Beatrice shouted, calling everyone to action.

    "To positions!" Mathew called, using his own authority amongst the survivors to make everyone follow the order.

    ''Even if they know it''s all Beatrice''s n... she is still someone that they don''t know about. And her being a police officer will only make things harder for her,'' Mathew thought, rushing to the front of the entire group.

    The young man then climbed up the fence on a small nk before turning around and getting hold of another long piece of wood.

    As there was no gate anywhere near their target, scaling the barrier was the best option if they wanted to conclude the whole operation post haste. But while climbing it from the inside was easy as no zombies could threaten them...

    The same couldn''t be said about their return trip in the future.

    "On my mark!" Mathew called in a moderately loud voice while he watched the zombies move away, following the ruckus nonbatants raised with all the equipment their group could spare.

    He waited for only about a minute. And then...

    "Begin," he said in a casual tone, jumping down the edge of the fence, leaving the job of securing the return foothold for the hunters behind him.

    The task of pulling the zombies away brought most of them out of the area. Yet, there were still some specimens that they had to deal with.

    ''Let''s see how the improvement to my stats works in the battle,'' Mathew thought, brandishing his saber and rushing ahead.

    He didn''t stop by the few random zombies that stood in his path. He used the momentum of his dash to slice their necks open, leaving the task of finishing them to the hunters that soon followed closely behind.

    Then, Mathew dug his feet into the asphalt of the road, stopping himself right beside the back door to the car Norbert designated.

    ''Now, let''s hope my muscles will be enough,'' Mathew thought, raising his fists and mming them into the doors of the police van.

    "Get away from the back door!" he shouted with his lips nearly pressed against the metal of the entrance. Mathew then took a step back and took aim while raising his saber before striking down right along the tiny crack where the two wings of the door met.

    ''Fuck,'' he thought when his de stopped at the first set of bolts that held the doors closed. ''It''s quickly deteriorating,'' he thought, taking a quick nce at his de.

    After everything he did with it, it was no wonder the de not only dulled but also started to already chip away. Were it not for Mathew''s strength, the origin of the de, and its ability to absorb a tiny bit of power from every victim of its, it would long be nothing more but a useless piece of scrap.

    ''Well, I will have to look into recing it soon,'' Mathew thought, raising his hand before repeating the sh four times more.

    "Pull them out and drag them to the safety," Mathew ordered as soon as the doors started to swing open, moving over to the next of the designated cars.

    The process of opening them up was far easier than it would be without a system owner. Obviously, it would be far easier if they had keys to the said cars, but ording to Beatrice, they were all lost in the chaos during the opening hours of the apocalypse.

    "Onest car," Mathew muttered once two out of a total of three cars has been opened. Yet, as soon as he directed his steps to the final piece of the first phase of the operation, Le appeared behind him and tapped his shoulder.

    "The signal is up, they areing around the corner," she quickly reported, acting for Mathew''s eyes while he was focusing on his task.

    The young man turned his head around, just in time to see a huge number of zombies moving around the corner of the street and rushing onto the street they were all in.

    ''Fuck,'' Mathew cursed under his breath. Then, he finally dropped the re that was supposed to attract all the zombies away.

    ''Rise and shine!'' he then thought, creating another barrier of light. This time, however, it took a form of a thin yet long and highyer thatpletely cut off their part of the street from the approaching zombies.

    "It''s not going to hold them at all," he then said, raising his hand and tensing all his muscles. Then, by putting all the strength he had in his arms, Mathew brought his saber down, cutting the doors open with a single move.

    Teng!

    The de in Mathew''s hand shattered, breaking into several pieces and leaving only about a third of the saber''s original length still attached to its handle.

    "Everyone, retreat, now!" Mathew shouted, only to reach and then force the doors of the car open. "Le, stay on my back," he then gave another order for the nearest of his wives as he jumped into the back of the car.

    ''Where are you,'' he then thought, looking across the filthy insides of the van''s back. There was no blood, just the stench one would expect from someone living in this kind of a small space for several days straight.

    And tucked right in the corner of the car''s back, there was a petite figure of a young, roughly fifteen years old kid.

    ''He''s unconscious,'' Mathew quickly realized. He then bit his lips before dropping his saber and grabbing the kid before tucking him under his arm.

    "We are running!" he called as soon as he jumped out of the car.

    Mathew wasn''t really worried about the zombies. Even without his weapon, he could easily run away from them. Yet, the same couldn''t be said about the starving kid he was carrying.

    "They are past the barrier," Le reported, swinging her machete to switch her hold over it. "I will cut a path for you," she then announced, rushing ahead at an angle to where the retreat path was established.

    "Retreat as soon as it will be too much!" Mathew called back, rushing towards the operational exit from the street.

    He ran the short stretch of the road away from the car blockade before scaling the nk with just three steps.

    "We are safe!" Mathew then called out, only to turn his head and see Le... singlehandedly cutting down all the zombies that emerged from his barrier of light. "Retreat!" he then shouted, ignoring the ease at which the girl held back all the zombies.

    "Pass him over," one of the nonbatants proved his courage by climbing up the inside nk and reaching out with his hands for the kid underneath Mathew''s arm.

    "Here," Mathew didn''t hesitate to get rid of the kid.

    "Drop the light!" Le called out, forcing Mathew to turn his head before the kid was safely over in the other person''s hands.

    She wasn''t in a tough spot. Instead, she was done clearing all the zombies that moved past the barrier of light and were now eager to go and get some more of them down!

    ''This girl...'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth while he took the barrier down.

    Yet, rather than seeing a massive horde of zombies all rushing to partake in the ughter... Mathew saw that their numbers were pathetically low!

 Chapter 260 Where Did All The Zombies Go?

    "What the hell?" Mathew muttered, taken aback by the sight that revealed itself to his eyes as soon as he took down the barrier of light.

    Normally, whenever he or anyone else would go out to the streets, it would only take a few moments before the entire street would fill up with zombies.

    Even after a huge fight with hundreds of zombies in, it would only take a single day for their ranks to regrow. And yet...

    And yet right now, on the entire street, there were less than a hundred zombies!

    ''I thought it was impossible for us to have a single mission outside without encountering a horde or evolved zombies, but right now...'' Mathew couldn''t help but freeze in his ce.

    And in the time that took him to regain the rity of his thoughts, Le leisurely moved forward before casually taking down half of all the zombies on the streets.

    "At this rate, we should be able to..." Mathew muttered to himself as his eyes moved over to the three cars in the middle of the blockade.

    ''Well, let''s risk it for the biscuit,'' he thought, turning around while still standing at the top of the fence.

    "To all the hunters!" he shouted, taking a moment for all the people concerned to look towards him. "There are only a few zombies out in the open. We are going back to im the goodies!"

    Mathew, once again, decided to lead by example, instantly scaling the fence to its outer side before dropping down to the street. Then, he rushed to Le''s side, taking two zombies on his way to the girl just by punching and kicking.

    "I need to borrow your saber," he said as soon as he reached Le''s side. "Can you hold on for a minute with just your machete alone?"

    "Not a problem," the girl shrugged her shoulders. Her face showcased that rather than being excited by the fight... she was actually turning bored.

    ''Well, with our current level, this number of zombies is nothing,'' Mathew thought, ncing over at less than fifty undead that remained animate.

    Before long, the hunting squad and the rest of Mathew''s wives got to the other side of the fence.

    Without the advantage of numbers, even mortals could easily take down these few zombies all on their own. And with Nadia''s, Daria''s, Le''s, and Carol''s help, this task turned from a dangerous one to a walk in the park.

    And while the hunters were busy racking up cores for their daily quotas, Mathew rushed with Nadia to the cars Norbert pointed out, quickly opening them up and extracting the loot directly to the street.

    ''Firearms, ammo boxes,munication equipment,'' he thought while manhandling all of those and stacking them over in a single pile. ''That''s quite a nice haul for a single car,'' he thought, before moving over to the other van.

    And in just a few moments, the pile grew over twice in size.

    "What''s the situation?" Mathew asked as soon as he jumped out of the car. He then raised his eyes to take a look himself.

    "All the zombies are down," Nadia reported while standing on top of one of the cars and acting as a lookout. "I think we should bring out some survivors to carry all this loot," she then added, dropping down from the car and patting Mathew on his shoulder. "It should be safe enough."

    "Yeah," Mathew replied absentmindedly.

    Theck of zombies on the streets meant a lot. And the more he thought about it, the greater the implication of theirck of presence turned out to be.

    ''Could it be that we could finally start venturing out?'' he thought, gritting his teeth before passing over his saber to the girl only to kneel down and start grabbing as much of the valuable equipment as he could.

    "Well, we will think about it once we moved all the loot," Mathew then muttered to himself, dropping the idea of analyzing the entire situation all on his own.

    "Think about what?" Nadia asked, leaning her head over her shoulder while she gave Mathew a slightly annoyed look. "It''s been a while since youst did this but you are starting to keep things to yourself again," she then pointed out.

    "Ah, you are right," Mathew admitted while putting a wry smile on his face. "I was thinking about the possibility of venturing out," he then revealed only to raise up and look in a random direction.

    A dreamy look then appeared in his eyes.

    "This time, far further. To ensure we can im as much of an area for whateveres after fortress as we can," he added in a slightly lower voice.

    "How do we stand with cores?" Nadia then asked.

    "It should be just enough for the third fortress," Mathew replied as he picked up the pace and started to leisurely walk towards the nks thrown over the school''s fence.

    "Hey, guys!" Mathew then shouted, turning his attention away from Nadia to the squad of hunters currently busy just patrolling the area.

    In the short time, it took Mathew to uncover all the loot from the cars Norbert mentioned, those guys already cleared all the zombies that remained out in the open.

    "Yes, sir!" Frank grew seemingly from under the ground, saluting Mathew as he stretched himself up.

    "Go and grab all the other stuff we left by the cars," Mathew ordered. "If you notice something strange or a horde appears, drop it and run."

    "Right away, sir!" Frank saluted again. He then turned around in the direction of the blockade before pulling out the one hunter that apanied him to help him up with the task.

    In a mere momentter, Mathew dropped his entire haul on the safe side of the fence, all to Beatrice''s astonishment.

    "Is that how it always goes?" she asked, squinting her eyes as she kept looking out at the street.

    As she was stuck in the back of her van for three days, shecked the necessary experience to realize just how different the current situation was from the normal state of things.

    "Not at all. I never expected that we would actually clean most of the zombies in the area so quickly," Mathew fixed the woman''s misunderstanding. "With all those bangs and shes, we likely drew out most of the zombies that could notice those," he added before biting his lips. Then, he turned around and faced the woman properly.

    "Speak," Beatrice said, recognizing the look on Mathew''s face with just a single nce.

    "I need you toe out with a n for a further expedition," Mathew then revealed his wishes. "As strange as it might sound, running out of zombies to kill is the worst that could happen to us," he revealed.

    With no zombies, there would be no more cores. And with only the cores that they had right now and those that they could gather from all the zombies killed today, they would likely still be way off from meeting the quota necessary for the structure that would make itself avable once they would establish the third fortress.

    Mathew then released the dam of the information, showering Beatrice with all the crucial bits she needed to understand his stance on the topic.

    "I see," Beatrice muttered a momentter. Then, her eyes shed a bit. "I think..." she hesitated for but a second. "I think we need to try to establish contact with other groups of survivors," she then revealed her own take on the situation.

    "To save them?" Mathew asked, raising his eyebrow while stopping himself from rolling his eyes. ''I know saving others is what policemen do... but can''t she see how the world had changed?'' he inwardlyined.

    "No," Beatrice replied, taking Mathew by a surprise. "It''s to save ourselves."

 Chapter 261 What Do We Need The Most

    "It''s to save ourselves," Beatrice stated in a casual voice despite her words making no sense whatsoever.

    And so, Mathew continued to wait under the stage while looking up at the woman''s face.

    "What?" Beatrice noticed Mathew''s stare after a moment and shrugged.

    "I mean, if you are going to say shit like that, you bet I will need an exnation for it," Mathew exined.

    ''If she just wants to save more people... Well, I can''t say I would disagree with her idea. But still,'' the young man clenched his jaws. ''My reasons for needing more people to grow up from my understanding of the system and knowledge that she doesn''t have. So I need to know her reasons first.''

    The media building would soon be able to somehow turn work hours into some sort of benefit. It was something that Mathew learned in the recent past but also something that would only be possible once his fortresses would be something bigger.

    The same could be said with the simplest method of growing stronger by obtaining the cores from monsters. If they wanted to speed it up, the easiest way to go around it was to create a bigger force. And even if it was impossible to monopolize their loot, taking a percentage of it would allow Mathew to achieve his goals in the long term.

    ''No matter what we do, the more people we have the easier it should be,'' he thought. He then crossed his arms on his chest as he raised his eyes and gave Beatrice an inquiring look.

    "We need more people," the woman replied after a while with a sigh. "More workers to clean the areas from the rubble and bury the corpses. More fighters to ward off the zombies once their number starts to grow. More scavengers, more farmers, more medics..."

    Beatrice shook her head and slowly exhaled. Then, she rocked her head up and looked somewhere far off in the distance, to a ce one could see only with the eyes of their imagination.

    "What we can do is mostly limited by the number of people we can deploy. What we need right now isn''t some fancy equipment. It wille useful, for sure,'' Beatrice admitted right in the middle of her lecture, "but manpower is not only something that''s rtively hard toe by but also our most precious resource."

    Instead of interrupting the flow of Beatrice''s words, Mathew simply allowed her to keep going.

    "Civilization can be led by individuals... but it''s built by masses," she finished, adding a proper conclusion to her prolonged statement.

    "I agree," Mathew said, not finding it in himself to reply in an borative manner.

    The woman twitched a little.

    "What, are you surprised that I agreed with you?" Mathew asked, openly grinning. Yet, his smile soon degraded. He then lowered his head only to end up shaking it. "And ourck of manpower... Well," he muttered, turning his face away from Beatrice''s face and back towards the street. "It''s even worse than you thought."

    "Huh?" Beatrice twitched again. "What do you mean?"

    "Do you remember the media building? The one where Daniel is in charge?" Mathew said.

    "Yeah, what about it?" Beatrice leaned her head over her shoulder, puzzled by the weird way in which Mathew''s logic jumped from the current topic to a seemingly unrted one.

    "As soon as we get the third fortress up and move to the next level that''s beyond fortresses..." Mathew''s voice got lower and lower as he spoke, all the way to the point where it was too silent for the woman to hear him.

    Just like he did before, Beatrice didn''t bother to inquire about the rest of what he said out loud. Instead, she simply kept on staring at the back of his head, waiting for when Mathew would give the answer properly on his own.

    "We are going to need a lot of people over there, then."

    "I see," Beatrice muttered. She then turned silent again before following Mathew''s example and moving her eyes toward the street.

    The school''s area perimeter was currently bustling with people.

    Thanks to a nearlypleteck of zombies in the vicinity, the nonbatants ended up working for their keep on the street.

    To facilitate their movement and jobs alike, there were several more makeshift crossings established in two distant parts of the fence, both of which had a hunter assigned to them just in case.

    All of Mathew''s wives, save for overseeing and physically useless Beatrice, along with the rest of the hunters were patrolling the street, hunting for any and all zombies that ended up unfortunate enough to appear anywhere near.

    And in this rtive safety of the emptied-out area, the nonbatant survivors dug up all the cores from zombies'' heads that they could find before stacking the corpses and their spilled-out guts on the front porch of a nearby building.

    "Are you going to burn them down?" Beatrice asked after watching the situation move at a slow yet steady pace for a long while.

    "That''s the easiest way to prevent the diseases from spreading," Mathew replied. "And we can''t really afford to bury them properly," he added with a shrug of his shoulders.

    For humans, the act of burying their dead was something deeply rooted in their culture. Yet, in hard times like war, pandemic or massive famine, or an apocalypse, cultivating one''s tradition and respect for the dead would end up put off on theter n.

    Especially when those deads were the source of the threat of the apocalypse around them.

    "Anyway, since we both agree we need more people, do you have any idea how to achieve it?" Beatrice shook her head and got back to the real topic at hand.

    "I wish they could just appear out of thin air," Mathew grinned. "But that''s not going to happen. So if we want to get more people, we will need to find them first."

    Mathew smiled.

    "And since it means we are going to create an expedition, we might look for a good ce for the third fortress while we are at it, don''t we?"

 Chapter 262 A Suitable Place For Third Fortress

    "And since it means we are going to create an expedition, we might look for a good ce for the third fortress while we are at it, don''t we?"

    Mathew''s words were the incarnation of saying, it''s easier to say something than to do it. Because of how easy it appeared to be to just pick up a ce for their third fortress, once he started to take into ount all the possible factors...

    His options started to narrow down and they did it pretty quickly.

    "First off, it''s toote to do any expedition today," Beatrice said after raising her eyes toward the sun.

    It was still high in the sky... but one could already see that it was slowly starting to descend toward the horizon.

    "It''s only a matter of an hour or two, maybe three, before the sun will go out," she pointed out before lowering her head and turning her eyes back to Mathew.

    "I think so too," Mathew agreed after throwing a nce at the sun himself. "We will set out first thing in the morning," he then added, turning his eyes back towards the street.

    And for but a second, Mathew allowed himself to rx while watching the few survivors of his group work tirelessly on the street.

    Their jobs were simple, ranging from the economic action of gathering the spoils through the sanitary action of cleaning the corpses all the way to the simple construction jobs of moving rubble and wreckage to clear the perimeter and construct makeshift blockades along the road entrances.

    It was all simple and straightforward. Yet, in the long run, the few people that worked on all those tasks would take at least a week toplete even a single one of them, save for the job of gathering the cores.

    ''The need for more people was staring me right in the face and I still took so long to notice it,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth over his ownck of observation skills.

    And then, it struck him.

    ''No, that''s not it,'' he thought, shaking his head.

    A plethora of images that never took ce in this timeline then appeared in Mathew''s head. The memories of the world where the people with the system abandoned those without it or with a weak one.

    ''I guess I was conditioned to look after myself first. Maybe that''s why it took me so long to realize just how desperately we will need more people to work for us.''

    Mathew shook his head, scrapping all those useless thoughts aside.

    It didn''t matter what made him take so long to realize this truth. In fact, nothing that was in the past mattered anymore, especially things that never actually happened.

    The only value in one''s life was in the present and in the future. And with the future still shrouded with the veil of ignorance, Mathew opted to just focus on the topic at hand instead.

    "Do you have any ideas what would be a good ce for the third fortress?" Mathew asked out loud without even realizing it.

    "Hmm?" Beatrice twitched before turning her eyes back to the young man. "And what qualities are you looking for?"

    ''Ah, that''s a pretty good question,'' Mathew thought, realizing that he missed the most important point to consider.

    How could he try to pick up a ce... if he didn''t even know what that ce needed to be?

    ''We have an administrative district in the school and we will have an economy district in the media building,'' he thought, running down the list of all sorts of games that whoever was behind the apocalypse could apply to this aspect of human growth.

    "It should be something military-rted," Mathew replied after a short consideration. "Ah, not military," he then shook his head, scrapping his initial response. "Manpower rted instead. And easy to defend too."

    "Barracks, maybe?" Beatrice replied with the first thing that came to her mind.

    "Are you serious?" Mathew rolled his eyes. "Be it military personnel or civilians, they likely swarmed this ce the second the apocalypse started," he pointed out. "And I don''t feel confident enough in taking on a horde of such scale."

    There was no doubt in Mathew''s voice. He had no doubt about his own ability to take on several tens of thousands of zombies and monsters at once. And given their likely density, there were bound to be a bunch of evolved zombies amongst them.

    "A sports hall, then?" Beatrice threw another guess. Yet, before Mathew could even reply, she lowered her head and rested her chin on her hand. "Wait, no, that won''t work," she then added.

    "Huh?" Mathew raised his eyebrows. "It might be a pretty good idea, though?" he replied. ''If the type of location is rted to the bonuses the fortress will give upon establishing it... wouldn''t a sports hall be a perfect ce?''

    "It might fit your criteria, but it''s dead in the middle of the town''s center," Beatrice then pointed out. "So the problem is the same as with the barracks," she added with a shrug of her shoulders. "If you don''t want to be swarmed, you should avoid those densely popted parts of the town."

    After those two proposals, both of them turned silent. As it turned out, it wasn''t that easy toe up with ideas for a suitable ce.

    "Maybe some sort of a gymnasium?" Beatrice then suggested.

    "With all its windows and open structure?" Mathew replied, still busy trying toe up with an idea himself. "It would be impossible to defend. And most of them are by the schools, so it would be a massive pain to clear it out."

    Mathew took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

    ''To think that a day woulde when I would wish for a...''

    Then, the young man froze. And a single ce appeared in his mind.

    "Hey..." he hesitatingly raised his voice without even daring to look up at Beatrice''s face. "What about the ruins of the medieval castle on the hill on the town''s outskirts?"

 Chapter 263 Benefits Of A Castle

    "What about the ruins of the medieval castle on the hill on the town''s outskirts?" Mathew suggested.

    It was nothing more but a stray idea, something that randomly popped into his head. And yet, the more he thought about it, the better it turned out to be.

    "It followed the ancient rules of locating it in a vital point of the area. It''s also extremely easy to defend as the kic defense was the very purpose of its existence..." Mathew muttered, voicing out the points that continued to pop into his head.

    "It''s pretty far from the school, though," Beatrice pointed out. "I know that there are going to be some zombies out there and not as many as there would be in town''s center... but didn''t you im that hunting zombies are actually a basis for our growth?"

    ? Mathew pursed his lips.

    "I''m actually tempted to..." he muttered. ''Agree...'' he thought, when yet another realization struck him.

    "On a surface level, it''s true," he admitted. Mathew then lowered his head and started to rub his chin. "In terms of zombie density born from the natural poption density, it''s a shitty choice, I totally agree," he muttered.

    Then, the young man raised his face and looked right at Beatrice.

    "But isn''t the castle location something that was aimed at cutting across the main transit paths?"

    That was the very idea behind the castles. Rather than protect the location poption from attacks, its purpose was to oversee important trade and logistic routes. In this way, in a situation of an attack, no army could leisurely move past a random castle because it would mean allowing its soldiers to freely cut the logistic chain open as they wished!

    "What do you mean?" Beatrice asked while squinting her eyes. She then twitched. "Oh, I get it," she said only for a smile to appear on her lips. "You wish to think bigger, don''t you?"

    It was true that a castle situated in a far and rtively inessible area wasn''t the best kind of forward operating base.

    It was located far from areas with a lot of zombies. It was generally far from every other facility Mathew and his group might want to exploit.

    But, at the same time, it oversaw not only the entire city below the hill it was located at, but it also stood guard over the main roads that connected the town with other poption centers of the country!

    "To sum it up. It will be extremely easy to defend once we fix the ruined parts. It will give us control over the entire west side of the town and the paths going through that area..." Mathew muttered.

    Then, his eyes shed.

    "And I don''t even want to think about the potential perks of iming such a specific building!"

    The school itself provided quite the awesome perks once Mathew turned it into a fortress. Even the media building came with massive economical benefits... even though it was in no way rted to the economy or production at all.

    And given how the system appeared to take the situation at hand into the ount, the military benefits of iming an actual castle, a building constructed with the task of being a sturdy fortress in the first ce...

    "Benefits? What benefits?" Beatrice asked while leaning her head over her shoulder with a puzzled expression on her face.

    It took a further few minutes for Mathew to exin the concept he was thinking about.

    "Okay then," Beatrice nodded her head, at least pretending to take Mathew''s words for granted and assume he was correct with his guesses. "What sort of benefits do you think the castle would bring?"

    "First off, I need to point out an important thing," Mathew said as his expression turned grim. "As much as I want it to somehow bring us more people, I don''t think we should consider it as its potential perk."

    Beatrice raised her eyebrows in surprise.

    "A castle with great defenses? I bet it would attract a lot of survivors once the news would somehow spread," she pointed out.

    After all, those who have yet to embark on the journey of actually trying to rebuild the civilization in spite of the ongoing apocalypse would only have two desires in their mind.

    Safety and resources. And while the two existing fortresses could provide thetter, it would be the ability to put the threat of the zombies behind them that would pull people in like a ma.

    "If we consider this castle as an attractor for survivors, we would have an easy time to stop considering them people and start thinking of them as numbers," Mathew exined.

    It was a guess he came up with the games he yed as a basis rather than some borated philosophical way of thinking.

    ''A good ruler in the real world and a good ruler in a game...'' he thought, his face twisting in a weird expression. ''I can conquer the world in a strategy game... But if I were to employ the kind of tactics necessary to do it in the game but in the real world... I would soon be hailed the greatest dictator to live!''

    There was an obvious difference between a game and real life.

    In a game, throwing millions upon millions of bodies to a battlefield just to conquer a single province could be rationalized as a necessary cost.

    But in the real world?

    Mathew released a long sigh.

    "Isn''t this how civilization always worked?" Beatrice asked, proving to be surprisingly open-minded about the topic despite being the one to push hard for saving everyone they could. "To a degree, you have to desensitize yourself if you want to make the right choices," she pointed out.

    "Trust me," Mathew said in a dark voice. "You don''t want me to do that. Unless you want crowds of people thrown to their deaths just to gain a slim tactical advantage."

    "If you want to be a leader, you need to learn how to sacrifice people," Beatrice replied with a dark voice of her own. "And trust me," she then said while turning her face away. Her voice turned softer and deeper.

    "I do know something about what I''m talking about."

 Chapter 264 Just With You

    "I do know something about what I''m talking about."

    Beatrice''s face sank and darkened.

    ''I don''t need to... no, I shouldn''t pry into it,'' Mathew thought. He then pressed his teeth together just in case his body was to go on autopilot and utter some bullshit outside of his control.

    Beatrice was amander of the police special task force despite being a rtively young person. As if the fact that she was a woman wasn''t a hurdle for her to ovee enough, she managed to get this position and active duty without even reaching thetter part of her thirties.

    Or, to put it in other words, there had to be something in her story that counteracted both her being a woman in this strictly patriarchal society that only the apocalypse smashed into pieces and also her insanely young age and rtiveck of experience.

    ''Thinking about those two aspects and then about her remark... It''s clear she had to do something in her past that was unthinkable for others but a heck of a lot efficient!''

    Mathew then swallowed his saliva.

    ''That, or she went so far so quickly by sleeping around,'' he thought, following his habit of at least attempting to take all the possibilities into ount before judging them. ''But seeing how Norbert treats her...''

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    ''I find it highly unlikely for it to be the case.''

    "Either way, going back to the topic," Mathew said as he took a deep breath. "Even if we could hope for some kind of system-rted bonus to the people, I highly doubt we will get it," he said. "After all, not a single bonus we encountered could affect others. It''s always nothing more but a tool we can use."

    "That doesn''t stop us from hoping, though," Beatrice said with a smirk. "Either way, outside of manpower and defensiveness, what bonuses do you think that ce could offer?" she asked, proving that she had an easy time epting the idea that the spirit of a location could end up tranting into some sort of bonuses to those who upied it.

    "Maybe people will have an easier time training there?" Mathew suggested while leaning his head to the side. "To be fair, I don''t really know what to expect," he said and then shrugged his shoulders. "And to be fair, it''s not like I could predict how this system of mine would work with other things."

    "So there is no point in trying to see through the logic that operates it," Beatrice summed up while raising one of her eyebrows.

    "That''s my point exactly," Mathew followed up with a nod of his head.

    "Let''s end this topic, then," Beatrice suggested. She then moved away from a higher part of the pile of rubble she was standing on. "They are already finishing up with the job on the street so it''s time for us to wrap it all up."

    Just as Beatrice suggested, all the tasks that one could find to do on the street on the school''s perimeter would soon bepleted.

    Even the annoying and somewhat disgusting job of moving the corpses was already over with some of the survivors stacking up wood and other types of easily burnable fuel around the house that would serve as a crematory.

    "Matty!" Nadia appeared right by Mathew''s side, seemingly out of nowhere.

    Yet, rather than sneaking up on him, she likely approached quite openly... just so fast that it eluded Mathew''s perception.

    "We are almost done. What about you?" she asked.

    "We are done here as well," Beatrice answered before Mathew could even open his mouth. "Also, good luck with tomorrow," she said before giving Nadia a wink and jumping down her tform before moving along the school''s side.

    "Tomorrow?" Nadia repeated as she turned her eyes toward Mathew''s face. "What did she mean by that?"

    "An expedition," Mathew revealed in a short manner. "Starting first thing tomorrow, we will be heading out to aplish two things. Find other survivors and possibly conquer a castle," he said while a small grin sprawled upon his face.

    "I''m not even sure if I want to ask for the details," Nadia muttered. Her face didn''t show any surprise, as if she was too used to Mathew pulling stuff out of his ass to care. "But I guess we can talk about it once we gather up," she added as she turned her head around and threw a nce toward the street.

    Just like Beatrice pointed out a moment earlier, all the jobs out there wereing to an end. Some of the survivors were already returning, meaning, all the hunters and Mathew''s wives would soon be freed from the task of protecting them and allowed to return themselves.

    "That''s a good idea," Mathew nodded his head. "It would be a pain in the ass to exin everything over and over again if I can do it all at once," he admitted.

    "Oh?" Nadia smiled while raising her eyebrows in an inquisitive manner. "Is there something you have nned for tonight that forces you to save time?" she asked with a small smirk.

    "That''s a topic I actually want to talk with you about," Mathew said. He then took a step forward and reached out with both of his hands, cing them on Nadia''s shoulders.

    "Huh? What?" Nadia jumped a little, not expecting Mathew to suddenly get close like that. "Did something happen?" she asked, drilling her eyes into Mathew''s face in search of something that would warrant her worry.

    "Ah, sorry," Mathew initially turned his eyes away only to bring them back to Nadia''s face a momentter. "It''s just that..." he attempted to speak...

    Only to end up blushing as embarrassment caught up with him.

    "Now you are getting me t-out confused," Nadia admitted. "Didn''t we screw a lot already? How can you blush like that before even bringing a topic up?"

    Mathew wasn''t anxious. He was embarrassed. And that was enough for Nadia to see that she didn''t really have anything to worry about regarding what was going through his mind.

    After all, she has already seen how he would react when bringing up the topic of providing yet another woman with the benefits of his system.

    Mathew took a deep breath. He then closed his eyes for a second before opening them back up and staring right into Nadia''s face.

    "I know it will sound weird, skewed, and unfair to others..." he started on a pretty bad note. He then swallowed his saliva once again. "But tonight, I want to spend with just you."

 Chapter 265 An Hour Of Sunlight Left

    "But tonight, I want to spend with just you."

    It was such a simple statement. Yet, one that would be extremely weird for a girl in a normal world.

    After all, it implied that there were other girls that the spokesperson behind those words was used to spending nights with.

    "Hah?" Nadia jumped a little, taken aback by Mathew''s statement. Yet, as pleasantly surprised as she was, her face pretty quickly melted into that of worry. "Is this..." she hesitated for a little. Then, she stepped half of a step closer, putting her face right in front of Mathew''s.

    "Is this about what happened earlier?"

    Every second of thest three days was packed to the brim with events. Every passing moment of daylight their group would spend rushing from one objective to another, taking only the minimal amount of rest between.

    And during the night, Mathew would exhaust all of his physical and mental power catering to the natural desires of the girls he bonded with.

    ''Huh?'' Mathew twitched when he realized what the girl was talking about. ''It''s been so lo...'' he thought, only to put an end to his thoughts before they could even fully form. ''No, it wasn''t all that long at all,'' he thought, realizing the obvious thing.

    Sure, ever since he had his mental breakdown, the girls helped him to get over it. Then, they helped him to sort out his thoughts about the changes that happened to his system.

    Yet, as soon as he was back in his right mind, Mathew was already rushing to prove his words of promise to Beatrice weren''t empty. And as soon as he noticed the opportunity in the middle of the rescue operation for the survivors left behind in the police cars, he transformed it into an even greater mission.

    In the end, from the moment of his mental breakdown, save for when the girls tried to help him out of his mental hole, Mathew had little to no time to think about that event.

    Only now, when Nadia pointed it out, did Mathew realize an obvious truth.

    ''It''s still eating me from inside,'' he thought, gritting his teeth. Yet, rather than showing his weak side to Nadia right away, Mathew simply put a small smile on his lips.

    "Partially, yes," he said, pulling the girl closer before hugging her tightly. "But what I had in mind was actually far simpler," he revealed right as he gently shoved the girl away.

    "Do tell," Nadia said. She looked right into Mathew''s eyes as if hoping to see the truth behind his ambiguous words.

    "Don''t make such a sad face," Mathew asked with a defenseless smile.

    The kindness and sympathy in Nadia''s eyes were too much for him to handle.

    ''Like a bright sun inplete darkness,'' he thought, unable to find a betterparison to how Nadia''s caring smile made him feel.

    "How could I not when I''m worried about you?" Nadia asked while pulling her eyebrows together. Yet, for how intimate this statement would sound in anyone else''s mouth...

    The girl actually stared at Mathew as if she couldn''tprehend just how much of an idiot he could be.

    It wasn''t the stare of a teenage girl trying to be adorable.

    It was the look of a friend genuinely amazed the other party could be surprised by their worry in the first ce.

    "Right, that''s my bad," Mathew admitted his loss. His body deted along with a breath he exhaled. "Still, when we are all together, it''s taxing," he then revealed the crux of the matter.

    "It''s an extreme pleasure, one I could never ask for in my entire life," Mathew said quickly while raising his hands in a gesture of surrender when he saw Nadia raising one of her eyebrows. "Nevertheless, it''s not the way to spend the night... if I just want to have some peace of mind."

    This time... Nadia didn''t appear to be displeased by Mathew''s statement. Her expression softened up a little. She then lowered her head and took a deep breath.

    "Well, it''s not like I mind it," she said once she regained the rity of her thoughts and raised her face back up. "The question is, how are you going to tell that to the girls?"

    Mathew had forgotten about that problem.

    How was he going to exin his intentions to Daria and Le? The two were likely to make a fuss over this, given how wild they would go at him during all the nights they spent together previously.

    ''I guess I''ll just have to go with the flow and see how it goes,'' Mathew thought, realizing he had no other choice.

    "I''ll just have to exin it to them as best I can," he said, shrugging. "If they are reasonable people, they should understand."

    Nadia simply nodded in response. Yet, a secondter, an awkward smile found its way onto her face.

    "Sure... if that''s what you think," she then said after taking another deep breath and coughing lightly into her palm due to the sudden change of topic. "In any case..." Nadia quickly changed the gears of her mind. She then looked up, towards the sky.

    The sun has yet to even approach the horizon. It was close and it was a matter of at most an hour before it would cease to provide its warm rays.

    And given how they approached the matter of time all this time so far...

    The topic of Mathew''s and Nadia''s private time had to wait until their group would squeeze everyst second of the daytime they were given!

    "We should look through the spoils, ensure no survivor got bitten, and then convey this problem to the girls," Mathew said with a sigh, already exhausted by just thinking about the list of things that had to be done before he could retreat for the night to Nadia''s weing arms.

    "I will take care of checking our people, then," Nadia said, cing a gentle peck on top of Mathew''s forehead. "I bet Daria is already busy counting the cores, so..." the girl took a short pause while a weirdly vicious grin appeared on her lips. "I will leave the task of conveying your decision to Le, then!"

 Chapter 266 The Most Private Room Left In The School

    "Damn," Mathew muttered as he sat back on the bed that the survivors crafted for him from all sorts of things they could find within the school. And as soon as his body sank into the threeyers of gymnastic mattresses, he let out a deep sigh of exhaustion.

    "I didn''t expect it to go so smoothly," he muttered to himself.

    All the organizational stuff was taken care of by Beatrice. The cleanup and management of the hunters ended up in Carol''s hands while the survivors turned out to organize themselves nicely around the people Mathew put in charge of them before.

    Then, as if already aware of the strangely fragile state of his mind, neither Le nor Daria saw any problem with his request to spend the night with Nadia alone.

    ''Or maybe they enjoyed the idea of it being their turn tomorrow and the day after, respectively?'' Mathew thought, trying to rationalize the situation.

    In order to cate his second wives he ended up promising them the same treatment as the one Nadia would receive. And as such, from today onwards, Nadia''s turn would start the cycle. Then, Le''s turn would follow with Dariaing the day after.

    To honor Nadia''s rtionship with Mathew and her status as a first wife, she ended up with a second private night on the fourth turn before all four of them would get one night together and reset the cycle.

    And today would be the first day of the very first cycle.

    ''I guess I will have to really mind my approach to every night, from now on,'' Mathew thought, raising up on the edge of the makeshift bed and looking at himself.

    When he went off to settle all the matters at hand, there was still about an hour left of sunlight. Yet, only about fifteen minutester, the girls pushed him to get a meal, spend some time resting on his own and then finish it all up with a proper shower.. all on his own.

    And now, Mathew was stuck waiting in the room that offered the most privacy in the entire school for Nadia to join him.

    The young man raised his hand to his eyes.

    It was shaking a little as a result of his nervousness.

    ''Am I... anxious?'' Mathew asked himself, pursing his lips in reaction to the sight of his own body. ''Ever all those times that we did it already?''

    Mathew released a deep sigh before falling back on the bed and looking at the room''s ceiling.

    Out of the entire school, this ce simply happened to be free of any humans or zombies when the apocalypse started. And as it was quite out of everyone''s way, not a single soul ended up hiding there, saving the ce''s structure from the zombies ever attacking it.

    In the end, this was the one and only ce in the entire school that bore no signs of devastation whatsoever.

    And as ifdy fortune wished for it, it was conveniently located pretty near the school''s showers.

    A sound of knocking forced Mathew out of hiszy line of absurd thoughts that he immersed himself in while waiting for his crush.

    "It''s me," Nadia said from beyond the room''s doors. Yet, her voice was all but natural. "Can I...e in?" she then asked, failing to stop the anxiety and nervousness from seeping into her voice.

    "Sure thing," Mathew replied only to end up swallowing a massive gulp of saliva when the girl came inside.

    The water was dripping down her skin, proving that she just finished her shower and didn''t really bother to dry herself properly.

    Instead of clothes, Nadia simply wrapped what looked like some sort of white sheet around her waist and upper body, holding the entire thing up with just one hand.

    Her hair fell along her neck and shoulders, puffed up by all the water and perfectly straight due to its wet weight.

    "Hi there..." Nadia whispered, looking down while blushing heavily. Yet, despite all the obvious uneasiness, her lips couldn''t stop but form a gentle, anticipatory smile.

    "General Kenobi," Mathew replied without even a second of thought. It was a mere instinct, something that happened before he could think about it and prevent it from happening by closing his mouth.

    "Huh?" Nadia raised her eyes, widened by the surprise, on Mathew''s face.

    Then, the look on her face mellowed down as her mouth formed a proper, slightly amused smile.

    "I would die from shame if I didn''t get the reference," Nadia thenined, letting out a small giggle into her right fist.

    The awkward and uneasy atmosphere of privacy that theycked dispersed. Even if it wasn''t intentional, Mathew somehow managed to achieve what many men would struggle with.

    "Well then," Nadia whispered, properly raising her eyes to Mathew''s face. "I think..." she rxed her fingers, letting the end of the white sheet go and allowing the entire thing to fall down to her feet. "I think we should get started, don''t you?" she finished, standing butt-naked right in front of Mathew''s eyes.

    Even though the atmosphere was somewhat rxed, Nadia''s cheeks remained fully blushed. Even if they slept together several times, she was still embarrassed by showcasing all of her skin for him just like that.

    Mathew gulped his saliva once again.

    There was something holy in Nadia''s innocent look.

    His eyes followed the path of some drops of water that trickled down her neck, gathered at her corbone only to then fall down and flow down the curvature of her chest.

    The pink of her nipples made him want to rush in and embrace it with his mouth. The fullness of her youthful chest made Mathew wish to grab at it and keep on ying with her tits until he would die of old age.

    His eyes moved down, allowing him to adore her slim, perfectly toned, and indented waist.

    Then, Mathew raised his eyebrows when he noticed apleteck of hair over her most precious ce.

    A proof that just like Mathew himself, she really did pay quite a lot of attention to preparing.

    Everything about Nadia made Mathew wish to just throw himself at her, pin her down to the ground and then devour the innocence that was blinding his eyes and soul alike.

    Yet, he somehow managed to hold himself back. He then reached out with his hand toward the girl while remaining seated on the makeshift bed.

    "Come."

 Chapter 267 Do You Wish To... Punish Me?

    Mathew reached out his hand towards Nadia.

    "Come," he said in a low, perfectly calm tone.

    There was no sign of the uneasiness or the anxiety that he disyed before. And yet, despite the girl standing before him all naked, his eyes no longer wandered all over her body, stuck to her face alone instead.

    *Gulp*

    Nadia swallowed down her saliva before taking her first, slightly hesitant step. Soon, though, she got over her embarrassment, conquering thest few steps that separated her from her husband.

    Nadia then ced her fingers down on Mathew''s extended hand, allowing him to pull her even closer and then right on hisp.

    "Do you want me to ride you?" Nadia asked in a low, peaceful voice as soon as she climbed up with her knees on the edge of the bed before resting her entire weight upon Mathew''sp.

    "Actually..." Mathew smiled a little. "Would it be okay with you if we didn''t hurry like always?" he requested, raising his hand to set aside a strand of the girl''s long hair that fell on her face.

    "I don''t really mind," Nadia smiled gently, her eyes filling with warmth when Mathew''s fingers danced upon her face.

    Mathew really meant what he requested. And rather than getting touchy and feely or putting his hands all over the girl, he simply rested his fingers upon her back before falling to the back and pulling the girl along.

    The two of them ended up lying t on the makeshift bed with Nadia tightly pressed against Mathew''s chest.

    The beating of their hearts soon synchronized. Then, their breathing followed suit. And before long, they ended up simply cuddling while enjoying the warmth of each other''s skin.

    "I''m happy," Mathew whispered in Nadia''s ears after a long time.

    "Me too," Nadia smiled back, her eyes closing as she surrendered herself to the peace and calm that she felt in Mathew''s embrace.

    ''This is what I wanted,'' Mathew thought, running his hand up and down Nadia''s spine. ''This closeness, thisfort...'' he thought, closing his eyes and immersing himself in the simple joy of Nadia''s presence.

    It was a feeling... that hergely lost ever since returning to the past. A feeling that he could feel budding during what was supposed to be hisst moments back in the school''s shed.

    "I really hate how my system turns sex into a tool," Mathew muttered while running his fingers up to the back of Nadia''s head and massaging her scalp while ying with her hair. "Itrgely robbed us of this kind of tranquility," he added to exin what exactly was going through his head.

    "Hmm?" Nadia hummed in response, her eyes still closed as she enjoyed the feeling of Mathew''s fingers running through her hair. "You mean how it doesn''t let us just enjoy each other without anything else?" she spoke up after a few more seconds, finally guessing what exactly was on Mathew''s mind.

    "That''s more of this damn apocalypse fault, isn''t it?" Mathew corrected the girl''s view while sending his gaze down to her face resting upon his chest. "Still, no matter how we look at it..." he hesitated for a second. "I doubt we would get so close so quickly if not for it so I have quite the mixed feeling about it," he admitted.

    "So all those people dying is on the same level of importance as me getting closer to you?" Nadia cheeky asked, moving around a little only to end up with both of her hands supporting her chin on top of Mathew''s corbone. From this position, she had a perfect view of his face, an opportunity she fully exploited while staring down into his eyes with a gentle and somewhat satisfied smile on her face.

    "This is why I''m grateful for this disaster, even if only a little," Mathew joked. He then received a swift smack to his chest.

    "Jerk!" Nadia huffed, her eyes still wide open as she looked down at him with a scowl on her face.

    Her eyes then softened after a few seconds as she surrendered herself to once again enjoying the warmth of Mathew''s embrace and cuddle up even closer in his arms.

    The next few minutes were spent in silence with Nadia slowly moving around while lying atop Mathew before finally getting up and nestling herself right under the man''s chin while pressing her entire body close against him.

    "In the end, I think I know what you mean," she finally admitted after several long minutes has passed. "This kind of feeling..." she muttered, her voice indicating she was already starting to fall asleep.

    Smack!

    As great as it was to just rx with the girl, Mathew still had some ns for the night. After all, it was a rare opportunity for him to enjoy private time with his actual love!

    And so, he moved his right hand away... only to end up raising it and then smacking down at Nadia''s buttcheek!

    "Kya!" Nadia uttered a small, surprised moan. Then, her face twisted in surprise.

    "Huh?" Mathew''s eyes widened a little. Then, a cheeky, yful smile crept up on his lips. "I just wanted to wake you up..." he admitted in a low voice while refusing to move his eyes away from the girl''s face.

    Then, he raised his hand again only to bring it down on Nadia''s shapely ass for the second time.

    "Mmhm!" Nadia held her moan back this time, although she couldn''t stop her entire body from twitching within Mathew''s cuddle.

    "But I never expected you to like this kind of y!"

    Nadia moved her hands away so that she could hide her face in Mathew''s chest. And for but a moment, she remainedpletely silent as if she refused to acknowledge what the two of them just discovered.

    Yet, before Mathew could get bored of this new, cute and defenseless side of her, she pushed her chin up and looked at Mathew''s face with her upturned eyes.

    "Do you wish to... punish me, master?"

 Chapter 268 Kinky Play

    "Do you wish to... punish me, master?"

    Mathew looked down at Nadia''s face... and gulped down his saliva.

    She was cute, that part was an undeniable fact that in itself sounded like a simplification so great it was no different from a lie.

    But with her eyes glistering, her lips trembling and her body slightly tensing up...

    "Punish is a strong word," Mathew muttered after oveing the mental attack of Nadia''s adorableness. He then reached out and pushed away a strand of the hair that fell on her face, turning the motion of his hand into a gentle caress of her cheek. "Discipline would fit better," he added, forcing his lips to form a small grin.

    "And how will you..." Nadia purposefully used long pauses while ying her new role, "discipline me?"

    She left her lips slightly parted while leaning her head just a notch to the side, making it easier for Mathew to enjoy the softness of her cheek. And it was her slightly glistering lips that came up and offered Mathew''s creativity a helping hand.

    "Get down from the bed," he said, pushing his back against the bed before using his left hand to raise up to a sitting position. "And get on your knees."

    Nadia hesitated for a brief moment, before sliding down from Mathew''sp and then lowering herself between his legs all the way to the point where she properly knelt on the room''s floor. Then, she raised her face and looked right into Mathew''s eyes with anticipation.

    ''Gulp.''

    Once again, Mathew couldn''t help but swallow all the saliva that gathered in his mouth.

    He already fulfilled the role of a leader within the group even if he had no qualms about designating parts of his freely obtained authority to others if he found them to be more capable than him in said areas. In other words, he didn''tck the satisfaction that came only from the feeling of power...

    And yet, when he looked down hisp and saw the naked beauty kneeling between his legs and awaiting either his orders or actions...

    A warm feeling spread through his lower abdomen, filling his soul with a wretched sense of extreme fulfillment.

    "I''m sorry for breaking the flow," he muttered, staring wide-eyed at Nadia''s precious face. "But your beauty is blowing my mind," he said, reaching down to caress Nadia''s cheek once again.

    The girl simply closed her eyes, immersing herself in the warmth of Mathew''s hand.

    "Thank you," she said in a rxed voice, allowing a simple, small smile to sh on her full lips. "And don''t worry," she then added, turning her smile into a grin. "You are not pushing my borders here. I''m doing all of this merely because I want to," she announced, raising her own hand and putting her on top of Mathew''s.

    Nadia then closed her eyes again, enjoying the simple, mental pleasure of their intimacy.

    "I will tell you if I will feel ufortable with something," Nadia whispered with her eyes still closed. Then, she slowly pushed her eyelids open, allowing Mathew to peer into the near-endless abyss of lust that shed at the bottom of her eyes. "Shall we continue, then?"

    Mathew shut his eyes closed and took a deep breath.

    Now that he received Nadia''s direct encouragement, how could he stop himself from going through with the act? So, rather than hesitating even further, he took a moment to get himself into a proper mindset. And once he opened his eyes, he was no longer the same Mathew confused about every part of the situation he was in and desperately striving to make the most he could out of the confusion.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    Right now, he was a master.  A master that was about to discipline his unruly servant.

    And so, Mathew stood up before pushing his bath-like robe aside and revealing his own naked body to Nadia''s eyes. And just like one could expect from the situation the two of them were in, his junior already stood at attention, ready to fulfill its purpose.

    "First," Mathew said, pushing his hand down Nadia''s face. He then grabbed it by her chin, pulling it down and making her part her lovely lips. "Pull out your tongue," he ordered.

    A look of excitement shed in the girl''s eyes. And then, just like she was ordered, she pushed her tongue out as far as she could.

    "Good girl," Mathew praised, running his hand from Nadia''s cheek before using it to grasp his own erection. And then, as if he held some sort of whip, he pped his dick right on Nadia''s tongue.

    For the next few moments, Mathew simply had fun striking different parts of Nadia''s face with his shroom. Be it her soft lips, her nose, or the areas around her eyes... It didn''t matter. The physical pleasure wasn''t there whenpared to how else he could make use of the girl''s willingness... But if he wanted to just have sex, then all the steps before wouldn''t be necessary. So, rather than enjoying the physical pleasure of having his dick caressed in one way or another, Mathew simply reveled in the look of Nadia twitching whenever he would p his dick down on her face.

    "Now, to prove your loyalty," he said, letting go of his erection and wrapping his hands behind his back. "Give it a kiss of allegiance!"

    Nadia''s eyes widened in surprise at the sudden order but she was determined to please her master. She leaned forward and tenderly ced a kiss on the head of Mathew''s penis.

    Mathew shivered from the unexpected sensation, savoring it for a few moments before he finally spoke again.

    "Very good," he said with a satisfied smile. "Now, to show me your obedience - lick it from the bottom all the way up to its head."

    Nadia didn''t hesitate and immediately obeyed her master''s order. She pushed her mouth down towards his balls and licked along Mathew''s shaft with slow, gentle strokes of her tongue. The sensation was beyond pleasurable for the young man. Ge closed his eyes,pletely lost in the pleasure of being so thoroughly worshipped by Nadia.

    When she finally reached the top of his penis, he opened his eyes again and looked down at Nadia with admiration before lightly running a finger through her hair in an affectionate gesture.

    "You have done well," he said softly with a small smile before helping her stand up from the floor. "And now, let me see both your dedication and determination!"

    Nadia looked up at Mathew with a mischievous gleam in her eyes, before she stood on her knees and proceeded to take his entire length into her mouth. She moved slowly at first as if testing how far she could go before making Mathew groan with pleasure. But then, when he let out an involuntary cry of pleasure from the back of his throat - Nadia increased the speed and depth of each suck until all of him waspletely inside her mouth.

    Mathew could feel Nadia''s lips tightly wrapping near the bottom of his shaft... but for the y they were in, he judged that it wasn''t enough yet. And so, he opened his eyes and looked down on the girl''s preupied face.

    "This is how far a random slut would go," he announced, raising his chin while putting a prideful... and dissatisfied look on his face. ''Hold it in!'' he screamed in his mind, slowly starting to struggle to keep up with the appearances of the y. "How is that proof of dedication?!" he smirked as if trying to make light of the girl''s efforts.

    Nadia''s face tensed up. Mathew could feel it in how her lips wrapped even tighter around his shaft.

    And then, her eyes shed once again, showing him the light of determination... that got him slightly scared.

    Yet, before Mathew could do a thing, Nadia shoot her hands forth before grabbing his ass... and then used his buttocks as a support while impaling her throat with his dick in a way that she could never do with just her face alone!

 Chapter 269 If Thats What She Wants...

    Mathew''s eyes widened in surprise as he felt Nadia''s throat swallowing his entire length. He was about to stop her before she hurt herself, but then he saw the determined look on her face, and his worries slowly disappeared.

    Nadia didn''t stop there. As if trying to prove something to her master, she slowly started to move her head up and down, using the hand on his buttocks as the only support she had.

    The pleasure was intense, and as he felt himself getting closer and closer to the brink of orgasm, he knew he had to stop her soon, or else he''d end up finishing in her mouth.

    And yet, he couldn''t bring himself to stop her. He was too mesmerized by her dedication and determination, the way she was pushing herself to the limits just to please him.

    Finally, he managed to find his voice and he softly whispered, "That''s enough, Nadia. You can stop now."

    Nadiaplied immediately, stopping her head in the ce it was currently in and raising her eyes to look up at Mathew''s face.

    In theory, with her lips preupied with roughly half of Mathew''s length, it was impossible for her to smile. And yet, Mathew could only gulp his saliva when he saw the girl proving the impossible to be possible and smiling with her eyes alone!

    And then, she pushed her fingers deep into the flesh of his ass before pushing her head forward and forcing his dick as deep into her throat as it was humanly possible!

    "Argh!" Mathew released a nearly pained moan. He couldn''t hold back his excitement. There was something simply magical with how far Nadia was willing to go for him.

    The sense of superioritying from Nadia''s lips touching his balls, the sense of immense gratefulnessing from how Nadia was willing to voluntarily go that far, and the sense of extreme pleasure when his entire dick was coated by the wet and extremely hot feeling of her insides... All of those mixed deep down at Mathew''s abdomen. He twitched once. His hands found their way forward, ending up right on top of Nadia''s face.

    Then, the girl attempted to pull out... But she pushed Mathew a bit too far.

    His mind was clouded by the pleasure. And sitting at the doorstep of his orgasm, he couldn''t control his hands.

    Before Mathew could stop himself, he stopped Nadia''s head from pulling away, pushing it down on his dick instead. And as soon as her lips tensed up due to the surprising change in Mathew''s moves, thest barrier that stopped Mathew from ejacting broke apart.

    "I''ming!" he croaked, unable to make up a proper voice.

    His entire body shrugged when a wave of pleasure ran down his spine and up his legs only to gather at his crotch before turning into a small wave of cum that ejected itself from the tip of his dick. And as it was already buried deep into Nadia''s throat, the girl was too helpless to do anything but to hold out and allow Mathew''s sperm to fill her throat and trickle down to her stomach.

    "Ah~" Mathew released a satisfied moan as he felt thest of his cum slowly dripping out of his dick. He slowly pulled out his still-twitching member from Nadia''s throat before slowly pushing her head away.

    The girl, still in her kneeling position, slowly looked up at him. Her eyes were glistering with a mix of pleasure and satisfaction, and on her face was the slightest hint of a smile that she was too shy to fully show.

    Mathew simply smiled back and reached out to caress her cheek.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "You did well, girl," he said, his voice still trembling from the pleasure.

    Nadia simply nodded before using the back of her hand to wipe away the cum that was still dripping down from her chin.

    "Thank you, master," she said, her voice still trembling from the pleasure.

    A sense of doubt lingered at the back of Mathew''s mind.

    ''Didn''t I push her too far?'' ''Wasn''t that too much?'' ''Is she okay?''

    A myriad of thoughts filled with worry shoot past his mind... only to dissipate when he looked down at the satisfied expression on Nadia''s face.

    "Are you... okay?" Mathew couldn''t help but ask. Yet, rather than her face softening up when she noticed his worry, Nadia''s face twisted in a bout of anger and dissatisfaction.

    She then rapidly stood up... only to push Mathew down on the bed before climbing right to his side.

    Before Mathew could react, Nadiaid herself down upon hisp, with her ass right on top of his knees.

    "This maid failed to properly satisfy master," Nadia said while hiding her face in the bedsheets and wiggling her shapely bottom to the sides. "This maid requests a proper punishment now!"

    Even though he had just cummed, Mathew could only gulp his saliva down when Nadia put herself in such a vulnerable position for him. And seeing her moist, secret ce shing between her buttocks as she wiggled her butt right before his eyes quickly served to rejuvenate his dick back to its prime form.

    "Then..." Mathew hesitated for a moment, before closing his eyes and raising his hand. He then spread out his fingers far apart and took a deep breath. "It''s master''s responsibility to properly discipline his maid, isn''t it?" he muttered before bringing his hand down with all roughly half of the force he could gather and pping the hell out of Nadia''s shapely ass!

    "Agh!" Nadia let out a small scream when the pain of the p reached her mind. She then curled up a little bit more... Only to start wiggling her butt even more than before.

    ''Isn''t she getting... even wetter?'' Mathew thought, amazed when he saw a hint of moisture marking the girl''s thigh.

    The young man then released a long sigh.

    ''Well, if that''s what she wants,'' he thought, raising his hand again. ''Then all I need is to oblige!''

 Chapter 270 Unruly Maid

    p!

    Mathew dropped his hand hard on Nadia''s ass.

    The girl twitched on hisp when his attack caused her butt to wiggle. The young man even got to leave a slight red mark on her skin while getting mesmerized by the insane physics of real life when her buttocks waved away after his attack.

    ''It''s so damn soft,'' Mathew thought, clenching his teeth while raising his hand again.

    p!

    He brought his hand down on Nadia''s ass again. This time, however, he didn''t let his hand bounce off, opting to press it down at Nadia''s soft flesh, transferring even more energy with his attack.

    "Kya!" Nadia squealed a little. Yet, rather than trying to escape the punishment, her body tensed up... only to then rx and tense up again.

    ''Damn,'' Mathew gulped his saliva down when he got to see how Nadia''s pussy twitched hard due to the kinky y. Tempted by the sight, he raised his hand again.

    "Bad, unruly servants like you..." he muttered, gulping his saliva again.

    Nadia''s body tensed up in the anticipation of yet another punishment.

    "Needs to be disciplined!" he shouted, before bringing his hand down yet again.

    "Hiya!" Nadia squeaked, tensing all over hisp yet again.

    Yet, contrary to how one would normally act during corporal punishment, she actually smiled.

    ''I wonder if that''s something she just discovered about herself or something that she managed to hide from me for all this time,'' Mathew thought, once again keeping his hand pressed against the girl''s ass after the p.

    This time, however, he didn''t raise his hand again. Instead, he moved it around the girl''s ass, grabbing at her butt cheek only to sink his fingers into her reddened skin and pull away.

    Nadia couldn''t help but moan softly when Mathew moved his hands like that. Her pussy twitched yet again, releasing a thin line of her juices on Mathew''s bedsheets.

    ''I guess it''s time to move on,'' Mathew decided after ying around with Nadia''s butt for a while.

    With her pussy twitching in now at a rtively rhythmic rate and her asshole gaping to the same rhythm, just pping her ass didn''t seem enticing enough. And with his hand already in ce, he simply ended up sliding his hand down the curvature of her ass only to end up tightly pressing his finger against the very bottom of her pussy.

    "Howe this unruly maid is getting punished," Mathew asked, moving his finger up and down Nadia''s opening while restraining himself from actually pushing his finger in. "And yet she''s clearly enjoying herself?"

    Nadia''s entire body tensed up.

    She couldn''t help but enjoy the element of pain and submission. And yet, when it came to the young man keeping her at the edge, refusing to move his fingers directly to the parts that would give her actual pleasure... actually brought her all the way to the edge?

    "I-I..." she could only stutter confused, her entire body shaking from the pleasure and anticipation.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    Mathew simply smirked, his fingers still ying around Nadia''s pussy entrance. He then slowly pulled away his finger before quickly sliding it between the girl''s ass cheeks and pushing them slightly apart with the tip of his finger that was now pressing against Nadia''s tight hole.

    "I guess this unruly maid held up well," Mathew finally said, unable to see the girl suffering from anticipation any further. And so, he twisted his wrist before putting two of his fingers together and bashing them right down the wet entrance of her insides.

    "HIYA!" Nadia''s entire body jumped on top of Leon''sp. After several minutes of nothing but teasing, the presence of Mathew''s fingers inside her was enough to make it all worth it.

    But Mathew wasn''t anywhere near being done.

    Rather than simply scrapping her insides, he started to move his fingers around. He attempted to make a peace sign inside of her, only to then turn his finger into a w as if he wanted to scrap all the moisture off the bottom of her tight hole.

    "Hai?!" Nadia squealed out in protest when Mathew pulled his fingers away. "I''m sowwee...." she then cried out, twitching and wiggling all over, unable to contain her desire.

    ''She''s so adorable,'' Mathew thought, melting down as he watched the girl struggle. And then, he moved the top part of his hand to the upper part of her crotch, rubbing her clit with the inner side of his palm right as he slid his thumb into her pussy. ''I want to make her feel it more!''

    "Hai!" Nadia squealed again, her body shaking and convulsing from the pleasure. Her pussy twitched with even more intensity now that her clit was being taken care of as well.

    Mathew wouldn''t let go for a few seconds, increasing the intensity of his motions before finally pulling away to give her some rest.

    Nadia''s entire body melted down into Mathew''sp after he pulled away. She could barely move anymore... she could only throw a side nce at him with puppy eyes.

    And the look in her eyes... only served to make Mathew gulp his salvia down yet again.

    "Okay, that''s enough..." Mathew announced, moving his hand away from the girl''s crotch only to end up grabbing her by her waist and throwing her off hisp and onto the bed.

    Nadia quickly figured out his intentions, turning herself around on the bed,ying down on her back, and then pushing her legs open, revealing the wet secret between her thighs in all its glory.

    Yet, after all this y, Mathew was too into it to be satisfied with just simple intercourse.

    "What do you think you are doing?" he asked, raising his eyebrows while still ying the persona his girl wanted him to.

    "Huh?" Nadia twitched a little, not sure what she did wrong.

    Mathew reached out and grabbed the girl''s left leg. He killed the desire that exploded in his lower body when his fingers sank into the flesh of her calf. And yet, he held on, pulling on her leg to the right and forcing her to roll around andy down on her stomach.

    "What do we have here," Mathew then muttered, pushing both of his hands at the girl''s ass before spreading it apart.

    Nadia''s anticipation couldn''t be greater. Both of her holes were gaping away, ready to ept Mathew, regardless of which way inside her he would pick.

    "Tfu!" Mathew spat out at the girl''s crotch before using the tip of his penis to rub his saliva down on the girl''s asshole. "This maid dared to enjoy her punishment," he said in a low, guttural voice right as he rested his shroom on her backdoor. "So it''s only fair for me to punish her even more!"

 Chapter 271 Great Performance Deserves A Great Reward

    "So it''s only fair for me to punish her even more!" Mathew eximed right as he started to push himself inside.

    Contrary to Nadia''s pussy which would wee him with velvet-like softness and intense warmth, her asshole wasn''t as easy for him to slide in. Yet, rather than giving up in the face of this difficulty, Mathew kept on pressing forward while holding Nadia by her waist.

    "Haaai!" Nadia uttered a slightly pained moan as the new experience caused her to salivate all over her face. She pushed her tongue out of her mouth, breathing heavily while doing her absolute best to rx and make Mathew''s job easier.

    Yet, for a first-timer in terms of anal, she simply couldn''t help but squeeze hard, making the entire thing so much harder.

    ''Just a little bit more,'' Mathew thought a momentter, his shroom conquering Nadia''s ass inch by inch. Bit by bit, he pushed himself even further, all the way to the point where his balls struck the bottom of the girl''s crotch.

    "Haaa..." Nadia released a long moan. Her body continued to tense up and rx in quick session as she tried to get herself used to the new sensation.

    The girl continued to breathe heavily for a few more moments, while Mathew ignored the roley they had going and waited for his crush to get used to having her backdoor invaded.

    ''This is going to take a while,'' he thought, prepared to wait as long as necessary for the act to be pleasurable for the both of them.

    Yet, as if to spite on Mathew''s determination, Nadia then leaned her head to the side and ended up resting it sideways on the bedding.

    "You can..." she closed both her mouth and her eyes for a second to take two more quick breaths. "You can keep going," she said in a tiny voice.

    Gulp.

    Mathew swallowed his saliva hard, unprepared for this level of adorableness.

    Just like before when Nadia willingly went hard at sucking him, she managed to tickle the part of the young man that he wasn''t really aware of.

    Her entire frame looked like the schoolbook''s picture of fragileness. With her ass spread open by his dick, she felt even more delicate than ever while filling Mathew''s abdomen with an extremely satisfactory feeling of supremacy.

    ''So this is how it feels to truly conquer a girl,'' Mathew thought, gulping his saliva yet again. He then took a deep breath... before abiding by Nadia''s voiced-out desire.

    Mathew thrust his hips forward, sending a wave of pleasure radiating through Nadia''s body as his dick squirmed in her tight hole. She gasped and moaned in delight, arching her back as Mathew started to move inside her even more and even faster. His fingers dug into the soft flesh of her ass cheeks, massaging them as he moved deeper and deeper inside of her with each thrust.

    Nadia moaned out loud from the sensation building up between them. It felt like she was about to burst from all this pleasure running through every inch of her body and soul... But then it suddenly stopped. Mathew had pulled away, leaving nothing but an empty void in his wake.

    "What? Why''d you stop?" Nadia asked breathlessly trying to figure out what happened. Her body rxed to the point where, were she not resting her upper body on the bedding, she would simply fall down to the ground.

    ''I guess that''s to be expected after teasing her for so long,'' Mathew thought, staring down at the fruit of his hardbor.

    He was excited himself, especially given how much he yed around with her soft skin since he came in her throat. Yet, no matter how excited he was, he just couldn''t stop himself from teasing the girl even more.

    Mathew pulled away, only to then quickly push his body right back He then gently grabbed onto one of the girl''s breasts before pushing himself back inside her tight ass.

    The sudden invasion caused Nadia to squeal out loud in surprise and pleasure as Mathew started moving again... His thrusts were stronger this time around and it seemed like he wasn''t nning on stopping anytime soon.

    His hips moved up and down with a frenzied intensity while his hands kept on massaging Nadia''s soft skin almost as if they were a life form on their own. And yet no matter how hard he pushed or how much he caressed, it still seemed like his conquest would never truly be finished.

    Every move he made would send a mind-blowing sensation down his spine and cloud his brain with pure, unadulterated pleasure. Every move he made would also cause Nadia to squeeze her ass down on his dick as if she just couldn''t help but try to milk him dry.

    "Ahh!" Mathew cried out as his orgasm finally hit him like a tidal wave of pleasure. His entire body shook and trembled as he emptied himself inside Nadia''s tight ass, no longer able to contain the sheer intensity of the moment.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    Nadia couldn''t help but cry out in pleasure again after feeling Mathew release inside her. Her mouth opened wide while her eyes closed shut,pletely oblivious to herself when swimming through the aftermath of their passionate lovemaking session.

    Mathew pulled away with a satisfied smirk on his face, proud at how far they hade together since that first night when they just awkwardly explored each other''s bodies without really knowing what to expect next.

    He then copsed down right on top of Nadia''s sweaty back, pinning her down to the makeshift bed. He then snuck his arms around her, allowing himself a moment of respiteposed of simply enjoying Nadia''s fragile warmth.

    Their breathing synchronized.

    For every convulsion that would course through Nadia''s body, her asshole would gape, sending a tiny bit of Mathew''s sperm out to flow down her crotch.

    "That was insane..." Mathew muttered, closing his eyes as a wake of weakness took over. He then slid his body down Nadia''s side, falling on the bed right by her. Yet, unable to get enough of her warmth, he didn''t let go of her body, opting to simply hug her from the side instead.

    "Did this servant do a good job?" Nadia whispered as she wiggled herself around within Mathew''s embrace only to end up as the tiny spoon in the popr cuddling position for couples.

    "To say you did a good job would be a gross understatement," Mathew replied, whispering his words right into Nadia''s ear.

    For but a moment, the two of them enjoyed their presence in silence, allowing their bodies to recover. Yet, before long, Nadia''s hand found its way down to her crotch... and then further, quickly ending up caressing the tip of Mathew''s exhausted dong.

    "Please, don''t tell me..." Mathew muttered, allowing his exhaustion to speak for him.

    Even though Nadia had yet to say anything, her actions spoke for her instead.

    "Since this maid did a good job while being disciplined..." Nadia muttered while turning the gentle strokes of her hand a bit more aggressive.

    They started to learn about their bodies only recently. And yet, she knew better than enough hot to press Mathew''s buttons.

    Soon enough, to Mathew''s exhaustion and slight displeasure, his dick was back to its full glory, poking out between Nadia''s thighs.

    "Isn''t it only fair for this lowly maid to get her reward?" she then asked, bringing her hand down so that she could continue scrubbing Mathew''s shroom with the inner side of her palm while pushing her fingers down her front hole.

    "I''m amazed that you can still keep going after all of that," Mathew admitted.

    "I know," Nadia coyly replied. She then let out a gentle moan as her fingers touched something sensitive inside of her. Her entire body twitched, making Mathew''s heart race. "But I think I can do just one more round," she whispered.

    Then, she turned her head around, raising her left hand only to ce it on Mathew''s cheek and bring his face closer.

    She then pressed her full, moist lips against his mouth. Soon, her tongue joined the fray as well, immersing Mathew in the taste of her breath and saliva alike. And as if all of that wasn''t enough, the movements of her right hand only intensified, quickly forcing more energy down Mathew''s crotch.

    "I want you inside me," she finally whispered once she pushed herself away, parting their lips. Nadia then looked down with a small, pleading smile. "This time properly..." she muttered, turning her head back and hiding her expression away from Mathew''s eyes.

    "Can''t we?"

    Nadia''s soft whisper tickled Mathew''s ears. The wetness of her pussy continued to add to the pleasure of her thighs tightly rubbing against his shaft and the inner side of her palm rubbing his precum all over his shroom.

    "Would I still be a man if I refused such a lovely request?" Mathew sighed. He then moved his left hand down towards Nadia''s thigh, grabbing at it and raising her leg up in the air.

    "Yeash..." Nadia cheered happily in a slightly dizzy voice right as she used her hand to guide Mathew''s dick down her proper hole. "And just like before, " she added, turning her sideways to give Mathew a cheerful look, "I want you to finish inside."

 Chapter 272 Nights Aftermatch

    "...k u..."

    "...ake u..."

    "Wake up!"

    Mathew pried his eyes open.

    It wasn''t the voice that forced him awake. Sure, it helped, but whenpared with the violent shaking of his body, it was nothing.

    "What? Where? How many?!" Mathew jumped out of his bed as soon as his consciousness returned.

    He looked around with his arms raised and hands curled up into fists, searching for the enemy that would warrant such a wake-up call.

    Yet, besides the usual members of his group... the room waspletely empty. And even though the doors leading to it were open, there were no signs of panic or anything else which would indicate some sort of problem.

    "Ouchie!" Le moaned in pain, pressing her hands against the top of her forehead. "Couldn''t you be any gentler?! I''m a girl, you know?!" she then screamed out in protest while throwing a teary look at Mathew''s face.

    "Huh?" Mathew muttered. He then blinked a few times while lowering his arms. He pulled his fist open before using his palms to p his cheeks a few times, driving all the coziness away.

    Mathew scanned the room once again, this time without the handicap of being half-awake.

    Nadia was sleeping on the bed with the sheets only pretending to cover her naked beauty. Yet, rather than sleeping peacefully, she was already moving around a little, indicating all the noise andmotion was setting her awake as well.

    The only other person in the room was Le, who currently stared daggers at the young man while the weird position of her hand clearly indicated some sort of an injury.

    "What happened?" Mathew asked, kneeling down by the girl and grabbing her hands, pushing them apart to see the state of her forehead.

    "You happened!" Le muttered, turning her eyes away when Mathew noticed nothing more but a tiny bruise on the top of her head. "You struck my forehead with your own when you jumped out of the bed," she exined while keeping her eyes averted.

    "So there is no emergency?" Mathew asked, just to confirm and be sure.

    "Emergency?" Le turned her eyes back towards her husband. "No, I just came to wake you up," she exined. "We were supposed to go on an expedition as soon as the sunes up, weren''t we?"

    Mathew tightly squeezed his eyelids down, taking a few seconds to sort his thoughts out.

    Now that his adrenaline was slowly starting to decay, the drowsiness that he powered through started to affect him again.

    "Oh right..." he muttered once he finally took the reins of his mind. "Did the sun rise already?" he asked.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "Not yet," Le shook her head. She then stood up and nced over and Nadia. Her lips curved up in a slightly mocking smile. "I see you''ve been busy," she said before throwing a sideways nce at Mathew.

    "What did you expect?" Mathew raised his eyebrow in a weirded-out expression. "It was the first chance for us to get intimate in peace," he said, rolling his eyes around. "And guess what," he then added, grabbing his shirt from the floor as he looked at Le''s face with a thoughtful expression.

    "What?" Le asked, trying hard not to let her jealousy appear on her face.

    "We actually slept properly," Mathew said with a voice full of pride. "Sure, we fucked a bit," he said, shaking his shoulders, "but then we just hugged each other and went to sleep."

    Mathew quickly pulled on his clothes before stretching himself a little. Then and only then did he sit on the edge of the bed and reached for Nadia''s shoulder.

    "Dear, wake up," he whispered while leaning over the girl''s ear.

    "Five more minutes..." Nadia protested, squeezing her eyelids shut.

    "We can''t," Mathew kept on going. "We are going on an expedition, are we not?"

    "Huh?" Nadia shook her head. Then she turnedpletely motionless as if she fell right back to sleep. "Wait, that''s right!" she then shouted, jumping up... and missing Mathew''s forehead by a mere inch, courtesy of the young man desperately dodging away.

    "That was close..." Mathew admitted with a bathed breath while watching Nadia jump off the bed in a panic only to gather her clothes from the floor.

    "You can actually walk properly..." Le muttered with a look of astonishment on her face.

    "Huh?" Nadia stopped, turning her head to the side and looking at her co-wife while pressing her clothes to her chest. "What do you mean by that?" she asked, genuinely puzzled by Le''s remark.

    "I mean..." Le turned her eyes away as if she was the ashamed one despite Nadia standing naked in in view. "I know that your situation is different to mine or Daria''s..." she muttered, clearly struggling to put her thoughts into words.

    Le then gulped down her saliva before raising her eyes and looking Nadia right in the eyes.

    "To be honest, I expected him to fuck you so hard and so long you would struggle to walk..." she admitted.

    Nadia''s face froze for a second. She then cast a quick nce at Mathew... Only for her cheeks to suddenly turn brighter and for the girl herself to turn her eyes away.

    "Now that you brought it up..." Nadia muttered, stepping uneasily from one leg to another. She then snuck her hand down to her crotch only for her expression to turn ugly a momentter. "I think I will need to take a shower before we go out," she admitted before dropping most of her clothes back on the floor and leaving only the shirt that she started to put on.

    "I guess I shouldn''t pry any further..." Le said with a sigh. She then turned around and walked over to Mathew... Only to send her elbow right to the side of his waist. "I won''t let you off if you go easy on me tonight!" she promised only to turn around and look at Nadia.

    "Come, dear," she muttered in a soft voice while reaching out with her hand to Mathew''s first wife. "I will help you get to the showers."

 Chapter 273 Death Flags

    "That was refreshing!" Nadia shouted as soon as she entered the room that served as the bedroom for the leaders of the group of survivors.

    She already wore her usual clothes currently marked with several wet stains. Her long hair fell down her shoulder, straightened by the added weight of moisture she couldn''t get rid of without a hair dryer.

    ''I never thought about it, but there is quite a lot of convenient stuff we should look for,'' Mathew thought as he nced at the girl.

    Le followed Nadia into the room, but rather than stepping inside, she simply stood at the doors with her arms crossed at her chest.

    "Are you ready?" Nadia asked, moving right in front of Mathew as if she wanted to flex her freshness on him.

    "Yes, I am," Mathew replied impassively. He shook his head and pped his cheeks to clear his mind before standing up and picking up the only piece of clothing that he considered redundant indoors.

    ''How is this ce still warm despite how it''s half-open now is a mystery I won''t be able to understand,'' he thought, following after the girls that didn''t waste their time dawdling into the room.

    Their small group of three then left the bedroom and walked down the corridor, ignoring the awful smelling from the few ssrooms that the survivior workers have yet to properly clean up.

    ''If it stays like this for much longer, we will be risking a massive disease outbreak,'' Mathew took notice, making a mental note to bring this topic up before leaving for the expedition.

    Yet, as annoying as it was to walk through the cloud of the repulsive odor of rotting and dposing flesh, it was the only thing worthy of note within the school.''s corridor. It was only when they arrived at the bottom floor of the school was the rallying point for the expedition was that some more stimuli appeared to force Mathew''s mind back on its track.

    "What are you doing here, guys?" the young man asked as soon as his small group of three joined a bigger group of six already awaiting their arrival.

    "Huh?" Carol shrugged, not expecting the first thing she would hear on the dawn of this new day to be a scold. "What else can we be here for?" she asked, leaning her head over her shoulder. "We are going with you!"

    "No, you are not," Mathew denied the girl''s request as soon as he realized she was serious about the idea. "The same applies to you as well," he then added, throwing a nce toward the only two other hunters he could be bothered to remember.

    One of them was the only one to volunteer for the group while the other one was the arrogant guy that ended up challenging Carol to the bet a day before.

    ''Oh right, I still have yet to fix that problem,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he realized just how many things were still weighing his shoulders down.

    "What?" Carol twisted her expression into an ugly grimace. "How else are we going to dec... how else are we going to grow stronger?" she protested, quickly changing her narration when she noticed the fluctuations in Mathew''s expression.

    "And what will happen to this ce if all its able defenders leave for an expedition only for a horde to appear while we are away?" Mathew pointed out the w in the girl''s thinking.

    "Then why is heing along?!" Carol''s voice burst out right as he raised her arm and pointed it at Norbert''s chest.

    "Huh?" the poor policeman only shook when he was showered with hostilitying from his adopted sister.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "He ising because he is the only real scout we have," Mathew exined without even a moment of hesitation.

    He then took a step forward and raised his eyes on Beatrice, one of the few other members of the survivor group that graced them with her presence despite not appearing on the expedition''s rooster.

    "Don''t worry," the woman smiled, raising her hands in a defensive gesture. "I have no ns of joining you out there," she stated with a smile that believed the innate cowardice behind her words. "Not yet, that is," she then quickly added once she noticed the hostile stares from the hunters of the group.

    "You are too important to leave this ce and too weak to defend yourself," Mathew stated out loud, throwing an angry stare at the hunters by the side. "It''s only natural for you to remain here, where your organizational talents could be put to a greater use," he pointed out.

    In reality, there was no need for Mathew to spell everything out loud like that. It wasn''t as if Beatrice wasn''t aware of her own position and situation.

    No. Mathew''s words weren''t directed at Beatrice. They were directed at the hunters who took her words for cowardice rather than for insight.

    "Well then, I think we can conclude this silly topic," Mathew then said, taking a look around the area to ensure no one else had any silly ideas brewing in their heads. "And just in case you are missing the point, if I hear about you guys leaving the barrier even for a second, I will throw you out on the streets."

    Mathew''s statement was drastic... But drastic measures were necessary to keep people in line at times.

    "Okay, okay," Beatrice said as she raised her arms, this time in an attempt to calm the situation down. Then, she snapped her fingers, causing Mathew''s junior toe up to the group with two backpacks heavily hanging down his shoulders.

    "Here, your supplies," Mathew''s junior said, passing over the backpacks. "Just like Beatrice ordered," he then added, turning his eyes and looking at the woman with admiration.

    "Just like you..." Mathew raised his eyes at his wannabe wife. "Since when were you awake?" he then asked in half-voice, taken aback by the realization.

    Yet, rather than raising in pride, Beatrice only smiled gently.

    "Officers always wake up before the soldiers," she pointed out before turning her small smile into an open grin. "Now, get lost before I start to regret agreeing with your idea!"

    "I will see you soon," Norbert then said, picking up one of the backpacks as if it was the most natural thing for him to do. And then, he simply walked out and towards the massive hole in the side of the building.

    ''Walking away without looking back even once...'' Mathew thought, following the former police officer with his eyes.

    Then, the young man released an exasperated sigh.

    ''It was cool, I admit,'' he thought, shaking his head before picking up the pace and properly following his scout to the destroyed southern quadrant of the school''spound. He then released a heavy sigh.

    ''But would it really hurt you that much not to set up death gs for yourself?''

 Chapter 274 Picking Targets

    "Everyone ready?" Mathew asked, turning his head over his shoulder and casting a quick nce at his team.

    There were only five of them in total. A pretty small number for an expedition that had several objectives on the to-do list, all of which required a long-distance trip.

    "We are ready," Nadia replied, taking a step forward and nodding her head as she spoke for all three of Mathew''s wives that participated.

    "I''m ready," Norbert reported, nodding his head.

    Counting Mathew, five of them. A skeletal crew if there was any way to call them.

    But all the disadvantages ofcking numbers were counteracted by the individual strength of the participants. And the two advantages of their small number, their mobility and their ability to sneak around, made this kind of arrangement pretty favorable.

    ? "Good," Mathew nodded his head, acknowledging everyone''s presence. He turned his head back in the proper direction before raising his hand at the survivors standing guard by the sides of the main gate of thepound. "Let''s move out!"

    The gate swung open, the courtesy of the survivors working hard to save the group even with the tiniest effort of opening the gate themselves.

    "All the best and may you return safely," Beatrice said, raising her hand.

    Save for the few survivors that came for the sake of convenience, she was the only one to see the group off.

    Mathew didn''t bother to reply with his voice, opting to just raise his hand as he walked through the gate without looking back.

    And just like that, the group left the safety of the school''spound barrier, stepping into the dangers of the outside world.

    The group moved forth through the empty streets. All the signs of fighting or zombie corpses were long gone from the school''s perimeter, turned into ashes in the controlled fire Mathew''s group brought forth just yesterday.

    "It''s pretty unnerving, isn''t it?" Mathew muttered under his nose while caressing the handle of his saber attached to a simple belt on his hips. "How silent this street is, I mean," he then added, looking around the ce.

    ''I never expected that something as simple as silence would put me more on edge than a sight of an approaching horde,'' he thought, gulping down his saliva.

    There was no denying that the noises of the zombies would make any man uneasy, especially when one was forced to listen to them all the time. And yet, theck of any of those noises turned out to be heavier on everyone''s mind than their presence.

    After all, without noises, one couldn''t hear the iing zombies in advance. And even if it most likely mean there were no zombies anywhere near, it wasn''t something one could enforce one''s consciousness to ept.

    "It really is silent," Nadia muttered, agreeing with her man. "Too silent."

    "Guys, stop raising unnecessary gs," Lemented, showcasing a bit ofmon gaming knowledge. "It''s silent because all the zombies are either dead or gone hunting somewhere else," she stated the obvious yet surprisingly hard-to-ept truth.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "We know," Daria said. She rolled her eyes before stepping slightly to the side, taking the left nk of the group.

    "Then why are you all silent?" Le asked with a small, slightly ironic smile. "Your anxiety is almost palpable!"

    Le kept on teasing the entire group while taking a position to the right.

    "It''s unnerving because we are not used to it," Nadia gave her own two cents. She then slowed down a little, allowing both Mathew and Norbert to pass her. She only picked up the pace once there everyone else moved at least two meters away from her.

    "Guys, focus on the task," Mathew finally cut the needles chatter. "And speaking of the task, which of the objectives should we shoot for first?"

    "I think we should go for the local market," Norbert said, joining the conversation while movingfortably in the very middle of the formation.

    Norbert was a former police officer. He served on the front lines during his military days and even then, upon transferring over tow enforcement, he still opted to join special forces and risk his life rather than punching the numbers behind the desk or pping parking and speeding tickets on the windshields of the careless drivers.

    All things considered, he was the one with the greatestbat experience in their small group. Yet, his nonbat-oriented system and abilities meant that all his prior advantages were now worthless, making him the only ''civilian'' within their group.

    "Any particr reason?" Mathew inquired, looking over his shoulder and casting a curious nce at the oldest in the group.

    "The electricity in the city died yesterday," Norbert pointed out. "This is ourst shot to get our hands on some of the perishable foods," he said. "And no matter which supermarket we go to, there are bound to be medicinal supplies there, assuming they are yet to be fully looted."

    It was only the second point that the former police officer made that was actually and pragmatically important. Yet, the vision of getting their hands on the food that would soon pretty much disappear never to be produced again¡­

    There was no denying that such a perspective was what drew everyone to Norbert''s idea. And if the luxury drew their attention, it was the pragmatic side of the deal that forced the idea to stay.

    "Well, we might as well do it," Mathew said, shaking his shoulders. "As long as we don''t carry too much on us, it shouldn''t hinder the rest of the objectives," he presented his stance on the matter.

    And just like that, the group picked up the first objective for the expedition.

    "I didn''t think it would go that smoothly," Norbert admitted in a half-voice. From the look on his face, it was clear he had yet to shake off the surprise the quick and positive response of Mathew''s group gave him.

    "Did you have some ulterior motives when proposing the shop?" Mathew asked, leaning his head over his shoulder to cast a nce at the man behind him.

    "Well¡­" Norbert averted his eyes. "It''s been a while since Ist had any booze."

 Chapter 275 Something Changed

    "Well¡­" Norbert averted his eyes. "It''s been a while since Ist had any booze."

    Mathew froze in his spot. For but a moment, all he could do was blink.

    ''Wait, is he for real?'' the young man gulped down his saliva. ''Still, booze¡­'' his thoughts quickly changed their direction as he focused on the item Norbert brought up. ''This might not be the worst idea ever!''

    Mathew only drank alcohol a few times in his life. It was something he could easily do without in his life. Yet, he was more than aware of the potential benefits that possession of alcohol could bring in this broken world.

    ''It can serve as a reward, disinfectant, spice for cooking,'' he thought, his eyes turning towards his wives. ''Or spice for some nights,'' he thought, gulping down his saliva at the mere idea of adding vodka or wine to his nightly escapades.

    "We¡­" Mathew opened his mouth, ready to support Norbert''s proposal¡­

    "We can''t decide on the targets of our expedition simply because you want to have a drink," Nadia said. She raised her head and looked at the policeman along the line of her nose, not holding back the scorn bursting out from her eyes. "And we won''t be able to bring it back with us either. So, if you really want to stock up on booze, shouldn''t we leave the supermarket for the very end?"

    Mathew swallowed down the words he was just about to utter.

    "You are right and wrong," he then said, refusing to give up on the idea.

    Now that he thought about all the perks of securing alcohol for his group, he wasn''t going to abandon it just like that.

    ''Although it''s a good thing Nadia spoke so quickly, otherwise I would end up going against her ideas,'' Mathew thanked fate before clearing his throat and raising his voice a little. "I think we should still go to the supermarket. But rather than bringing all the stuff with us, we should secure what''s valuable and hide it away in a less conspicuous ce," he suggested.

    "If the shop you guys want to go for isn''t raided yet, it''s likely to be raided sometime soon," Le joined in on the conversation. "We don''t know whether other survivors have the same convenient ess to basic supplies as we do, so shops and warehouses might be prime targets for them."

    "Guys, rather than discussing the shop option alone, we should ratherpare it with our other objectives," Daria put in her two cents.

    And just like that, the group started to move again. Yet, before they get to reach any real conclusion, Norbert twitched before stopping in his tracks.

    "Guys, there is a small group of zombies ahead," he announced, stretching his hand to point at a nearby alley. "They already sensed us and will being out in a few seconds. There is a total of twenty-seven of them."

    The entire group stopped.

    A group of twenty-seven zombies couldn''t even be considered a threat to them, not after all the levels they gained over the first three days.

    ''Still, this is going to be one of the rare fights out in the open for us,'' Mathew thought, taking a deep breath and resting his hand on his saber''s handle right as the zombies started toe out from beyond the corner. ''As such, we can''t miss this exercise!''

    There were no evolved or advanced zombies in the group that Mathew''s party encountered. Yet, there was something extremely peculiar about this small horde that the young man and hispanions couldn''t ignore.

    "We were a little toote," Norbert muttered. He then tightened his hands into fists in a powerless fury.

    The group of zombies consisted of three extremely worn-out ones that could still move only by some sort of miracle. The rest of the group, though, was in a pristine state, with only one or two wounds marking their bodies.

    ''Just a little toote,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    Just a single look at the group was enough for everyone to realize that the zombies currently out for their blood¡­ were humans until recently. Meaning, if they were to set out for the expedition a single day in advance, they would likely be in time to help out and gain twenty-four more followers rather than twenty-four more cores.

    "Guys¡­" Mathew muttered after a moment, upon realizing that his entire group ended up frozen by the realization. "We were toote. There is no changing it now," he said, pulling out his saber and pointing its chipped de at the nearest zombie. "The most we can do, right now, is to give them a proper closure."

    Mathew didn''t wait for anyone to stomach his words. Instead, he took a step forward before cutting the head of what used to be a teenage girl. She was still wearing her uniform which implied she attended a nearby middle school. Judging from her age, she was likely a senior, only a year away from entering high school.

    ''What a pity,'' Mathew thought. Yet, as sad as he was, it didn''t affect the speed at which he started to mow down the rest of the zombies.

    "What a pity," Nadia muttered, voicing out Mathew''s thoughts for him while jumping in to help out.

    The rest of the group soon followed, clearing out the entire group in a matter of a single, short moment. And as they moved forward only a few paces and took a glimpse into the alley the zombies came out from, they could see a whole lot of zombie corpses resting on the asphalt road.

    "Should we gather the cores?" Le asked a pragmatic question. It was something that was on the top of everyone''s mind, yet something no one dared to voice out.

    Mathew took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

    ''We should do it,'' he thought, gritting his teeth as the lifeless face of the young girl that he finished off first appeared before his face.

    His entire body twitched.

    ''Howe is it affecting me?'' Mathew asked himself, weirded out by the sudden outburst of hesitation. ''I didn''t feel any of it back when clearing the school out of zombies that I used to know, so howe I''m troubled by victims I never met before in my life?''

    Mathew heaved a long sigh before rapidly slicing his saber down, forcing all the residual blood on it to fall down to the ground. He then knelled down and tore away a piece of cloth from one of the corpses before properly cleaning all the residue from the de.

    "I don''t know what exactly¡­" Mathew muttered right as he threw aside the dirtied cloth and stood back up. "But something changed," he announced with a void look in his eyes.

    "I don''t see any zombies anywhere near," Norbert announced after a moment of silence that followed Mathew''s statement.

    "That means, they all died because they failed to kill thosest three zombies," Daria whispered, her face twisting in slight anguish.

    ''Something definitely changed,'' Mathew repeated in his thoughts. ''And not just for me. Everyone seems to be affected,'' he thought, looking around at hispanions.

    The young man closed his eyes yet again, keeping them shut for three long seconds. He then forced them open and took a deep breath.

    "Isn''t it annoying how we need to stop whenever we want you to scout the area?" Mathew suddenly threw a seemingly random sentence, eager to change the topic.

    "Huh?" Norbert twitched, properly guessing Mathew''s words were about him and his ability. "What do you mean?"

    "It''s just a random idea," Mathew said before putting a small grin on his lips, "but wouldn''t it be nice to find a wheelchair for you?"

 Chapter 276 Wheelchair?

    "It''s just a random idea," Mathew said before putting a small grin on his lips, "but wouldn''t it be nice to find a wheelchair for you?"

    If the encounter with the freshly infected brought everyone''s mood down, then Mathew''s suggestion took them by a surprise harder than a teenage kid would take his ssmate in the school''s toilet when given a chance.

    "Excuse me?" Norbert uttered in a small voice, struggling to produce any sound through his tightened throat.

    ? "Look," Mathew quickly picked up at the chance to deepen the topic. "You can''t scan our surroundings while moving, can you?" he pointed out. "That means, every time we want to orient ourselves in the area or check for some dangers, we need to grind to aplete halt!"

    "Wait, this might sound stupid, but if something works then it''s not stupid at all," Le said. A wide smile then appeared on her lips as she turned her eyes towards the former policeman. "I mean, it would allow us to move faster than even if we were to ditch the idea of using your ability in the first ce!"

    "And what exactly could you mean by that?" Norbert asked, his expression darkening. "If I''m just a burden then why¡­"

    "Oh, my bad," Le quickly interrupted Norbert''s words as soon as she realized where he was going with his reply. "That''s not what I wanted to say. Without your ability, we would have to move far slower. A single step," she shook her shoulders, "and we would end up in the middle of the horde bigger than anything we faced before."

    "And?" Norbert pressed on, clearly notfortable with the current topic, especially with how everyone actually approached it from a logical and pragmatic side.

    "Without you, we would have to scout the area ourselves. And doing so in the middle of the city¡­" Le pursed her lips into a thin line.

    The girl then turned her eyes towards the nearby alley and the buildings surrounding it¡­ only for her eyes to move up as she followed the edge of the building to its several-stories-high top.

    In the dense concrete of buildings like that, one would have climbed all the way to its top to figure out the situation in the small area around. And doing so¡­ would likely mean cleaning all the infected residents and potential points of resistance from those who survived and took the scout for yet another source of danger.

    "So, don''t take my words as an insult to your ability. It''s really helpful," Le pointed out as she brought her eyes back to Norbert''s face. "But since there is such an easy and convenient way to exploit your ability even harder," she shook her shoulders again, "then why not?"

    Norbert didn''t reply right away, opting to stare at Le with a cold gleam in his eyes for a moment. He then turned his head around, moving his eyes from one person to the other only to finallynd his sight on Mathew''s eyes.

    "Are you¡­ for real?"

    The reasons for Mathew''s suggestion were all pragmatic and logical. As such, they were infinitely hard to refute. Especially when the only downside to the idea was nothing more than Norbert''s own pride.

    "I am," Mathew said, nodding his head. "To be honest, obtaining a wheelchair is the one problematic part of this idea," he admitted, averting his eyes.

    "Hospitals surely would have some," Daria pointed out, her face lighting up with satisfaction when her suggestion could prove useful. Yet, her face quickly sank back into darker tones. "No, nevermind," she muttered, "I don''t think we have it in us to carelessly attempt scavenging hospital grounds."<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "It''s possible, but it surely would be a huge undertaking," Nadia finally offered her own perspective that she held back so far. "As for other ces where we could find wheelchairs¡­" she cut her sentence short as she raised her hand and rubbed her chin while thinking hard.

    "Areas with loads of services and huge traffic," Mathew pointed out. "Those should have some wheelchairs just in case. Airports, shopping malls¡­" he suggested only for his voice to cut off just like Nadia''s did. "Each of them would be a task as hard if not harder than a hospital," he then added.

    "Airports are way too far for us to venture all the way just for a wheelchair," Le sneered. She then cast a quick nce around to ensure there were no zombies in their direct proximity. "Shopping mall seems more usible¡­ But still, it would be a massive task toplete."

    Le turned her face to Norbert''s troubled eyes. "It seems you don''t need to worry about this topic," she added while smiling widely.

    "Guys, I understand your wish to speed up the exploration," Norbert finally gathered his wits and thoughts to speak up for himself, "but it would take longer to find one than we would save by removing those short stops I need."

    "Well, it was only a small, random idea that popped into my mind," Mathew said, smiling gently.

    ''Or rather, a topic I wanted to use to get everyone''s mind off those poor people we were toote to save,'' he thought, keeping the simple truth behind the barrier of his mouth.

    Revealing it would serve against the purpose of making others forget about the depressing topic from before, after all!

    "I guess I should make myself useful now," Norbert muttered, turning his face away only to let out a stealthy sigh of relief.

    "Someone''s eager to prove his usefulness," Le sneered again, not minding Norbert''s feelings at all.

    The policeman didn''t react to the obvious provocation, though. He closed his eyes and focused on scanning their surroundings instead.

    "Guys," Norbert soon called out, opening his eyes only to put a troubled expression on his lips. "I have both good news and bad news," he announced.

    Norbert didn''t bother to y around with building up theatrical tension after his words. Instead, he turned around and pointed in the direction only slightly deviating from their original course. "There is a massive horde in this direction," he announced.

    "And the good news?" Mathew inquired.

    "There is a rtively small mall nearby."

 Chapter 277 Hordes Here And There, Hordes Everywhere

    "There is a small mall nearby," Norbert reported.

    "I guess we already know where we are going to go first," Mathew said, looking around the faces of everyone in the group before looking towards Norbert, eager to learn the direction the supermarket was in.

    Yet, rather than seeing the former policeman move his arm to point in another direction, Mathew saw hispanion bring his eyebrows together as if thinking about something really hard.

    "Guys, give me just one more moment," Norbert requested while keeping his eyes closed and body frozen in ce.

    For the next few moments, all that happened was Norbert''s expression slightly changing in ordance with what he was observing through his skill.

    "The horde¡­" he muttered, only to open his eyes and swallow his saliva. "It''s moving away."

    Norbert raised his eyes and threw a meaningful look at Mathew''s face.

    ''Is that a callback to the previous encounter?'' Mathew guessed, gritting his teeth.

    "Guys, I guess we need to decide whether we should go after the horde or after the mall," he said, closing his eyes and forcibly freezing his face.

    ''Are we seriously going to struggle to make the decision¡­ again?''

    ? "Let''s ignore the horde," Nadia said before Mathew could even gather his thoughts to speak for himself. "Even if we ignore all the time it will take us to bring it down or the risks of doing so, we will only encumber ourselves with all the cores we would harvest from them."

    "And it''s not like we will be able to spend them right away either," Le spoke up, clearly in favor of ignoring the horde and sticking to what they already decided on.

    "Guys, I think you are missing the point," Daria said before heaving a long sigh. "If the horde is moving, then it''s likely going somewhere, isn''t it?" she pointed out the one thing Mathew already took into ount. "Doesn''t that mean it could guide us to a nest of survivors?"

    "The main objective of our mission was to save people and bring them with us," Norbert joined in, openly taking the stance on the topic. "I don''t think securing fancy food should take priority over saving people that we need to develop ourselves."

    "Well, I personally would be worried about leaving an entire horde roaming behind our backs," Mathew added in a tired voice, seemingly taking the stance for going after the horde. Yet, rather than letting his voice fade away, Mathew took a step forward, standing dead in the middle of the group. "But I don''t think we should exhaust ourselves by fighting an entire horde so early. We came out to scout the situation around our domain, not to conquer it, not yet."

    It was true that one of the main objectives of this expedition was to gather survivors from around the area and bring them back. Yet, it wasn''t the main objective.

    The main reason why Mathew organized this expedition was to find and confirm the situation of the next location he wanted to im as a fortress. Saving people, regardless of how important it would be in the long run, was only a secondary objective.

    "So the mall it is," Le said after a silence ensued for a few moments.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "Are you for real?" Norbert raised his eyebrows. "You are going to ignore people in need in favor of some fancy food?"

    "I''m going to ignore people in potential need over resources we won''t be able to obtain if we are toote to do so," Le quickly countered, not allowing the former policeman to talk her over.

    "Guys, let''s not forget something obvious that you seem to be missing," Mathew said right as he took two steps forward and positioned himself between the two parties. "If there is an entire horde going somewhere, what does that mean?" he asked, rather than just giving out the answer right away.

    "If a horde is formed, that means wherever it is going, managed to ward off a smaller number of zombies so far," Nadia spoke up. She then took a step forward and ced her hand on Mathew''s shoulder before passing by him and putting herself in the center of the group.

    Yet, she didn''t speak out. Not right away, that is.

    She patiently waited for everyone''s attention to get on her as Mathew, his two other wives and Norbert ultimately fell in line and gave her the space to speak her mind.

    "We''ve already decided what we are going to do, didn''t we?" she pointed out. "And one more thing," she then added, turning her eyes to Norbert in particr. "Imagine our group appearing at a nest of a different group of survivors right as the hordees out to siege them."

    Just like Mathew a second earlier, Nadia opted to turn silent and let others figure out what her words implied rather than outright

    "It would be easy for those survivors to assume we were the ones who brought the horde upon them," Daria muttered after a moment.

    "That''s why, it''s not a bad idea to follow the horde after we conclude our business at the supermarket," Nadia concluded with a shake of her shoulders.

    "Fine¡­" Norbert muttered. He then shook his head. "Let''s get moving then," he added before getting on the move himself, low-key forcing everyone. Yet, he didn''t even cross a hundred meters beforeing to aplete stop and shutting his eyes close.

    ''What now, I wonder,'' Mathew thought, heaving a deep sigh as he came to a stop as well. ''At least now I know the downsides of our formation,'' he then thought.

    If Norbert has stopped moving, everyone else had to stop as well. This much was obvious given how he was the only nonbatant in the group. And yet, while it was only mildly annoying when the former policeman would stop out of nowhere while they were just walking¡­

    If that were to happen right before a horde of zombies were toe out and attack them, it would easily turn into one massive problem.

    "Guys, I know this will sound weird¡­" Norbert blinked his eyes a few times before properly opening them and looking slightly to his right as if seeing far beyond the buildings obstructing everyone else''s view. "But there is another, far smaller, horde at the mall."

    Norbert then turned his head around and looked right at Mathew''s face. "And they are sieging down a group of seven that barricaded themselves inside!"

 Chapter 278 Is This What Norbert Considers A Horde?

    "And they are sieging down a group of seven that barricaded themselves inside!" Norbert announced with a somber look on his face.

    The former police officer closed his eyes again before anyone could as much as to get over their shock, not to say react to his words.

    Norbert''s face then started to twist and turn, forming one weird grimace after another. A momentter, he pulled his eyelids back up and directed his sight straight at Mathew.

    "A group of seven. Three kids your age, two young adults my age, and two men in their forties," Norbert filled in the details of his previous report.

    "Haaa¡­" Mathew released the air from his lungs. He rxed his entire body, trying to approach the new topic with a fresh mind.

    Only silence remained within their group, with both Norbert and Mathew''s wives giving the young man the time he needed to analyze the situation.

    "Is their situation dire?" Mathew asked as soon as he opened his eyes and raised his face, looking right back into Norbert''s eyes.

    "No, not really," Norbert shook his head, "not yet, at least." He took a deep breath and held it in for a moment.

    This small exercise allowed him not only some time to calm himself down but also just enough time he needed to analyze the details of what he saw with his ghost-like ability.

    "I think they should be able to hold on for quite some time," Norbert said once he was done with his personal assessment of the situation.

    "Then there is no need for us to hurry, is there?" Mathew said. "There will be no pointing to their rescue, assuming they need one, only to be too tired to actually help."

    Mathew turned his face away from Norbert. Then, he followed through with the rest of his body, taking a first step toward the mall.

    Yet, the young man stopped exactly after just a single step only to turn his head over his shoulder and look at the former officer again.

    "I''m going in the right direction, am I?" he asked.

    In a city as small as the one they were in, there were only a few ces that could hold on to the proud name of a shopping mall. Those ces were all just a shadow of what a real mall was, a desperate attempt of the city at providing its citizens with a ce formerce and leisure.

    And yet, given their position on the rtive outskirts of the town, three of the total five city malls were pretty damn close, making it not as obvious as to which shop Norbert had in mind.

    "It''s the ''New Oasis''," Norbert said. "That''s the right direction," he added while slowly nodding his head.

    There was no need for any further exchange of words. With the location of their destination confirmed and Mathew''s direction approved, all they had left to do was simply cross the distance that still separated them from the ce.

    And for the actual first time in nearly three weeks for Mathew and around four days for the girls and Norbert, they got the privilege to walk freely through the open streets of the city.

    ''It''s a ghost town,'' Mathew thought, observing his surroundings more to sate his curiosity than in order to guard his group against potential surprise attacks.

    Those kinds of zombies'' tricks were all negated by Norbert''s ability.

    The entire group would walk for three blocks straight, making the most of the rxing factor of such a leisurely stroll. And every three blocks they would make a short stop, allowing Norbert the time to scan the area ahead of them for any dangers.

    ''I never expected I would actually see this city like that,'' Mathew sank deeper and deeper into his thoughts.

    He gave up on the idea of ever seeing the streets he grew up on during his first life. Back then, school meant safety. Sure, it was never properly secured and deprived of all the zombies¡­ But those damn undead still had a lot fewer angles to attack him at school than they would have out in the streets.

    Then came Mathew''s sacrifice and rebirth, followed by four days of intensive fighting, scheming, fucking and more fighting.

    "We are getting close," Norbert muttered after five stops since he first reported his unusual findings. This time, however, he didn''t pick up the pace after only a few short seconds, taking quite a lot longer instead.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "Mate, are you alright?" Mathew stepped towards the man and asked. He then reached out with his hand and shook Norbert''s shoulder, worried by his suddenly prolonged mental absence.

    "That''s strange¡­" Norbert muttered. He then blinked thrice and shook his head before finally opening his eyes and looking down into Mathew''s eyes. "Whoa!" he screamed out a little, taking a step back while showing a weirded-out expression.

    "What''s strange?" Mathew asked, ignoring Norbert''s silly outburst and focusing on what could actually be important.

    Norbert gulped down his saliva and breathed in, repeating his calming ritual of holding his breath in from before.

    "They are destroying their own defenses," he announced. "Wait!" he then shouted, violently shaking his head. "Not destroying. Removing?" he suggested, clearly unsure what were the right words to describe what he saw.

    "How much time do we have left?" Mathew instantly turned serious.

    "I don''t know," Norbert honestly admitted. "A few minutes before they get rid of all the barricades and plunge right into the horde?" he attempted to put forth a proper guess.

    "Then we have no time to waste here," Mathew announced, turning around on his heel and speeding up towards the nearby mall.

    The rest of the group followed without even a word of protest or hesitation.

    No matter how much Mathew despised his role as a shot-caller of the group, he was the only one within their ranks thatmanded enough authority to spring them all to a move with a single order.

    "Are you that eager to save them?" Nadia asked as she started to jog by Mathew''s side, abandoning her position on the left wing of their small formation. "Or is there something more to it?"

    Mathew threw the girl a quick, cold look. He then turned his eyes back, looking ahead to correct his pathing between the asional wrecked cars or rubble from the ruined buildings around the street.

    "Helping them out in hopes of getting more allies is one thing," Mathew said after a few moments, throwing a few words in between his breaths. "Learning whether they know the value of zombie cores is another," he added a momentter, taking extreme care for his words not to slow him down.

    Then, a small, weird smile festered on Mathew''s lips. His eyes shed a little.

    "But aren''t you curious as to why they are leaving their safe heaven in a hurry?" Mathew asked before noticing and then masking his small smile.

    Nadia didn''t reply. She simply looked at her man for a while before moving her eyes and looking ahead, just like Mathew did.

    The group ran from beyond the corner of thest block, taking a turn to the right and rushing out right into the open of a massive parking lot of the local shopping mall.

    A parking lot¡­ that was filled with zombies mindlessly wandering all across.

    ''Is this what he considers a horde?'' Mathew thought, throwing a quick nce at the officer to the side.

    Mathew then grabbed the handle of his weapon before pulling it out in one, smooth move.

    "Kill them all," he casually ordered, not stopping his run for even a single second.

    He then raised his saber and shed down the nearest zombie''s arm be off.

    Mathew turned his head over his shoulder and beamed his groupmates a cheerful smile.

    "Try not to cause too much ruckus, would you?"

 Chapter 279 Too Unresponsive, Even For A Zombie

    The formation that Mathew and his group maintained so far broke out the second they went to fight.

    It wasn''t a mistake caused by their eagerness to fight the zombies or desire to rush to help some strangers. It was all a part of the n.

    The sun was still high up in the sky and raising. It wasn''t even an hour since they departed and only slightly more than an hour since the sun rose above the horizon. As such, Daria''s amazing nightly powers¡­ were greatly diminished.

    For this reason alone, while Le, Nadia, and Mathew himself rushed out to clean all the zombies that could pose any danger to them while in the parking lot, Daria remained by Norbert''s side.

    The few zombies that Mathew and his wives would intentionally let through would end up either killed straight away with Daria''s precise strikes or maimed for Norbert to finish.

    ''He will never level up at this rate,'' Mathew thought, cutting down yet another zombie while ncing back toward the tail of the new formation of the group. ''We will need to figure out a way for him to level up.''

    While not a main objective, allowing Norbert to gain some battle prowess for himself was one of the side targets that Mathew hoped to achieve with the expedition.

    ''If he could evolve his ability so that he could move both in person and as his ghost at the same time¡­'' the young man allowed himself a short moment of deliberation, quickly cut short when a group of four zombies all rushed to attack him at the same time.

    First, he blocked a sweeping strike from the nearest one, pping the zombie''s arm away with the body of his de. He then stepped forward, twisting his wrist to push the zombie''s arm up.

    And then, with one decisive strike, Mathew cut down at the zombie''s skull, cleaving it open with a single, lousy strike.

    "Need some help?" Nadia asked jokingly as he kicked away the properly dead corpse she just dealt with and looked to Mathew''s side.

    "Nah," Mathew shook his head, quickly sending two cuts to his left and right, cutting down two heads out of two different necks. "I''m good," he added, thrusting his saber right into the eye socket of thest of the zombies.

    ''Dang,'' Mathew cursed under his nose once he pulled his saber back. ''I really should''ve bought some new weapons,'' he thought upon inspecting yet another chipped-off part of his saber.

    There was the point of increasing the weapon''s worth and lethality by killing zombies and monsters with it. It was something actually confirmed by his system and merchants alike.

    Yet, there had to be a level of overuse beyond which the value of the weapon would continue to degrade instead of raising.

    Bit by bit, the group cut through all the resistance that the zombies offered, making their way toward the main gate of the small shopping mall.

    Even for the small city standards, it was a tiny one. It only consisted of a single floor and a small underground warehousing area. The insides were limited to just one big grocery retailer and a bunch of smaller service and specialized shops lined along the one main alley of the mall on its opposite side.

    "Norbert!" Mathew called out right as he reached the massive ss doors to the mall and took a quick peek inside. "Where the hell are they?" he asked, unable to spot a single clue himself.

    The smaller shops had their storefronts all broken apart, offering no resistance to the bunch of zombies roaming inside. That only left the general store which upied roughly seventy percent of the entirety of the mall and the warehousing area.

    ''I hope they weren''t dumb enough to hole themselves up underground,'' Mathew thought.

    "They made a small fortress in the hardware part of the general store," Norbert shouted over before he and Daria finally caught up to the rest at the doors. "They moved several aisles and stacked some of the bigger equipment to block off a chunk of the store at the back," Norbert borated before closing his eyes for a second and then pointing his hand in the direction of the survivors.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "I guess we don''t need to hurry then," Mathew muttered once he took proper stock of the situation.

    "Wait, what?" Norbert red up instantly. "We rushed all the way here¡­ only to wait?" he asked, clearly demanding an answer to the sudden change of ns.

    "Oh,e on!" Mathew protested loudly, rolling his eyes as he swung his head and rested his eyes on Norbert''s face. "Use that brain of yours a little!" he demanded in a rude manner. "What do you think would happen if we barged in on them before they start fighting?!"

    Not a single of Mathew''s wives bothered to answer such a simple question. On the other hand, Norbert took a few seconds to think before his face tensed up and rxed a short momentter.

    "Fine, I get it," he admitted grudgingly while averting his eyes. "Couldn''t you just exin it from the get-go?"

    The police officer pouted and looked away while crossing his arms on his chest. He then walked two steps away and rested his back on one of the few parts of the mall''s entrance that somehow avoided destruction.

    He didn''t bother to speak a word to diffuse the tension he introduced to the group, opting to just close his eyes and monitor the situation of the survivors.

    Nadia gave the officer a slightly annoyed look. Yet, rather than pursuing the topic and worsening everyone''s mood even further, she turned to her man instead.

    "Hey, Matty," she called out. "Don''t you find those zombies¡­ slightly weird?" she asked.

    "Yeah," Mathew nodded his head as he answered in an exhausted voice. "They are too damn easy to kill, even for the basic type."

    Mathew''s group of survivors faced all sorts of zombies up until this point. Starting with the basic ones on the first and second day, through evolved ones from the moment ventured out to retake the school all the way to twice evolved zombies they had to defeat to secure the media building.

    It wouldn''t be an over-exaggeration to say that Mathew and his wives were long used to fighting zombies far stronger than the average, unevolved ones. Yet, even then, the ones that loitered around the mall''s parking lot¡­

    They were still below the level of the ones Mathew had to face on the apocalypse''s first day!

    "They feel somewhat simr to those non-elite ones we faced when fighting themander," Le pointed out her own point of view. "They are too¡­ unresponsive."

    Just like she said, there was nomon feeling of threat from the zombies loitering around. Even now, those who were lucky enough to avoid the culling¡­ didn''t seem to be interested in Mathew''s group at all, content with just roaming around the generally empty space.

    "It feels like¡­" Mathew pursed his lips as more and more evidence appeared to support the guess he earlier dismissed due tock of any solid basis. "I wonder if they are not zombies that amander of that horde we ignored¡­ simply left here to linger."

    Mathew''s words rang in everyone''s ears.

    After all, if this kind of scenario were to prove to be on point, they would all be in for a tough fight pretty damn soon, something they all wished to avoid unless absolutely necessary.

    "Guys," Norbert spoke out, his voice returning to its usual tone. His face tensed up as he stepped away from the mall''s entrance.

    "They''ve started to take apart theirstyer of barricades."

 Chapter 280 Back To Tribal Times

    "They''ve started to take apart theirstyer of barricades," Norbert reported with his eyes closed.

    He then took a deep breath and opened his eyes before looking at Mathew, clearly expecting him to give the order.

    Yet, as seconds continued to tick by, Mathew kept his mouth shut, showing no intentions of speaking out.

    "Shouldn''t we go in?" Nadia suggested with an uneasy look on her face. Her expression appeared to scream worry that their argument from two days ago at the school''s staircase could possibly resurface.

    Mathew held on with his lips pursed into a thin line. He took a deep breath and looked around.

    And just like one would expect, everyone''s attention was currently centered on him.

    "Guys¡­" Mathew finally spoke up, only to throw another look around before shaking his head. "I never expected I would need to say it out loud. But ask yourself this," Mathew requested.

    He then turned his eyes to Nadia''s face and forced her to withhold his intense stare.

    ''I didn''t fail to notice that look of yours from a moment ago,'' he thought, sighing inwardly.

    "What will that other group of people think if they break all their barricades open and see not zombies but us?" Mathew finally posed the one question that continued to ring at the back of his head ever since he learned about the other party''s presence.

    "They would be happy someone came to their¡­" Daria was the first one to speak out, only to cut her words short when she visualized the situation in her head.

    And no matter how she looked at it, if she were to put herself into the other party''s shoes¡­ she wouldn''t be weing to her saviors at all.

    Because in this apocalyptic world, one would have to be unbearably naive to expect other humans to turn out to be saviors. The more likely scenario would make them out to be aggressors, out for the sparse resources left in the world.

    Or, in the worst-case scenario, they would be a bunch of militia looking for some women to y with and men to enve.

    "Times like those brings out the worst in humans," Mathew stated while shaking his head. "We basically went back to tribal times the day people started to turn into zombies."

    Back in the past, people stuck to their tribe because wild animals were actually a real, tangible threat. And yet, it wasn''t the animals that tribal people would fear the most. Save for the intangible like the wrath of their gods, their worst enemy would be other tribes!

    "I understand your point," Nadia said, lowering her head and looking down as if in an attempt to hide her expression. "But¡­" she hesitated for a second only to raise her face back up and look at Mathew. "Isn''t this too much?"

    "Dear, if we appear before they get busy killing the zombies, they are likely to take us for a threat," Mathew said, taking a shot at a direct approach.

    "Won''t they take us for opportunists looking to exploit their unfavorable situation if we conveniently appear right when they need us the most?" Nadia countered.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    And her words actually managed to make Mathew hesitate.

    ''So it''s a question of predicting their reaction,'' Mathew thought, lowering his chin and closing his eyes to focus on the topic. ''How would I react? Especially, back in my first life?''

    Mathew actually didn''t need to imagine. All he needed was to go back to some of the memories that he preferred to leave buried at the bottom of his mind.

    The feeling of tion when a group of system users happened to pass through the school, taking out all the evolved monsters that they chanced up. The massive relief when they finished off thest of the monsters. And the immense desperation and disbelief when they left the school right afterward, unwilling to bother saving those stuck inside or cleaning the normal zombies out.

    ''Back then I was helpless. I can''tpare my feelings from back then with how people that actively seek to survive in this world will feel,'' Mathew told himself, gritting his teeth in mute frustration.

    Contrary to dealing with zombies, this was a situation where he was unable to predict the general pattern of the other party.

    "Fine," Mathew finally spoke, raising his head and looking at Nadia. "You might be right," he admitted.

    "Let''s go, then," Nadia ordered right away, taking the reins of the situation as soon as Mathew approved her idea and approach.

    Once the decision was made, Mathew didn''t try to be a drag for the rest of the group. Instead, while he let Nadia take the charge, he still followed her inside the mall, ready to support her in the fights toe.

    Their group found themselves within the mall, right on the main alley that went from one of its ends to the other.

    To their right, there was a line of service points and specialized shops. Their shopfronts were all broken into. And just a single look at the content of those smaller areas was enough to confirm there was hardly anything of value left in there.

    ''At least the traffic shop isn''t fully looted yet,'' Mathew thought, ncing over at the shelf filled to the brim with cigarettes, lighters, and other small items like that. ''Those could prove to be extremely valuableter,'' he thought, making a mental note to gather everything they could from the shop on ater date.

    It was only a matter of time before his group would grow strong enough to restore a semnce of safety and stability to a small area they could control. And once that time woulde, stuff like cigarettes, alcohol, or even something as simple as sweets would skyrocket in value!

    But for now, rather than focusing on the goods, they could loot from the mall, Mathew''s group stepped inside the general-store area that upied the majority of the entire mall building.

    Before the apocalypse, one could buy literally everything and anything in here, as long as it wasn''t extremely niche or illegal. From standard groceries, through kitchen tools and utensils, all the way to furniture, electronics, or hardware.

    And it was the area that housed thest of those that became the objective of the group.

    "They tore down half of their barricades so far," Norbert reported right as they passed the line of the cashing machines, entering the area of the general store proper.

    "We have a few minutes to reach them, then," Mathewmented. He then shook the saber in his hand before taking a leisurely look at the insides of the shop. "And since we decided on meeting them, let''s not make them wait for us!"

 Chapter 281 Fall Of The Barricades

    The area of the general store was one of the most challenging ces one could pick to fight zombies. Thousands of corners, hiding spots, and angles the zombies could use to their advantage over the unsuspecting humans made it insanely dangerous to move carelessly.

    And what was even worse, it made it practically impossible to not only maintain one''s formation but also to anticipate attacks and then manage the zombie presence around.

    And yet¡­

    ''This is too damn easy,'' Mathew thought when he shed yet another zombie in half with azy swing of his saber.

    The only thing that the zombies did to him, at this point, was to contribute towards the wear of his weapon.

    And every zombie that Mathew fell himself, only served to further prove his idea from earlier.

    ''They are too damn passive,'' Mathew thought, moving right by a zombie, only for it¡­ to cast a nce at its potential target before going right back to its lethargic state.

    Some zombies attempted to assault members of Mathew''s group. Some even managed to group up and attack at the same time¡­

    But for the number of zombies roaming the insides of the shop, the active ones were in a great minority.

    "I don''t like it," Nadia muttered while mowing down one zombie after another. "It feels like we are some sort of freaks cutting down civilians for fun," she added, exining what exactly irked her in the situation they were in.

    "To think a day woulde when we wouldin over how easy it is to kill a zombie," Le giggled. Yet, the sight of a happily cheering girl that would make all the virgins in Mathew''s schools wet, when coupled with Le piercing out the zombie''s head with a random stick she found, somehow turned grotesque.

    "Focus on the objective," Norbert scolded everyone. Yet, he was actually the one who everyone had to take care of.

    Not because he was in any danger, though.

    It was all because the zombies, in their current state, were no match for him at all.

    Armed with the same saber as the others, he happily mowed down through the undead, eager to raise his levels now that such a great opportunity arose.

    ''It''s actually weird how he didn''t appear to gain any levels,'' Mathew thought, watching how the man moved far beyond his agreed position within the formation in his drive to collect as many kills as he could. ''Maybe it''s the challenge, the danger than makes us level up?''

    Even several days after the apocalypse started, Mathew dared not to make any hasty assumptions about how things worked. Everything he knew was nothing more than a guess. And while some things appeared to find some proof in form of items or even the mere presence of merchants¡­

    The young man could stille up with several theories that would exin different phenomena while staying true to the few undeniable facts they knew about.

    "Guys¡­" Norbert suddenly stopped. Mathew hastened his steps, rushing to stand right by the man in case a zombie were toe out of some obsolete hiding spot while the officer was vulnerable. "They are about to break free," Norbert then reported, pulling his eyelids up again¡­ Only to cast a disappointed look at Mathew.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    "Did you seriously assume I would dare to use my ability before clearing my surroundings first?" he protested.

    "It''s better to be safe than sorry," Mathew replied. "We are too far from the school to get you back before you would turn," he added.

    This was the one reason why they were so careful around Norbert. Due to hisck of levels, he was the only one without any real immunity against the zombie virus.

    Or, in other words, while both Mathew and his girls could brush off even some deep injuries, the former policeman would likely be done after a single scratch.

    "Well, I won''t deny that point," Norbert said, nodding his head in gratitude. "Thanks," he threw, only to turn his eyes in the direction of the barricaded-off part of the store. "But we really should hurry," he then added.

    "Okay, okay," Mathew muttered, rolling his eyes. And then, without another word of protest, he moved in the direction Norbert was looking at.

    Soon, their entire group appeared behind an impressive-looking wall made from all sorts of things. Its frame was constructed with a shopping shelf on the basis. The shelves were then filled with boxes with some heavy equipment in them only for the entire thing to be reinforced with iron bars welded to the shelf''s frame.

    ''Whoever did it had to spend quite a lot of time toplete it,'' Mathew thought, right as the shop turned silent enough for him to hear some noisesing from beyond the barricade.

    So close to the other party, Mathew didn''t dare to use his voice. Instead, he raised his hand to gather everyone''s attention before pointing at an area slightly to the side of the barricade.

    ''It''s better for them toe out first,'' he thought while moving to the area he designated himself. ''It would be one hell of a pain in the ass if they came out only to rush back in upon noticing us.''

    A slight tap on Mathew''s shoulder caused him to look to the side.

    "Be careful," Norbert muttered, the excitement on his face long gone, reced by a strange, dark yet empty expression. "They have guns," he whispered while nodding his chin towards the barricade.

    "Noted," Mathew whispered back while nodding his head. "You heard him," he then added while turning his eyes to the girls. "Let me deal with it, okay?" he then asked.

    In theory, Mathew had the authority to just announce he would be the one dealing with the other party. Yet, he still opted to actually ask for permission.

    Le and Daria, he didn''t really care about, as they rarely raised any opposition to his ns. Yet, with Nadia¡­

    That one girl was simply too important for him to risk angering her over such a small thing.

    "Fine," Nadia whispered, allowing the sneaky atmosphere of the moment to get to her. "Just don''t go overboard," she then requested.

    "Sure thing," Mathew said with a smile before turning his face back towards the barricade. "I will just shake them up a little," he added, right as the entire shelf¡­ turned out to be far lighter than it looked when a single man managed to easily make it fall down!

 Chapter 282 Confrontation (Fixed)

    "Just be careful!" a small call reached everyone''s ears right as the barrier fell down.

    And just two seconds after thest of the barricades ceased to exist, a burly man in what looked like his forties came out.

    He had his body fully covered in some sort of fluffy armor pieced together with mere duck tape. He held a handgun in his left and what looked like a makeshift axe in his right.

    "Huh?" the man took a step forward... and stood still, baffled by the sight.

    He expected the zombies toe rushing at him the second he stepped beyond the barrier... only to be faced with the sight of zombie corpses resting on the floor in pools of their own blood.

    The man gulped his saliva before taking a step forward. He then poked the nearest corpse with the tip of his ax, checking whether it was a trap or if the zombie was really dead.

    Then, and only then, did he look around.

    At first, he turned his head to the left, opposite to where Mathew''s group calmly waited. And then, he turned his head toward the party responsible for clearing all the zombies in the vicinity.

    The man''s eyes opened up wide. His face twisted in wrath.

    Then, without even a second of hesitation, he raised his left hand, pointing the muzzle of his gun at Mathew.

    "WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?!"

    The man''s scream alerted the rest of his party, causing all of them to pour out of their former hideout.

    First, another man of a simr age came out. Then, two adults followed, a man and a woman, each appearing to be somewhere in the middle of their twenties. Then, a trioposed of two schoolgirls and one middle-school boy followed, keeping to the back of the entire group.

    "I asked a damn question!" the leader of the group called out, going as far as to pull the hammer of his pistol to the back.

    ''What is he, a period drama actor?'' Mathew thought, staring at the man with an amused smile.

    "This is yourst chance to speak!" the man called out again, only for his simrly agedpanion to pull out a shotgun on Mathew''s party, followed by the two adults raising their own pistols with hesitation written all over their faces.

    "Girls, Norbert," Mathew muttered in a low voice.

    As much as he was amused by the situation... the other party pulled their guns on them. And that meant the situation no longer called for any joy or carelessness.

    ''I don''t know if we can survive a gunshot,'' he thought, his eyes turning towards the ck hole at the front of the shotgun. ''Especially from this,'' he thought, allowing his face to darken and reflect the state of his soul.

    "Stay back," Mathew said, taking a step forward himself.

    "STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" the leader of the group shouted.

    His hands shook a little. And Mathew could easily hear the panic in his voice.

    ''He doesn''t seem like someone who imed someone''s life,'' he thought.

    Yet, as if to not escte the potentially dangerous situation, Mathew listened in to the order and stood down.

    "Since you guys are like that..." Mathew said, leaning his head over his shoulder as he allowed a small smile to make its way back to his lips. "Then I believe we need to establish a certain truth first."<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    The guns in the hands of the other party shook when they all twitched.

    ''They were wary of this level of zombies,'' Mathew thought, confirming the most important element of the puzzle he was facing. ''And that means...''

    ''Mind''s flesh!'' he called forth, ready to make use of every ability he had to keep his group out of harm''s way.

    And no matter how much stronger than your usual mortal they could be right now a gun... Any sort of firearm could still be a potential threat!

    So, rather than hoping for the best, Mathew simply used the overabundant mana bustling in his veins to construct invisible hands. And before the other party could as much as open their mouth, his hands already grasped the front of every gun aiming at Mathew''s group.

    "What truth?!" the leader of the other party asked, dropping his axe and adding his other hand to the handle of his gun.

    ''He must''ve noticed he was shaking,'' Mathew realized.

    That alone, coupled with how the man quickly came to the same realization and took measures to counteract it... It was more than enough to earn Mathew''s respect.

    "The simple truth that you guys can''t do anything against me," Mathew said, shrugging his shoulders and tugging on the strings of his spell at the same time.

    ''Go!'' he gave a mental order to his mind''s flesh.

    His invisible hands jerked off the guns, pulling their muzzles away from the direction of Mathew''s group. Then and only then did Mathew apply some real pressure, forcing the guns out of the other party''s hands before throwing them on the ground.

    "And the truth is that I can do however I like with you," he added.

    ''If I need to y a viin, then so be it,'' Mathew thought, reaching out to his side before pulling at the string that held his saber''s sheath to his belt. He undid the string with a single pull before brandishing his still-sheathed saber.

    "What are you..." the leader of the group was the first one to pull his eyes away from the gun he just lost and towards the weapon Mathew raised. He squinted his eyes upon seeing Mathew raise and then point his still sheath-covered saber at the ax he dropped before.

    "Get your weapon," Mathew ordered in a cold voice and a perfectly empty look on his face.

    The middle-aged man gritted his teeth. He then fell on one knee, grabbed the handle of his makeshift ax, and rose back to his feet.

    "Listen, can''t we just..." the female took a step forward with her hands raised.

    "Stay back!" the leader of her group quickly put her back in her ce, moving to the side to put himself on the line for Mathew''s potential attack. "It''s not like they are going to listen to us either way!" he shouted, raising his ax above his head as he leaned forward, clearly about to charge.

    "Go easy on them, dear," Nadia pleaded from behind Mathew''s back.

    She didn''t try to dispute the need for a confrontation... but the way the situation was developing didn''t sit well with her either.

    "I will see what I can do," Mathew whispered, patiently waiting for the other party to rush forward.

    The man took his first step. His forehead was full of sweat. He grasped at the handle of his makeshift ax so tightly that the whites of his knuckles showed on his skin.

    And then, he pushed his right leg forward, about to jump into a charge.

    ''That''s it,'' Mathew thought, leaning forward a bit. ''Do your worst!'' he encouraged the man with his thoughts right as he sent a saber-wielding arm to the back. ''Only then,'' Mathew''s eyes shed as he jumped forth, covering half of the distance that separated him from his enemy in a single step, ''will you properly submit!''

 Chapter 283 Bloodless Skirmish

    The leader of the other party took a step forward and raised his axe. Mathew rushed forward... and reached the man before he could even prepare himself to attack.

    ''They seem surprised,'' Mathew leisurely took note of the changing faces of the rest of the people within the other team. He then held himself back from yawning before swinging his saber and striking the man''s waist with the side of his weapon.

    He had no reason to kill the man nor any wish to do so. All he wanted was to discipline him and show the difference in their power.

    And yet, Mathew was still not used to his newfound strength. The zombies they encountered in the mall were too damn weak to serve as proper training dummies for him, too slow to make him realize the new limits of his body.

    The man raised his axe... only to drop it when he suddenly bent in half and was sent flying several feet back.

    He never managed to fully raise his weapon before the fight reached its conclusion.

    "You...!" the other man of the more senior age in the group red up... Only to end up with his stomach squeezed by the very same attack that Mathew brought upon hispanion.

    "Ugh..." rather than finishing his sentence and calling Mathew some sort of name, the man uttered a pained moan when he crashed into the others in his group.

    ''How the hell did they survive for so long?'' Mathew asked himself. He then cast a quick nce at the rest of the group, eager to find out who the real powerhouse was.

    ''They don''t seem to have that much ammunition, so there is no way they could make it that far into the apocalypse without a backer!'' he decided all on his own.

    And so, worried that the powerhouse of the other party would misinterpret his intentions, Mathew decided not to give him or her any time to think or act at all.

    Only two seconds passed since he appeared by the side of the group''s elder. A single second since he neutralized the other of the older guys. And so, he turned his eyes towards the next potential targets.

    ''This is making me feel weird,'' Mathew thought, reversing his grip over his sheathed saber as he turned his attention to the nearest of the adult females. He then shed his saber from the bottom left to the upper right, only to reverse his grip again and suddenly pull the weapon down, changing the direction of his attack.

    Yet, the woman he targeted... didn''t even get to react to his feint, leaning to the back in a desperate attempt to avoid his weapon.

    ''Huh?'' Mathew opened his eyes wide, forced to watch how his sheathed saber struck the woman''s leg, causing her to lose her stability and start falling down to the ground.

    ''Pull your punches, you idiot!'' Mathew reminded himself as he turned his attention to the other adult.

    As skewed as it could be, he was likely to be the bigger threat among the only two adults in the middle of their twenties in the group. Yet, even when Mathew swung his saber again...

    The man didn''t dodge.

    ''Is he willing to take the hit to gain a positional advantage?'' Mathew thought, pushing his mind to the limits of how quickly he could analyze the situation.

    Save for one encounter with Carol''s former boyfriend back at the school, it was his first, somewhat real fight with another human, after all!

    The man stood still. The only movement he bothered to make... was raising his eyebrows.<novelnext></novelnext>

    And as soon as Mathew''s saber struck him squarely in his chest, he was sent flying just like the two Mathew dealt with first.

    ''Don''t tell me, it''s the children?!'' the young man freaked out.

    He already hesitated a little when he had no other choice but to brutally attack a woman. But attacking not only a female but also one that had yet to reach her adulthood?

    ''What''s going on?'' Mathew freaked out, unable to make any sense of what was going on.

    No matter how far he pushed the other party, there was no reaction. Just as if...

    Mathew stopped his saber right as it was about to strike low, at the thigh of the high-school girl.

    ''It''s like they never had any powerhouse among them,'' he thought, gritting his teeth as he pulled his weapon back a little.

    "Kya!" the girl squealed, bending her knees and wrapping her hands around her thighs as she curled up into a small ball.

    This wasn''t something one would do when expecting help to arrive. This was a disy of a genuine fear that Mathew''s actions induced!

    "YOU!!!" one of the elders that Mathew already dealt with screamed out. He then brandished his spear made from several different tools pieced together with glue, tape, and high hopes, before poking its de made out of a simple screw right at Mathew''s side!

    "Be careful!"

    It wasn''t Nadia or any of Mathew''s girls that shouted the warning. It wasn''t Norbert either.

    "Be careful!" Mathew shouted, right as he allowed the man''s spear to go right by his side by simply taking half of a step away and leaning his body away.

    Yet, rather than making the opportunity to strike the man who ended up dragged along his own attack, Mathew reached out...

    And grabbed the man''s cor before he would end up falling right into a puddle of zombie blood!

    "Damn..." Mathew muttered, keeping the man suspended only an inch over the bloodied ground. He then lowered his spear and pulled the man back up to his legs. "That was close."

    "Who in all hells..." the youngest of the group muttered. Then, his eyes shed a little. "No," he said, shaking his head. "What in all hells are you?!"

    Mathew twitched.

    It was faint... but he finally detected exactly what he was looking for. A scent of moving mana.

    "Hello," Mathew said in aid-back voice, straightening his back and throwing a curious look at the middle-school boy that remained in the back of his group. "I''m Mathew," he said before reaching out with his now free left hand and pointing at his own group. "And those are my wives."

 Chapter 284 Fear Not, I Have No Wish To Expand My Harem!

    "And those are my wives," Mathew announced, biting himself on his tongue just a second toote.

    ''Damn,'' he cursed his own carelessness as soon as he voiced out thest word. ''Wives? Who else in this world has wives?'' he thought, gritting his teeth.

    ''Now they are going to take me either for a weirdo or some sort of a sexual predator¡­ and I can''t even reveal the truth!''

    There was no way Mathew would be as naive as to reveal the existence of his system and even something as crucial as the details of how it worked to some strangers he just met.

    If one had to be cautious when meeting new people before the apocalypse, then this rule became only far more important the moment the first zombie appeared on earth!

    ''And there is still the topic of this guy¡­'' Mathew thought, turning his eyes towards the youngest within the other group, the only one who not only appeared to be within middle-school age but also wore a school uniform that only further reinforced that fact.

    Seeing Mathew''s piercing gaze, one of the teenage girls and the adult woman stepped in, each covering one of the young kid''s sides.

    ''Huh?'' Mathew raised his eyebrows. ''Are they trying to provoke me?'' he guessed.

    And then, he connected the dots.

    They weren''t trying to provoke him by shielding that kid. They were simply under a huge impression of his introduction and when they noticed Mathew''s intense stare directed at the kid, they simply followed their instincts to protect the youngest and cutest member of their group.

    ''I wonder if they are aware,'' Mathew asked himself as he looked away from the kid and towards the leader of the group.

    The middle-aged man was currently busy gathering himself up from the ground. Yet, as soon as he got back from his legs, he instantly raised his hands in a pretty obvious gesture.

    "We surrender," the man said, raising his hands high above his head.

    At first reluctant, the rest of the man''s group soon followed. They all dropped their weapons and raised their hands, finally proving they had no further ns of going against Mathew or his group.

    "I expected you guys to put up a better fight," Mathew admitted before shaking his head in clear disappointment. "It makes one wonder just how did you get to survive for so long," he muttered.

    Thankfully, Mathew said his second bit in a voice too tiny for anyone, save for his wives with their enhanced senses, to hear. And seeing the curious look on the leader''s face, Mathew shook his head.

    "Well, whatever," he said, clearly moving on from what he just said under his nose. He then mmed the high point of his saber back towards his belt before taking a few seconds to properly lock it in ce.

    "If I may¡­" the leader spoke up while still holding his hands in the air. "What are you going to make us do, now?"

    Mathew raised his eyes at the man. Then, he raised his eyebrows.

    "Nothing at all?" he replied in a voice that made it sound like a question.

    "Huh?" the leader shrugged, clearly struggling to figure out Mathew''s intention.<novelnext></novelnext>

    The young man¡­ simply turned around and looked at his own group. And a mere momentter, Nadia stepped right past him, leaning forward as she inspected everyone from the other group.

    "I don''t see any real injuries, only some meaningless bruises," she muttered once she was done with her inspection. She then raised up and threw a quick nce at Mathew''s face. "Thanks."

    Mathew smiled lightly and shook his shoulders.

    He was eager to participate in this fight for several reasons. First, there was the need to subdue the other party and show them the insurmountable gap in skill and strength between their respective groups.

    Yet, that alone could be achieved with a far smaller degree of violence.

    No, the real reason why the fight went out the way it did was Mathew''s wish to gain some experience while fighting against not only armed but also well-motivated humans!

    "Wait¡­" the leader lowered his hands to the level of his chest, only to then bring his right hand forward in a manner one could only see in the generation who went through the school back when corporal punishment wasn''t a problem but a solution. "If you didn''t mean to hurt us¡­ What was all of that for?" the man asked.

    "Ah," Mathew smiled, turning his face to the man as he showed him a kind expression. "It was so that you guys would be painfully aware of the gap in strength between us," Mathew happily exined, as if he was a passionate teacher who asked about some sort of quirky topic within his beloved subject.

    The leader of the other party turned speechless. The rest of his group didn''t speak ever since the encounter started, so their silence didn''t make much of a difference.

    Yet, it wasn''t the leader nor the other members of the group that Mathew''s attention ended up drawn towards.

    It was the youngest of them all, the same kid that caught Mathew''s attention before.

    A chill went down Mathew''s spine as he stared right into the kid''s eyes.

    He could sense the fluctuation in the mana. They were tiny whenpared to what would happen once he would invoke his own abilities and a mere drop in the ocean whenpared to the auras of some of the monsters that would sooner orter start to appear in this world.

    Yet, knowing that the kid had some sort of skill... Didn''t make it any easier to discern just what kind of skill he had.

    ''If I know anything, it''s that he was either extremely lucky, brave, or just unhinged enough to somehow end up killing a zombie in the first hour of the apocalypse,'''' Mathew thought.

    "Was there a need to get so violent, just for that?" the leader of the other group protested, bringing what would appear as a valid point.

    "Violent?" Mathew repeated the man''s words while raising his eyebrow. He then released a short chuckle. "Uncle, trust me," he said through the tear of amusement that shot out from his eyes. "IF I wanted to do you harm," he started, leaning his head over his shoulder, "I would let my wives discipline you instead!"

    Once again, Mathew carelessly stepped on a potentialnd mine. And judging from the twitch that instantly shook all three girls within the group, this time he had no chance of avoiding the explosion.

    "Ah," he bridled himself, "forget that," he then requested. "It would be way too much pain to exin why I call those girls like that," he stated before turning his eyes towards the girls who already took a step in the back.

    ''Well, it''s not a strange thing for them to react like that,'' Mathew thought, shaking his head sideways. ''In this apocalyptic world, most would see women as nothing more but toys or tools,'' he thought. "You have nothing to fear," Mathew announced, raising his hands in an attempt to calm the females down. "It''s already hard for me to handle this silly harem of mine as it is, and I do not seek anyone else to invite to it!"

 Chapter 285 You Can Hide But You Cant Hide

    "I know I''m repeating what you once said, but to call us a silly harem¡­" Nadia muttered, joining the conversation with one of her eyebrows raised. She then shook her head in an acted disbelief. "To think a day woulde for you toin about having three different girls happy to do it with you¡­"

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    ''Keep calm,'' Mathew gave himself sound advice. ''This discussion is already lost, so just admit your mistake and get it over with!''

    "You are right, I''m sorry," Mathew said, lowering his head before Nadia in apology. "I should''ve said that this harem of mine is so full of beauty, kindness, and support that any more than what I already have and I would be a spoiled brat!" he spoke out from the very bottom of his soul, infusing all of his intent into those words.

    "Hmph!" Nadia raised her chin high and pouted, even going as far as to stomp her leg on the ground and turn her head away in one, sudden motion.

    Yet, rather than staying in that pretend-pout position, she quickly started to giggle, unable to handle her own act.

    "I''m sorry to rain down on your parade¡­" the leader of the other group said in an awkward voice, clearly not sure what to make out of the situation. "But why are you even here?"

    ''And that''s a valid question,'' Mathew thought, cutting his ownughter short as he turned his eyes back to the man.

    "In essence, we are going to check out the old castle ruins by the city''s outskirts," Mathew exined. "And in the meanwhile, we are sweeping the area in search of survivors willing to join our camp."

    In theory, sharing this kind of news with strangers was quite risky. After all, only God and the other party knew what kind of intentions they might have.

    Yet, in the long run, just telling the truth outright would make everything far simpler down the line.

    "So you want us¡­ to join your expedition?" the leader asked, raising his hand to scratch the side of his head. "And then settle in the ruins of the castle?"

    There was no need to mention any further details about which exact ruins Mathew had on his mind. After all, for how big this town was in modern times, it was only a small town back in the times when building castles was still a thing.

    As such, there was only one ruined site in the proximity, making the location obvious to everyone.

    "Yes and no," Mathew replied right away. "Join our expedition, no," he borated a little bit. "But yeah, we do wish to settle in that ruined castle."

    ''Now that I think about it, I didn''t really convey our intentions in a clear way,'' Mathew realized, a wry smile making its way to his lips in response to the state of his soul.

    The leader of the other group took a deep breath. He hesitated for but a moment before raising his head and looking straight into Mathew''s eyes.

    "I''m sorry, but we cannot join you," he said. "It''s not that your offer is bad¡­" he said, looking away to mask the uneasy look on his face. "But we will still have to decline it. After all, we are but¡­"

    The middle-aged man''s mouth suddenly closed shut, as if someone mmed their fist right against the bottom of the man''s jaw.

    Yet, there was no movement of any sort from the rest of the members of his group.

    Mathew squinted his eyes a bit, forcing himself not to look at the kid in the very back of the group.

    He couldn''t see any movement that could exin the weird movement of the man''s jaw¡­ But he was sure as heck he just felt a more intense fluctuation of mana in the air than what he already got used to!

    ''I guess there is no denying it,'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. ''No matter how well he thinks he can hide, it''s all in in view for me.''<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Mathew¡­" Norbert approached the young man from the back and rested his head over his shoulder. The former police officer then cast a quick nce towards the kid in the back before leaning over Mathew''s shoulder.

    "It''s okay," Mathew quickly shrugged Norbert''s hand off.

    ''If he can use mana, he has to have some sort of system. As such, it wouldn''t be strange if his senses were enhanced as well,'' Mathew concluded, taking a step forward to stop Norbert from whispering what he already knew.

    At this point, it would be nothing but an unnecessary risk that could potentially lead to revealing some of the cards their group held in the current situation.

    ''I would love to keep the secrecy for a little longer, but¡­'' Mathew took another deep breath. ''But there is no real merit to it,'' he thought, exhaling the air.

    "Hey, kid," Mathew called out, this time addressing the potential adversary in a direct manner. "I know you are doing what you can to salvage what''s possible from this situation," Mathew stated. "I can also tell you are using your abilities how you want¡­"

    Mathew''s face darkened. And contrary to how he was when he went off to face the entire group of people at once, his body tensed up in preparation for a serious battle.

    "Don''t be mistaken, though," Mathew uttered through his tightened lips while still looking right past everyone and directly at the kid''s face. "You are nowhere near strong enough to face me, even without my wives helping me."

    Mathew didn''t bother trying to hold the threat in his voice back.

    Given how the kid was near openly using his abilities to his own advantage, he clearly has yet to understand the position he was in.

    "Hey, what the hell are you¡­

    "I beg to differ," the kid spoke out before the leader of the group could ask for any exnation.

    The middle-aged man turned around, throwing a shocking look at the kid. Everyone else in his group mimicked his expression, all simrly shocked by the confidence in the kid''s voice.

    "You are so unbearably naive," Mathew said, shaking his head to the sides. He then rested his hands on his hips as he raised his eyes back on the kid and looked straight into his eyes. "Wake up, this isn''t a story where you get to act like one of them cool kids," he warned.

    A silence filled the entire shopping mall as Mathew continued to duel the kid over who could look at the other longer without blinking their eyes.

    "Fuck with us, and I won''t hesitate to cut you down," Mathew announced coldly, paying no mind to how those words would affect the potential rtionship with the rest of the group.

    Between gaining some allies and inviting a potential danger behind his back¡­ Mathew didn''t need to hesitate to choose!

    Mathew''s words sounded out in the shop for a moment. The situation was as tense as it could get.

    And then, seemingly out of nowhere, Mathew smiled. He also brought his eyes away from the kid and onto the face of the official leader of the group.

    "We are aware you guys are just a scavenging party for a greater group," he announced, revealing yet another of their cards.

    His smile then turned even brighter as he raised his left hand and pointed with his thumb behind his back.

    "And contrary to you, we all are also aware of a massive horde that''s heading for the rest of your group!"

 Chapter 286 Teaching Others About The System

    A moment of silence only proved just how urate Mathew was with his strike.

    The shocked look on their faces, the way they gritted their teeth, the look of desperation in their eyes¡­

    All of those proved beyond any doubt that if there was any group in direct proximity of the mall that the horde could target, it would be the main group those people came from.

    "We need to go," the leader of the group muttered after taking a few moments to deal with the shock. "We need to go¡­" he whispered, "NOW!" he then turned his voice into a shout.

    The man didn''t limit himself to just speaking out loud, instantly pushing himself forward with the clear intention of heading straight to his own demise.

    "No, you don''t," Mathew said, reaching out with his left hand and stopping the man in his tracks.

    He had no angle to put any real pressure against the man''s stomach¡­ and yet, Mathew couldn''t even feel the pressure of the man trying to just push his hand aside!

    ''Am I still a human at this point?'' Mathew thought, baffled by how weak the leader of the other group was whenpared to him. ''No, wait, that''s not the time to think about it, he decided.''

    "Seeing how that kid at the back of your group is hiding his abilities, you guys clearly have no idea about the existence of the system," Mathew said.

    In theory, the young man should keep all his cards as close to his chest as he could. And the existence of a system was one of the most important points that he could bring.

    But right now, it was the absolute minimum that he had to use in order to rein the other group in and stop them from returning to their currently besieged headquarters.

    "System?" the middle-aged man asked, turning his head to look at Mathew once he gave up on his attempts at pushing his hand aside.

    In theory, he could simply take a step to the back and then two steps to the side to move around Mathew''s reach¡­

    But he wasn''t as dumb as to expect Mathew to let him do so. He had no other choice but to ept the difference in strength between the two of them. And Mathew''s unvoiced message was clear.

    They have yet to stop talking, as their group wasn''t free to leave until they were done.

    "What do you mean by that?" the leader asked, squinting his eyes as he looked at Mathew.

    ''It''s all out for everyone to see,'' Mathew thought, looking back into the man''s eyes. ''Your anxiety, desperation, impatience¡­'' Mathew closed his eyes for a second. ''Hiding those emotions wouldn''t hurt and could give you a better position to negotiate, you know?''

    "Yeah, system," Mathew said, keeping his advice safely behind the barrier of his lips. It was one thing toment on the man''s fault, but he wasn''t as naive as to help him be a better negotiator¡­ right as they were in the middle of negotiating!

    "System¡­ as in, in games?" the woman in the middle of her twenties muttered. "Or, like in those novels that got popr recently?" she asked for rification, stepping up and taking an active part in the conversation for the first time since the encounter started.

    "Exactly," Mathew said with a nod of his head. "Or, to make it easier for the old timers to understand," Mathew turned his eyes towards the leader to his side, "it''s a source of strength that came to be along with the appearance of the first zombies in this world."

    The leader of the group locked his eyes on Mathew''s face, holding whatever he wanted to say behind his lips. He then took a deep breath and looked towards the back of his group and right at the middle-school kid hiding there.

    "And you are saying that he¡­"<novelnext></novelnext>

    The leader cut his sentence in half. His face tensed up, suggesting he found it hard to actually spell the truth about the situation out.

    Contrary to the leader, the kid he mentioned¡­ twitched. His eyes moved rapidly around, only to showcase the panic mode his mind fell into.

    He looked towards the two high-school girls that kept himpany at the back, only to see them straight right back at him. He then looked towards the two young adults¡­ Only to see curiosity in the woman and fury in the eyes of the man.

    The kid''s panic continued for one moment longer¡­ before his face calmed down all at once.

    ''So not only he was hiding his abilities, he was pretending to be a helpless kid as well,'' Mathew thought before releasing a sigh.

    "He most likely killed a zombie within the first hour of the apocalypse," Mathew said, revealing the very basics of the system acquisition rule. "That''s how I got my own system anyway," he revealed.

    The leader turned his eyes away from the kid and at Mathew''s face. Then, he pushed them even further, turning his body around and casting a quick nce at the rest of Mathew''s party.

    "Do they have a system as well?" The leader asked.

    Yet, the true question that he wanted an answer to was different.

    ''Do you mean to say they are all as strong as you are?'' Mathew thought, feeling as if he was reading the man''s mind.

    "The guy in the middle used to be a policeman. He was dispatched to my school when I pretended to act like a school shooter-to-be," Mathew said, catching himself by his tongue just a second toote again.

    "Well, it''s a long story," he quickly added, waving his hand away to cut any and all attempts at digging into this particr topic.

    "Anyway, he ended up with a system on his own. And while he isn''t abatant, his skill¡­" Mathew took a short pause, taking his sweet time to figure out how he should frame Norbert''s importance. "Let''s say his ability is of great use, just not inbat," Mathew stated.

    "As for my wives, they don''t have a system of their own," Mathew revealed only to show the leader of the other group a wide smile. "But they are beneficiaries of my own system."

    "So¡­" the leader gulped his saliva down as he alternated his eyes between Mathew''s wives and Mathew himself, "they are as strong as you?" he asked in a slightly shaky voice.

    "With exception of Norbert whose ability has other uses¡­" Mathew intentionally stretched his answer out, "yeah. Or rather," his smile deepened, "in certain scenarios, they are even stronger."

    "Guys, I don''t understand one thing," the other of the middle-aged men of the party stepped up.

    He was massaging his stomach right where Mathew''s scabbard struck him before. His other hand, though, he had raised slightly above his head like some sort of a student in a ssroom.

    "Yes," Mathew asked, curious about what made the man act like that.

    "I killed several zombies as soon as I spotted the first few of them," he revealed. The man then lowered his face a little and bit his lips. "Does that mean¡­ I''ve got a system as well?"

 Chapter 287 System Seed (1-6) Are Now Available

    ''That would normally be the case¡­'' Mathew thought, taking a closer look at the man.

    He was nearing his forties and was pretty well-built, indicating he was either properly trained or simply worked in some sort of a physical field. Yet, despite having clear predispositions for the old-type of soldier¡­

    ''I can''t feel anything,'' Mathew thought.

    There wasn''t even a hint of mana interfering with the man''s body. And while it didn''t necessarily mean he didn''t have any system of sorts¡­

    "That''s strange," Mathew muttered, pressing his lips together. ''Were my assumptions about what one needs to do to receive a system¡­ wrong?''

    Just like with all the knowledge Mathew had about the apocalypse-rted stuff, it was all assumptions, not truths. And while, to a degree, things worked as he expected, he wasn''t going to ignore the facts when he was faced with them!

    "Maybe you werete to the apocalypse?" Mathew suggested, presenting the very first option that came to his mind which would exin the situation. "I mean, maybe the zombies you killed came only an hour after the apocalypse started?"

    "I guess¡­" the man muttered, clearly dejected by Mathew''s exnation. "I can recall hearing all sorts of shouts before I actually encountered a zombie. In fact, it took me quite a while to finally find out what was going on."

    The man''s face darkened once he touched upon his memories of the early hours of the apocalypse. It darkened far beyond what he presented when he realized that he likely didn''t have a system.

    ''Well, in a world like this, every man has a story of their own,'' Mathew thought, taking a deep breath to calm himself down.

    "Eh¡­" the kid that Mathew brought up before stepped forth, passing right by all the other members of his group that were so keen on keeping him safely in the back.

    ''Wait,'' Mathew froze for a second. ''Why would they keep him in the back?'' he asked himself, looking at the approaching kid. ''No, why would they bring him out for a scavenging mission in the first ce?''

    Just like it was the case with Mathew''s own group, every member that came along had to provide something of value great enough to the team to excuse depriving the school of their abilities.

    Nadia, Le, and Daria all came because they were super strong. Norbert came with them due to his ability while Mathew was the one leading the expedition.

    Yet¡­

    In the other group, Mathew could find a purpose for everyone¡­ but the three kids at the back!

    "Now that the cat is out of the back, there is no use hiding it anymore," the kid said once he stood right in front of Mathew. He then raised his hand to the level of his chest. "I have the power of telekinesis," he revealed.

    The mana swirled around the boy. And then, one of the smaller tools scattered around suddenly flew up and ended upnding in the kid''s hand.

    ''That''s¡­ quite useful,'' Mathew thought, doing his utmost to stop a smirk from surfacing on his face. ''But how is that any different from my mind''s flesh?''

    "So that''s how!" the twenty-ish man suddenly eximed with his eyes wide open.

    "Now I get it¡­" the leader of the group then added in half-voice while throwing a furious¡­ but quite aplex stare at the kid.

    ''His fury I can understand. No one would want to learn that someone hid this kind of ability away,'' Mathew thought, imagining himself in a simr scenario for just a second. ''But where are all the other emotionsing from?'' he asked himself, unable to stop his curiosity.

    Mathew then shrugged his shoulders, giving up on digging into the topic.

    "But¡­" the kid then said, ignoring all the stares from his own team as he turned his head to Mathew. "I don''t recall killing even a single zombie early on," he revealed with a straight face. "I only did so several hours after I went into hiding," he added.

    "Huh?" Mathew only released a small moan of surprise, taken aback by the revtion.

    ''Right as I came up with a way to justify the other guy not having a system¡­ he drops a bomb like that?''

    A wave of exhaustion washed off Mathew''s mind. Reconciling his beliefs and the stuff he just learned came at an extreme mental cost. He had to somehow connect all the dots into a picture different than what he already painted in his mind.

    Or in other words, he had to take the equation he already solved, add another element to it, ande up with an actually different result than before!<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Can you recall anything strange happening around the time you received this ability?" Mathew asked, hoping for some more information that would ease his task.

    "Now that you mention it¡­" the kid turned silent as he lowered his head on his hand and rubbed his chin. "I can''t really tell," he then said, spreading out his arms in a gesture of helplessness.

    "The zombie you killed before receiving this ability¡­" Mathew muttered.

    Then, a sh of inspiration struck him.

    "The zombie you killed before you got your ability," he repeated himself in a more confident voice this time. "Was it unusually fast?"

    "Like¡­ a sprinter?" A look of uncertainty appeared on the kid''s face.

    "No," Mathew said, shaking his head. "More like¡­" he hesitated for a second, recalling the memories of the very first hour of the apocalypse. "More like a jogger."

    "Ah!" the kid''s face brightened up. "There were two like that!" he said with huge enthusiasm. "I can remember because they gave me quite the scare!"

    ''So that''s how it is¡­'' Mathew thought.

    For but a second, a wave of excitement washed over his soul. He found the error that was bugging out his logic. Yet, at the same time¡­

    His soul descended into a pit ofplete darkness.

    ''Does that mean it wasn''t the zombies killed in the first hour, but the killing of zombies from the very first wave that appeared?''

    Something clicked deep at the bottom of Mathew''s soul. As if this singr thought was a key towards some sort of a locked area of his soul.

    [System seed (ranks 1-6) are now avable at merchants'' stores]

    A system message quickly followed, causing Mathew''s entire self to freeze.

    "Mathew!" the young man heard Nadia''s desperate voice calling him. The voice broke through the barrier of an absolute shock that clouded his mind, bringing him back to a conscious state.

    "Huh?" he muttered, struggling to shake off the confusion.

    "Mathew!" Nadia called out again, despite having her lips right by Mathew''s face. "What happened? Are you okay?!"

    "Ah¡­ I am¡­" Mathew muttered, before closing his eyes and opening them back up a few times in quick session. He then shook his head. "Yeah, I''m okay," he muttered, shaking his head once again before raising his eyes.

    "What happened?" Nadia asked, still unconvinced about the young man''s state.

    "I just¡­" Mathew opened his mouth, only to stop his words froming out. He then cast a quick nce around, pulling his lips together and shaking his head. "No, I will tell youter," he added, epting the hand Nadia offered to help himself up.

    ''Just when did I fall down on my ass?'' Mathew asked himself as he stood up./

    "Be it as it may," the leader of the group interjected, "We need to go and help our people, so I implore you to let us go," he said, looking straight into Mathew''s face.

    The young man¡­ smiled.

    "With your strength, you will be going straight to your deaths," he stated, not holding back at all. "So, how about making a deal?" he suggested with his smile only widening. "If you promise to convince your people to join my group, we will go and save them from the horde," he suggested.

    Mathew then stood properly on his own and let go of Nadia''s hand. He then leaned his head over his shoulder. His mouth twitched a little as he looked at the leader of the other group.

    "That doesn''t sound like that much of a bad deal, does it?"

 Chapter 288 Deal

    Looking at it from the distance, Mathew''s meeting with the other group turned out to be pretty¡­ turn-based.

    The two groups would interact and exchange information and ideas. Then, Mathew would drop an information bomb on them. Following that, the other group would react before the entire process would start all over again.

    The silence that ensued after Mathew brought up his proposal was no different from the moments of shock from before. If anything, the silence turned even more intense than before.

    "That''s¡­" the leader of the other group brought his hand up and scratched his chin. His eyes escaped to the side. He then pursed his lips and lowered his head, avoiding Mathew''s rxed stare. "I''m sorry, but I cannot decide that on my own," he said. His eyes then looked towards the far end of the shopping alley, as far away from Mathew''s face as he could.

    "That''s reasonable," Mathew said. His huge smile didn''t fit the situation where he just received a denial right in his face. "I can''t ask you to promise stuff on behalf of others, especially if said others are not directly under you."

    Mathew shook his shoulders and turned around, seemingly walking away from the man. He stopped after mere two steps.

    The young man didn''t bother to hide the nature of his theatrics. He had no need for masking his intentions. Because no matter what the other party said¡­

    The lives of the people that they left behind were all firmly within Mathew''s hand!

    "This isn''t over, isn''t it?" the leader muttered, shaking his head sideways.

    Mathew didn''t bother trying to mask his theatrics as something natural. By making them all over the top, he was sending a certain type of message.

    And the message''s receiver just proved he got it.

    "I can''t ask you to dere for those who are not here," Mathew said, turning around on his spot and showcasing his wide smile from before. "But I can ask you to dere for those present here now."

    "I¡­" the leader attempted to protest, only to cut his sentence short and purse his lips.

    The man fought with himself in his thoughts, only allowing others a glimpse of his internal struggle through the rapid changes in his facial expression.

    "I agree," the system-owning kid from the group stepped forward, taking both his leader and Mathew by a surprise.

    ''He was their greatest triumph card in those negotiations, and he just volunteered like that?'' Mathew thought, baffled by the development. ''Well, I won''t waste such an opportunity!''

    "You guys appear to know far more about this apocalypse than we do," the kid continued, keeping up his calm and low-key cool demeanor from before. "The situation we are in isn''t one where the strongest prevail," he added, using some fancynguage Mathew didn''t expect to hear out in the nowhere in the middle of an apocalypse. "If we want to survive, we need to follow the smartest one instead."

    ''Is that the legendary sixth-grader syndrome?'' Mathew asked himself, throwing a puzzled look at the kid.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Yet, as dubious as the source of the kid''s words was, it didn''t matter. And now that the most valuable member of the other group took his stance¡­

    ''Just like I thought.'' Mathew''s eyes twitched a little when he scanned his surroundings.

    Even if they didn''t figure it out directly, all of the people he was facing could somehow feel the importance of what just happened.

    Not a single one of them ended up speaking up. Yet, everyst one of them soon took a step forward and raised their faces, all looking right at their leader.

    "Fine, fine!" the man shouted, waving his hands again with a slight annoyance written on his face. He then shook his head, ignoring all the stares at him while he looked right into Mathew''s eyes. "Let me ask you one question first," he requested, with no intention of giving Mathew a chance to deny this request.

    "Why do you want us to join your group so much?"

    Mathew didn''t reply right away. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, and acted as if he was trying toe up with some sort of a smart response.

    "Initial investment?" Mathew suggested after a moment with a confused look on his face. "I mean, given what we bring to the table, we will have more people trying to join us than we will be able to handle," he stated. "So, in order for the news of our group to start spreading, we need to have some neers with us."

    Mathew''s logic was simple.

    It didn''t matter if he could get the people in front of him to join his group. They just happened to be in a convenient spot for Mathew to exploit for his own benefit. But, in order for the fame of what they could offer to the survivors to spread¡­ some people had to witness it firsthand.

    And the group of seven that Mathew''s party stumbled into the shop only had their luck to thank for the encounter.

    "I don''t really¡­ understand," the leader twisted his lips in an ugly grimace. He already denied Mathew''s offer once, back before the kid in their group made his stance known. And now, he acted as if he was stalling for time.

    As such, it was no wonder when fat drops of sweat started to pour down the man''s forehead.

    "Listen, we don''tck resources. We don''tck weapons. We don''t evenck safe space for nonbatants," Mathew listed out. "What weck, is manpower that could allow us to exploit the advantages of our situation."

    Mathew took a step forward and looked right into the leader''s eyes. Due to the small height difference between the two, he had to look up a little. ''Does it makes me appear inferior?'' Mathew asked himself, only to shake his head and focus back on the face of the man ahead.

    "Let it be, then," the man sighed a momentter, unable to withstand Mathew''s passionate gaze. He then nodded his head before raising his chin and announcing, "if you help us ward off the horde, I will follow you and join your group."

 Chapter 289 Not Holding Back At All

    "If you help us ward off the horde you mentioned, I and my people will follow and join your group."

    This was the kind of statement Mathew was waiting for. A pledge of allegiance, even if it was without any real weight.

    There was no magic that would force the other group to follow Mathew''smand now that they submitted to him. There would be nothing stopping them from stabbing Mathew back or simply leaving as soon as he would take care of the horde.

    ''But none of that matters,'' Mathew thought, allowing a small smile at the corner of his mouth. ''All I need is a chance to make them realize just how insanely good my offer is!''

    "All the supplies we''ve gathered during this scavenging run are in¡­" the former leader of the other group turned around, raising his hand to point in some direction.

    "I don''t care," Mathew cut into the man''s words before shaking his shoulders. "We don''tck resources at all, be it food, fuel, or ammunition," he stated before lowering his eyes and sweeping his attention across the floor. Then, his eyes stopped right when he noticed the only kind of item that could be of real, practical use right away.

    "We don''t have a lot of guns, though," Mathew then added, taking three steps to the side before squatting down with a sigh and picking up the pistol.

    Mathew''s instinctively wanted to shove the gun under his belt¡­ but he held out against this natural reaction of his. Instead, he turned his head and scanned everyone gathered in the ce. Then, as his eyes continue to move around, he took notice of the huge number of zombies his group left in their wake a bit before.

    ''I guess there is no other choice,'' Mathew thought, heaving a deep sigh.

    "Guys," Mathew turned his head back towards the former leader of the other group. As the rest of said group was in no hurry to pledge their loyalty as their leader did, it only made sense for Mathew to address them through the man. "We will need to split up."

    This was the one sentence that everyone, even before the apocalypse, already grew tired of. The characters splitting off in a horror movie always led them to get picked out one by one. Heroes splitting up in stories always lead to some of them ending up as sacrifices.

    And yet, Mathew still went in, perfectly aware of this bias, and suggested for the group split up.

    "Daria," Mathew called out before anyone could as much as say a word of protest. "Can I leave cleaning this ce to you?" He asked.

    But it was clear to everyone that Daria never really had a say in this matter.

    "Sure thing," the girl stepped forward, not bothered by being ordered around at all. She patted her hands against her hips before crossing her arms over her chest. "Who do I get?" she then asked, instantly moving over to the details of the situation.

    "I will leave all of them but the two oldest ones with you," Mathew replied. He then turned his head to the former leader and the only other man simr in age to the former leader. "Don''t get me wrong. You guys will be nothing more but a hindrance," he pointed out mercilessly.

    Mathew then looked away and sighed again.

    "But I still need you to witness what''s about to be of the horde, so you two will being with us."

    "Wait for just a second!" the leader protested. He then shot his hand to the back, pointing at the rest of his group. "Do you want to just throw them aside and leave to die?!"

    The man''s face tensed up. He already learned that he was no match for Mathew alone. And given how the rest of Mathew had yet to make a single move, he knew for sure that he couldn''t oppose the young man.

    And yet, with the responsibility for the lives of hispanions now weighing down on his shoulders, the middle-aged man gulped down his saliva.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "If I was leaving them to die, why would I leave one of my wives with them?" Mathew asked, right before the man''s desperation could spill over and result in him doing something unsavory. "Norbert will keep tabs on this ce at all times. If anything happens, we will rush back here," he added with a shake of his shoulders.

    "What about me?" the kid with the special abilities came forward. He ignored how tense the situation was, showcasing that getting a system didn''t change his childish nature. "Can Ie too?"

    ''It would be good to keep him away from the cores,'' Mathew thought, ever-so-slightly squinting his eyes. ''But can I afford to do that?''

    Mathew looked at the kid for a moment while battling with his thoughts.

    "No, you need to stay here," he added after a short moment. "We won''t be able to afford to babysit you while dealing with the horde," Mathew exined only for his eyes to twitch a little. "And this ce needs to be cleaned up as soon as possible. And for that, we can''t spare to have you sit around and just watch us fight."

    "Cleaned up?" the former leader of the group picked up on the hint Mathew intentionally infused into his denial. "And what''s the rush with doing so?" he kept on the pressure¡­ only to avert his eyes when Mathew gave him a mocking look.

    After all, it was the former leader''s main group that was currently in danger of being consumed by a horde. If anyone should be in rush, then it wasn''t Mathew but him!

    "There are small, shiny stones in the brains of every zombie," Mathew exined after allowing the man to cook in his shame for a little. "They do have some uses, but that''s not what''s important about them."

    Mathew took three steps away, approaching the nearest zombie corpse before smashing its skull to bits with a single strike down of his heel. He then leaned down and picked up the small core before bringing it up to showcase the item to everyone.

    "The main thing about those crystals is that when zombies consume them, they grow stronger and evolve."

    Mathew ignored the innate wish to stash the crystal, opting to drop it on the ground instead.

    ''For now, it will be best if they disregarded their value,'' he thought, turning his eyes away from the stone and back to the people around.

    "You are¡­" the former leader hesitated.

    "Just go with the flow, brother," the leader''s only age-likepanion stepped forth and ced his hand on the man''s shoulder. "It''s not like we can oppose then anyway," he added with a shake of his shoulders.

    The leader only shook his head.

    "You are really not holding back on what information you are willing to share, are you?" he suggested while raising his eyes to Mathew''s face. Yet, due to the difference in their physiques, rather than looking up, he ended up looking down on the young man instead.

    The leader shook his head and reached his hand out.

    "I''m Peter, by the way."

    "I''m Mathew," the young man replied, epting the offered hand and giving it a tight shake. "And I hope we will cooperate nicely."

 Chapter 290 In A Hurry

    "Remember, we will have Norbert run periodical checks on your situation. So, if the shit goes down, you only need to hold on until that check, and then a few moments it will take us to return," Mathew instructed Daria. He then leaned in over her ear. "And in the worst-case scenario, remember," he lowered his voice even further. "They are all receable. You are not."

    Mathew wasn''t nning to cull the numbers of the other group of survivors. He had absolutely nothing to gain from letting them die.

    Yet, at the same time, the value of their lives didn''t even begin to measure the value of Daria''s life. Not only because of how many cores the young man invested in the girl but mostly because she was his wife.

    Someone he was supposed and someone he was going to protect to the best of his ability.

    "Got it," Daria nodded her head with a carefree smile. "If all the zombies in the area are like the ones we found here, there is absolutely no need for you to worry," she then added, recognizing Mathew''s worries and doing her best to cater to them.

    "If something really bad happens and we won''t be able toe, just try to run around until the night," Mathew added right as he took a step back. "Once the night starts, you will be near invincible."

    Mathew''s sentence wasn''t an exaggeration.

    Even now, hardly any unevolved zombie that didn''t go through two evolutions would pose any challenge for the girl. And even a double-evolved monster would still have a hard time fighting with her head-on. Yet, when taking the nature of her ability into ount, once the night would start¡­

    Then unless a triple-evolved zombie or a twice-evolved monster were to appear, nothing could do her any harm.

    "Well then," Mathew mused before turning around and taking the first step toward the exit of the mall.

    The second step followed the first. Then came the third. And before Mathew could even realize it, his now changed group moved out of the hugepound and back to the open space of the parking lot.

    "We need to head west," Norbert reported, stretching his hand out as soon as Mathew stopped to give him some time to scout the situation.

    "Huh?" Peter raised his eyebrows. "How do you¡­"

    "We are in a hurry, let''s go!" Mathew cut the man off, opting to rush ahead instead of wasting time exining Norbert''s ability.

    Or rather, he wasn''t all that keen to reveal its details to the people he ultimately knew nothing about.

    And due to this mindsetbined with the actual need for them to hurry it up, their travel to the horde turned out quite differently from how Mathew''s group moved around before.

    They paid no heed to all the small groups of zombies that roamed into the streets Mathew''s group formerly cleared. They didn''t stop to kill them, only ever smashing the zombies away, and even then, only if they stood right in their path.

    "Are you keeping up?" Mathew turned his head around while keeping the pace of a light jog.

    The only reason why he ended up moving at a human-like speed¡­ were the two men who temporarily joined the group.

    "We are okay!" Peter''s friend called back, using only a few words to save his breath. And yet, even this small interruption to his rationing of air came to haunt the man mere few stepster.

    "Shout when you will be reaching your limits," Mathew requested. "It will be a pain if we crash into some zombies with you two unable to move at all," he exined his wish before turning his head back and continuing on ahead.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Matty!" Nadia approached Mathew''s side before calling him out. She then brought her hands to her belt before pulling out her saber and passing it over, handle-first, to the young man. "Here!"

    "Are you sure?" Mathew grabbed the weapon right away but still held it ready to pass it back. The only reason why he epted it in the first ce was how dangerous it was to run around with a brandished de like that.

    "I''m fine with just this." Nadia smiled while pulling out and then unting her machete. "It suits me better," she added only for her smile to get infused with some bloodthirsty tones.

    "It''s all because I forgot to rece our weapons," Mathew muttered as he attached the weapon to his belt before turning his eyes back to the road ahead. "Sorry for that, my bad."

    "Don''t sweat it," Nadia waved her hand. She didn''t seem to mind the small disturbance at all, especially when the horde they were going for¡­ likely wasn''t a challenge at all.

    ''The problem has severalyers,'' Mathew thought, opting not to involve the girl in his self-loathing thoughts. ''If we keep on using our old weapons, their value will likely deteriorate once taken to be sold at the merchant,'' he thought¡­

    And then Mathew nearly stumbled on his feet.

    ''Wait a second,'' he told himself, turning his eyes towards the girl.

    He could clearly see the rtively small de rocking up and down on the girl''s hip. The problem, however,y in the fact that Nadia¡­ ended up giving up her machete for Mathew to sell!

    ''Did she get it from Le?'' Mathew turned his eyes to the girl on his other side.

    And sure enough, he could only see a single de decorating the girl''s side.

    ''So she thought about it before and then bid her time to make the most of the opportunity¡­'' Mathew thought, taken aback by the level of scheming necessary to pull something as small as this. ''Did she do that to gain favor or something?''

    Nadia was Mathew''s one true love and the only one he truly considered to be his wife in the traditional meaning of the world. And even though she didn''t usually show her jealousy over Mathew''s other wives¡­

    ''Maybe this weird rtionship of ours isn''t as easy on her as I was led to believe,'' Mathew thought, only to shake his head and then release a long sigh.

    "We are two blocks out from the backside of the horde!" Norbert gave out the call. "There is a nice building to our left. If we clear it quickly enough to avoid detection, we will have a perfect vantage point to prepare for the fight!"

    ''His experience as a tactical officer really doese in handy at times,'' Mathew thought, giving the man a stare before slowing his steps a tiny bit more.

    "Which building exactly?" he asked once he leveled up himself with the man.

    "That one," Norbert said, raising his hand and pointing it towards a rtively small, seven-story high building sitting at the corner two streets away.

    There were no zombies directly on that street for as far as Mathew could tell... But there were some roaming right at the next intersection. And judging how all those free-roamers appeared to be drawn towards the same direction, Norbert''s call was as close to the truth as it could be.

    "Let''s im that building then," Mathew quickly reached a decision. "It should be a great ce to leave our guests behind while ensuring they will have a great view of the action!"

 Chapter 291 At The Top Of The... Building

    Getting to the building was the easy part of the job. Getting to its top without alerting all the zombies nearby, however, was an entirely different thing.

    Right after the group bashed the doors open and rushed inside, they had to face a group of seven different zombies. From the marks on the inner side of the doors and the walls all around the entrance, those zombies were desperately trying to get out to the street, making it impossible to avoid them.

    Yet¡­

    Just like the zombies back at the mall, those ones have yet to go through the first upgrade, something that all the zombies in the vicinity of Mathew''s school and the media building he conquered have gone through already.

    As such, after three quick shes of Mathew''s doing and two more by each of his wives, the first group in the building fell.

    "Barricade the doors, Le, stay with them just in case, then follow us up!" Mathew called out, not stopping even for a second.

    Barricading the door was the obvious countermeasure against having zombies enter this ce once they would all go upstairs. And yet, their hastiness when it came to breaking the entrance open made it quite the challenge to block said entrance again!

    "On it, keep on going!" Le reported, saluting her saber to her forehead in some weird, anime-like move, before she stopped in her tracks, turned around, and ran back to the broken entrance.

    "Stay on me," Mathew called out just in case, ignoring all the corridors and doors leading to separate apartments, focusing on conquering the stairs instead.

    There were no zombies on the first three floors. The broken windows at the end of each of the corridors were the likely culprit behind it. Yet, the situation on the fourth floor was slightly different.

    ''So many of them,'' Mathew thought, changing his course from the next flight of stairs to the corridor of the level.

    There were about eleven zombies all gathered at a single point in ce, all scraping and knocking at a single, reinforced door.

    ''Someone''s likely inside,'' Mathew took notice, sliding on the bloodied floor of the corridor as he ran Nadia''s saber across four different necks in a single move.

    "Die!" Nadia whispered, properly holding her voice back when she leaped right into the gap Mathew opened and started to cut and sh like some sort of madman.

    ''Damn,'' Mathew thought, taken aback by the sight while he busied himself with the two zombies furthest away in the corridor. ''She''s really a sight to behold when she gets serious,'' he thought as two more heads fell down by his feet.

    "Let''s keep going," Nadia urged, breaking Mathew out of his state of awe as she turned right around as soon as her machete plunged into the skull of thest zombie. She pulled it out while taking a step back towards the stairs, not even looking at the fruits of herbor.

    The next two floors turned out to be empty as well. All the zombies that ended up there most likely either fell out of the building windows or ended up massacred by that lone door on the fourth floor.

    The seventh and thest floor weren''t all that different either. With only three zombies to jumpscare Mathew and his girl, it ended up secured properly with just a passing swing from each of the partners.

    "Now, to the roof," Mathew muttered once he reached the very top of the staircase and ced his hand on the metal bar that acted like the door''s handle. "Are you ready?" he then asked, taking a short pause to look at Nadia.

    "Let''s go!" Nadia happily replied, raising her left elbow before using her clothing on its outer part to wipe the blood off her machete.

    Mathew pushed the door open, ready for any kind of challenge that could await them at the top.

    The young man had an inner feeling that reaching the very top of the building would force them to face some sort of a tougher enemy. Maybe an evolved zombie or two. A twice-evolved zombie lingered at the back of Mathew''s head as a remote possibility.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Yet, contrary to all the game mechanics that Mathew discovered about this world of apocalypse¡­ the boss awaiting in thest part of the location didn''t appear to be implemented. And save for some birds that first looked at the neers in the doorway only to then get scared and fly away¡­ the rooftop waspletely deserted.

    "Well," Mathew muttered as he straightened his back and took yet another nce at the roof. "That''s quite anticlimactic," he added as he lowered his weapon.

    "I''m here!" Le then called out, bursting right through the doors only to stop when she noticed Mathew and Nadia simply standing and doing nothing. "Fuck!" she cursed. "I''mte?"

    "There wasn''t much to do in the first ce," Mathew replied only to take a look over the girl''s shoulder and back into the staircase. "Where''s Norbert?"

    "Coming right¡­ up!" the man replied himself, although, from the sound of his voice, it was quite clear he was quickly reaching the limits of his stamina.

    ''Right, he hardly gained any levels so he isn''t that different from your average human,'' Mathew thought, biting down on his lips. ''How could I forget? Even if he is a former police officer, that doesn''t mean he has the same kind of stamina that we do!''

    "Get up here and take a moment for rest, then try to gather all the information about the horde below," Mathew ordered, turning his eyes away from the door and then moving towards the edge of the roof.

    ''Strange,'' he thought when he stood right at the edge, staring down at the ground quite a distance. ''Before the apocalypse, just taking a glimpse from this kind of height would make me light-headed,'' he thought.

    The young man raised his sight, moving it through the streets and alleys below, all perfectly visible from his vantage point.

    And there it was, a horde like many others Mathew''s team already brought down.

    It appeared to be about a thousand zombies strong and sprawling all over what looked like a car mechanic shop.

    ''Some are banging on the garage doors, others are trying to force their way through the main entrance,'' Mathew quickly took some observations on his own.

    "Mathew,e back," Norbert then called.

    He was resting his hands on his knees while breathing quite heavily. Fat drops of sweat poured down from his forehead. His hair was sticky with all the sweat and dirt it absorbed.

    The eyes of the two men meet up.

    "I think I located where both of the evolved leaders are," he announced.

    "Double evolved? Triple?" Mathew asked, perfectly aware this was unlikely to be the case.

    Or, in other words, he simply wanted to know whether the horde two streets ahead would be a challenge or a walk in the park for the threebatants of their group.

    "I told you before, I can''t really confirm it," Norbert sighed. "But they don''t appear to be that much stronger than the zombies around them," he pointed out. "So I guess, there are only two once-evolved zombies that oversee this entire horde?"

    Mathew smiled. A hint of red shed in Nadia''s eyes. Lezily swung her saber before resting its dull end on her shoulder.

    "I only need to know one more thing, then," Mathew announced right as his two guests from the other group finally managed to climb up the stairs and get to the roof. "Where are they?"

 Chapter 292 Relocation Plan

    "The nearest one is directly at the front, banging its hands at the garage doors we can see from her," Norbert reported. He pulled out his arm and pointed towards the area Mathew took notice of before. "Second door from the right, near the left corner of it."

    "And the other?" Mathew inquired.

    "Two blocks south, at the back of the thickest part of the horde."

    "Wait, what?" Mathew muttered in surprise.

    He then turned his eyes in the direction Norbert implied.

    It was just like the policeman said. The horde didn''t upy only the area directly adjacent to the car workshop but spread out in a long line before curving around the corner.

    ''The building is blocking the view to see how far the horde extends in that direction,'' Mathew took notice and turned his eyes to Norbert.

    "You can see the bulk of the horde, there are only between fifty to a hundred zombies left in the areas blocked from your view," the policeman replied right away, not needing even a second to figure out what Mathew was thinking.

    ''Is he that observant, or is it the experience of a veteran speaking?'' Mathew took a moment to wonder before turning his head around and taking a nce at the two guests in his group.

    "I believe you guys need to exin the situation. Because from where I stand, it doesn''t make much sense."

    Despite the height advantage, Mathew could only see the few streets nearest to the building he was in. And when it came to the streets on the west-east axis that were shifted one or two blocks to the side, he could only see a few meters into them before his view would be blocked by the local buildings.

    Or, in simpler terms, he could only take a proper look at the road directly one block west. And it just happened, that the other evolved zombie was hidden behind the corner where Mathew''s eyes couldn''t reach!

    "There is something else," Norbert took a step forward and leaned over Mathew''s ear. "From what I can see, that other one is on the direct line of approach from our camp."

    The blood froze in Mathew''s veins. The weight of implications that this could potentially bear was greater even than what Mathew learned back in the mall about the potential origins of the system.

    ''If this isn''t a coincidence¡­ Then there is a huge chance the zombies can somehowmunicate between themselves,'' Mathew thought and gulped down his saliva. ''Does it apply only to evolved ones?'' He took a deep breath. ''Or maybe the evolved ones can gather information from all the zombies they want?''

    The young man closed his eyes.

    ''No, that''s not really possible,'' he then decided. ''And even if it''s the case, they likely cannot process that much information anyway,'' he poured some cold water over his worries.

    "You called?" Peter and his friend spoke up once they reached Mathew''s position.

    They were breathing heavily, clearly struggling to get up just a few flights of stairs.

    ''Is this the stamina they wanted to go against this horde with?'' Mathew thought, raising his eyebrow.

    His mind filled with disbelief¡­ that the young man weed with all his soul.

    There was hardly anything that could be worse for him to think about than the idea of zombies only needing to evolve a few more times before they would turn into a hive-minded beings, controlled by a single and near impossible-to-kill entity.

    "There are no ways a horde this size wouldn''t try to surround its target," Mathew started with an obvious statement.

    It was something he learned from his own experiences at the school. The educationalpound was far bigger than the square blocks most of the city was based upon. And even with that fact in mind, his group had toe up with various ideas on how to attract all the zombies into just one side of thepound.

    But with what Mathew could see right now, this horde didn''t appear to be all that interested in taking the block from all sides, satisfied with a frontal assault on the car workshop and some spillover over the sides of the block.

    "I need to know why," Mathew stated, turning his head around and looking right at Peter''s face.

    "That''s¡­" Peter hesitated for a second. He then squinted his eyes as he looked at the headquarters of his group. "Maybe it has something to do with the relocation n?" he then guessed.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Oh," Peter''spanion twitched a little. "He meant the orders we got to vacate the residential building to the south of the block. We spent two damn days cleaning it out¡­ Only to then barricade all the exits and windows before abandoning it."

    "Is that all there is to it?" Mathew asked, turning his eyes over to Peter.

    ''Pushing everyone to just a single part of the block could do the job of taunting all the zombies to a smaller area, I guess,'' Mathew thought.

    And yet, a gut feeling told him it couldn''t be all that simple. After all, most of the survivors of his own group were all gathered in a single wing of the schoolpound, yet, the zombies still attempted to break in from all around the barrier''s perimeter!

    "Once we were done, the high leader ordered everyone out and upied the ce for a whole day," Peter pointed out. "I have no idea what he did back then as no one was allowed to look¡­"

    Peter''s face turned tense as he fell deep into his thoughts.

    "But when I recall the looks of the small group of people that worked there during that day¡­" Peter hesitated for a second. He then raised his eyes and looked straight into Mathew''s face. "Not only they were all covered in blood and filth, but they appeared to be quite traumatized by what happened too."

    ''Blood, trauma, an entire day''s worth of work¡­'' Mathew thought.

    And a memory from his original life responded to the call of those tags.

    ''It can''t be¡­'' he thought, forgetting how to breathe for a moment. ''He''s here?!''

    It was just a small memory. A mere hint mixed with rumors of what happened roughly a week into the apocalypse and coupled with some things that Mathew wished with all his being he never saw or heard.

    And it all went down when the school was invaded by a group of system holders.

    It was a memory that Mathew actively tried to push out of his mind, as it was too gruesome for him to handle.

    Yet, regardless of what happened in the room that produced several hours of the worst kind of screams Mathew ever heard in his life, there was one undeniable fact.

    After that day, no zombie bothered to approach that part of the school at all. It only changed five dayster, when some zombies and some monsters went through a second evolution, growing somewhat resistant to whatever was holding them back from the area before.

    "I see¡­" Mathew whispered. He closed his eyes and shrugged a little, trying to shake off those unsavory memories.

    ''Back then, I didn''t care all that much as I only saw my former bullies being led to that room¡­ But I know for a fact they never came out, not even as zombies.''

    Mathew took a deep breath and opened his eyes.

    The first thing he saw was Nadia''s and Le''s worried faces while they looked at him. Then, he noticed the look of concern on Norbert''s face.

    "I think I know what''s going on," Mathew muttered only to put all the intensity he could spark into his eyes and then the look he threw on Norbert''s face. "And if you don''t want to lose your mind, you shouldn''t check that ce out."

    "I¡­" Norbert hesitated for a little. He then gritted his teeth and lowered his face. "I understand."

    "Good," Mathew summed up and stood up. "Am I safe to assume that group of yours controls the entire block, save for that residential building?" he asked, once again turning his eyes to Peter and his friend.

    "Yeah," Peter nodded his head. "We were told when clearing that ce out that we had to secure the plot of grass in the middle of the block to start growing some veggies," he added.

    ''A sound idea,'' Mathew thought. ''An actual source of fresh food in the apocalypse?'' Mathew smiled a little. ''Even if it wouldn''t provide nearly enough, it would still help a little.''

    "Then that settles it," Mathew muttered, turning his face away and looking towards his wives.

    "So, girls," he called out before crossing his hands on his chest and revealing a charming smile. "How do you think we should hunt them all down?"

 Chapter 293 Proper Way To Approach The Coming Fight

    "It may sound too cowardly, but I think we should stick together," Le was the first one to respond to Mathew''s call. "I know that it''s not like me to be this careful, but I think we should cut all the potential risks."

    ''This really isn''t like her,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes a little. ''But¡­ why?''

    There always had to be a reason for a sudden and unexpected change. Just like in physic a body in motion would stay in motion unless a new force were to act upon it, the same could be said about people''s temperament.

    ''The only thing that changed¡­'' Mathew thought before slowly lowering his eyelids. ''Daria, isn''t it?''

    "I don''t mean to disregard your point. In fact, I do agree with it," Nadia said.

    Due to her beingte to speak up first, she now faced a reality where she could no longer bring up the points that Le did.

    In theory, it was fine to have the same opinion. But given how it was the first time for Mathew to explicitly ask them for ideas, Nadia''s reluctance to just repeat Le''s words was visible all over her face.

    "But I think we should ask ourselves first whether or not going together is actually going to decrease the risks," Nadia pointed out.

    ''Oho?'' Mathew''s eyes twitched a little as he watched the mental duel with quite a bit of interest. ''You managed to turn Le''s words around¡­ but that was the easy part. Can you now back it up with sound logic?''

    "We have the benefit of a surprise attack," Nadia pointed out after a moment of silence. "That means, wherever we will execute our first attack, we will likely meet a lot less resistance," she pointed out.

    ''That''s right,'' Mathew thought, nodding his head along the girl''s words.

    "That''s why I believe staying together might not be the most optimal route," Nadia finalized her im, both her posture and her voice gaining confidence with every word she said. "Because if we split up, we will have the bonus of advantage while striking both of the evolved zombies simultaneously. If we attack together, however," Nadia put on a short pause before gracing Le with a small, sympathetic smile, "we will end up alerting the one that we choose to attack second."

    "Norbert?" Mathew called out.

    "Huh?" the former police officer twitched. "What''s up?"

    "What do you think we should do?" Mathew asked with a shrewd smile.

    "Huh? Me?" Norbert took air into his mouth before backing off a single step and raising both of his hands with their palms directed outwards. "Don''t drag me into this!" he cried out, desperately seeking a way out of the unexpected trap.

    "You have the most experience in real battles and you are the only one with any background in tactics," Mathew pointed out. "I''m not asking you to judge which of the two ideas is better. I''m asking for some ideas of your own."

    "You damn brat¡­" Norbert muttered under his nose before ncing over at the girls.

    They both had the same, expecting look in their eyes, both eager to have their proposal backed up by him.

    It was also sure that backing up one girl would buy some of her favor at the cost of irritating the other. And what Norbert learned from over twenty years of his life experience¡­

    Bad experiences stuck around people''s minds longer and tighter than good ones!

    "Listen here," Norbert said while releasing a long sigh. "This is a situation¡­ that a proper tactician wouldn''t allow to happen in the first ce," he said. "So if you want me to know what I would do now¡­" he hesitated for a short moment, "I can only say that I would let us end up in this situation, to begin with."

    "I don''t think we are in some sort of a deep shit, though," Mathew protested, genuinely taken aback by the intensity of Norbert''s denial.

    "And that''s exactly my point," Norbert replied with a triumphant look on his face. "We are in a world and circumstances where my knowledge and experiences do not apply."<novelnext></novelnext>

    Norbert leaned his head to the back before covering his face with his hand.

    "If you were stranded in an enemy territory, surrounded by an enemy militia that would never give up chasing you, with only a few elite brothers to help you out¡­" Norbert put on a short pause on his story. He then pulled his hand out of his face and slowly brought his head back to its normal position.

    "In that kind of scenario, the only tactics you would be concerned with would be about how your unit couldmit suicide while inflicting the least amount of pain on each other."

    "I see¡­" Mathew muttered. He lowered his head in apology. "I''m sorry, you are right. It wasn''t wrong of me to ask you while forcing a position of an expert on you at the same time."

    Mathew shook his head before raising it back and looking at the girls.

    "Now, do you want to hear what I think about the situation?" he asked.

    There were still some hints of tension caused by the light sh with Norbert visible on Mathew''s face, but the blush of the positive mood already started to inch its way to Mathew''s cheeks.

    Neither Nadia nor Le bothered to answer. They both simply stood where they were, one with her hands along her waist and the other with her arms crossed over her chest.

    Norbert, happy that he escaped the guillotine of risking the wrath of either of the girl, didn''t dare to make even the smallest noise.

    As such, only the slight moves that the two guests of the group made filled the air.

    "I believe you are both wrong," Mathew said, to the surprise of everyone on the roof. "I''m not saying that being careful is a bad thing, but we need to consider the time, the effort, Daria''s near return, and potential dangers back at the camp¡­"

    Mathew shook his head after listing only a few out of a long list of things that he kept thinking about ever since the group made the first step outside of the safety of the school''s barrier.

    "All of those," Mathew pointed his hand down towards the street, "are the weakest zombies that we''ve encountered so far. Weaker even than the ones we dealt with at our second camp," Mathew said, intentionally omitting the usual names he would use to refer to the locations they upied.

    After all, there were only so many media buildings and schools in the city, and he still wasn''t ready to trust the guests with this kind of vital information.

    "Those are all basic zombies," Mathew kind of repeated himself before shaking his head, as if in shame. "To be perfectly honest, just standing here and nning the attack makes me feel like a darn bully!"

    The girls turned their heads and looked at each other. The same expression of shock and realization appeared on their faces.

    ''It seems that me asking them made the two of them overthink stuff,'' Mathew thought, taking a deep breath.

    "Well then, let''s put it this way," he stated. "Whoever will kill more zombies once we start the hunt, will get the upgrade of their weapon prioritized," Mathew announced.

    The girls'' faces turned still. For a fraction of a second, they digested the information.

    "Stop!" Mathew called out before the girls could bolt out to the outside. ''I guess they understand the value of an upgrade,'' Mathew thought, feeling a wave of relief washing over his body.

    "We need to start the challenge with the evolved ones," he said. "You know, just to not be careless," he added with a wink.

    And then, Mathew turned his head around and looked at the guests stuck by the side of the entrance to the roof.

    "And for the record," Mathew smiled, "my groupys im to the cores of all the zombies we conquer in theing battle."

 Chapter 294 Splitting Up The Battlefield

    "Was it really necessary?" Nadia asked as the three of them rushed down the stairs and towards the barricaded entrance to the building. "They didn''t strike me as someone who knew the value of the cores," she pointed out.

    "So there was no reason to bring it up to their attention, right?" Mathew replied, perfectly aware of the point that the girl made.

    He thought about it himself, all the way back in the mall. And yet, when seeing the number of zombies within the horde, Mathew still decided to go against his earlier n.

    "That''s right," Nadia nodded her head right as she reached out, grabbed the railing, and jumped over thest few stairs only tond on the next flight and continue her dash downwards.

    "Back there, we could y dumb," Mathew replied, opting to save his strength for the fight instead of using it for borate moves while simply running down the stairs. "Here, if we start gathering the cores, we are bound to attract attention," he replied.

    Yet, the truth behind the change in Mathew''s mind was slightly different. Yet, as it was based on an extremely far-fetched guess, he dared not to speak about it.

    ''What are the chances two damn evolved zombies would appear in a ce that doesn''t have a merchant already?'' he thought to himself. ''If I recall correctly, we only had to face the first few evolved zombies after summoning the first merchant!''

    There was no way for Mathew to prove this guess right or wrong. He had no ability to figure out the range of where spending the cores would affect the zombies. As such, he could never know if it was his spending on the cores that influenced the zombies or if the evolved ones simply approached them from a different area.

    ''Still, if my guess about this bastard being here is correct¡­'' Mathew closed his eyes and took a deep breath. ''Then there is no way he failed to figure it out.''

    They reached the bottom floor of the building.

    "I will take care of the one down south!" Le volunteered.

    "Sure thing," Mathew nodded his head, stopping in his steps and sliding thest few meters before reaching the barricaded doors.

    He innately felt the pressure to just smash through it¡­ but doing so would attract way too much unnecessary attention. And so, in the end, Mathew ended up dismantling the barricade they set up not that long ago while making sure to cause as little noise as he could.

    "I will need two minutes to reach the ce," Le added right as Mathew pulled down thest broken piece of furniture that blocked the building''s entrance.

    Mathew raised his right eyebrow as he looked at the girl.

    "Don''t give me this kind of look," Le rolled her eyes. "I need to get there without alerting the zombies at all, don''t I?" she pointed out. "If I were to just run through the streets, fifteen seconds should be enough."

    "I didn''t say anything," Mathew raised his hands with his palms towards the girl while putting up an innocent smile.

    "You didn''t need to," Le countered while rolling her eyes again. "Oh right," she twitched a little before turning her eyes to Nadia. "Are you okay with me taking that one?"

    Nadia leaned her head over to the side, taken slightly aback by the question.

    "I''m far more suited to fight in a dense crowd," she pointed out. "It would be a waste of your ability to make you fight the evolved one at the front," she stated.

    "So you are not going to say I got an early advantageter?" Le pressed the topic.

    "Where did you even get the idea that I would?" Nadia asked, raising her eyebrows as high as her forehead allowed.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Ah, I didn''t mean to imply¡­"

    "Girls, calm down," Mathew spoke out, cutting into the chatter between the two. "We are going out in three, two, one¡­"

    "Now!"

    Mathew pushed the doors open before sprinting towards the nearest zombie.

    The girls quickly followed suit, each aiming for a different group of zombies directly ahead.

    ''Die,'' Mathew thought, shing his saber sideways before ripping the heads of the remaining zombies off their necks with a simple thought turned into mind''s flesh.

    ''Damn,'' he then stood in one ce, taken aback by the bloody results of his ability.

    ''I only ever expected to disturb them a little, not to end them so easily!''

    "I will be going, then!" Le called. She then took a quick look at the result of Mathew using his ability. For a second, she simply stood in her ce with her eyes wide open.

    Le shook her head, dropping the shock that overtook her mind. She turned around and bolted off down the street, only to stop by the nearest corner, taking her time to check the situation out before pushing further.

    "We need to get going too," Nadia hurried Mathew up. "I''m counting the time, so let''s not waste it."

    "Sure thing," Mathew replied, following after the girl as soon as he managed to shake off his own surprise.

    ''I didn''t expect this ability to work so well,'' he thought while following the girl and mindlessly finishing off all the zombies that Nadia left aside for him. ''It''s not that I''mining¡­'' Mathew thought, taking one nce to the back.

    And then he shook his head, opting to drop the topic.

    "One minute left," Nadia reported once they passed by one block and reached the crossroads currently fully upied by the horde of zombies.

    "Fifteen seconds should be enough, am I right?" Mathew whispered, squatting down behind the cover of a random car left to rot on the street.

    "Half a minute left," Nadia replied while nodding her head.

    "I will leave the evolved one to you, then. In the meantime, I will try to take down as much of the fodder as I can."

    Nadia raised her hand with her fingers stretched out. And then, second by second, she pulled one of her fingers down.

    ''Here we go,'' Mathew thought, grabbing the edge of the car before using it as a support to jump over the metal wreckage. ''Mind''s flesh!''

 Chapter 295 Isnt This Fight... Too Easy?

    Mathew jumped over the car.

    At this point, avoiding zombie detection would be counterproductive. Instead, he wanted to draw all of their attention onto himself.

    ''Mind''s flesh!'' he shouted in his thoughts, producing as many mana-hands as he could and reaching with them for the heads of the nearest zombies.

    Meanwhile, Nadia rolled over to the side of the car. She nearlyid herself t on the ground, pressing her legs against the asphalt of the road while burying her fingers into the road as far as she could reach.

    "I''ve got you now," she whispered, her eyes shing with red.

    And right as Mathew pulled out the heads of roughly twenty zombies at once, Nadia sprung her entire body forward.

    ''Damn,'' Mathew gulped his saliva down, watching how the girl turned into a frisk of red. She jumped from zombie to zombie-like some sort of bouncing ball. Every zombie in her path would end up torn into shreds, leaving a bloody trail in her wake.

    And yet, despite the girl massacring all the zombies in front of her¡­ she wasn''t even a bit as cinematic as Mathew with his mind''s flesh!

    ''Yes,'' Mathew thought, limiting his actions to just selecting new targets for his mana-borne hands. ''Focus all your attention on me!'' he ordered the zombies while making sure to throw their no longer animated corpses around, making his part of the fight into an even biggermotion.

    "ROAR!" a cumtive scream came from nearly a thousand throats as the zombies all over the ce directed their attention to him.

    But it was already toote.

    Nadia turned into some sort of a bloodthirsty beast. Every jump of hers only served to increase her speed. At some point, she stopped caring about tearing the zombies she stepped on apart, as the sudden change of momentum caused by hernding on the zombie only to kick herself off it was enough to pulverize half of their bodies.

    Then, she jumped for thest time. She pulled her saber to the back while her eyes shed an intense hue of red.

    ''It''s over,'' Mathew thought, blinking once only to see Nadia''s saber cut right through the neck of one of the evolved zombies.

    ''I wonder how Le is doing,'' Mathew thought. He turned his head around, designating yet another set of twenty zombies to have their heads plucked before finallyying his eyes down on his other wife.

    Contrary to Nadia, Le didn''t focus on the evolved one alone.

    Mathew missed the moment when she jumped into the fray, so he had to do with the show that she was disying right now.

    She didn''t use the zombies as footholds. No, she would simply leap forward, swing her saber around at a speed even Mathew struggled to follow with his eyes, and then calmlynd. Yet, instead of taking a breather before going back to work, she would build up on the momentum of her earlier jump, instantly executing another leap and repeating the process.

    Mathew was lucky enough to catch her performance right as she reached the second of the evolved zombies within the horde.

    Yet, instead of getting excited, Mathew ended up dumbfounded.

    "Huh?" he only managed to utter a small whisper of shock when Le¡­nded several meters behind her target. She then raised her head¡­ and spent good three seconds looking around with a confused expression on her own face!

    ''She didn''t even realize she already killed the bastard,'' Mathew realized, blinking his eyes a few times to ensure he wasn''t just hallucinating.

    Then, a small smile emerged on his lips as he focused back on his tedious job of plucking the heads of all the zombies around.

    ''I didn''t even need this saber,'' Mathew thought while looking down at the weapon in his hand.

    The young man then raised his eyes, right in time to see how some sort of a shock wave washed over the entire horde.

    It wasn''t an aftereffect of a powerful explosion. It wasn''t anything that would deal any kind of damage in the first ce.

    It was simply the effects of all the zombies losing theirmand and ending up temporarily stunned once they had to search for their prey on their own yet again.

    ''This is the golden opportunity,'' Mathew thought, tightening his grip over his saber before jumping into the fray himself.<novelnext></novelnext>

    He could take down twenty zombies every two or three seconds it took him to decapitate them with his mind''s flesh. Yet, when he added his swordsmanship to the equation, this number grew to twenty-five or even thirty if the zombies ended up lining up for his strikes properly.

    ''Assuming they will be able to reach twenty per two or three seconds each,'' Mathew thought, only for a vile smile to appear on his lips.

    ''To think that we could clean a horde of this size in like what¡­'' he took a second to calcte, ''less than two minutes?''

    Mathew gave up on his smile. He gave up on all the meaningless thoughts too. And for the next minute, mere sixty seconds, he pushed himself to the limits.

    As soon as his mind''s flesh would pluck out the heads of the current batch of zombies, Mathew would push it to the next set of targets. He would only clear the zombies to his sides and back with this ability, saving those in front of him for his saber.

    In this way, in a mere minute, Mathew managed to clean up nearly half of the street that the horde upied and which separated Le from him.

    "Ah" a short scream forced Mathew out of his focus, only for the young man to realize he nearly swung his saber at the girl!

    As it turned out, Le ended up carving her way back to the rest of the group herself. And a mere five secondster, Nadia burst out from the pile of corpses to the back.

    "That was¡­ easy?" Mathew muttered, raising his forearm to wipe his forehead from the blood trickling down his eyes¡­ Only to realize that there wasn''t a single inch of his body or clothes that would be free from zombie blood.

    And as he raised his eyes and looked at the girls¡­ neither of them was the exception from this bloody appearance either.

    "Dear, I only have one question," Nadia ignored their appearance and approached Mathew before she nearly shoved her nose into his mouth. "What the hell was that?"

    "You mean, how did I kill all those zombies around me?" Mathew asked for rification even though it was fairly obvious there was hardly anything else that could make the girl so upset.

    And just like Mathew thought, Nadia didn''t confirm his doubts, opting to cross her arms on her chest and just stare daggers at him.

    "Well, it was my mind''s flesh," Mathew revealed without holding back at all. "It allows me to mold mana into any shape I want and then move it around as if it was my own flesh."

    Knowing that a mere exnation wouldn''t be enough, Mathew exerted his will once again. This time, however, there were no zombies left for him to rip into pieces, so he simply raised one of the many corpses around them.

    "Woah!" Both Nadia and Le backed off a single step, taken aback by the sight of a floating, headless corpse.

    "That''s amazing!" Nadia admitted, her eyes shing with adoration.

    "That¡­" Le hesitated before averting her eyes to the side. "That gives me some ideas¡­" she admitted while a slight blush appeared on her cheeks, turning them even redder than before.

    "Anyway," Mathew dropped the corpse and the topic at the same time. "I initially wanted to continue with our expedition, but¡­" he looked down at himself before raising his eyes and giving the girls a meaningful stare. "I think we should take some time to wash up and rest."

    "And it just so happens, there is a base of survivors right ahead," Le smiled viciously while raising her saber and dropping it over her shoulder.

    The residual blood from her rampage started to flow down her de, dripping down from its handle only an inch away from her back.

    "Yeah," Mathew nodded his head. "We still need to gather the stones, and¡­" Mathew took a short pause to take a breath¡­

    And then it hit him.

    All the exhaustion of overusing his ability way beyond his limits. All the pain of pushing his body beyond what it should be capable of.

    ''What?'' he thought, a moment before his body nearlypletely broke down. And as he nced at the system he ignored so far, the answer to his current state was right there.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Mind - 277[100](-37)]

 Chapter 296 Unfamiliar Ceiling

    "Argh¡­" Mathew released a long, pained groan.

    He then slowly forced his eyes open, only for his eyes to instantly get assaulted by their currently greatest enemy - intense light.

    ''What?'' the young man attempted to figure out what was going on, in spite of the torture that it was to keep his eyes open.

    And bit by bit, the fuzzy images that his brain received started to make some sense.

    ''Is that¡­ a roof?'' Mathew thought once his headache weakened a little. ''But why are two parts of my vision¡­ ah.''

    The realization struck Mathew as soon as he noticed the uneven softness below his head.

    And then, like an avnche, his sense of self returned, washing away all the pain and dizziness.

    "What happened?" Mathew asked in a weak voice, blinking his eyes to remove the excess moisture that kept his vision unclear.

    "You are awake!" Nadia muttered. A soft touch of her fingersnding on Mathew''s cheek to caress his skin followed her words.

    "Kinda." Mathew closed his eyes shut before pressing his eyelids as tightly together as he could. Once his eyes started to hurt, he forced his eyelids open, finally regaining proper sight.

    "Where are we?" Mathew asked when he noticed an unfamiliar ceiling.

    His head was still hurting, and it was still a challenge for him to think¡­ but this strange weakness continued to go away with every passing second.

    "After you fell, we brought you to the survivors'' camp we saved," Nadia softly exined while running her fingers up and down Mathew''s cheek.

    ''This isn''t good,'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes for thest time before forcing them open yet again.

    His head was on Nadia''sp with the girl''s face peeking over the two impressive mounds of her chest. Yet, for how great this sight was, Mathew was too pressed to focus on it.

    He forced his head up a little. As soon as a single inch of space appeared between the back of his head and Nadia''sp, she moved her hands to his head before prompting him up a bit.

    A moment of cuddly moving aroundter and Mathew ended up half-sitting, resting his back on Nadia''sp and lower body while his head was lodged right between the two soft peaks of hers.

    There were a total of four people in the room, befitting the numbers of the original members of his party that took part in the horde subjugation.

    Nadia was sitting behind him, offering her body as support for him. Le sat by the doors to the simple room they were in, her saber exposed and resting on her knees.

    Just a single look at the girl was alone showcased how on edge she was, ready tosh out at any potential intruder at a moment''s notice.

    Then, there was Norbert, appearing as if he was meditating, sitting cross-legged below the frame of the only window within the room.

    "What''s the situation?" Mathew asked.

    ''I can tell quite a lot from their positions, faces, and what I already heard¡­'' Mathew killed his desire to shake his head. ''But it''s easier to just ask.''

    "It''s not good," Nadia whispered. And the fact that she considered this kind of information to be sensitive enough to keep her voice down was a hint all on its own.

    ''If this ce is really ruled by that guy¡­'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes for a second as he fell into deep thought.

    "After you feel, we got quite desperate to keep you safe. So, we got Peter and his friend to pave the way inside," Nadia shortly described the events that took ce after Mathew passed out. "We didn''t dare to leave your side, so we don''t really know what they talked about. And Norbert¡­"

    Mathew didn''t need to expend his precious energy to look behind to feel the angry stare his wife sent to the policeman.

    "He doesn''t want to speak about what he heard and what he saw," Mathew spoke softly.

    "Huh?" Nadia twitched a little, rocking Mathew''s body up a little bit. "How did you know?"

    "I think I know the guy that rules this camp," Mathew replied.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "How¡­ No, it doesn''t matter," Nadia was about to ask right as she decided not to. "Anyway, right now, we are official guests," she then said in a mocking voice. "Guests that are held under the care of twenty people, all armed with guns."

    "That''s not good," Mathew admitted. Yet, there wasn''t even a hint of surprise in his voice. "After the show that we gave out¡­" he added only to let his words fade away.

    ''For him, we are likely a menace, a threat to his rule,'' Mathew thought, rxing his body and allowing himself to fall back into the softness of Nadia''s flesh.

    He rxed his neck, enjoying the warmth that Nadia''s cleavage offered to the back and sides of his head. He then took a deep, long breath, treating himself to the taste of the girl''s slightly sweet smell.

    "And another group is currently busy stealing all the cores that we conquered," Le added in a voice loud enough for it to easily seep through to the other side of the closed doors.

    "Other group?" Mathew inquired. "Of the same camp or did a third partye?"

    "The same group, just a different¡­ group?" Le confused herself a little. "Same faction, different group," she then added, finding the right words to describe what she wanted to say.

    "Either way, I cannot ept that," Mathew said. He then took a quick nce at the corner of his vision.

    The negative number describing his mind, or rather, his mana, was no longer negative. It was still pretty low for Mathew''s mentalfort, but he had some leeway to use his abilities.

    ''I guess that exins why the side effects of overusing my abilities are mostly gone,'' Mathew thought, finding the reason for how he could go into the negative mind range in the first ce.

    "Nadia, help me up, please," Mathew asked.

    "Are you sure you can move?" Nadia whispered in a concerned voice. Her hands then snuck up to Mathew''s stomach, as if she wanted to hold him in ce. "You were out cold for nearly two hours. Isn''t it too early for you¡­"

    "Dear¡­" Mathew muttered, cutting into Nadia''s worried words. "I''m okay."

    "If you were okay, you wouldn''t need help standing up¡­" Le muttered under her nose. And once again, she didn''t bother to control her voice to keep people outside from eavesdropping.

    But Mathew¡­ The young man only smiled.

    A momentter and with Nadia''s help, Mathew stood back on his own two legs. And yet, despite iming to be alright, he wrapped his arm around Nadia''s shoulder before changing his position to make it seem as if he was heavily leaning on her.

    "Right, I nearly forgot," Mathew muttered before lowering his voice even further. "What about Daria?" he whispered.

    Norbert stood up in one, graceful swoop before approaching Mathew''s other side and grabbing his arm to serve as additional support.

    "I''ve contacted her already. She holds the other group captive in the building we were in before you guys rushed out," he reported in a properly hushed voice.

    ''Even if I was out for over two hours, it''s still going to be a lot of time before the night will fall,'' Mathew thought, quickly running a quick check of all the essible options he had.

    He then took another nce at his system.

    "Shall we go and y around for a bit?" Mathew then suggested while a huge smile sprouted all over his lips.

    ''If this guy is the one I''m thinking about, then he is quite a crafty opponent to tackle,'' Mathew thought. ''But since I know most of his tricks already, I should be able to at least recover what''s ours!''

    Mathew took his first, unsteady step. His legs cried out in pain from overused muscles.

    It appeared that overusing his mana led to all sorts of aftereffects that wouldn''tpletely vanish even once his mind started would turn positive again.

    "Now that I think about it, we ought to thank our hosts," Mathew then muttered, causing all three of hispanions to get a dumbfounded look on their faces. "Gathering all those cores from the horde¡­ Wouldn''t it be a huge pain in the ass?"

    Nadia pursed her lips together, Norbert looked at Mathew with a confused expression¡­ While Le''s lips turned into a wicked smile.

    "I think I like where this is going," she said out loud, standing up and pressing her de against her thigh.

    "Oh, and before we go," Mathew then added, leaning his head over Norbert''s ear. "There is one thing I need you to check," he whispered.

 Chapter 297 Confrontation

    "Open the doors," Mathew ordered in a calm,posed voice.

    In the short time since he woke up, he managed to regain the rity of his mind and the greater part of the strength of his body. And yet, he continued to rely on both Nadia''s and Norbert''s support to move.

    As such, only Le was left to actually open the doors, as Mathew doing it himself would break all the immersion of his small ploy.

    Le moved up and grabbed the handle of the doors. She then moved it around a bit only to turn her head and point a wide, enthusiastic smile at Mathew.

    "It''s locked," she informed.

    "I never thought that would be a problem for you," Mathew replied, replicating the same kind of slightly crazed smile that others could see on Le''s face.

    "Good point." Le smiled. She then turned face-first towards the doors. She initially raised her right leg to kick it open¡­ Only to put her leg back, heave a deep sigh, andzily swing her saber.

    Whatever held the door closed brought forward the miracle of birth and became two. Yet, in the particr case of a lock, the miracle of multiplication by division made it fail its only purpose, allowing the girl to just push the girl open with a single tap.

    "WHAT THE¡­"

    The door swung open slowly enough not to alert the people on the other side right away. As such, rather than freaking out at the sight of a locked door randomly opening, one of the guards was unlucky enough to freak out when it suddenly struck him in the side of his shoulder.

    "Oh my, hello," Mathew said with a smile as kind as he could produce.

    ''Just keep on smiling,'' he told himself as he dragged his feet on the ground to reinforce the illusion of his weakness.

    "I believe we have not met yet so let me do the courtesy and ask first," Mathew leaned his head over his shoulder, tapping his helpers on their shoulders to make them stop in ce.

    Mathew then took a deep breath and smiled even wider.

    "Who the fuck are you and how dare you try to lock me and my people?" Mathew asked in the gentlest voice that he could produce¡­ Only to then put a confused and almost scared look on his face. "Wait, no, that''s not it, I''m sorry," he mumbled, pretending to be at a loss for words.

    "Please, forgive me, I was too busy fighting zombies I forgot how to fight humans," Mathew added, spreading his fingers hand apart and then shaking his hands.

    Then, his face calmed down.

    "Right, I remember," he muttered, before putting a smile back on his face and raising his eyes back to the people that were supposed to keep his group locked in ce.

    "Are you guys courting death?" Mathew asked as if he was inquiring about the predicted weather for the evening.

    Their guards were stunned. Not only by Mathew''s group somehow opening locked and pretty solid doors but then also by Mathew''s stupid performance.

    Yet, it didn''t matter. Because in the heat of the moment, one of the supposed guards raised his hands¡­ And he held a gun in those hands.

    "Don''t¡­"

    "Are you really sure you want to use your guns?" Mathew asked before the other party could even shout their threats out. "Against people who decimated a horde of over a thousand zombies in a matter of minutes?" the young man asked, genuinely amused by the other party''s reaction.

    Sure, raising the gun was likely their self-defense response¡­ But what could a gun do against someone who could pluck zombies'' heads off without even touching them?<novelnext></novelnext>

    "It doesn''t matter how strong you are," one of the guards stepped up and raised his own pistol, pointing it right at Mathew''s forehead. "A bullet in your brain will end you anyway," he properly came up and threatened.

    Mathew grinned.

    ''I should have more than enough mana for that,'' he thought.

    Mathew invoked his mind''s flesh the second the doors swung open. And the reason why he kept on spewing bullshit was simple.

    He was simply diverting everyone''s attention from the fact that his invisible hands did a little trick on their guns and flipped all their safeties on.

    "Stop!" A loud voice suddenly entered the scene, followed by the sound of hurried steps. "Everyone, calm down please!"

    A man appeared in the corridor, right within Mathew''s view.

    ''So it''s really him, after all,'' Mathew thought, slightly gritting his teeth.

    "We are all friends here, are we not?" the man said, raising both of his hands in an attempt to de-escte the situation.

    "Yeah," Mathew replied while keeping up his grin. ''Barrier of light,'' Mathew thought, creating a massive albeit short outburst of intense light.

    ''Pull!'' he then thought, changing the directive for his mind''s flesh and jerking all the guns from the other party, pulling them across the floor towards Le''s feet.

    "We are all friends," Mathew added, repeating the man''s words as soon as the light dissipated.

    Mathew raised his arms, giving up on the ruse of being weakened. He then calmly walked a few paces forward before picking one of the guns up with his real hand.

    Following hismand, his invisible hands then raised all the other guns before pointing them all in the direction of the man and his underlings.

    "Since we are all friends here," Mathew muttered. His invisible hands pulled out the hammers of all the guns that could have this action applied to them.

    A drop of sweat fell down his cheek.

    All the calction, focus, and multitasking to make the current situation happen was taking quite a huge toll on Mathew''s mind. All the motions were rtively light and didn''t require a lot of energy, making the entire thing quite easy on Mathew''s low mana reserves, at the cost of increasedplexity and focus.

    "Since we are all friends here, then we shouldn''t talk while you are pointing your guns at us," Mathew stated.

    Norbert closed his eyes.

    Mathew blinked a few times.

    "What the hell are you talking about?!" the leader of the other party visibly freaked out. "You are the only one aiming guns at¡­"

    "Oh, so those three snipers at the roof of the residential building currently steadying their breaths to be ready to pull the triggers are a third party?" Mathew asked, following the exact words that Norbert whispered when he blinked. "It should be fine for me to kill them, right?"

 Chapter 298 Shock And Terror

    "Let''s all just calm down for a moment," the middle-aged leader of the locals slowly raised his hands. "I''m not going to give my people a sign, you are not going to pull the trigger of the gun in your hand," he proposed. "Do we have a deal?"

    ''Dealing with this man can only lead to a disaster,'' Mathew thought, doing his absolute utmost to keep up the smirking facade. ''But for now¡­''

    Mathew heaved a deep sigh, loosening his facade and allowing a slight sense of displeasure to appear on his face.

    "How could we calm down when you are currently trying to rob us?" Mathew asked, leaning his head over his shoulder. "Even after all the pains and hardships, we went through to save you from the horde, even after openly iming the cores of the zombies we took down ourselves¡­"

    As Mathew continued his lecture, more and more guns continued to raise from the floor only to point their muzzles toward the leader of the locals.

    "We never intended to steal any of those cores, we were just gathering them all for you," the middle-aged man said. "And now that we cleared this unfortunate misunderstanding¡­" he looked meaningfully at the floating guns.

    "There is no need for you to bother so much for our sake," Mathew countered. "There never was," he added, openly squinting his eyes.

    Then¡­

    He dropped most of the floating guns, only leaving one for each member of his group while stashing away an additional one for when Daria would return.

    "What am I supposed to do then?" the man asked. "Stop collecting them? Bring them all back to the no man''snd?"

    "Since you already bothered, it would be a waste to spit on your efforts," Mathew smiled amicably. "Those that you collected, bring them to this room. Those that have yet to be collected," Mathew smiled a little, "leave them as they are."

    "You are not trying to¡­" the man attempted to say something, only to end up biting himself in the tongue. "No, I''m sorry but when can I expect you to get all those cores? We need to clear the corpses to avoid the spread of disease."

    ''What a smartass,'' Mathew thought, rolling his eyes a little. ''But well, if I were to be in his shoes, I wouldn''t want to give away even the tiniest bit of information to the other party,'' he thought.

    "All the cores will be gone before tomorrow," Mathew said, finally allowing all the spare guns to fall down to the ground. He even went the extra mile of pushing their safeties back on. "And since our little misunderstanding is now resolved, I hope it won''t be a problem if we stay here until tomorrow."

    ''I can''t let you go unchecked, after all,'' Mathew thought while drilling his eyes into the man. ''Not after what I saw in my previous life.''

    "That''s¡­" the man hesitated for a moment. He then took a deep breath before hanging his head low in a fake sign of defeat. "That''s fine with me. Now that the world went to shit, survivors like us should all strive to help each other."

    For the first time since the encounter started, the tension in the air started to lessen.

    "Don''t forget to get your weapons back," Mathew said as soon as he noticed the longing stares of the people he robbed of their weapons. "We are not some kind of thieves to take something so vital away from¡­" he made a short pause, "our fellow survivors," he said with a perfectly fake smile while unting the pistol he took for himself exposed on his hip.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Thanks," the leader of the other party said. "With that said, I hope we can avoid any further¡­ misunderstandings," he added, finally feeling at liberty to lower his hands.

    "Oh, that only depends on you," Mathew replied with a wide smile while taking a step back himself. "We know, see and hear everything, so unless we be aware of something disturbing¡­" Mathew leaned his head over his shoulder. "Unless something unsavory like that were to happen, there would be no reason for us to act up."

    Mathew turned around, finally dropping his skill and allowing his mind''s flesh to dissipate. In theory, it was still too early to take it easy, given how there was no telling if the other party wouldn''t make use of this opportunity to shoot them in the back.

    Yet, even though Mathew hardly exerted any force through his skill, maintaining so many different hands at once was extremely taxing on his mind, even if it didn''t really affect the small amount of mana he recovered.

    "I''m d we reached some sort of an understanding," the man said, acting as if Mathew didn''t turn around nor implied he considered the discussion to be over. "But before you go, I have two questions I wish you could answer."

    ''What is your purpose and is there anything else you want from me?'' Mathew thought, recalling the exact form he heard the man use when he encountered other system users, with arguably far more powerful battle systems, back in the school during Mathew''s original timeline.

    "What is your purpose here? We are but a small group of survivors, barely able to support ourselves, so whatever you desire to achieve here¡­" he asked, only to instantly get on the defensive and attempt to downy the ability of his group.

    "We just happened to be passing by," Mathew replied. "Or rather, we came here after noticing the presence of the horde while we were passing by and then learning from Peter about your group," Mathew replied, wary not to make any demands or show any expectations. "Oh, and on that note, where is Peter?" he then asked.

    And for the first time, the smile disappeared from Mathew''s lips. Instead, his expression turned wrathful.

    To his side, Mathew''s wives detected the slight change in Mathew''s aura, instantly rallying up and tensing their bodies, ready to jump into a fight at a moment''s notice.

    "Peter?" the leader of the locals attempted to y dumb. "I''m sorry, with how many people there are in the group there is no way for me to know who exactly you have on mind."

    "The man that came here along with the rest of my group," Mathew said, openly turning his head and casting a quick nce at Norbert''s face.

    ''And now he should believe the four of us make up our entire group,'' he then thought, satisfied with the small seed of false information he sowed in the other party''s mind.

    Mathew then turned around and looked right into the other party''s face.

    "He already pledged his allegiance to my own party, so it would be a pity if I were to learn¡­" Mathew suddenly cut his sentence short. He then smiled gently before walking forward a few steps and leaning over the local''s leader''s ear.

    "It would be a pity if I were to learn he lost all his limbs and got turned into a zombie. Wouldn''t it be a pity, Marcus?" he whispered right to the man''s ear, only to then back off with a small smile, enjoying the mix of shock and terror that appeared on Marcus'' face.

 Chapter 299 What Mathew Saw

    "How do you¡­" Marcus attempted to reply, only to then turn his mouth shut as his face gave out a mix of emotions.

    From terror, through surprise and shock all the way to fury mixing with killing intent.

    Then, the man shook his head while hiding his emotions and recing them with a helpless smile.

    "Even if I asked, you wouldn''t tell me how in all hells you know me, would you?" he asked with a small, obviously fake smile.

    "Isn''t it better to talk when we are no longer pretending to be stupid?" Mathew yed along with a small smile on his own.

    "It is¡­" Markus muttered as he shook his head. He then brought his hands up and pped his own cheeks twice as if to sober himself up. "Fine, I will arrange for Peter and the other guy that came with that friend of yours to arrive at your room," Markus stated. "The cores that we gathered so far will be sent to you as well, while I will pull my men from collecting the rest of them," Markus stated, listing out all the concessions he was willing to give. "With that said, can I hope for you not to interfere too much with me, from now on?"

    "I have no such intention in the first ce," Mathew replied while lightly shaking his shoulder. "With how the world is right now, I find it pretty idiotic to waste resources and¡­" Mathew made a short pause only for his smile to widen a little bit, "and manpower over some foolish squabbles between survivors." Mathew then spread his arms open. "Don''t we have amon enemy wandering the streets of what used to be a beautiful andfortable city to live in?"

    "That''s certainly true," Markus agreed and nodded his head. "With that said, I won''t impose on you guys any longer," he added before turning around and taking one step away from Mathew''s group.

    "Let''s talk more once we both recover from our exhaustion," Mathew suggested before turning around himself and heading right back to the room he just escaped from.

    Mathew''spanions followed after him without even a single word of protest while carefully eyeing the other party on the way out. Yet, the image of them simply agreeing with whatever course Mathew decided on came undone as soon as the doors to the room got closed, giving them some space to talk freely.

    "What were you thinking, you dummy!" Nadia was the first one to freak out. "Snipers?! Even with all your strength, I can''t say for sure you could survive a high-powered shot like that!" sheined, putting all her worries and fear into her words while doing her utmost to keep her voice low.

    "Dear, calm down," Mathew said, mindful of his voice. "The echo in this room¡­" he made another pause, "is turning all your shouts into a massive pain in my¡­ head," he added with yet another pause.

    Nadia wasn''t stupid. Nor was Norbert or Le. And even though there was no echo whatsoever in the room, they both took a deep breath before tuning their voices down another notch.

    "I know you guys have a lot of questions, but first¡­" Mathew muttered while turning his eyes to Le. "Can I ask you to keep on a lookout?" he requested while giving Norbert a quick nce.

    Le''s face tensed up a little only for the girl to then nod her head and approach the window while making sure to sit as close to the center of the room as she could.

    "Now, you little whore,e here," Mathew then added in a voice he would never use when interacting with even his second or third wife, not to speak about the one he actually loved.

    Mathew then sat down by the wall before tapping his hand against his leg.

    Nadia gave Mathew a slightly surprised look¡­ before following his suggestion and plopping down on hisp.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Now then¡­" Mathew muttered, reaching out and sneaking his hand underneath Nadia''s shirt before strongly grasping at her breast and giving it a tight squeeze. He then leaned his head back before putting on an arrogant face. "Ask what you want to know."

    Mathew''s behavior waspletely out of his character. Yet, this was something that only those present in the room could know.

    "We are safe," Norbert muttered while opening his eyes. "I found no traces of any listening in devices or people eavesdropping from nearby rooms," he reported.

    "That''s a relief," Mathew then whispered, pulling his hand out from underneath Nadia''s shirt. "I''m sorry for that, dear," he apologized in a whisper. "If there is one person that we can never be too careful around, it''s Marcus."

    "I didn''t mind it at all," Nadia shook her shoulders while switching her position a tiny little bit before resting her side on Mathew''s chest and leaning her lips over his ear. "And in this way, we can make sure that even if Norbert missed a device, they won''t hear shit either way," she whispered in a soft voice.

    "That''s true," Mathew agreed with a small smile when the girl''s voice tickled his earlobe. "But can''t you see how jealous Le is already?" he whispered back only to shake his head a little before raising his voice a bit.

    "First off, this guy¡­" Mathew pursed his lips. He took a long breath to help himself gather courage. "This guy is someone I encountered back in my previous life," Mathew admitted. "And while I''ve never caught him directly in the act with how weak I was, there is one thing I know for sure."

    "And that is¡­?" Le muttered while doing her utmost not to let her jealousy appear on her face.

    ording to the arrangement they made just recently, tonight was supposed to be her turn to enjoy intimacy with Mathew all for herself, and yet, there Nadia was, upying a spot on hisp¡­

    "He would take unturned people, deprive them of all their limbs in the most gruesome way possible. He would then turn them into zombies before leaving them in the spot he wanted to secure."

    This was the one thing that Mathew knew for sure from his past memories. And the one clue that made him nearly certain about who they were dealing with was even before he woke up in the local camp.

    It was the story that he heard from Peter, a story that had way too much inmon with what he saw with his own two eyes for it to be a coincidence.

    "Why would he do that for?" Le asked, her face mellowing down as her disgust over the man''s action got one better than her jealousy. "To get rid of unwanted opposition?" she attempted to guess.

    "That one for sure," Mathew agreed while nodding his head only to then start shaking it sideways. "But back when I saw it, I thought there was something more to it. And the story we heard from Peter pretty much confirms my guess from back then."

    Mathew turned silent for a moment as he took a few breaths to calm himself down. He then closed his eyes and took some time to gather his courage before opening his eyes again and looking at hispanions in the room.

    "I believe a zombie who experienced this kind of trauma before getting turned¡­ In one way or another, it helps to keep zombies out of the area where they are left to rot."

 Chapter 300 Mathew Turns Weird

    "That''s pretty diabolical," Norbert muttered. He had his fists tightened and eyes closed, proving that even in a fit of fury he wasn''t going to skip on his extremely crucial task of surveince.

    If there was anything that Mathew made clear so far, it was how they shouldn''t take Marcus lightly.

    "Okay, I heard it all," Nadia muttered. She still kept her hand on her chin, relentlessly rubbing it out as if she was worried about growing facial hair. "But if that guy is not only that crafty, intelligent but also dangerous¡­" she muttered before taking a short pause and raising her eyes on Mathew. "Why didn''t you just kill him?" she asked. Nadia then leaned her head over her shoulder as she gave Mathew a confused look. "And don''t tell me that you didn''t want to kill another human. We are too deep into this shit to still care about stuff like that."

    "It''s not about me trying to keep my hands clean," Mathew muttered while rolling his eyes. "And trust me, I would love to kill that guy. The caveat is¡­" Mathew took a deep breath and turned silent.

    Seconds trickled by and slowly started to merge into minutes, yet he didn''t exin his reasons.

    "Le," Mathew suddenly called out, as if ready to change the topic. "Could you be so kind as to go to check what was under the floor of the hallway when we had our little encounter?"

    "On it, boss," the girl replied with a small smirk, theatrically closing her eyes and hanging her head to the back before starting to chant some strange and iprehensible noises under her nose.

    Norbert closed his eyes as well, allowing his ghost to do the bidding that was actually directed at him. And before long, Le opened her eyes up with a foul expression appearing on her face.

    "It''s mostly empty now as they are currently busy clearing it all out," Le reported what Norbert told her in his ghostly form, "but a huge chunk of the floor was fitted with quite a lot of damn strong explosives."

    "Oh¡­" Nadia muttered. She then lowered her head and shook a little. "I see, I''m sorry for doubting you."

    "It''s okay, dear," Mathew whispered while patting the girl''s shoulder. "This is the kind of a man we are dealing with. Someone who never leaves something to a chance. And someone who is willing to bet his life on his strategy as long as it increases the chances of it working," Mathew muttered his points one by one.

    "How do you want to deal with him, then?" Le asked while changing her position to a crosslegged one and hiding her hands in her pants. Yet, as soon as she noticed Mathew''s confused look she only smirked. "What, it''s supposed to be my turn today and here you are, getting all cuddly with Nadia," she muttered, averting her eyes before her entire body tensed up in reaction to her fingers rubbing her sensitive parts. "I can get jealous too, okay?" she then shouted in protest.

    "Are you¡­" Mathew attempted to say something, only for his face to turn stale before a suddenugh escaped from his lips. "Hahaha," he couldn''t help himself butugh out loud. "Yeah, you are right," he then admitted. "Today should be your turn," he imed before turning his face to Nadia. "Dear, I''m sorry, but it looks like we overstepped the boundaries of what we agreed to," he said.

    "Yeah," Nadia admitted without any hesitation, although her face showcased just how reluctant she was to stand up from Mathew''sp. She stood up and turned around, taking two steps to approach Le only to then bow her head to the girl. "I''m sorry, I didn''t really think much when sitting down," Nadia apologized. "I didn''t mean to antagonize you," she said.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Now I feel like the bad guy," Le muttered.

    "Bad girl, you mean," Mathew pointed out, still unable to get over his seemingly unexinable amusement.

    "Bad guy, bad girl, whatever," Le muttered, squinting her eyes as she threw an annoyed nce at Mathew''s face. "And what the hell do you find so funny?!" she thenshed out.

    "I''m sorry, I''m sorry," Mathew apologized through his tears of joy while trying to wipe the corners of his eyes clean of the moisture. "I really am sorry," he then added once he finally managed to get over the convulsions that kept on shaking his body. "I just couldn''t help butugh at how dumb I am!"

    "Okay brother, time to make some sense," Norbert opened his eyes and said in a stern voice. "You are only doing yourself a disservice by confusing everyone like that!"

    "I''m not really in a position to reveal what exactly I mean, though?" Mathew countered, turning his bright smile to Norbert. The young man then shook his head before patting himself on his knee. "Meanwhile, Le," he said, turning his face to the girl. "Come," he requested.

    Le kept her eyes squinted, clearly disliking the weird behavior Mathew started to disy. From the suspicion and worry in her eyes, it was clear she even started to doubt whether he was still in the right state of his mind!

    And yet, despite all her doubts, she followed his request and soon sat herself down on hisp¡­ Only for Mathew to instantly sneak his hand between the girl''s legs, upying the spot that she just so recently caressed with her own fingers.

    "Bear with it for a while," Mathew requested when the girl twitched in reaction to his intrusion.

    "It''s not exactly something I need to bear with," Le pointed out with a small smile, only for her insides to quickly turn moist under Mathew''s caressing.

    "Well then, everyone," Mathew muttered as he prickled his ears and turned his eyes toward the doors of the room. "Strap in, because we are all in for quite the ride," he said with a mysterious smile on his face, only for the doors of the room to open a single secondter.

    "You guys are here!" Peter eximed in a joyous voice. Yet, rather than just walking in, he pushed the doors open with his backside before walking backward inside and pulling a huge pushcart filled with bloody cores to the room. "This is only the beginning, but here are the cores you imed!"

 Chapter 301 Opening Moves Of Mathews Scheme

    ''Let''s start the fun, I guess,'' Mathew thought, pulling his hand out from between Le''s legs and pushing her off hisp before standing up.

    He wasn''t rough with the girl at all, but it would be wrong to call his actions gentle either. Just what one would expect from a man who didn''t really care for the girls he was doing.

    "It''s nice to see you in good health," Mathew said while throwing a long look at the doors Peter just crossed. He allowed his look to linger for a short while before finally pulling his eyes and directing them toward the content of the cart.

    It was an average pushcart, something Mathew saw many times on many different sites of construction or renovation. As such, it wasn''t the pushcart itself that got his attention but its content.

    "That''s quite a¡­ lot of the cores," Mathew said in a slightly dissatisfied voice. ''But there isn''t anywhere near enough of them. Not when taking into ount how long they had to collect them.''

    "That''s just the first batch," Peter reported happily. "More of them areing soon."

    "Good," Mathew said while his expression mellowed down. "That''s good indeed."

    The tension in the room was so thick one could nearly cut it into chunks. It came from Mathew''s wariness of the potential ploys that Marcus could employ. It also came from all of the members of Mathew''s team, waiting with anticipation for what sort of moves he would employ himself.

    There was no sign of doubt on their faces. Even though Mathew didn''t bother to exin what he had on mind, not only they were already used to this state of things, but they also knew he didn''t want to speak too much in fear of Marcus eavesdropping andter employing some sort of countermeasures to the moves Mathew would reveal prematurely.

    "First thing first, though," Mathew muttered while raising his eyes to Peter''s face. "I was lead to believe yourpanion would being with you," he said.

    In theory, there was no reason for Mathew to care about someone he knew for only a few short hours. In this apocalyptic world, lives were extremely cheap after all.

    The only reason why Mathew could be bothered to ask about the other of the middle-aged men that he met in the shopping mall was to check one thing.

    It was to check how hasty Marcus was with turning his followers into zombie repellents once even a hint of doubt regarding their loyalty were to appear.

    "Ah, Tommy?" Peter asked while raising his eyebrows. His lips twitched only to form a small smile as he looked behind his back, towards the open doors. "He will being as soon as they finish loading his cart with the cores," he revealed.

    ''So he is still alive,'' Mathew took notice. ''That bodes well for my ns.''

    "That''s a good thing to hear," Mathew replied out loud while revealing a small, lenient smile. "In the meantime, though, how many cores do you think you have in your cart?" he asked.

    "Ugh, I don''t know the precise number," Peter hesitated. "But if I were to eyeball it¡­" he took a moment to think.

    Peter leaned his head over his shoulder and raised his hand to rub his chin while he looked down at the cores and calcted something in his mind.

    "I guess around two hundred?" he guessed while pulling his eyebrows together to show just how much of a guess this number was. "Tommy''s cart should have just as many," he then added, bringing the total guess of his to four hundred. "There would be moreing, but I heard the workers got ordered to stop extracting the cores and leave all the corpses be."

    "Good," Mathew said while rubbing his own chin and with a small, mysterious smile on his lips. Yet, as he took a nce at the content of the cart¡­

    His expression quickly twisted into an ugly grimace.

    Because while the pushcart was filled with cores, no one paid any attention to cleaning them from all the residual flesh, blood, and brain matter extracted along with the cores!

    "It''s a pity you guys didn''t use all this time you had to clean them up properly," Mathewmented while ignoring the amused expressions of his teammates in the back of the room.

    There were many asions where they ended up fully cowered in zombie''s blood due to how much of a meatgrinder parts of their battles were. Not a single one of themined about dirtying their hands while extracting the cores either.

    And here Mathew was,ining about some strangers not going the extra mile to clean all those cores from the stuff they were more than ustomed to ying around with!<novelnext></novelnext>

    "If you want me to do it, I could¡­" Peter muttered, averting his eyes as hesitation showed all over his face. "But the water¡­" he hesitated again.

    "Speak up," Mathew requested while a small glint appeared in his eyes.

    "Water supply has been a huge problem since two days ago when the utilities turned off," Peter admitted a massive w of his survivor''s camp.

    ''No, that''s not a w,'' Mathew thought, doing his best to hold back a smile that nearly forced its way on his lips. ''That''s a huge strategic liability for me to exploit!''

    "I see," Mathew said out loud only to raise his hand and then wave it away. "Forget about it, then. I''m not some kind of a monster to use the spare water reserves you guys have just to make myself more COMFORTABLE," Mathew intentionally raised his voice to cover up the small noise of giggles that came from behind his back.

    ''Yeah, yeah,'' he thought. ''I know how funny it is to pretend we care about water when we have no qualms about our entire camp showering on a regr basis,'' he thought.

    "Still,cking water can be a huge problem," Mathew picked up where he left once the noises from behind ended. "But as too-good-to-be-true, as it might sound, I might have a solution to it," he added with a smile.

    "Yeah, yeah," Peter smiled amicably and nodded his head. "That''s a nice joke, but you don''t need to try so hard to lift my spirits," he said, clearly misunderstanding Mathew''s intentions.

    "I''m not joking, Peter," Mathew said, using the other party''s name to add weight to his sentence. "It''s extremelybor intensive and might be pretty costly¡­" Mathew pretended to hesitate, "but it''s a problem we''ve already solved."

    The tension in the room went to the sky.

    ''What, are they thinking I''m going to reveal the existence of merchants?'' Mathew thought with a small smile dancing at the corner of his lips. ''Well, that''s exactly what I''m going to do, but for a whole different purpose.''

    If there was a moment when Mathew regretted being unable to share his ns¡­ it was right now.

    "Anyway, there is no use talking about it just between the two of us. So, rather than lingering here, could you go to the camp''s leader and ask him to gather everyone somewhere safe for me to address them?" Mathew requested.

    "I can do it but¡­ what for?" Peter asked, confused about Mathew''s intentions.

    "It''s simple," Mathew smiled in response. "If the suggestiones out from Marcus, the people of this camp are bound to turn their hate and resentment towards him," Mathew pointed out while spreading his arms and then shrugging his shoulders. "But if an outsider like me were to do so, their hate will be directed to someone who will soon leave this ce."

    "I¡­. I see," Peter muttered. His face showed that he still didn''tpletely buy Mathew''s idea. Yet, as he didn''t even know what it entailed, he ditched all his doubts and stood up at attention. "Well, what I think or understand doesn''t matter," he said with a slightly sour smile. "You just need me to go and report this to Marcus, right?"

    Mathew put a genuine smile on his face for the first time since the man entered the room.

    ''It''s a good thing for people to know their ce and role,'' he thought.

    "I better get going, then," Peter replied upon noticing Mathew''s smile. "This matter is way too important to stall it."

    Peter did just as he said, leaving the pushcart in the room and speeding off down the corridor of the building.

    "Now then, shall we begin?" Mathew muttered, kicking the doors to close them before standing over the blood-covered crystals in the cart.

    He reached out with his hands and kept them above the crystals before closing his eyes.

    ''With a hundred zombie cores¡­'' Mathew''s lips curved up. ''I wish to summon a merchant!''

 Chapter 302 Shadowy Elephant In The Room

    "Woah!" Nadia squealed in reaction to Mathew''s hasty decision to summon the merchant.

    Le simply watched the things happen while Norbert visibly tensed up.

    Summoning a merchant in the middle of the potentially enemy territory wasn''t what either of them would consider a good idea. Not only because it meant wasting a hundred of the precious cores, not only because it only served Marcus'' agenda, but mostly because it would obviously make him aware of such mechanics within the new reality that surrounded them!

    And just this knowledge alone was one massive advantage that Mathew¡­ just gave up on.

    When it came to the merchant himself, it appeared in the usual manner. A hundred of the cores within the pushcart lit up before exploding in a sh of intense light. And by the time the sh dissipated, a new shadowy persona stood right by the side of the cart.

    "Why did you do that?!" Nadia freaked out, no longer willing to hold back her doubts.

    Mathew didn''t bother to calm her down or freak out in response to her raised voice. He looked at the girl¡­ and smiled.

    "What''s the best strategy for fighting an enemy with greater numbers than you?" he asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

    Mathew made sure to turn his head around as he asked his question, making it clear he directed it to everyone, not just Nadia alone.

    "Divide and conquer," Norbert replied right away.

    For him, it wasmon knowledge.

    "Or in more modern terms," the former officer smiled, "defeat in detail."

    "That''s right," Mathew nodded his head with a satisfied smile. "And what''s the first rule of fighting an opponent too smart for you?"

    This time, there were no immediate answers to follow Mathew''s question.

    ? After all, the young man moved from the obvious stuff that even nonbatants were likely to know to a sphere of his own opinions.

    Le clearly wouldn''t mind arguing with Mathew over his opinions. Yet, at this particr moment, there was no ce for such an argument. And so, rather than starting a discourse for the sake of the discourse, she kept her lips pursed while she waited for Mathew to reveal his real intentions.

    "The first rule of dealing with people too smart for their own good is to make them overthink stuff. Or, in simpler terms," Mathew allowed a wide smile to creep up on his lips, "be as random as possible."

    Mathew''spanions each took a moment to digest his words. Everyst one of them made a different expression while doing so.

    "Are you trying to tell me that you summoned a merchant¡­" Nadia pursed her lips and ignored the part where she outlined all the negatives of such a decision, "just as a distraction?!"

    "No, not really," Mathewughed a little. He then raised his hand and pointed at a small window floating right beside the merchant''s hooded head. "There were two other major reasons."

    "Ah¡­" Nadia twitched a little. She then closed her mouth and averted her eyes while a small blush appeared on her face.

    It likely wasn''t her own shame of missing the points Mathew took into ount while making his decision. As far as Mathew himself could tell, it was Le''s amused stare directed at Nadia that made his sweetheart embarrassed.

    Mathew didn''t spare any time lingering around. Instead, he swung the shuts of the window open before grasping as many of the cores as he could and then pouring them down the abyss of the storage.<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''It''s a good thing this small bet paid off,'' he thought as he continued to throw more and more of the cores through the window. ''Otherwise, I would have no other choice but to admit I was wrong,'' he thought, only for a twitch to shake his head.

    Between fighting hordes of zombies and admitting his mistake, Mathew had no doubts about what he dreaded more.

    "Here is the second ba¡­ WOAH!" Tommy, Peter''s friend, entered the room with another cart full of zombie cores. He entered with a huge smile on his face, only for his expression to sour when he noticed the shadowy figure of the merchant sitting right in the middle of the room.

    "W-who¡­ who is that new friend of yours?" he then asked in an unsteady voice while pretending not to be terrified by the shadows seeping out of every inch of the merchant''s hooded being.

    "Did you see Peter on your way here?" Mathew asked, ignoring the man''s terror-driven question. ''To speak less is silver. To speak nothing at all is gold,'' he thought, opting not to divulge any more information than it was absolutely necessary.

    "Nah," Tommy replied, alternating his eyes between Mathew''s face and the shadowy elephant in the room. "I came here with the cores as soon as they loaded all the remaining ones on my cart¡­" he added while resting his hand on the handle of his pushcart.

    "It would be for the best for you to stay and wait with us, then," Mathew said, discarding the emptied-out cart to the side of the room. He then moved past the middle-aged man and grabbed the handle of the other cart, bringing it closer to the merchant with a single pull.

    And then, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, he got back to his task of moving the cores from a ce essible to everyone to a ce only he and his wives could ever ess.

    "Is something going on?" Tommy asked after getting over the fact that not only was there something randomly floating at the eye level in the room but also over how the stones were thrown through the seemingly normal, save for its levitation, window''s frame would disappear from the world rather than falling down on its other side.

    Tommy then cast a nce around the room, taking the stock of everyone''s expression.

    "No, allow me to rephrase my question," he muttered while gulping his saliva for yet another time. "Is something going down?"

    Mathew only smiled in response to Tommy''s question. He never stopped throwing the stones over to his storage, though, knowing full well how little time they currently had.

    ''Did I put things in motion a bit too soon?" Mathew thought once his hand scrapped the bottom of the cart, leaving only a few cores for him to move.

    Then, another idea entered his mind.

    "Nothing much is going on," Mathew suddenly spoke out, changing his mind about keeping Tommy in the dark as much as possible. "We are just going to try and help Marcus solve what looks like his biggest problem here," the young man added while throwing thest few cores through the storage window.

    "Guys," Peter spoke out right as he stepped inside the room.

    ''Could he have any better timing?'' Mathew asked, rolling his eyes.

    As if following some sort of a magical clock, Peter stepped as soon as thest core found itself within Mathew''s storage, saving him the mind-boggling image of the cores disappearing into a thin air after passing through a floating window.

    "Marcus agreed to the meeting," Peter reported as his eyes skimmed over the shadowy person in the room.

    There was a weird hint of some strange emotion on his face, too small for Mathew to figure out what it could entail.

    "But since everyone is extremely busy with their work, we need toe right away," Peter informed.

    "It''s perfectly fine," Mathew carefreely replied. "I just need a single minute," he then added, ignoring Peter''s pleas for hurry as he reached out and grasped at the shadows hidden underneath the merchant''s hood.

 Chapter 303 Stray Merchant

    Mathew squeezed at Merchant''s shadows. His fingers sank into the seemingly empty space, only for the shadows to fully coat them before surging forth along his arm and then expanding into a cloud that covered Mathew whole.

    The usual process then happened, of the shadows filling every nook and cranny of space around the young man before he couldn''t see anything but the familiar darkness.

    The shadows then solidified¡­ before seemingly fading away, revealing the look Mathew already had quite a lot of chances to get used to.

    ''Not great, not terrible,'' he thought, staring at entire two shelves of items standing in the middle of nothingness and an offering altar right between them.

    Two entire shelves of items made this merchant far better than the first one Mathew summoned back at the school or the one he summoned at the media building. Yet, whenpared to the second or third merchant that he summoned in each of those locations, not to speak about the upgradeable one, the one he was visiting right now fell short by a huge margin.

    ''I can''t see anything extraordinary too,'' Mathew thought as he stepped closer to the shelves and took a closer look at the items disyed there.

    The shelf to Mathew''s left was filled with the usual stuff like food rations, packs with six bottles of water each, some basic tools, and then what looked like ordinary clothes.

    Out of the two, it was the right shelf that caught Mathew''s attention as it was filled with weapons.

    There were three different kinds of bows, four quivers with different types of arrows, and then four different types of melee weapons.

    ''An ax, a hammer, a machete, and a sword,'' Mathew thought as he ensured he didn''t miss anything of interest.

    When it came to arrows, he outright ignored the topic right away. He never shot a bow in his life and as such, it came as no surprise that he couldn''t really understand the perks and downsides of each of the four types of arrows he could buy.

    The only interest Mathew showed was in the close-range weapons, each prized fifty zombie cores.

    ''Ax is the easiest to use and pretty good when ites to fighting stronger zombies¡­ But¡­'' Mathew twisted his lips in an ugly grimace. ''Right now, I don''t need the power it offers. What I need, is speed.''

    For this very reason, Mathew instantly eliminated both the ax and the hammer from the pool of what he could pick. And as he looked at the sword and machete that remained on the shelf for him to choose¡­

    ''I know size isn''t all that important¡­'' Mathew hesitated for but a second before biting down on his lips and reaching out for the sword''s handle.

    "Using the cores stored in my storage, I wish to purchase three basic swords," he said out loud.

    "Purchase¡­" the merchant''s robotic voice appeared as per usual. Then, the offering bowl in the middle of the shop''s subspace lit up.

    For but a second, Mathew could see a handful of cores appear in there¡­ only for them to explode in their usual burst of light. And once the light receded, the sword in his hand disappeared while three more appeared on the sacrificial bowl.

    "Completed," the merchant''s automated voicepleted its sentence.

    "Off to the storage you go," Mathew muttered as he grabbed the weapons and threw them through the window of his storage that apanied him even within the merchant''s subspace.

    "I wish to sell my saber," Mathew then said, raising his eyes toward the ce where the shadows were the densest.

    "Calcting the basic value."

    "Calcting the experience gained."

    "Calcting the damage."

    "The saber can be bought¡­"

    The merchant''s voice stopped for a second after uttering a quick few lines.

    ''I can almost hear the gears turning,'' Mathew thought, patiently waiting for the answer.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "The saber can be bought for seven thousand fifty-three cores," the merchant then announced.

    ''WOAH!'' Mathew''s eyes opened up wide. ''I didn''t expect that at all¡­'' he thought, taking his sweet time to process the information.

    Seven thousand cores. That was more than enough to establish several fortresses. Maybe even enough to pay for whatever came after the three fortresses would fall under his control.

    It was also a number that allowed Mathew to level up a whole damn bit¡­ if only his ss restriction didn''t limit just how many of his attributes he could actively use.

    ''Should we go back right away to level up girls?'' Mathew thought, taking a moment to think through the possibility.

    Yet, rather than epting the deal, Mathew ended up shaking his head and closing his eyes.

    "Let''s not go through with this transaction for now," he announced.

    ''As great of a prize as it is, downgrading our weapons right as we are about to have a showdown with Marcus¡­'' Mathew thought, biting his lips and shaking his head.

    ''There will always be time to sell those saberster,'' Mathew decided as he opened his eyes.

    "I wish to go back to the real world," he then announced, happy with the results he achieved during the visit.

    The merchant didn''t react to Mathew''s ultimate refusal to process the transaction. And when he wished to get out, the entire realm shattered, turning into shadowy mist beforepletely falling apart.

    ''I''m back,'' Mathew thought once the shadows dispersed, allowing him to see the room exactly as it was when he left it.

    "Okay, I''m done," he said, raising his head and looking straight at Peter.

    "Huh?" the middle-aged man twitched before pulling his eyebrows together. "But you didn''t do anything at all?" he pointed out with a confused expression on his face. "Didn''t you say you needed a minute?"

    "It''s okay, just lead the way," Mathew said while waving his hand at the man.

    "Well¡­ if you say so," Peter muttered before shrugging his shoulders, turning around, and then leaving the room.

    "Before we go," Mathew muttered, quickly reaching for the storage window floating near the merchant''s head and pulling out the three des he obtained from the merchant.

    He then passed two of them to Nadia and Le respectively while keeping one for himself. Yet, rather than just glossing over Norbert, he pulled out the handgun he obtained in the sh before and passed it over to the former policeman.

    "You are going to make a much better use of those than we ever could," Mathew said, parting ways with the gun he obtained just recently.

    "Do you¡­" Norbert epted the gun, casting a strangely reluctant look at it before raising his eyes to Mathew.  "Do you expect a fight?" he asked.

    "That solely depends on whether I understand Marcus as well as I hope I do," Mathew replied while shaking his shoulders. "If I''m right, then everything should go smoothly and without any bloodshed," he imed while turning around and facing toward the doors.

    Mathew then took a step forward, eager to follow Peter¡­ Yet, as soon as he took a single step, he stopped.

    "Keep in mind," he turned his head over his shoulder and looked at hispanions. "If I''m wrong about the guy¡­"

    Mathew didn''t need to finish his sentence. The determined look that he saw in everyone''s eyes was more than enough to confirm for him hispanions were ready.

    "Well, let''s just hope we will be able to avoid the conflict, then," he muttered before turning his head back towards the doors and picking up his pace. "Wouldn''t it be nice if we could just help each other out?" he pondered as he got on the move and left the room.

 Chapter 304 Path To The Negotiations

    Mathew and hispanions followed Peter as he guided them through the insides of the survivor''s camp. Everywhere they looked, the scene was simr; walls that had been taken apart in haste, doors barricaded with whatever random furniture was avable at hand, and windows boarded up with wood or metal tes. It made for a depressing sight that only served to highlight the struggles of those who had called this ce home until recently.

    The group walked on in silence; each lost in their own thoughts as they took in their surroundings. The state of disarray reminded Mathew of his previous encounters with survivors back in his original life. The same desperation could be seen here as well - it seemed that just about every person living here had given up hope for a better future and was simply trudging through life one day at a time.

    ''I can''t forget,'' Mathew thought to himself. ''I can''t forget about what I didn''t remember so far at all,'' he thought while taking a deep breath and holding in the odor of the ce.

    With no city services running, there was no plumbing. With water turning into a critical problem, locals couldn''t afford to waste it for cleaning themselves or their surroundings. And as a result of those sad aspects of the new reality, in the corridors of the block where Marcus made his survivor''s camp, the stink of human waste, sweat, and the umted dirt was prevalent.

    In spite of all the stench, Mathew couldn''t help but admire the efficiency of the modifications made to existing architecture in order to make it easier for everyone to keep the ce organized and well-defended. As they passed through a corridor, he caught a glimpse of an inner courtyard and noticed that the survivors had attempted to create a vegetable garden there. It was an admirable attempt, even if it seemed doomed right from the start due to ack of resources and manpower; sparsely nted patches of dirt with just some struggling nts jutting out here and there serving as a testament to their efforts.

    Yet, even if locals didn''tck the manpower necessary to expand and maintain the garden nor the water or other resources necessary to keep it alive...

    It was still way too small to feed all the people that Mathew was passing by! And what was even worse, it would take a considerable amount of time before the first vegetables would start sprouting.

    ''Unless they find another, sustainable source of food, they will all starve out before the first veggies will appear,'' Mathew thought.

    He also caught glimpses of people here and there - most kept their heads low, only ncing up at them briefly before quickly looking away again or even trying to hide themselves away behind whatever random items were within reach. Even so, Mathew could sense how on edge everyone was - all around him he felt tension radiating from those who thought that any strangers walking through their hallways might bring nothing but trouble with them.

    Peter finally gestured for them all to stop in front of what looked like a shopfront with its windows boarded up with nks nailed randomly onto each other.

    "We''re here," Peter said as he knocked on one side of the wooden nks covering the window thrice. He then waited for two seconds before knocking twice more on another nk "Marcus should be waiting inside," he announced as he pulled his fist away from the nks and pointed at the doors to the side.

    Mathew and hispanions followed the middle-aged man as he guided them into the shopfront where Marcus was waiting. As they stepped in, a tense atmosphere filled the room. The only light came from a few candles spread around the area, casting an eerie glow that highlighted details that would have otherwise been lost in darkness.

    In the center of the room, arge table was surrounded by Marcus'' "officers". They had their eyes fixed upon Mathew and his group with an intensity that made it clear how seriously they were taking their job to guard their leader.

    And the recent sh that nearly turned into bloodshed didn''t help in making their attitude more amicable either.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Mathew took notice of these officers surrounding Marcus; he knew these were people who had his full trust and regarded them as such - as "Marcus'' core". He didn''t know what each one''s role was within this camp but still felt respect for each one regardless. These people had chosen to stay here even when other survivors ran away from this ce months ago - something Mathew valued greatly, regardless if they worked under his potential enemy or not.

    In the times of apocalypse, loyalty was something that one couldn''t undervalue.

    Marcus himself sat in a chair directly opposite the entrance. He gave off an air of confidence yet also seemed wary about his visitors'' presence, no doubt worried about what could happen if things between him and Mathew went south. His arms crossed over his chest while silent tension emanated from him like waves on a stormy sea.  It felt like everyone present was awaiting some kind of reaction or action from either side, leaving just silence heavy enough to drown out any further discussion until finally broken by Marcus'' voice, "Alright then..."

    Marcus coughed, revealing a hint of a smirk for but a split second.

    ''He enjoys this kind of air,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes just a tiny little bit. ''He pretends to be wary... but he is right in his element.''

    Mathew blinked... And Norbert finally found the opportunity to pass on his report.

    "He has some sort of a trigger hidden underneath the table. It''s in his left hand," the former policeman whispered in his ghostly form to Mathew''s ear.

    Norbert''s voice cut off as soon as Mathew opened his eyes back up. But those few words he heard... they were more than enough for the young man to figure out how to start the conversation.

    Or, to be more precise, to convince him that being the first one to talk would be akin to suicide, no matter how the scenario would y out from that point on.

    Seeing how Mathew had no desire to break the awkward and tense silence, Marcus sighed before leaning over the table.

    "I''ve heard that you may have a way to deal with our shortage," he started, cutting right to the chase.

    Mathew smiled when he heard exactly the words he wanted to hear. Because there was one element of what he said back then that Marcus clearly omitted.

    "And I remember agreeing on how I will be to address everyone at once about this topic so that not only I wouldn''t have to repeat myself twice but also could take the me as the ''bad guy'' behind the n."

 Chapter 305 Backing Down

    "You wish to appear as the bad guy within some n that I couldn''t figure out on my own and that would be sobor intensive there would be a need for a bad guy in the first ce..." Marcus muttered while shaking his head. He then took a deep breath before leaning back on his chair and looking straight at Mathew''s face. "This doesn''t sit well with me," he announced. "And I have no reason to trust you," he added. "So, before I will let you speak to my people, I wish to hear your n here."

    ''So that''s how it is,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes a tiny little bit.

    "This isn''t how this was supposed to go," he said, trying to go with the same route that he did during the earlier sh.

    Right now, the power bnce between the two groups was still in Mathew''s favor. Both in terms of real power and in terms of the perceived might that he represented as the leader of his group. And yet...

    And yet, Marcus was here to challenge it.

    "Ipromised and epted your terms before," Marcus pointed out. "I''m not going to yield that easily again," he argued. "Don''t forget," he squinted his eyes himself. "This is my camp and my rules. Don''t take a kind exception to be a new standard."

    "Do you think you can threaten me like that?" Mathew said with a hint of amusement in his voice. He then let out a short chuckle, before adding: "I can kill you and all your officers before your trigger finger has a chance to squeeze." With those words, he pulled his right hand from behind his back, resting it on the handle of the newly acquired sword that hung at his waist.

    The de glinted ominously in the candlelight as if it was beckoning for violence. It was obvious what kind of message Mathew wanted to send through this gesture - he didn''t fear Marcus or anyone in this room and could end them all with just one swing of that weapon.

    "You have no idea just how much I want to call your bluff," Marcus replied in a perfectly calm manner.

    And it was his peace of mind that unnerved Mathew a bit.

    ''He acts as if he is in control of the situation. And while, to a degree, he is... It''s not good that he''s aware of it.''

    Mathew''s opinion didn''t really matter. What was important right now, was for him to find a way to respond to Marcus'' confidence that would put his own group back on top of the negotiations.

    Because that was what this entire event was all about. Sure, it consisted of threats, changes of ns, introducing strange rules, and even shing weapons... But it was still nothing more but all part of a simple negotiation.

    A type of negotiation where both parties have yet to actually reveal not only what they wanted but also what they were willing to give up for it.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "I found explosives all over the ce," Norbert reported as soon as Mathew blinked his eyes. "But I can''t tell which ones the trigger is connected to," he added when Mathew lowered his head, closed his eyes, and then shook his head.

    "You wish to call my bluff... and blow yourself to pieces in the process?" Mathew asked as if trying to ensure he got everything right. ''It doesn''t matter which explosive this trigger connects to. Once one of them goes off, all of them would soon follow.''

    For a moment, both Mathew and Marcus were locked in an intense staredown. No words were exchanged as each tried to out-stare the other in a battle of wills. In the dim candlelight, their eyes seemed to be two burning embers within their sockets. It was almost as if they were willing each other to back down with just a look... but neither did.

    "I guess we don''t have anything to talk about, then," Marcus muttered, squinting his eyes even further before lowering his sights down to the map on the table, signaling that the discussion was effectively over.

    "I already passed the information about my intentions. I''m even willing to y the bad guy when ites to that hard task of obtaining more water. And yet, you are going to ignore all of that, this golden opportunity..." Mathew paused his words and graced Marcus with a lovely smile. "And yet, you are willing to give it all up just to prove who is the boss in here?" he asked, raising his left eyebrow as he did so.

    "There is no way I will let you address my people before listening to your proposition first," Marcus stated in a voice that didn''t ept any protests or corrections. "So if you really want to do it..." he spread his arms open, "you know exactly what you need to do now."

    Mathew smiled in response to Marcus'' words.

    "And what if I just lie through my teeth just to get your approval?" Mathew asked with a small smirk on his lips.

    "Nothing," Marcus replied with overwhelming honesty. He even shrugged his shoulders just to show how little he cared. "But if what you say here and what you would say out there," he shook his head to nod with his chin towards the back door of the room they were in, "then I would know there is no further need to take anything of what you say seriously." Marcus'' smile grew even further. "Or in simpler terms, I would learn there is no point whatsoever to making any deals with you," he added with a confident smile.

    "Fair point," Mathew admitted while twisting his lips in an ugly grimace. Then, he took a deep breath...

    And stepped back, signaling that at least in this regard, he considered himself to have lost in the battle of words.

    "So?" Marcus smiled lightly, perfectly happy with Mathew''s meaningless gesture of defeat. "What''s the solution you wanted to propose to fix our water problems?"

 Chapter 306 Thread Of A Common Interest

    "The solution to the water problem..." Mathew muttered, repeating Marcus'' words.

    Then, a yful smile yed on his lips.

    "There is none."

    It was as if the thunder struck the room. For a short moment, not a single person dared to make a sound inside. And then, everyone started shouting all at the same time.

    "What the hell do you mean by that?!" Marcus screamed out, mming his fists against the table.

    For a moment, he stared at Mathew with a hateful look in his eyes. And yet, despite the level of rage he disyed, he calmed himself down.

    "No, now I see," he muttered. "It was only a ploy to take my time and attention somewhere else..." he whispered to himself.

    Marcus'' eyes opened up wide. He then turned his head to the nearest officer to his right.

    "Bart, you go and..." Marcus was about to give an order when his face tensed up a little. He then turned his eyes and looked at Mathew, his expression twisted in curiosity. "If you have no method of obtaining water, then what in all hells did you want to talk to everyone about?"

    Mathew smiled. He then closed his eyes and shook his head to the sides.

    "One of his men entered the room and is checking out the merchant," Norbert reported, making use of Mathew''s closed eyes.

    "Didn''t I already say it?" Mathew then asked, opening his eyes and looking right into Marcus'' face. His lips quivered as he struggled to hold back a giggle.

    Something extremely out of ce given the current circumstances.

    "I wanted to talk to everyone about the solution to your water problem," Mathew then revealed. His smile turned even brighter than before while the corners of his lips continued to twitch hard.

    "Excuse me?" Marcus raised his left eyebrow, taken aback by Mathew''s statement. "Didn''t you just im that it was all a lie?" he pointed out in a tired voice.

    His face screamed ''those damn kids,'' while some kind of divine source supplied him with patience to deal with the other party.

    "There is no way to increase your water supply, that''s true," Mathew replied. "Or maybe there is? Like digging a well? I dunno," he stated, spreading his arms open and shaking them. Mathew then brought his hands behind his back and raised his chin. "But reducing the demand for it by a huge margin? That''s certainly possible."

    Marcus stared at Mathew''s face for the next few moments. He opened his mouth a few times only to end up closing them, refusing to put his thoughts into words.

    "You just want to kill a bunch of useless folks," he then forwarded a guess. "Am I right?"

    Mathew could no longer hold his giggle back. So, rather than openlyughing in the other party''s face, he covered his mouth with his fist while his body shook in the convulsions of pure amusement.

    "That would certainly be one way to do it," he admitted.

    Mathew shook his head and took a deep breath to calm his giggles down. He then shook his head again before properly regaining his calm andposure.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "But no, that wasn''t my intention," he corrected the man. "I simply wanted to take them away."

    Silence ensued within the room.

    Mathew''s sentence caught aback not only Marcus alone but also all of his officers.

    Sure, they didn''t take an active part in the discussion so far, limiting themselves to just some silentments, murmurs, or nodding their heads whenever they agreed with their leader.

    This time, however, they all turned perfectly still and silent.

    ''That''s¡­" Marcus finally came to his senses. "That I didn''t actually expect," he admitted.

    And for the first time since he allowed his fit of rage to the outside world, his expression calmed down a little.

    His rage stemmed from the fact that Mathew came here to bother him seemingly for no reason at all. And now that he learned it wasn''t necessarily the case, he no longer had any reason to stick to said rage.

    "I do happen to know about you," Mathew said, cupping his hands together before stretching his arms up and releasing a long yawn. "Quite a lot at that."

    Mathew leaned his head slightly to the side and smiled gently.

    "And you don''t strike me as someone who would keep seemingly useless people just to burden those who can actively contribute to the survival of your group," he said. "Ah, don''t get me wrong," Mathew quickly raised his hands to stop anyone from interrupting him. "I''m not saying that approach is wrong. With the world as it is, we need to ept drastic measures for a new norm," he admitted before taking a short pause and lowering his head.

    Mathew then brought his eyes up, giving Marcus a look at his upturned eyes and a small, sneaky smile.

    "But I just can''t help but wonder, isn''t the only reason why you keep all those nonbatants that only eat away the precious little resources you have¡­" he raised his eyes on the officers gathered around their leader. "Thebat-gifted people who wish to protect their nonbat-oriented friends and family?"

    This was the problem for any and all groups that wished to retain their fighting strength in the face of the endless dangers of the apocalypse. Gathering people capable of fighting was one thing¡­ but if they knew how to fight, then there was a huge chance they already fought to protect someone they cared about.

    How could one gain their loyalty and support then, if not by offering a safe house and basic necessities to those whom thebatants cared for?

    "That''s¡­" Marcus squinted his eyes. He then threw a quick look at the people surrounding him.

    That alone was enough for an answer.

    "That''s partially correct," Marcus admitted.

    ''You just don''t want to fully admit it,'' Mathew countered¡­ albeit only in his thoughts.

    Now that some sort of connection was there, he saw no point in actively seeking to disturb it by arguing with the man over the semantics.

    "Then, how about we help each other out?" Mathew suggested, spreading his arms open and putting a wide smile on his face. "How about you let me take all those people that you consider useless?"

 Chapter 307 What Makes A True Leader

    "So you want to take all those people off my shoulders and¡­ do what?" Marcus asked while leaning back in his chair.

    ''I just called him out on the reasons why he keeps them here in the first ce. I guess it''s only normal for him to pretend to care about them,'' Mathew thought.

    "We are going to lift the burden of keeping them alive, safe, and fed from you," Nadia stepped up and said. "Don''t you think you are asking too many questions now?"

    "Girl¡­" Marcus looked at Nadia for a second before shaking his head with a disappointed expression. "Men are talking right now, shut up."

    "Oh, Marcus¡­" Mathew whispered, replicating the man''s expression and shaking his own head. His hand found its way to the handle of his newly obtained sword. He then half-opened his eyes while already invoking his mind''s flesh. "There are many things I can pretend not to notice or outright ignore," he said.

    Mathew took a step forward.

    Two of the Marcus officers tensed up, recognizing the small changes to his expression and general aura.

    "But I''m not going to allow a fucker like you to insult my wife," Mathew said, properly raising his head, opening his eyes, and then sending a deadly stare right at Marcus'' face.

    The air in the room tensed up. The rest of Marcus'' officers finally realized what was going on. Their hands moved down, hovering around the various spots where they kept their weapons.

    "That''s fine," Marcus said, going against the general flow and not showing any signs of being pressured. "I apologize," he said and even lowered his head while doing so.

    "Good," Mathew diffused his aura, "good call," he added as he stepped one pace back.

    "Still," Marcus smiled. He then leaned forward and put his elbows on the edge of the table before cupping his hands together and resting his chin on top of them. "You want my people, don''t you?" he pointed out. "While I still want to know what are you going to do with them, there is something even more important I want to ask," he said with a disgustingly charming smile.

    "What are you offering in return?"

    ''That''s quite the risk he is taking,'' Mathew thought as he cast a quick nce at the officers around Marcus'' table.

    By seemingly putting the matter of the people''s well-being on hold while steering the discussion towards t-out negotiation of the prize, he was putting their trust at risk.

    ''Or¡­'' Mathew squinted his eyes a bit while a single thought coursed through his head. ''Or he is trying to see who''s smart enough to realize that''s what he is actually supposed to do.''

    Marcus was a leader of the survivors'' camp. As such, the general well-being of specific people within his group¡­ couldn''t be his main concern.

    His job was to ensure that whoever was within the camp would be taken care of to the best of what the camp could provide while extracting everyst bit of value from them in return.

    And right now, to ensure the most benefits for the camp, he couldn''t focus on the well-being of the people he would potentially send away.

    He had to focus on the perks of the people that would remain.

    "By taking them away, we will cut you free from the burden of keeping them," Mathew replied while the way he looked at Marcus changed a little.<novelnext></novelnext>

    When the entire encounter started, he considered the man to be just a human monster like many in the apocalyptic world. Someone who didn''t spare his own people or random survivors for the sake of his goals.

    Mathew also knew the man was fiercely intelligent due to how he always appeared to be prepared for everything that was happening around him.

    But now, Mathew looked at Marcus with a dose of genuine respect.

    Because save for all the traits already mentioned, he also knew how to be a leader. And being a true leader was what Mathew desperately aspired to be.

    "That''s an added benefit," Marcus replied after a moment of thought. He then rxed his hands and put them t down on the table. "Not the benefit you need to offer if you want this exchange to be equal."

    "What if I throw a merchant to the equation?" Mathew asked with a small smile.

    ''No matter how I may respect him now, it doesn''t change that we are on opposite sides of the negotiation table right now,'' the young man thought, taking a deep breath as he devoted himself to using every card that he had hidden in his sleeve.

    "What merchant?" Marcus feigned ignorance.

    "The one you already know I summoned. Or should I say," Mathew put a cheeky smile on his lips, "the merchant that your people are checking out right now?"

    The expression on Marcus'' face soured a little. Once again, Mathew proved that his earlier statement of knowing everything that was going on¡­ wasn''t all that far from the truth.

    Marcus closed his eyes and took some time to think.

    "Summoning a merchant only takes a hundred zombie cores," he then said upon opening his eyes back up. "That''s not enough."

    "I don''t like to waste my time on haggling," Mathew replied. "So I will throw two hundred zombie cores and not a single concession or item more," he stated.

    "You got way more than that from just the horde you took down a few hours ago!" Marcus protested.

    "You are right," Mathew smiled in return. "A horde that I took down," he pointed out. "And a horde that would take this ce down if not for me and my girls," he then added.

    Marcus closed his eyes again, taking his sweet time to calcte his options.

    "Back to the earlier question we are, it seems," he said without opening his eyes. "What do you need them for?" He asked while opening his eyes and staring right at Mathew''s face. "Or rather, how are you going to treat them?"

    ''That means, we got ourselves a deal,'' he thought while openly smiling.

    "Oh, I will work them all to the bone," he admitted right away and without even a shred of hesitation. "But!" he then added, raising his eyebrows when he saw the souring expressions of some of Marcus'' officers. "But I''m also going to protect them, feed them¡­" Mathew smiled with confidence, ready to put thest nail to the coffin of any and all opposition.

    "And I will allow them to usher in the luxuries like running water or a shadow of a normal life that my camps have to offer."

 Chapter 308 When Dealing With Smart Opponent, Confuse Them With Bullshit

    "Those are really good terms, assuming you are actually willing to uphold them," Marcus admitted. He then moved his head to and fro with his eyes closed and a small smile on his lips. "But that doesn''t answer my question," he added, opening his eyes and piercing his sight right into Mathew''s face.

    "I told you what benefits you will receive by taking the deal. I told you what the people that will follow me will obtain. What else do you want to know?" Mathew listed out while infusing some anger in his voice.

    "I want to know what you need all those people for," Marcus said with a small smile.

    "And why would I tell you that?" Mathew countered right away. Marcus asked his question before, after all, so it didn''t take a genius to figure out what he really wanted to know. "Even if that might change in the future, as things stand right now, we are not in a cooperative rtionship," he pointed out while throwing in some bait forter. "It''s better for me if you can only guess my needs," he added with a slight shake of his shoulders.

    "That''s fair," Marcus admitted with a sigh. "Still, there are a few more things we need to agree on before we can proceed."

    Marcus leaned back on his chair and brought his hands behind his head. In his position, he was just a step away from putting his legs on the table and giving Mathew an amused look.

    "First, we have nothing but your word that you will take care of those people. That''s why I wanted to know what you need them for. But since you don''t want to reveal it," Marcus'' smile turned deeper, "you will have to agree on my people visiting their loved ones every once in a while."

    ''And this isn''t even all of it,'' Mathew thought, taking Marcus'' earlier statement into ount.

    "That much is fine," Mathew nodded his head. "But they won''t be able to join my group if they won''t do it right away."

    "And why is that?" Marcus inquired.

    "Because they will be tempted by all the perks my camps have to offer," Mathew revealed without any hesitation. "I have no need for people willing to ditch their group for better benefits."

    "Because there mighte a time when you won''t be the one offering the most, right?" Marcus pointed out the possible reason behind Mathew''s condition.

    The young man, however, didn''t reply out loud. He simply smiled before leaning his head over to the side, letting the other party assume that this was the reason.

    "Well, that''s fine. As long as you can guarantee that we can visit once every¡­" Marcus took a moment to think, "once every week, then we have the deal."

    "That''s fine with me," Mathew nodded his head. "You will have to announce your arrival in advance, though," he put yet another condition.

    "That''s reasonable¡­" Marcus muttered.

    And then, a silence ensued as the two men silently challenged each other to a contest of stares.

    "Aren''t you guys just agreeing with each other over and over again?" Le stepped forward and pointed out. "Since you guys said everything that needs to be said, how about we stop wasting time and get on the move instead?"

    "Hahaha," Marcusughed, "you are absolutely right!" he admitted while still shaking withughter. "Just onest question then, out of pure curiosity this time," he added before moving his eyes from Le back to Mathew''s face.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "You said something about things possibly changing in the future. And to my understanding, the only reason why you would need people is to get them to work for you," Marcus stated before turning silent for a moment and allowing a wide smile to appear on his lips right as he leaned his head over his shoulder.

    "What kind of cooperation do you imagine the two of us to possibly have in the future?"

    Mathew had to forcefully restrain a smile of satisfaction from emerging on his lips.

    ''He bit the bait!'' he cheered in his thoughts while putting a mysterious look on his face.

    "That solely depends on you. But if I were to describe the difference between our groups, your isbat-oriented while my group focuses more on rebuilding what we lost."

    Mathew then put his hands behind his back before turning around and heading toward the doors. Yet, right as he was about to leave the room, he theatrically stopped before looking back over his shoulder. "And when the timees when we will restart power nts, water supply, and maybe even mass farming," Mathew finally allowed a smile to return to his lips, "I expect you to see you on our doorstep, begging us for cooperation."

    Mathew pulled his head back to its natural position before walking out of the room, not waiting for Marcus'' response to yet another of his baits.

    "Was that really necessary?" Norbert asked in a low voice once they put some distance between themselves and Marcus'' headquarters. "To taunt him like that right as we agreed to cooperate?"

    "Hah," Mathewughed a little. "Did you already forget what I said before about dealing with smart people?" Mathew asked.

    "Confuse them with bullshit," Norbert summarised thetter of the pieces of wisdom Mathew brought up before they headed for the negotiations. "So you have no intention of doing the things you mentioned?"

    "And why would I?" Mathew asked, his eyes opening up wide as genuine surprise reced his amusement from just a moment ago. "It will take us years if not centuries to get rid of the zombies. Most likely, longer than we will live," he pointed out. "And that means, we will have a stable supply of zombie cores for as long as we live. And that alone is enough to rece all the infrastructure I made him think we are aiming to reim."

    The water supply in the schoolpound was running even though the water facilities it was connected to were all dead. The same could be said about power, sewage, and even the food supply.

    All of those things were taken care of by sacrificing a few cores to the merchants that would in turn provide all those necessities.

    ''It''s almost as if whoever came up with this system wanted to save us from struggling for those basic necessities,'' Mathew thought.

    "And the merchant?" Nadia asked as she ran up to Mathew''s side. "Couldn''t you just give him a hundred cores more if you were going to give it away anyway?"

    "By summoning a merchant, I proved that we know about them. And made him consider just how much we know," Mathew revealed with a smile. "But what''s even more important, once we take care of all their nonbatants, their group will transform into an independent unit of hunters," the young man exined.

    Then, a vile smile emerged on his face,ing from all the schemes that he thought of in advance of the negotiations that just concluded.

    "But even such a group will need a ce to fall back to. And now that they have two merchants here," Mathew turned his head and looked Nadia right in the eyes, "I basically ensured they won''t leave that easily."

 Chapter 309 Its Easier To Ask For Forgiveness Than Approval

    Even though Mathew and his group left the room first, they still had to wait outside for a guide that Marcus would assign to them.

    After all, even though they were going to snatch a considerable number of people from Marcus'' camp, it was still a thing of the future. And for now, only Marcus and his men had the ability tomand those under them.

    Yet, as it soon turned out, the guide appeared to be someone they already knew. And someone they were talking with just recently.

    "You?" Mathew raised one of his eyebrows when he saw the approaching man. "Don''t you have more important things to do or something?" he then asked.

    "I''m just curious how you are going to convince those people to leave with you," Marcus grinned while locking his hand behind his back. "Even if I''m protecting them as of now, it was one hell of trouble to force them to fall in line. So, I can''t help but be curious," he smiled while looking right into Mathew''s face.

    "Curious about what?" Mathew asked, perfectly aware he was walking right into the trap Marcus set for him.

    "About what kind of wonders and lies you will use to make them follow you," Marcus replied.

    "Well then, lead the way," Mathew suggested as he took a step back and theatrically bowed in half while letting the man pass by him.

    "Everyone is gathering in the main hall," Marcus said. His lips then twitched. "And it''s in the other way," he added.

    They didn''t need to walk far. The entire block that Marcus turned into the stronghold for his group was maybe a tenth the size of the school''s grounds that were Mathew''s original seat of power. And while the residential buildings went up to seven floors in the highest points, there was still far less room in this block than there was within the campus.

    And yet¡­

    As it turned out, Marcus managed to gather far more followers than Mathew, even when counting both the poption of the saved students and the civilians from the media building.

    ''There has to be at least two hundred of them,'' Mathew thought as he stepped through the doors and entered what Marcus called the ''main hall.''

    In reality, it was the very ce that the zombies were desperate to break into before Mathew and his girls cleared up the horde.

    The ''main hall'' in reality was just the main area of the car workshop, currently cleaned from all the movable equipment.

    The equipment to fix the cars wasn''t of much use in the apocalypse and now served as the structural part of the barricades set all over the ce. Yet, stuff like a massive crane that was used to lift the cars up and other bigger pieces of equipment remained.

    Yet, even those turned over a new leaf, as the crane used to lift the cars now lifted a small balcony with a group of three guards armed with automatic guns overlooking the entire area.

    "Everyone, silence!" Marcus shouted from the bottom of his lungs, silencing the chatter that came from over two hundred throats. "There is a huge announcementing now, so you all better listen to it carefully!"

    Marcus then turned around and looked at Mathew with a small glint of amusement in his eyes.

    "Should I wish you good luck?" he asked with a smirk.

    "Nah," Mathew shook his head. "I just forgot how this one saying went¡­" he muttered as he lowered his eyes, tensed up his facial muscles, and shook his head a little. "It''s better to¡­"

    Mathew''s face then rxed as he raised his eyes back and looked at Marcus with a bright smile.

    "Wasn''t it¡­ It''s easier to ask for forgiveness than for approval?" Mathew asked, leaning his head to the side before patting Marcus on his shoulder and stepping forward, leaving the man behind.

    "Everyone!" Mathew shouted to get everyone''s attention on him.

    ''Two hundred might be a pretty conservative estimate,'' he then thought as he looked at the crowd below. ''Just how did he manage to get all those people?''

    Mathew shook his head, ridding his mind of the useless thoughts.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "There are some things that you need to know before learning of my reason for visiting this ce," Mathew announced.

    And behind him, Marcus shook uneasily.

    "There is only enough water to keep you all alive for the next three days in this camp," Mathew dropped the first bomb. "The situation with the food is better, and Marcus expects the problem of starvation to start no sooner than in a week!"

    A wave of murmurs of dissatisfaction washed over the crown.

    "But what''s most important of all, in Marcus'' eyes, you guys are not worth those precious few resources he managed to obtain!" Mathew shouted while spreading his arms out.

    "Are you trying to start an uprising or what?!" Marcus whispered through his tightened teeth. He even took a step toward Mathew''s back¡­ Only to be stopped by Nadia''s single hand.

    "Don''t you dare get any closer," she warned the man with a cold look in her eyes. "Whatever contingency n you might have prepared, you will be the first one to die if something happens," she announced in a voice low enough only for Marcus and Mathew''s group to hear it.

    "And to be frank, I wholeheartedly agree with him!" Mathew then shouted, allowing some of the me to get on his shoulder¡­ even though he entered the camp only a few hours ago!

    "You guys are nothing but a useless bunch that doesn''t do anything for those who risk their lives to keep you alive!" Mathew shouted, spreading his arms as far as he could¡­ Only to then bring them together and sp them as if he wanted to pray before raising his eyes toward the ceiling of the room. "If only there was a way for people too weak to fight the zombies to contribute¡­"

    Mathew shook his head and closed his eyes as he lowered his chin to a natural position.

    And once he opened his eyes back, his face was perfectly still, devoid of any and all expressions.

    "I came here because what I need are not fighters but workers," Mathew said in a voice as deprived of emotion as was his expression. "But I have no need for those who only can leech on others and expect to be taken care of!"

    Mathew took a step forward, nearly entering the ranks of the crowd he was making a speech for.

    "That''s why I''m willing to ept up to a hundred people from your ranks. A hundred people who are willing to work tirelessly, even if the job is boring, tiring, or outside of their field of qualification!"

    Mathew waited for a short moment for the crowd to digest his words. He then took a step back, returning within the range of the rest of his group.

    "A hundred people that I will reward with all the food, water, lodging, and maybe even some entertainment in the near future!" Mathew shouted again, moving over from the stick towards the carrot part of his proposal. "I''m willing to ept a hundred people that will follow me to my camp, where in exchange for your hard work, I will empower you to regain a bit of the stability that this apocalypse robbed from you!"

    At this moment, emotions returned to Mathew''s face. He once again allowed his lips to form a small smile.

    "There are only two caveats to this deal. First, we have a person with the ability to discern a lie from a truth. And everyone interested will have to prove they are willing to work hard before the scrutiny of their eyes," Mathew announced the first rule.

    Yet, instead of talking about the second one, he then turned silent.

    "What about the other caveat?" someone from the crowd finally got the hint and asked.

    "I''m only willing to ept people now. Once the news of the benefits of living in my camps spread and bemon knowledge," Mathew borated and put a wide smile on his face.

    "Even if you will be someone of great value and willing to work hard, you won''t be epted into my camps!"

    Mathew, once again, allowed a short moment to pass.

    "I"m not going to bother you with details. So I will say it again. We have water, we have food. We even have electricity and most of all, our camp is perfectly safe," Mathew repeated the main points of his speech. "But if you want to join, today, right now, is your one and only chance to do so!"

 Chapter 310 Any Questions? Any Volounteers?

    Mathew waited for a few moments to let the crowd take some time and digest his words.

    ''That''s quite a lot that I dropped on them,'' he thought, running his eyes all over the ce in search of potential sources of discontent.

    Yet, contrary to Mathew''s expectations, there weren''t any sparks that would invite trouble and chaos.

    ''Did I judge those people too harshly?'' Mathew asked himself while he continued to wait. ''Maybe my ss and schoolmates weren''t good examples for me to judge the entirety of humanity from?''

    Mathew assumed that the people within Marcus'' camp would be simr to those who he met in the past. He considered it to be a logical deduction given their number and how quickly Marcus managed to get them all together.

    And yet¡­

    He couldn''t see anyoneing forward to present him with some entitled demands and attitude. He saw no people starting trouble just for the sake of it either.

    All Mathew could see within the crowd were people who seriously considered their options.

    ''Was my general opinion of people that skewed, or is it the harsh reality of apocalypse influencing them?'' he pondered.

    But rather than wasting even more time trying to find the answer to such a pointless question, Mathew shook his head before raising his chin and opening his mouth.

    "Do you have any questions?" he shouted his question out, hoping to sort out at least a few of those peoples'' doubts now rather than doing it one by one while interviewing the candidates for camp immigration.

    "How can we know what you are telling is true?" a shout came from somewhere in the back of the crowd.

    In theory, Mathew had his senses raised to the point where he could pinpoint the owner of the voice¡­ But such an action wouldn''t go unnoticed by the rest of the crowd.

    And given how much time asking those questions out loud would potentially save himter on, Mathew didn''t want to do anything that could decrease people''s willingness to ask them.

    "It''s impossible for me to procure proof about something that isn''t here. So let me exin it in a slightly roundabout manner," Mathew replied with a smile.

    He then turned his head to Marcus by his side before putting a wide grin on his face.

    "Marcus, it''s an honest question so I want an honest answer. The horde that attacked this camp just recently," Mathew started while giving the man an eye. "Do you think you could hold it back all on your own?"

    Mathew gave Marcus a wink.

    Because right now, Marcus had no other choice but to y along. And even if he honestly believed that his forces would be able to repel a horde of about a thousand zombies¡­ He couldn''t admit it before this crowd as it would uproot the validity of Mathew''s promises!

    Marcus gritted his teeth for a second before putting an uneasy, almost embarrassed expression on his face.

    "I can''t really tell whether it would be possible or not," he started. His forehead already started to sweat, proving just how much he was trying to wiggle his way out of the situation Mathew put him in. "But what I can say for sure, is that even if we managed to defeat this horde,"? Marcus raised his eyes with renewed confidence, a sign that he found a way to avoid admitting to his own weakness.

    "Holding that horde back would be impossible without a lot of sacrifices. Or, in simpler words," he gave Mathew a look before turning his face back towards the crown, "a lot of fighters would die. We would heavily exhaust our stock of ammunition. And there would be a huge chance that quite a few of you would fall prey to the zombies too."

    Mathew listened to Marcus'' confession with a slight smile on his face. And when the man finished his announcement¡­ Mathew remained silent for just a bit longer than Marcus expected.<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''Yes, just like that,'' Mathew thought when he noticed notes of panic appearing on Marcus'' face. ''What should you say if I''m not satisfied yet?'' he thought while putting a vile smile on his lips.

    Yet, rather than pushing the other party well beyond the limits of cooperation and courtesy, Mathew took a step forward before patting Marcus on his shoulder.

    A gesture that looked every bit unnatural given the obvious age difference between the two of them.

    "The horde that attacked you was so big because your numbers are huge," Mathew said out loud,ing up with a random yet fitting bullshit on the fly. "The number of people protected is way too high for the number of the people that can protect them. Hence, when the next hordees along with the stronger zombies," Mathew made a short pause, allowing this hint to sink deep into everyone''s mind, "there is no way you would be able to protect this ce.

    "Stronger zombies?" Marcus whispered while giving Mathew a furious look. "And you didn''t find it fitting to tell me about them before?"

    "We have a cooperative rtionship," Mathew whispered back. "You are not my ally nor my subordinate. So I see no reason to share more information with you than I find absolutely necessary."

    Mathew turned his face back towards the crowd.

    "I understand that it might be hard to leave this ce that offered you safety for nearly a week ever since the apocalypse started," Mathew said, adding two days to how long ago the apocalypse started just to make his expressions flow smoother. "But what I need you to understand is that it can''t go on for much longer like that," he added while shaking his head.

    Mathew then turned silent, putting a decisive stop to his points.

    ''If they are still unwilling to go with me after telling them so much, then there is no point in epting them in the first ce,'' he thought.

    People were bound to be reluctant to leave the safety of Marcus'' camp. Yet, if theck of other volunteers would make them even more obstinate rather than raising their drive to keep this ce safe, then they would be too little of human beings for Mathew to care about them.

    And the reasoning was simple.

    If not enough people left, this ce would end up destroyed fairly soon. So if everyone decided that his ownfort for the next few days is more important than the safety of the ce they all held dear¡­

    Then how could Mathew risk inviting them to a ce he managed?

    "I will go," one of the men from roughly the middle of the crowd stepped forth. He was roughly forty years of age and had every kind of mark on his body that a construction worker would normally boast. "I used to work paving the roads. I hope you will find my skills useful," the man said before moving forth and standing below the small stage Mathew was speaking from.

    "I will go too!" a girl, roughly ten years younger than the first volunteer then jumped up and raised her hand, following right after the man only to end up hugging his side as he approached. "Did you think you would free yourself from me if you went?" she asked with a small although terrified smile on her face.

    "How could I?" the man smiled back, before rustling the woman''s hair and raising his eyes on the crowd. "Guys, what that kid said makes sense," he then started to back Mathew''s words up.

    Mathew looked to the side, giving Marcus a suspicious look.

    ''Is it one of his men, trying to make the entire process smoother?'' he thought.

    Yet, the look on Marcus'' face mirrored the one on Mathew''s face.

    The man wasn''t Marcus'' direct follower. He was someone who genuinely believed in Mathew''s words and decided to support his cause!

 Chapter 311 Im A Leader, Not A Pimp!

    "Damn¡­" Nadia moaned while stretching out both her legs and her hands. "That was tiring!" she then shouted while mming her hands against a small desk she was sitting behind.

    Mathew''s group moved to a small room that Marcus prepared beforehand to conduct all of their interviews.

    What Marcus didn''t know, though, was that Mathew''s ims to be able to see through every lie¡­ was a lie in itself.

    "I''m sorry in advance," Mathew said to Norbert as soon as they left the main hall of the camp and entered the room.

    "For what?" Norbert asked while raising his eyebrows with suspicion filling his eyes.

    "Since we can''t really ascertain whether those people will lie or not, it will be up to you to monitor them closely," Mathew revealed his true n.

    "That''s¡­" Norbert hesitated. He then averted his eyes right as his shoulder slumped under the weight of yet another duty he would have to perform on a regr basis. "That''s quite a thing for you to ask," he muttered, averting his eyes as if he was too ashamed to refuse the request while looking straight into Mathew''s face.

    "Desperate times call for desperate measures," Mathew replied, lowering his eyes to the desk he found and sat behind. "I promise you, though," he then added, raising his eyes back to the former officer''s face. "Once we are done with our current strategy, I will focus all of my avable resources and efforts to help you grow stronger," Mathew stated.

    "Weren''t you supposed to do it already?" Norbert pointed out while raising his right eyebrow.

    "You know how it is," Mathew replied, averting his eyes yet again.

    "Yeah¡­" Norbert admitted right away rather than bidding his time to use this point to back his ims to Mathew''s support. "I"m aware of the situation. You are using whatever you can get your hands on to improve everyone''s chances of survival, I really do understand it," the man stated before taking a step forward and resting his hands on Mathew''s shoulders.

    "This is the duty of a leader to allocate his time, resources, and manpower to the most pressing matters," he imed.

    The look on his face betrayed that it wasn''t just some empty words of wisdom from the inte but a truth that Norbert learned while putting his life on the line while deployed to the war zone.

    "But there is a second side of this duty," Norbert then added, raising his hands and taking a step to the back. "And it is to listen to theints of the clueless soldiers that don''t know anything beyond their own thoughts and desires," Norbert added, using his own words to put himself down.

    "Is this how it really works?" Mathew asked, dly taking the olive branch and putting an amused expression on his face as well. "Is a soldier supposed to be able to randomly approach the suprememander with ideas on how to lead the war effort?"

    Norbert gave Mathew a long look¡­ before shaking his head and turning around.

    "Your tongue is turning too sharp for your own good," he said while walking toward the far corner of the room. "Right now it''s fine, but I''m worried about what kind of problems that tongue of yours will lead us to in the future."

    "You are wrong," Nadia stepped forth from her seat by Mathew''s side. "His tongue isn''t sharp!" she argued while putting a proud expression on her face. "It''s soft, gentle, and extremely plea¡­"<novelnext></novelnext>

    Mathew reached out and grabbed his crush''s hand before giving it a tight squeeze.

    The room was still closed¡­ but there was no telling when the volunteers would start to walk in.

    And soon enough, the process of epting people started.

    ? Everyst person who entered had to answer three simple questions.

    "Do you have any hidden or unspoken agendas prompting you to join our camp?"

    "Are you willing to work as hard as it will be necessary to keep everyone well-fed, protected, and happy as long as it''s within the limits of your safety and personal dignity?"

    "Do you have some particr skills that could be of use to the group?"

    The first question was directed at all those spies Marcus was likely to put among the volunteers.

    ''For a man as crafty as him, it would be too much of a missed opportunity if he didn''t at least try it,'' Mathew thought when he came up with that question.

    The second question was fairly simple and was aimed to weed out those who were either pressured into entering Mathew''s camp but were unwilling to pull their own weight while in there.

    Andstly, the easiest question of them all, one that inquired about a person''s unique skill.

    In theory, it wasn''t necessary. But after a short deliberation with Marcus out of everyone, Mathew decided on adding it just before all the interviews started.

    After all, for a development-focused group like his, rather than asking people for their fight-rted abilities, it was better to ask them whether they could fill any holes left in the civilization by all the zombified professionals.

    In the end, out of a total of nearly one hundred and fifty individuals that decided to try joining Mathew''s camps, only about eighty didn''t get flustered when answering the questions.

    "I''m quite surprised you refused to take in those whores," Norbertmented when he finally could stand up from his chair and drop the act of the one checking everyone''s answers from the shadows. "I bet their services would raise the morale of all the men and boys in the camps," he pointed out.

    "That might be true," Mathew admitted with a nod of his head. "But at the same time, their presence would likely lead to quite a lot of conflicts down the line,"  Mathew pointed out before giving his wives a quick look. "And I''m a leader," he added, pretending that his decision didn''t stem from the fiery looks his girls gave him when the three prostitutes revealed what their special ability was. "Not a damn pimp!"

 Chapter 312 Marcus Change Of Mind

    "Is everyone ready?" Mathew asked as he climbed up some sort of heavy-duty equipment to look at the crown gathered in the main hall of the camp.

    It was considerably smaller than the one that Marcus gathered before. And given how Mathew knew the precise number of people gathered, he could now estimate the total number of people left within Marcus'' camp.

    ''He still has around one hundred sixty people left to take care of,'' Mathew thought when he realized the crowd gathered now was only about a third of the total crowd he saw just a few hours earlier.

    "Are you really going to move out now?" Marcus asked as he approached Mathew at the very front of the entire crowd. "There is only about an hour before the sunset," he then added.

    It was a fun little change that happened in just thest five days. From people that were addicted to their clocks and who knew not how to care about the daylight¡­ People shifted from using the general time to just how their ancestors judged it, by looking at the position of the sun in the sky.

    "It''s okay, our camp is not that far," Mathew replied leisurely. "And to be honest, while the zombies get more dangerous at night," he smirked, "so do we."

    "I see," Marcus muttered. He then lowered his head as he thought about something. "Hey, now that I think about it," he raised his eyes, "I think I should go with you."

    Mathew ever-so-slightly squinted his eyes.

    "And why is that?" he asked while doing his best not to let his dissatisfaction show on his face.

    "You know where my camp is, it''s only fair for me to know where yours is," he revealed while looking directly into Mathew''s eyes.

    For a moment, the two of them stared into each other eyes, as if they were some sort of greatest rivals or greatest lovers in the world.

    "Haaa¡­" Marcus was the first one to avert his eyes. "Actually, I just want to make sure that all those people will not only be safe but get the perks that you told everyone about," he then revealed his true intentions.

    "You don''t strike me as someone who would actually care about it," Mathew pointed out while raising his right eyebrow.

    "I''m just doing whatever I need to do to keep all those people safe," Marcus replied, squinting his own eyes in response to Mathew''s honest yet slightly rude remarks. "Be it sacrificing some strangers to keep the zombies away, or sending a huge chunk of people under me away if they can have better chances to live away from my camp."

    "That''s¡­" Mathew hesitated.

    He expected Marcus to somehow try to bite a bit more than was agreed during the earlier negotiations.

    But for the man to wish to apany them personally?

    ''Is he trying to take my camp over? Or maybe see how it works so he can n for it?''

    Mathew closed his eyes and took a deep breath.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Listen, man, I respect your intelligence and craftiness," he honestly admitted. Then, he opened his eyes and looked Marcus straight in the eyes. "But at the same time, I can''t help but be worried about those qualities of yours."

    "Or, in other words, you don''t trust me," Marcus simplified Mathew''s words.

    "Exactly," Mathew agreed, ignoring the fact that they were having this kind of conversation out in the open and for everyone around them to freely listen to. "I don''t mind cooperating with you as long as we both benefit from such cooperation. But I''m not sure if I can keep you in check if this cooperation grows bigger."

    This was the first time Mathew to open up so much to the other party.

    He was wary of the man because of what he saw him do back in his original life. And it was this wariness that allowed him to get out victorious from several traps and situations Marcus already put him through.

    "I''m not asking for a greater degree of cooperation," Marcus then said. "Not yet, at least," he then added only to follow up with a shake of his head. "But didn''t you say that it''s something that could happen in the future?"

    Mathew pulled his eyebrows together.

    "I¡­" he hesitated for a bit. "I did," he then admitted.

    There was no use trying to take his words from before back. And to be perfectly honest, he saw a lot of benefits in potentially recruiting Marcus and his men.

    They were normal people who didn''t appear to have any sort of system at all. And with their mortal strength alone, they managed to survive as long as Mathew while building a camp that was actually more populous than both of the camps that Mathew establishedbined.

    Mathew took yet another deep breath before slowly releasing all the air from his lungs in one go.

    "Fuck it," he cursed before raising his eyes and looking straight into Marcus'' face. "I just hope you won''t make me regret it," he then added before turning around. Yet, before he could leave, Mathew suddenly came to a stop.

    "Just don''t forget," he added in a whisper as he nced back over his shoulder. "Whatever schemes you might be cooking in your mind right now, they are worthless when faced with the overwhelming strength of my wives."

    Mathew gave out hisst warning before moving ahead and climbing the same piece of heavy-duty equipment that he got on before.

    "Everyone, we lingered here for long enough. While my camp is not that far, it will still take us some time to get there safely," he announced out loud before lowering his eyes and locking them on Marcus.

    "Give the order," Mathew mouthed before ncing over to the very same gate that the zombies of the recent horde were working so hard to break through.

    And with a single wave of Marcus'' hand, Mathew aplished what over a thousand zombies failed to do.

    "Let''s go!"

 Chapter 313 Isnt This The School Where...

    The sun was getting low, giving the sky a brilliant orange hue from its setting. From the distance, one could hear the moans of the undead echoing in both directions and bringing a chill to everyone''s heart.

    The group of survivors was on their way to Mathew''s new camp, but with every step they took, it brought them closer to hordes upon hordes of zombies that potentially lurked in every corner.

    Mathew and hisrades marched through these streets with determination as they pushed forth towards their destination¡ªthey had no time to waste if they wanted to survive this night together.

    Everyone was silent while walking, only asionallymunicating through whispers or hand signals when something caught their attention or required extra caution. Nadia and Le slowly moved further forward while taking out any zombie that came too close forfort with ease and precision; their movementplemented each other like two dance partners who have been dancing together for years now.

    Every single kill made by these two warriors felt effortless yet powerful as if nothing could faze them anymore¡ªit seemed like some form of divine protection granted upon them kept them safe from harm no matter how many zombies approached them from all around.

    Meanwhile, at the back, Marcus stayed vignt as he looked over his shoulder at times whilst keeping an eye over everyone else in front; making sure he doesn''t let anything slip past him unnoticed. Even though he was the weakest of all the fighters within the temporary group, the three loaded machine guns that he carried on his neck and the one in his hands gave him enough firepower to at least stop the zombies for long enough for Mathew or his wives to arrive.

    "I hate how eerie this afternoon is," Mathew muttered to himself as he walked right by Norbert''s side, right in the very middle of the entire group.

    "Don''t distract me, please," Norbert replied in a slightly annoyed voice.

    It was a mystery how he could keep on walking with his eyes closed and his mind currently in ghost''s form flying all over the ce in search of any dangers that could be hidden from a human''s view.

    "Sorry," Mathew whispered, lowering his head as he tried to move past the conversation.

    He knew that Norbert was too preupied to care about him anyway, so it didn''t really matter if he kept quiet or not¡ªthe only thing that mattered was getting everyone to safety.

    The group proceeded forward for a few more minutes until finally, the outlines of their destination began appearing in the distance; signaling an end to this potentially damned trip.

    "Le!" Mathew shouted once he caught the first glimpse of the school''s fence down the street his group was walking through.

    "What''s up," the girl covered the distance from the front of the group to Mathew''s location with just two jumps, ready to take his orders at any time.

    Her face hosted a puzzling mix of emotions.

    From one end, she was disappointed by the near absoluteck of zombies appearing on their path.

    Save for a few early on and near Marcus'' camp, they hardly came across any danger making her feel extremely bored if not even annoyed.

    Yet, there was also a hint of relief in her eyes, proving that while bored, she felt slightly grateful for theck of dangers that could potentially threaten to render the entire day''s worth of effort useless.<novelnext></novelnext>

    After all, it took only a single zombie to break through their defenses and infect one of Mathew''s future workers for all hell to break loose within the column of the survivors they were escorting. And once chaos would enter their ranks, there was no telling just how many causalities it would cause... Along with the total copse of the trust budding between Mathew and Marcus'' factions.

    Yet, those two were just hints of the emotions on Le''s face. What dominated her expression was an excited anticipation of theing night. And while there was a chance she hoped for some showdown with stronger zombies to happen... Mathew could guess she would rather spend the entirety of the night within the safety of the school and behind the closed doors of a room, she would im to spend the night with him.

    ''It''s her turn after all,'' Mathew thought.

    The turn-based system for him and the girls to enjoy intimacy with each other was a perfect solution to save Mathew from constant overuse. And yet, it also meant that he wouldn''t have a single night when he could properly rest!

    ''Howe it''s only been a few days since I lost my virginity and I''m already getting fed up with sex?'' he thought, shaking his head before turning his head back towards the school''spound in the distance.

    "Can you go and check the situation by the gate?" Mathew requested. "Oh, and announce our arrival while you are at it, okay?"

    "Sure thing, boss," Le smiled before turning around on her heel and bolting forward.

    This time, she only took one leap to reach the front of the entire group before continuing down the road,  crossing the two kilometers of the road they had left in only about a minute.

    ''That''s some insane speed,'' Mathew thought, refusing to let his brain calcte the girl''s actual speed. It was something that he preferred to remain oblivious to.

    "Hey man," Marcus called out right when Le reached the school''s gate off in the distance. "Are we going where I think we are going¡­?" he asked in a slightly weird tone.

    "State''s Highschool no. Four, under the name of great literate, mister¡­"

    "Yeah, yeah," Marcus rolled his eyes. "I know its name," he imed, stopping Mathew from uttering it whole. "But what I mean¡­"

    "I reported our approach," Le butted in on the conversation right as shended back by Mathew''s side. "There are no zombies to hinder our arrival and our friends already went to prepare a lodging for the neers," she reported.

    "That''s¡­" Marcus hesitated, the girl''s report only making his expression turn even weirder.

    "Thanks, you did great," Mathew said to his wife before turning his attention back to the man. "What were you saying?" he asked.

    "That school¡­" Marcus muttered in a voice even lower than before. "Isn''t this the school where there was a huge police raid due to some sort of a kid going mad and threatening to shoot his ssmates?"

 Chapter 314 Marcus True Identity

    ''Shit,'' Mathew held back his curse behind the barrier of his mouth. ''How the hell does he know about it?!''

    In theory, the answer should be obvious. An event as massive and disastrous as a potential school shooting was bound to have massive coverage in the media. But...

    But just what kind of job did Marcus have before the apocalypse for him to be able to watch TV while everyone else was working?

    ''There is no way to keep the fact that it was me hidden from him for long,'' Mathew thought. ''And once he realizes it, he will be bound to ask even more questions!''

    In theory, Marcus was now on a great way to rehabilitate himself in Mathew''s eyes and potentially be yet another key ally in the young man''s ns. But...

    The fact that Mathew actually came back in time was a secret that only a few of the people he fully trusted knew about!

    And this wasn''t the point in time when Mathew was confident in sharing this secret with the man yet!

    "Yeah, that''s the ce," Mathew replied after gulping down his saliva.

    A small thing that Marcus certainly didn''t fail to notice.

    "Ah, sorry," the man then apologized with a troubled expression on his face. "I didn''t mean to bring up those certainly traumatic memories," he said while averting his eyes.

    ''That''s not it,'' Mathew thought, surprising himself over how easy it was for him to read the man''s face. ''That''s not what bothers you at all!''

    Mathew was curious about the reasons behind Marcus'' weird behavior. But for now, he decided to make use of the help that Marcus unknowingly offered himself.

    "It''s okay, man," Mathew replied, forcing a rxed smile on his face while every step brought him closer to the risk of his lies falling apart. "I wasn''t there when it happened and it was all over before the shit with the apocalypse went down," Mathew swallowed his saliva again, "so I don''t really care."

    Step after step, they were getting closer to the school. And at this point, Mathew took advantage of his position as the leader of the group to hasten his steps and head to the very front of the group.

    Yet, as if the goodwill of the world turned away from him, Marcus followed closely behind.

    "Beatrice!" Mathew shouted out loud as soon as he saw a familiar face peeking over the school''s fence.

    "Mathew," the woman smiled as she ran her eyes along the long column of people Mathew brought with him. "I didn''t expect you toe back so soon!" she shouted, only to lower her voice once Mathew got closer. "Did something happen?"

    "Nothing much," Mathew forced a smile on his lips. "I''m not sure if Le exined it, but we managed to get quite a lot of workers for our camps," he revealed while turning sideways to the street and pointing his hand at all the people following him.

    "That''s grea..." Beatrice opened up her mouth to praise Mathew''s results... only for her eyes tond on Marcus'' troubled face. "Aren''t you..." the woman hesitated for a moment only for her eyes to suddenly open up wide. "YOU!"

    Mathew opened up his eyes just as wide as the woman did, although for a different reason.<novelnext></novelnext>

    It was the first time for him to hear the police officer shout that loud or act in that manner!

    "How in all hell did you bring this bastard here?!" Beatrice screamed out, only to jump down from whatever she was standing on, on the other side of the barrier only to thene out running from the gate as soon as it opened. "Don''t you know who he is?!"

    Marcus averted his eyes and looked away, clearly ufortable with how the situation was ying out.

    "I don''t have a clue," Mathew admitted with a shrug of his shoulders.

    "This man," Beatrice said while locking her hands on her chest and looking down at Marcus'' suddenly shrunken posture, "is the most elusive druglord of this entire damn city!"

    ''That''s...'' Mathew opened up his eyes wide as he turned his eyes and stared at the man he nearly made into his ally. "That''s actually not that surprising," he admitted.

    "What?!" Beatrice nearly burst out in mes.

    "The camp he organized is smaller than either of the ones under my control. But it had more people than both of thembined. In fact, even with all those people," Mathew pointed his hand at the crowd slowly making its way through the schools'' gates, "I don''t think we have more people than he does."

    "And why the hell should I care?!" Beatrice uttered through her tightened lips.

    "That''s the question I should be asking," Mathew replied harshly. "He was a criminal in a world that went to a war against drugs," he pointed out. "But I see nowmaking institution that has the power to enforce those bans anymore!"

    Waging a war against drugs in the apocalypse... was just as stupid as it sounded.

    "I understand that he was some sort of your archnemesis while you were still in the police," Mathew pointed out, raising his hands and opening his palms wide before slowly bringing his hands down, "but right now, he is a man of exceptional skill that can help us save more people."

    Mathew''s attempts at calming the situation... surprisingly worked.

    The hate in Beatrice''s eyes didn''t disappear. Yet, her rage vanished, reced by the cold realization that Mathew''s words... were actually correct.

    "I''m not going to forgive you for all the things you''ve done in the past," she imed in a harsh voice as she looked down at the man''s lowered head. "But I guess this is a chance for you to redeem yourself. Even if not in my eyes, then in the eyes of whatever god you might believe in," she added.

    "And I guess that exins how he knew about the school shooter incident that took ce in this school," Mathew added, bringing up the one topic that he was worried about while giving Beatrice an intense stare.

    ''Thismotion actually works great,'' he thought, making the most of the fact that Marcus didn''t dare to even raise his eyes.

    "What?" Beatrice brought her eyebrows together, giving Mathew a weirded-out look. Yet, as she noticed his stare and how he nced over at Marcus, she quickly realized something was going on. "But yeah, people like him tend to listen in on the police''s wavelengths. So it''s not a surprise he knew about that sorry incident."

 Chapter 315 Insurance

    "Either way," Beatrice threw a short nce at Marcus'' lowered head before moving her eyes back to Mathew''s face. "Are you done with the expedition?" she asked while crossing her arms on her chest.

    "Only partially," Mathew shook his head. "We couldn''t really go to check out the main objective when we stumbled upon all those people," he added while looking over his shoulder at the crowd passing through the school gates.

    Those people were making all sorts of faces. Some were amazed by just how much space Mathew had under his control at this camp. Others were looking at the ruins of the southern wing with terror while the rest mostly looked around the ce, looking all anxious.

    "Oh, on another note, I can''t see¡­"

    Mathew sharply raised his head, giving the woman a tense look.

    ''I kept Daria''s presence under wraps all this time. Is she really going to ask about her with Marcus still by our side?'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    The more time he spent with the man, the more he talked with him and the more he considered the situation¡­ The better he thought about the idea of joining hands with him.

    But doing so bore a massive risk. A risk that as soon as he would get all the benefits of such cooperation, he would simply take whatever he would consider valuable before leaving the alliance, potentially bing an enemy greater than the zombies and mutants.

    As such, keeping Daria in the shadow that Marcus couldn''t peer into was small insurance, an ace card that Mathew really wanted to keep.

    "Your¡­" Beatrice hesitated as she threw a quick look around the ce, "your two wives," she said after coughing into her fist, acting innocent about the slip of her tongue. "I can''t see either of the two," she then said while theatrically looking around.

    "I bet they are busy helping at the gate," Mathew replied with a sigh. "The sooner we unload everyone here, the sooner we can go back to our expedition," he pointed out, crossing his arms over his chest as he tapped his foot against the road.

    "That makes sense¡­" Beatrice said with a sigh as she looked in the same direction. She then shook her head and looked at Marcus again. "Is he joining us or something?" she asked while trying not to let her hate appear on her face.

    "No," Mathew shook his head sideways. "Not yet at the very least," he then added while throwing the man a quick look himself. "As for the future¡­" Mathew spread his hands open. "Only God knows what will happen."

    "I see¡­" Beatrice muttered. She then shook her head again before raising her chin and taking a step towards the gate. "Either way, I need to go and organize all the necessities for our newpanions. And judging from their number, it would be nice if you could upgrade the services," she then added.

    ''So she already found out about those,'' Mathew took notice while a small smile appeared on the corner of his lips. ''Well, she was bound to think about it whenparing the state of the rest of the town and the state of the school.''

    "Will do," Mathew said as he took a step towards the gate himself. "I still need to upgrade our weapons as our old ones are already falling apart," he mentioned one of the most important points behind his visit to the school after the problem of moving the survivors between the camps.

    Mathew then turned his head to Marcus before even going as far as to reach out and offer him a hand to stand up.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "You wanted to check out how we are going to treat those peps," Mathew said. "Are youing inside or did you see enough already?"

    Marcus raised his eyes and looked at Mathew''s hand. He then parted his mouth and squinted his eyes, clearly about to chastise the young man for offering him a hand.

    And yet, rather than speaking up, Marcus ended up closing his mouth. He then closed his eyes and reached out, epting Mathew''s help.

    "I would love to im I already saw enough," He muttered while giving a short look at the huge area within the school''s barrier. "But truth be told, I didn''t see anything yet."

    "Let''s go, then," Mathew hurried the man before taking a step towards the gate and turning his eyes towards Beatrice. "Did something of importance change while we were away?"

    "Since we expected an influx of people, we reorganized the space around thepound," Beatrice revealed while keeping a look of vignce on the side of Marcus'' face. "The roof now serves as an observatory. We turned the third floor into a logistic area. The second floor changed to general quarters while we are using part of the ground floor area for workshops and warehouses," Beatrice listed.

    "You will show Marcus around the first two floors then," Mathew ordered only to turn his head around when he noticed a certain hint. "Nadia!" the young man then called out, turning his eyes towards the girl''s aura that attracted his attention.

    "What''s up?" the girl twitched and turned her head around.

    "Your weapons," Mathew replied, "Gimme."

    "Oh, you were going to upgrade them, right?" Nadia smiled before instantly pulling out both of her des. "Ah, you want this de too?" she then looked at the sword Mathew bought just a few hours ago while still at Marcus'' ce.

    "Nah, I only need those used-up ones," Mathew smiled in response, taking Nadia''s machete by its handle. "On that note, do you know where Le is?" he then asked.

    "I''m not really sure," Nadia shook her shoulders. "Thest I saw her, she was hurrying inside the school. I guess she''s preparing the room for the night already," Nadia shared her guess.

    "Damn¡­" Mathew muttered, turning his eyes towards the school proper just ahead. "Even assuming she will stick to the same wing we are using for everything, it''s going to be a pain to look for her¡­"

    Mathew shook his head. He then ensured Beatrice and Marcus already reached the entrance before disappearing inside the building.

    "I have a mission for you, then," Mathew announced. "I need you to go find Daria and get her weapon too," Mathew said, pulling out his own sword before passing it over to the girl. "Give her this de in exchange," he added before averting his eyes and scratching his cheek. "Also, I still n to go for that castle today, so once we are done exchanging our equipment," Mathew smiled, "I hope you will be ready to go."

 Chapter 316 Reorganized School

    ''Beatrice didn''t lie,'' Mathew thought as he climbed past the middling floors and all the way up to the top of the school''s wing that his group inhabited.

    There were only two or three people in total on the top floor. Mathew saw them through the hole in the wall leading to the room that used to serve as a toilet. They all wore masks on their faces made from some cloth folded several times over and had even more cloth wrapped around their hands.

    And their job was fairly simple. They would go into the room with huge bags and shovels and fill the bags with all the filth inside before throwing them down the ss window.

    Out of curiosity and while waiting for Nadia to return with the rest of the used des, Mathew approached another window and took a look outside.

    The area below the dumping window used to be just another part of the grass-covered courtyard with a single strand of the concrete path going straight across.

    Used to, as over the course of Mathew''s expedition, the survivors dug out ayer of roughly two meters of ground, using the concrete path as the marker to where to dump all the dug-out earth.

    In effect, they ended up with one massive septic tank raising about three meters above the ground and then two meters below.

    ''I guess I won''t be able to avoid spending some cores on upgrading the services,'' Mathew thought as he inspected the construction.

    It was something that could onlye from a mind of a person that never done any engineering before. Because be it filth or pure water, liquids... They tended to weigh a lot more than people expected them to. And while the hole was far bigger than necessary to hide all the filth that stacked up so far, it would copse pretty much as soon as the waste would pile up above the ground level.

    ''So, for the current expenses, I need to upgrade the services, possibly fix the entire construction, set aside some cores to potentially let Norbert level up, get new weapons, keep enough cores to raise new fortress...'' Mathew listed out the list of things he would have to shop for while at the merchant.

    And the list was far longer than he would like.

    ''Now that I think about it, I should rebuild the stock of our supplies too,'' Mathew thought as he took a quick look in the direction opposite the former and makeshift toilet, to where all the remaining supplies were warehoused.

    There were still three boxes of food stock left. An insane amount worth at least two or three months of food for a single person. But barely a day''s worth of food for all the people currently gathered at the school.

    ''We will need a separate group of people just to take care of the meals,'' Mathew took another point into ount.

    From what he could see from all the hints around the ce, there was hardly any control over the food expenditure. At most, there were some specific hours when the supplies would be distributed and then everyone would be free to consume them on their own.

    "What a waste," Mathew muttered as he looked down at some half-opened package of dried-up fruits.

    It was a snack with an extremely specific taste, a taste that not everyone might like. And because of that very reason, they ended up lying on the floor with more than half of the pack left!<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''Another point to note,'' Mathew thought while releasing a long, heavy sigh.

    "Matt!" Nadia called out from the deepest part of the corridor. As the central staircase was as destroyed as it was since Mathew sted it out of existence, the side stairs at the end of each wing of the school were the only possible way for people to move around.

    Obviously, normal survivors had no other choice but to make use of the shaft. But for Nadia, climbing over the ruins of thest stretch of the stairs that she herself destroyed on the first day was an easy task.

    ''Maybe we should clean out the ruins over there and turn it into a lift of some sort?'' Mathew thought about another point while stepping closer to the girl.

    "Do you have them?" he asked as soon as Nadia approached... with a total of three sabers and one machete stacked in her arms.

    "Don''t you see?" she asked while rolling her eyes before dropping all the weapons down on the ground.

    Every single de bore extensive marks of wear and tear, with Mathew''s former weapon standing out as the one in the worst state.

    ''And here I would think that Le''s weapon would be worse,'' Mathew thought. ''Well, her being a demaster might influence the precision of her strikes and thus the wear on the de, I guess,'' he thought, leaning down and grabbing the weapons.

    "Oh right," Nadia jumped up to Mathew''s side as he was about to turn around and head to the merchant by the hole where the main stairs used to be. "If you find some sort of glove-like weapon, make sure to get it for me," she requested with a lovely smile.

    "Sure thing," Mathew replied with a smile before heading off to the merchant. This time, however, he faced an umon struggle, as he had to keep hold of all the weapons... while freeing one of his hands to reach for the merchant''s shadow!

    After some gymnastics, Mathew managed to stack all the des on his shoulder while keeping all the handles in the open palm of his left hand. Then, while doing his best to maintain bnce, Mathew tilted his body to the side and near blindly reached out with his right.

    The shadow surged, and the world changed. Mathew simply closed his eyes and allowed the process of transporting to the merchant''s subspace to continue while he took a momentary rest.

    And as he opened his eyes, he realized one extremely obvious thing.

    When the system announced that Mathew now could buy system seeds, it announced that the level of items Mathew could buy at the merchant''s ce also changed.

    But what it didn''t say, was how it turned the insides of the merchant''s space on its head like that!

 Chapter 317 3rd, 4th And 5th Alleys

    "Whoever was responsible for figuring out thisyout¡­ really has something wrong with their heads,'' Mathew thought as he pried his eyes open and allowed the sight of the changed merchant''s space to seep into his eyes.

    Thest time when he used it this ce consisted of several different shelves with various items stacked on each of them. And for the customer''s convenience, each shelf held a different set of items so that one wouldn''t look for supplies in the area designed for weapons.

    But now, those shelves were all gone, reduced to atoms. And they were reced with what looked like one of the massive warehouses Mathew used to work part-time at.

    ''I wonder if it''s possible to find a pallet truck anywhere here,'' Mathew thought as he took a first step between the massive shelves that rose thrice his height to the undefined sky.

    Sadly, Mathew didn''t see any of the electric pallet carriers that he used to ride on. Yet, what he soon found out, was that by simply picking a box of any weight, he could make it float behind him while he looked around for other items to buy.

    ''Okay, now that the logistics are out of the way, let''s start with what''s actually important,'' Mathew decided.

    The number of items that Mathew could buy went from several hundred different items at most to several million at the very least.

    There was also the size variety for different packages.

    When it came to cheaper items, Mathew was free to stack them in one of the empty boxes. And once the value of the box would reach a certain, hidden value, it would suddenly appear impossible to stuff anything else in it.

    And just for convenience''s sake, if Mathew wanted to double the particr package he made, all he needed was to think about it for a second box to appear.

    Yet, rather than going around and picking various sweets to treat his girls, Mathew approached the very center of the shadowy realm.

    ''If I want to shop, first, I need to make money,'' he thought, carrying all of the weapons he took from the girls to the massive, swimming-pool-sized altar in the very middle of the area.

    "I wish to sell those weapons," Mathew said out loud as he threw the used-up des onto the altar.

    There was no sound to indicate something was going on. No visuals changed either¡­ But Mathew could somehow tell that whatever was responsible for the logic of this subspace was currently busy calcting the prize he would get for the weapons.

    "Total prize for the items: twenty-two thousand, forty-four cores," the cold, emotionless voice of the system announced.

    ''That''s quite a lot¡­ less than I expected,'' Mathew thought.

    Just for a single saber and back at the single merchant he controlled at Marcus'' base, he could get nearly seven thousand cores. And right now, he wanted to trade three sabers like that at once along with the machetee that Le used for quite a lot longer!

    ''Maybe it''s because of the wear and tear?'' Mathew guessed.

    In theory, changing the items around to see whether he could earn more by selling them separately would be a natural way to move along¡­ But Mathew didn''t do it.

    "I ept the trade," he said instead, watching with a pained heart as the weapons he used for quite some time now vanished into nothingness.

    Mathew didn''t bother bartering for one simple reason. The merchants already proved to react to how he treated them. And if he as much as attempted to maximize his profits, he feared he would see a sharp increase in the prize of everyst item the shop had to offer.

    ''And now, adding all the cores I have left in the storage, I should have around twenty-five thousand,'' Mathew made a quick and rough estimate.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Sure, he could simply check his storage¡­ But since he could give himself a rough guess, why waste time on such a formality when there was this entire space filled with different items for him to check out?

    Mathew threw himself into the rush of shopping.

    The first hallway of the new wholesale merchant consisted only of food. He could find entire boxes worth of all sorts of fruits, smaller boxes filled with a selection of spices, and boxes worth of tea. In one spot, he saw all kinds of coffee, from raw beans, through cooker and then burned beans, all the way through instant coffee of every brand and selection Mathew could think off¡­ All the way to the fancy express capsules for the modern coffee-making machines and even some small orbs that he couldn''t recognize at all.

    The selection for every item was massive as if Mathew unlocked the full list of every possible type of product and every possible iteration of it.

    The first row of the shelves gave Mathew the opportunity to sharply increase the morale of everyone within the group and provide them with a semce of normal life.

    But ultimately, Mathew couldn''t care all that much about food. An increased variety of items simply made the process of cooking for everyone all that easier to optimize.

    The second row of shelves consisted of all sorts of tools, nails, power tools, and even some sort of building blocks.

    On their own, those building blocks deserved a separate mention. When Mathew approached what looked like a cube of solid wood, a small scene yed out before his eyes.

    He saw a faceless character be born out of the shadow. Then, said character picked up the wooden cube and threw it on the floor. A poof of smoke exploded out of the cubeter, and Mathew could see the same faceless figure dancing atop a huge pile of nks and wooden blocks.

    There were all sorts of other materials within the shopping alley, allowing a wide selection of materials that one would want to use for construction.

    There were at least twenty different alleys within the new shadow realm. But it was the third, the fourth, and the fifth of them that caught Mathew''s attention.

    The third row was as simple as it could get. It housed almost every type of weapon that the human mind ever conceived. From swords of every shape, form, and size, to obsolete weapons like curved swords used by Romans during one of their easter incursions against a tribe with a particr type of helmet. Off in the distance, Mathew could even see the front part of a damn helicopter sticking out into the alleyway!

    Considering how he sold all of his weapons, this should be the alley that caught Mathew''s entire interest¡­ but as soon as he took a peak at the next one, his attention shifted.

    The fourth valley housed nothing but strange pieces of paper, all nailed right at Mathew''s eye level.

    And every piece of paper detailed what sort of service it could provide. There were deeds for the reconstruction of the broken parts of the school. There were deeds for artificial service providers and deeds for automated defensive force.

    Deeds of all kinds and sorts filled the valley, each more interesting than the previous one.

    Pushed by nothing but sheer curiosity, Mathew took a look towards the fifth alley¡­

    Only for the importance of the previous alleys to vanish into nothingness.

    Because just like in the fourth alley, the fifth one was filled with pieces of paper rather than items. What was important, however¡­

    Was how all of those papers detailed different types of system seeds that Mathew could now purchase!"

 Chapter 318 A Piece Of The Merchants Puzzle

    ''God damn it,'' Mathew thought, swallowing a mouthful of saliva. ''Now I won''t know what to use my points for!''

    The young man took a step back, refusing more than just a single nce at the system section of the merchant.

    ''I need to keep my priorities straight!'' Mathew told himself over and over again, inching away back to the weapon-rted alley while his body constantly struggled, attempting to enter the system alley all on its own.

    Ultimately, though, the immediate security imed the victory in the struggle for Mathew''s preference, putting him back into the weapon''s alley.

    ''Let''s see what we have here,'' Mathew thought, trying to distance himself from all the thoughts about the system seeds nearby.

    ''You don''t even know if you can use it on the girls or if you can have more than just one system,'' the young man reminded himself yet again of the obvious gaps within his understanding.

    And it was because of those that Mathew finally managed to focus on the task he had at his hand.

    Mathew leisurely marched down the alley, throwing his eyes all over the ce.

    "It seems like it''s sortedplexity-wise," Mathew muttered to himself as he started to notice the patterns.

    At the very beginning of the alley, all he could see were simple clubs, spears, and rtively crude bows.

    Moving forward, simple swords started to appear along with other bronze-based weapons. There were axes, mallets, picks, and even some fancy twin des.

    Mathew had to walk for a good few minutes before he finally reached the area housing the weapons he was familiar with.

    ''It took that much time to develop proper steel tools?'' he thought, baffled at the realization.

    Yet, as he thought about it, it only made sense.

    Tools apanied human civilization since its very beginning. Early humans were all hunter-gatherers, with the focus on the hunter part. In other words, for thousands of years, before any sort ofpetent civilization came to be, humans were long using tools of death.

    As such, a discovery as recent as only a few hundred years old in the culture Mathew was from appeared only near the end of the entire alley...

    Or rather, that''s where Mathew guessed it would appear once understanding the pattern that ruled the alley. Yet, to his surprise, steel weapons appeared as soon as in the middle point of the alley, making his head turn around and look down the way, curious just how much moreplex the weapons at its end would be.

    ''For starters, I should take some swords for the girls and myself,'' Mathew thought, pushing his curiosity forter as he looked closer at the avable vares.

    The advantage of this seemingly random upgrade to the merchanty in how Mathew was free to pick items he wanted without actually buying them.

    Of course, they would disappear as soon as he would leave the merchant''s subspace unless they were bought properly. Yet, while it was only a small convenience, it allowed Mathew to pick whatever he was interested in first before putting away all the stuff that he would ultimately eliminate.

    "This saber looks nice," Mathew muttered to himself once a weapon of a cold-type finally caught his attention.

    He reached out with his hand and grabbed the weapon''s handle...

    Only for yet another menu to appear before his eyes.

    [Pick the weapon affinity:]

    [High Zombies +0/1/2/3/4/5/6]

    [Wild Evolutions +0/1/2/3]

    [ss Evolutions +0/1/2/3]<novelnext></novelnext>

    [Humans +1/2/3]

    [Mana weapon +1/2/3]

    [Unidentified...]

    Among all the options that Mathew saw appear before his eyes, the unidentified one filled the great majority of his vision.

    There were tens if not hundreds of different types of something that he has yet to discover.

    And as if that wasn''t enough, Mathew could hardly figure out what the few weapon affinities he had ess to meant!

    "Can you tell me more about the affinities?" Mathew asked out loud, hoping for some merchant''s help.

    After all, as long as he asked about something that was strictly within the merchant''s jurisdiction, he was likely to receive proper information... unless there were some specific requirements he had to fulfill before he could ess it.

    "Weapon affinities build up over time as the weapon is used to fight any given type of opponent," the system replied with its usual, robotic voice. "The higher the level of the weapon affinity, the greater the cost of the weapon."

    ''I guess it makes sense...?'' Mathew thought. Then, a small, cheeky smile appeared on his lips.

    "In that case, can you tell me what were the affinities of the weapons I sold?" he asked.

    "It''s impossible to repurchase sold items," the system replied after taking some time. "Action blocked, unable to reply."

    "I see," Mathew muttered, hiding the dissatisfaction in his voice.

    ''I guess I can only assume that growing affinities is what made our weapons more expensive,'' he thought as he directed his eyes to scan his options again.

    "What''s the prize for this saber without any affinities? What''s the prize for high zombie affinity three and six?" Mathew came up with different questions that could indirectly confirm his guess.

    "Steel Sigmundian, five hundred cores a piece without affinities," the system replied with haste. "High zombie affinity three raises the price to sixty-two and a half thousand cores. Sixth-grade high zombie affinity type costs one hundred eighty-seven and a half thousand short of eight million cores."

    Despite providing far moreplex numbers, the merchant didn''t even need a second to grind out the numbers.

    Mathew, on the other hand, took well over five minutes to figure out the scheme behind the raising price.

    ''So for high-zombie affinity, each level of affinity multiplies the price by five, huh?'' he thought once his math finally checked out.

    "What about wild evolutions one affinity? Human grade one? Why can''t I get a weapon with a human or mana weapon affinity of grade zero?" Mathew quickly followed with a set of different questions.

    And after the system produced its answers, Mathew, once again, took some time to calcte the results.

    ''So the more specific affinities multiply the price by a factor of ten,'' Mathew quickly figured it out. ''As for theck of zero grade for certain affinities, just the affinity alone boosts the weapon already so rather than a potential for the change it''s a change already, henceck of the zero grade of affinity.''

    The system behind the merchant''s pricing and affinities was as straightforward and crude as it could be. Yet, at the same time, Mathew couldn''t help but wonder.

    ''If high affinities are worth that insanely much, then just how insane do they have to be?''

    Mathew managed to raise some affinities of the weapons he was using. The same was the case for his wives'' weapons as well. And yet... no matter how he looked at it, he could hardly see any difference between a freshly bought weapon and one he used for quite some time, save for its wear and tear.

    ''I discovered a huge piece of the merchant''s puzzle,'' Mathew thought, taking a deep breath as he finally managed to get over all the things he realized. ''But I guess it''s still too early to think I can see the full picture!''

 Chapter 319 Greyed Out... Spaceship?

    ''Since I can''t see any real difference, lest stick with the basic type of weapons for now,'' Mathew decided, picking up the right option from the context menu before confirming his choice.

    Then, as if to prove that there was even more convenience to this upgraded merchant than there was before, Mathew saw another window pop out. This time, it allowed him to pick the exact quantity of the item he wanted to buy.

    ''It''s not much,'' Mathew thought once he brought the number of basic sabers up to four, ''but it does save some time.''

    The four sabers that Mathew bought now appeared behind him, floating in an orderly row in a perfect line along Mathew''s spine.

    ''Now, I still need some knife of sorts for Le,'' Mathew quickly realized.

    Given her de-master ss, she was easily capable of using more than just a single de at once. And while it would be for the best to equip her with some spare weapons, Mathew''s frugal nature made him decide against spending even more cores on weapons than he felt necessary.

    And so, the young man picked up his pace and walked along the alley.

    Soon, the weapons turned fromte medieval to early modern with muskets, front-loaded carabines, andter breach-loaded ones, all the way to the firearms Mathew could recognize thanks to all the action moves and shooting games he yed in the past.

    ''I don''t really need firearms,'' Mathew thought, recalling the number of those that he stole from Marcus'' camp. ''I need a proper ballistic knife!''

    In theory, there was hardly any difference between a medieval type of knife and a modern one. As the purpose of such a weapon remained the same, there was only a limited number of improvements one could make after literally several thousand years worth of development.

    No, what Mathew was looking for wasn''t an improvement to the design. What he wanted to find, was a knife made with more durable materials.

    ''Since it pays insanely well to use weapons for long periods of time before selling them, even if it will cost twice or thrice as much as those sabers,'' Mathew took a nce behind his back, ''then it should still be worth the initial investment.''

    Soon enough, right as personal weapons gave way to weapons that Mathew had no clue how to use and weapons way too big for a single person, he found what he was looking for.

    A simple, military-grade knife with a short sheathe and a small belt already attached to it.

    He picked it up, only for yet another see-through window to appear before his eyes.

    ''Just like I thought,'' Mathew ran his eyes across the name of the object he picked.

    [Military Grade Simple Knife.]

    One of the two things that surprised the young man was the title part of the window. He couldn''t understand why every word within the object''s name was capitalized.

    As for the other reason¡­

    ''It''s five hundred cores as well?!'' Mathew opened up his eyes wide, struggling to figure out the reason behind the pricing.

    "Does it have something to do with the differences between reach and materials canceling each other out?" he muttered, voicing out his thoughts just in case the merchant would find it suitable toe in handy with an exnation.

    But no such thing happened.

    ''That''s worth investigating,'' Mathew decided, going through the same steps of purchasing the item as before. And once the military knife appeared floating behind his back, Mathew turned his eyes towards the object just a few steps away.

    ''Isn''t this an AK?'' he thought, taking a few steps before stopping right in front of the weapon''s rack with all sorts of modern guns disyed on it.

    Even though he was initially drawn to the likely most popr gun model in the world, it was a different weapon that ultimately won the battle for Mathew''s attention.

    ''Isn''t that MSBS Grot?'' Mathew thought, recognizing the weapon of the rtively local produce.<novelnext></novelnext>

    For how little Mathew knew about guns, there was one part of this particr firearm that he learned about before while randomly watching videos on the popr streaming site.

    And it was how this weapon was fully modr.

    From the size of its mag, through levels of fire rate and precision all the way to various attachments that allowed one to switch a type between automatic, semi-automatic, and even short bursts.

    ''I wonder how it will work in the shop¡­'' Mathew thought, reaching out for the gun and taking a step back when the semi-transparent window appeared¡­

    And its content instantly poured a bucket of cold water on Mathew''s enthusiasm.

    He got interested in the weapon because he hoped that all of its different modules woulde with it, allowing him to create any type of gun that he would need at a specific moment.

    Yet¡­

    Not only the gun boasted a huge price of two and a half thousand cores, it couldn''t get any weapon affinities¡­ but Mathew also had to choose a desired modr design before the purchase!

    In other words, while it was still true that this weapon could be modified to perfectly suit its users'' needs¡­ Mathew could only buy a single type rather than purchasing additional modules, making the entire essence of this weapon basically pointless!

    "I guess I was hoping for way too much," Mathew muttered, admitting it out loud just in case the merchant saw through his shrew thoughts of exploiting the possibility.

    Disappointed by the guns, Mathew turned his eyes toward the items further down thest part of the alley.

    There were no swords, knives, guns, or even rocketunchers there.

    No, thest part of the weapon''s alley of the shop was filled with armored cars, military half-trucks, tanks, and even choppers and nes!

    ''Isn''t this shop a dreame true for a random dictator?'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes as he ran around for a while, checking out the prices of the modern military equipment.

    And so, cars of all sorts were prized between five to ten thousand cores. Armored vehicles upped up the high-end of the prizes to twenty thousand cores. Tanks took at the very least forty thousand and could rise as much as one hundred thousand depending on the model while all sorts of air vehicles ranged between fifty thousand all the way to several million per piece.

    ''It would be a waste to use the few cores I have on those,'' Mathew thought, shaking his head in slight disappointment.

    He never hoped to be able to buy any of those. And even if he couldfortably afford them, what would he do with them in the cramped and mostly ruined streets of the city? How would hee up with fuel?

    ''They mighte in handy¡­ but not anytime soon,'' Mathew thought, releasing a deep sigh as he threw onest look at his surroundings. Yet, just as he was about to turn back and leave for another alley, one piece that didn''t fit the puzzle caught his attention.

    Contrary to all the other items, it wasn''t disyed on one of the alley''s massive shelves. Instead, it stood right at the end of the valley, taking up nearly all of the space between the shelves.

    But it wasn''t even the most important part about it at all.

    First, it was fully greyed out, making it pretty damn obvious that Mathew couldn''t buy it even if he could somehow afford it.

    And secondly¡­

    It didn''t look like any military vehicle that Mathew heard about. In fact, it didn''t look like something from this world at all.

    And no matter how Mathew looked at it, there was only one name that came to his head when he looked at this small-house-sized piece of the vehicle.

    ''A starship?!''

 Chapter 320 System Grades

    ''This can''t be right, right?'' Mathew asked himself as he unknowingly stepped towards the vessel. He then reached out¡­

    And to his surprise, a window appeared just like those few times that he bought something else in this new kind of shop.

    [Basicary Fighter]

    The name was enough to convince Mathew his guess about the vehicle wasn''t wrong. After all, the name that would be used for air-bound vehicles would be atmospheric, notary!

    ''I guess it can''t traverse through deep space all on its own, only capable of sticking in rtive proximity of the,'' Mathew quickly deduced.

    The entirety of his system appeared to be loosely constructed upon the rules giarized from all the kinds of novels and games he yed in the past. And by following that logic, one had to either buy a mother-ship to transport such a fighter to others or just build it on a different, to begin with.

    ''And its prize is¡­'' Mathew thought, ignoring the whole greyed-out part of the window as he looked to the bottom part.

    And to his surprise, the prize wasn''t even as great as he initially expected it to be!

    ''Only fifty million cores?'' Mathew thought, baffled by what he found out. ''Doesn''t that mean, then in a few years¡­''

    Mathew shook his head and swiped his hand away, closing the pop-up window about the vessel. He then decisively turned around and walked back the way he came.

    Contrary to his hopes, there was no way to ess the other valleys from their other end. If he wanted to check other types of purchasable, he had to start from the very beginning every time he wanted to switch valleys.

    ''I can''t allow myself to get distracted with such a far-off goal,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes as he fought with the geeky nature that nearly forced him to lick the greyed vehicle all over. ''It''s reassuring to know that even if the zombies will be too much to handle, there is a way to escape from them forever,'' Mathew thought.

    That was likely the meaning behind the greyed-out object appearing in the alley.

    It wasn''t there to coax Mathew into hoarding all the cores he could find.

    It was there to give him hope that even if the earth will end up lost to the hordes of high-leveled zombies and evolved monsters, there will still be a ce beyond their reach.

    "Now then," Mathew muttered once he reached the finish line of his short jog and turned the corner before stepping at the entrance of the next alley.

    It was the part of the new shop with the system seeds.

    And after much consideration, Mathew stepped inside.

    Contrary to the weapon''s alley, there were no products on disy. Instead, the shelves were filled with small, stone tables with a single piece of paper resting on them.

    ''A daily wish system, low-luck gacha system, basic swordmaster system, basic archery system¡­'' Mathew scanned out the first few papers right at the entrance of the alley.

    Then, curious to see what would happen, Mathew picked up the nearest paper from the tablet boasting the name of ''pride system''.

    [For every action that is taken as an act of arrogance or excessive pride by others, the host will receive points. Points might be used to increase the host''s level.]

    [Prize: 500 cores]

    [Grade: Subpar]

    ''How the hell is that supposed to work?'' Mathew opened up his eyes wide, stunned by his findings.

    ''All this time I thought all the systems would work around the energy from the cores in one way or another¡­'' he thought before gulping his saliva down. ''But is that really the case?'' he asked himself as he stared down at the piece of paper in his hand.

    Mathew then carefully ced the paper back on its pedestal before moving on.

    And before long, the items on the shelves changed.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Now, they were no longer pieces of cheap paper on stone pedestals. Now, the system seeds were contained on a parchment disyed on a simple, wooden rack.

    [Assasin System: For every silent takedown of a zombie, you will receive as many points as the zombie core is worth. The host might use those points to upgrade his statistics and purchase ss abilities]

    [Prize: 1500 cores]

    [Grade: low]

    ''So the visuals of the system seeds change along with their grade, huh?'' Mathew thought.

    Even though he knew he would have to go back and go through all the systems one by one just in case there was one that allowed Mathew some more ungodly exploits, the young man still put this task forter.

    ''The time might flow differently in this subspace but it doesn''t mean I won''t get tired or bored,'' he thought to himself as he picked up his pace and started to run along the alley.

    The items on the shelves continued to change bit by bit.

    From the parchment to the perfectly white paper like the one Mathew would use in a printer before the apocalypse. From the wooden racks to wooden pedestals.

    Mathew ended up only making a single stop when he noticed that the material of the paper remained the same while the type of the disy changed.

    Then, he discovered that besides the standard subpar, low, middling, advanced, high, high advanced, and superior grades, there were also half-grades for systems that were theoretically within their lower grade, but their benefits couldn''t be ssified any lower than the higher of the two grades they were assigned to.

    Yet, once reaching the very end of the alley, Mathew discovered that there was one more rank to the system seeds. A quick look at the one he randomly picked revealed both its name and its price. But it also revealed something that Mathew didn''t really expect.

    [World Dominator System]

    [Allows the host to gain points by gathering subjects and fulfilling their needs. Points can be used to raise host statistics, raise officers'' statistics, and purchase special abilities and services. Special grade allows upgrading the system to gain ess to more of its benefits.]

    [Prize: 730 631 000 cores]

    [Grade: Evolutionary]

    A chill traveled down his spine.

    ''But doesn''t this system appears to work pretty much the same as mine?''

    Mathew asked himself. Yet, there was one more point that shed in his brain.

    ''A system seed that costs nearly as much as fifteenary fighters,'' Mathew thought, gulping his saliva down when the same point that he experienced at the end of the weapon''s alley ended up nailed to his head again.

    Back when he sold his weapon and had all his wealth amount to around twenty-two thousand cores, Mathew thought this entire shop was for him to y around with and splurge.

    But the cost of this single system, just like the cost of theary fighters, proved him wrong.

    In this merchant''s subspace, Mathew wasn''t nouveau riche. He was just a beggar who found some money dropped on the street instead!

    "I have a question," Mathew suddenly said out loud with a tense look on his face.

    ? He then gulped his saliva down, not sure if he was actually ready to learn the answer to what was on his mind.

    "First, what''s the grade of my system?" he asked out loud, with little to no hope of receiving a proper answer. "And secondly, for how much I could potentially sell it?"

 Chapter 321 Spell Alley

    Mathew waited for a long time for the merchant to give out its answer. He waited so long, that out of pure boredom, he started to read through all the details of various systems showcased on the nearby pedestals.

    "Unable to assess customer''s system grade(Check A/N)," the merchant finally replied in its usual voice after what seemed like an eternity... or after Mathew managed to read through nearly half of all the systems that were gathered in the alley.

    "Customer''s system is of a grade beyond what the grade of system seeds that customer currently can purchase," the robotic voice filled in some details. "As such, it''s impossible to assess the customer''s system grade without extraction."

    "Does the customer wish to proceed with the system extraction?" the merchant then asked.

    As usual, its voice waspletely robotic, deprived of all and any humanity in it. And yet, just like a few times in the past, Mathew could hear a hint of some emotion in it.

    And this time, it was excitement.

    "No, sorry," Mathew was quick to deny the merchant''s suggestion. "It was only my curiosity, not a real wish to sell it..." Mathew smiled, "just yet."

    He had no intention of selling the system before he would be able to purchase a fitting recement.

    ''Even though the design of my system has its ws and pushes me to bed all sorts of girls...'' Mathew thought, twisting his lips in a grimace of unwillingness at the mere memory of the exhaustion from his days before the girls had the talk and set up the turn-based system. ''For now, it''s way too risky to mess around with it,'' Mathew decided.

    A single look at the world dominator system was nearly enough to convince Mathew to change his system. Yet...

    While the mention of ''officers'' in the system''s seed description implied the existence of a simr kind to Mathew''s wives... It was nothing but the young man''s guess.

    And after all the mistakes he made in thest few days, Mathew knew better than to bet the future of his group on a mere guess.

    ''Okay then,'' Mathew happily turned his eyes away from the pedestals disying the details of the systems before leisurely walking back to the entrance of the alley.

    ''I will need to read through all the systems before deciding which one to buy,'' he decided while finding the simplest excuse he could to push the second half of the reading forter.

    ''At least I won''t have to waste so much time doing it as I did before,'' he thought, as he nced over his shoulder at the systems he read about before receiving the answer from the merchant.

    And there was one thing that should be pretty damn obvious to the young man since the beginning.

    Most of the systems that he read about while going backward... were systems that already appeared in the higher grades. And while there were quite a lot of systems that didn''t make it to the top possible grades of what Mathew could purchase, a proper majority of them would appear within the range of at least three different grades!

    ''Now,'' Mathew thought as he approached the entry to the system seed alley, ''let''s see what we have here,'' he thought, taking a look as he walked around the corner.

    Yet, rather than instantly checking out the content of the shelves, Mathew''s eyes locked on something that he didn''t expect.

    Due to how he never took a short walk to inspect all the alleys at once, he assumed that everyst one of them would be as long and filled with items as the ones he already visited.

    Yet, as he stepped into the fifth valley, Mathew was faced with its end... only a few meters away from the entrance!

    He couldn''t see it before due to how rtively narrow they were and the angle of his eyes.

    Normally, a low selection that barely went beyond what Mathew could ess in the previous iteration of the shop would rain down on his parade pretty hard.

    But...

    ''The papers in the former alley were system seeds,'' he thought, turning his eyes towards the wares offered within the fifth alley. ''So what the heck are those?''

    Mathew got interested in the fifth alley only because it appeared to be the same as the fourth. Yet, a single look at the content written on the same kind of pedestals and papers that he saw in the fourth alley quickly dissolved this illusion of his.

    [Firebolt]

    [Type: Magic]

    [ss: Projectile]

    [Mana cost: 10]

    [Grade: low]

    [Requirements:

    - Mind: 40<novelnext></novelnext>

    - Arcane: 60

    ]

    [The spell allows the caster to form a bolt of purified mana with the seed of fire anchored into it. It will home on the target through the shortest possible extension of the initial arc of the path. Explodes upon impact with the majority of its energy applied to the outer end of the explosion.]

    [Cost: 100 cores]

    Mathew had to tighten his ass muscles to stop himself from shitting all over his pants in excitement.

    ''That''s just the first spell I took a look at, what else does this alley have?!''

    Soon, Mathew fell into a reading frenzy, studying everyst detail of all the spells the short alley had to offer.

    And as it turned out, the grades that he found out about when checking out the system seed section applied to the spells as well, with the exception of not a single one of the spells falling below the low grade.

    All in all, most of the spells that the system offered were skewed towards the higher grades, with the great majority of them ranging between advanced, high advanced, and special grades.

    But as if it wasn''t enough, there was one minor detail that Mathew found extremely useful.

    [Core Explosion]

    [Limitation: Applicable only to the zombies and monsters below the caster level]

    [Type: Dark Magic]

    [ss: Instadeath/AoE]

    [Mana cost: 280]

    [Grade: Special]

    [Requirements:

    - Mind 400

    - Arcane 300

    ]

    [The spell allows the caster to cause the explosion of a core within the body of an active subhuman. The wave of energy projected from the explosion may trigger the chain reaction within the cores it reaches with the rate of 50% per core of equal grade and a 25% chance added for every level of grade difference.

    The spell consumes the cores of the defeated monsters.]

    [Cost: 1 700 000 cores]

    On its own, it was a quirky yet clearly powerful spell. One that would be extremely useful in a scenario where its user had an abundance of cores butcked the patience to deal with a low-level horde.

    Yet, it wasn''t those types of details or applicability that caught Mathew''s attention.

    It was the two different colors in which the stats requirements were highlighted with.

    The arcane requirement was all in greed, showcasing that despite Mathew''s situation limiting his usage of his stats to only a fraction of what he currently had, this limitation didn''t apply to the spell requirements at all.

    And yet...

    The mind requirement was disyed in red. And while on its own, it wasn''t a big deal as Mathew could easily confirm that even his true level of mind was below what the spell required.

    No.

    What was important about it... was that the ability to confirm the first stage of purchase was blocked due to Mathew not fulfilling the stat requirements in the first ce!

 Chapter 322 Thats What I Was Looking For!

    ''Does that mean, I won''t be able to buy spells for the girls once their stats exceed mine?'' Mathew froze when he realized the implications of this change.

    Yet, as soon as he started to think about it, he couldn''t help but shake his head.

    ''Am I stupid or what?'' he asked himself, doubting his own intelligence for a while. ''How could the girls have higher stats than me when all their stats are added to my own?''

    This means that one part of the problem never existed, to begin with. It didn''t mean there was no problem at all, though.

    "I guess I can''t just buy overpowered spells I cannot use and then trade them with someone who can," Mathew muttered under his nose. Then and only then did he bother to move over one of the two pedestals that caught his attention as he read through all the spells disyed in the alley.

    [Piercing bolt]

    [Type: Military magic]

    [ss: Pration projectile]

    [Mana cost: 60]

    [Grade: advanced]

    [Requirements:

    - Mind 100

    - Arcane 180

    ]

    [The piercing bolt spells allow its users to create a slim strand of condensed mana. Uponunch, it turns into a homing projectile capable of avoiding simple obstacles. Upon striking the target, it uses its outeryer to prate through the target''s armor/outer shell before unloading the condensed explosive mana directly against the target]

    [Cost: 850 cores]

    Mathew''s stats reached both of the requirements. The mana usage was rather high but stilly within what Mathew could afford. And most importantly of all, it gave him the opportunity to fight against the one type of monster that both his and his wives'' des would be pretty damn useless against.

    An armored enemy.

    "I wish to purchase this spell," Mathew muttered while reaching out and cing his hand on the paper on the pedestal.

    And just like all the times before, a selection window appeared before his eyes.

    [Piercing bolt]

    [Pick a grade:

    - Middling

    - Advanced

    - High

    - High advanced

    ]

    The first context window that appeared consisted of two parts. The first one allowed Mathew to pick the desired grade of the spell, while the second one showcased how the details of the spell would change depending on the picked grade.

    Yet, save for the mana cost, requirements, and the type of grade, only one thing changed between middling, advanced, and high advanced grades.

    And it was the type of spell.

    On the lowest possible, middling grade, it was of a battle magic type. Within the advanced and high grades, it turned into military magic while when Mathew picked its high-advanced grade...

    The type changed to destruction type.

    "It would be easier if I could get at least a single clue what those types are all about," Mathew muttered, hoping to coax the merchant into revealing some hidden truths.

    Yet, even after turning his attention back to the spell while pretending to read about it... nothing happened.

    ''I guess I missed that shot,'' he thought, rolling his eyes and selecting the advanced grade that he went with, to begin with.

    The high grade had its mana cost tripled, making the spellpletely unusable for Mathew''s current situation. As for the middling stage, the change in the type of magic, although Mathew couldn''t really figure it out, appeared to be bad enough to discourage him from the purchase.

    "As for the second spell," Mathew muttered, turning around to face the other side of the alley before approaching the second pedestal that caught his attention.

    [Anchorable protective veil]<novelnext></novelnext>

    [Type: Barrier magic]

    [ss: Barrier]

    [Mana cost: 25]

    [Grade: high]

    [Requirements:

    - Mind 80

    - Arcane 280

    ]

    [Allows the caster to infuse an object with his mana to create a projected, protective veil. The veil remains hidden while unused and allows interactions over it but activates upon detecting a harmful substance, projectile, or attack. Can withstand up to seven attacks up to the advanced grade or up to three attacks of a high grade.]

    [Cost: 2 700 cores]

    Despite this spell being a grade higher than the piercing bolt, its mana cost was only a fraction of the offensive spell. Yet, for Mathew, this spell was actually far more important than the piercing bolt.

    ''There is always a way to work around an opponent''s weaknesses,'' he thought, instantly going through the already standard procedure and making the piece of paper float behind his back. ''But it''s all over once any of us gets struck strong enough.''

    One could continue to fight only as long as they remained in a shape well enough to do so. And judging from the grades of the items and all, Mathew has yet to encounter a monster that would reach an advanced grade, not to speak about a high one!

    In other words, this one spell, although pretty damn pricey, nearly guaranteed the safety of his group, as long as they remained within the range of the veils that Mathew was sure to bestow upon them!

    "And now that I have all that I absolutely need..." Mathew muttered, turning his head towards the opening of the alley.

    He couldn''t see the other alleys from his current spot. He would have to walk back before he could even check what was there.

    ''But what else could a merchant offer?'' Mathew asked himself.

    And as he voiced this question in his mind, a powerful sense of curiosity filled his soul.

    He could buy food in the first alley. Mechanical tools of all sorts are in the second alley. Weapons in the third and system seeds in the fourth. He just confirmed that fifth alley was all about spells...

    But weren''t there about twenty different alleys within the merchant''s subspace now?

    ''I could guess one, two, or maybe three more alleys, but what''s in the rest of them?''

    Mathew couldn''t hold his curiosity back... and there was hardly anything that stopped him from checking it out.

    Hardly anything... besides what he found out in the sixth alley and what he expected to require a short trip in the real world for him to achieve.

    Just like before, the sixth alley was filled with pedestals, meaning that what Mathew would buy likely didn''t have a material form. Yet, as soon as he approached the first pedestal, his eyes opened up wide.

    [Water and plumbing service +]

    [Increases capacity of the service by 50 people worth of water supply and plumbing]

    [Limitations: Only applicable to a fortress the customer controls and that has an active service facility]

    [Cost: 2 000 cores]

    ''That''s actually yet another thing I really wanted,'' Mathew thought only to take a step back and look across the entire alley.

    Just like it was in the previous one, it was a pretty short path. Yet, that didn''t mean the number of items disyed on its shelves was small!

    "Electrical energy service plus, food catering service, cleaning service... here!" Mathew suddenly eximed as he went around the shelves looking for one thing that he really wanted.

    One thing that his group, in theory, could aplish with their own physical strength... but something that in reality would never happen.

    [Fortress repair service]

    [Brings the buildings used to establish a fortress back to their prime]

    [Limitations: Only applicable when no one is within the area of the fortress]

    [Caveats: Cost depends on the level of fortress destruction]

    [Cost: 12 743 cores]

 Chapter 323 Not Enough Cores To Afford It All

    "Nearly thirteen thousand cores?" Mathew muttered when he finally saw the price for the service he was looking for.

    This amount of cores was worth just a tad less than two of the sabers Mathew sold. Or, in simpler words, it wasn''t small at all.

    ''I still can afford everything that I picked so far with some leftovers,'' Mathew thought as he ran the numbers in his mind a few times. ''I will even have enough left to get three merchants and then upgrade them to a fortress at the castle we are going to,'' he thought, trying to predict the necessary spending he would face in the near future.

    ''So, in other words, I can actually fix this ce?'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes and imagining all the kinds of damage done to the school''s building.

    The first and main one was the school''s southern wing. Or rather, a pile of ruins that it turned into, exposing the entire center of the school to the outside elements and thus making any sort of heating near impossible.

    ''The problem of keeping everyone warm and dry might not be a lot now, but it surely is bound to grow into a huge headache in the future,'' Mathew realized.

    It was nothing more but mere dumb luck that the weather up until now was rtively nice. Sure, it was still thetter part of the summer. Both the scale and the periodicity of the rains were currently at their all-time low.

    But...

    It was only a matter of two weeks before the calendar fall would begin!

    ''Thenes the destroyed staircases,'' Mathew thought, bringing his arms up and crossing them over his chest. ''Without it, it''s a massive pain to get to the top floor. It sure is safer in case of a zombie breaking through the barrier...  But on the other hand, for a zombie capable of breaking the fence, jumping over from floor to floor wouldn''t be a problem either.''

    Mathew pulled his eyes open. The selection window for the service returned along with his vision, still waiting for Mathew''s decision.

    ''In theory, it could wait,'' Mathew thought, staring at the description of the service. ''But what if it isn''t instantaneous? What if I put it off forter, wait for the rain or even a storm toe, and then learn it takes an hour toplete? Or a day? Or any amount of time during which everyone would have to stay outside?''

    Mathew allowed his thoughts to wander as he pondered over the possible consequences of such an event.

    ''No, I can''t allow that,'' he thought. ''There are no medics in this world so even a simple cold might turn into a disaster.'' Mathew realized. And yet, he didn''t arrive at the final stage of said realization.

    ''Our generation is born in the times of extremely efficient health care. We lost all the advantages of natural selection that would otherwise pull apart those with great fortitude and those prone to get sick. As such,'' Mathew''s face tensed up, ''things that even our ancestors could just ignore or wave their hands about, might be pretty much lethal for us.''

    It would be foolish to believe that this kind of downsides of great medical care outweighed all the benefits it provided. Yet, in this extremely unusual time that humans could never predict... This downside was what Mathew had to seriously take into ount.

    "Either way, I need to empty the entire building before I will be able to activate this service, right?" Mathew asked out loud, turning his eyes away from the pop-up window about the service and looking towards the opening of the alley.

    "If the service overhauls the structure of the building, all animated beings need to vacate the premises for the time the service procedure will take ce," the merchant replied in its usual voice.

    "I guess I need to get one of the systems and then go and push everyone out," Mathew muttered in response before walking all the way back to the system seed alley.

    This time, however, moving around the alley was far easier than before. Not because its structure changed or anything like that.

    It was all because after reading through roughly half of all the system descriptions, Mathew generally knew what to expect.

    ''Dud, dud, dud, oh,'' he stopped for a moment, ''that''s interesting,'' he thought when he noticed a system that eluded him in the higher grades.

    Yet, it wasn''t what he was looking for anyway. And so...

    Mathew continued to search.

    "There is no way there is no production-oriented system!" he then eximed to himself while lowkey hoping his words would somehow influence the merchant to sneak one or two systems that he desires into the further part of the alley.<novelnext></novelnext>

    As his task went on, Mathew only needed a single nce to see whether he already knew the system disyed on the pedestal or if it was something that he has yet to see.

    It was only when he nearly reached the point where he stopped during his former attempt at reading through all the systems that Mathew''s eyes shed with excitement.

    "There it is," he muttered, reaching out and opening the system''s window.

    [Array System Seed]

    [Allows its host to create arrays capable of producing certain phenomena. From defensive arrays that bar the passage through a certain path, through offensive arrays that can be imprinted upon an object to cause a damaging effect upon activation, all the way to economic arrays that can produce certain items all on their own.]

    [Limitations: Besides the set of starting arrays, the host needs to purchase schematics for any further arrays they want to create]

    [Limitations: Each array has a base cost of zombie cores to create.]

    [Limitations: Host needs to achieve a certain level of his system in order to use moreplex arrays]

    [Caveat: Producing and keeping up arrays leads to leveling up]

    [Cost: 1500 cores]

    ''Buying this will bring me pretty damn close to what I can actually afford,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he moved his eyes towards an extendable part of the window, right at the very bottom.

    [Prepurchased schematics:

    - Basic offensive arrays (500 cores)

    - Basic defensive arrays (800 cores)

    - Basic auxiliary arrays (1200 cores)(can affect host'' allies)

    - Basic production arrays (2000 cores)

    ]

    ''Oh...'' Mathew muttered. ''Getting the production arrays as well will mean cutting it pretty damn close to what I can actually afford,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    Even though he knew that all he needed to obtain means of production within the apocalypse world was to push beyond the level of fortresses... That task had an unknown level of difficulty.

    And what he had right at his hand''s reach right now was the solution to this problem.

    ''Adding the cost of setting up those arrays, whatever it might be, and it will be pretty damn hard to...''

    Mathew''s thoughts suddenly calmed down.

    ''Wait a second,'' he thought, forcing himself to slow down. ''Now that I think about it, do I really need to get this building repaired right away?'' Mathew asked himself, looking for ways to save on the cores.

    ''It''s great to know that I can do it... But in case of rain or cold weather... Can''t I just get everyone to sit on their ass in the few ssrooms that are left in a good state?''

 Chapter 324 Blades Are A Mans Fantasy

    The shadowy realm copsed around Mathew, letting him back into the reality he considered his own.

    "Did you get them?" Nadia asked with her eyes sparking with excitement.

    "Get what?" Mathew asked, genuinely confused by both her question and her enthusiasm.

    And then, he scoured his mind in the search of what the girl could mean.

    ''Oh shit,'' Mathew cursed in his thoughts when the realization dawned upon him. And before the girl could even answer his own question, Mathew lowered his head.

    "I''m sorry, so much changed at the merchant that I forgot about your request," he apologized.

    "Huh?" Nadia pulled her eyebrows together. "It wasn''t super important so you don''t need to feel guilty," she raised her hands and waved them in front of her chest. "And seeing the look on your face, I can tell that something big happened inside," she then added, clearly trying to change the topic away from the one that made Mathew ufortable.

    "Happened?" Mathew repeated Nadia''s words in a questioning tone. "Nothing happened. But what I can buy at the merchant..." the young man hesitated.

    He had no qualms about exining the situation. He didn''t want to hold the information back.

    He simplycked the correct words to express the magnitude, the scale of the change.

    "It''s like... a thousand times more options now?" Mathew attempted to put his experience into words. "Ten thousand more options?" he attempted to guess.

    Yet, the more he thought about what he saw in the merchant''s subspace, the more his face froze.

    ''I didn''t realize it back there because I quickly got used to it but...''

    "Now that I think about it, it feels more like a hundred thousand or maybe even a million times change," he said with a sigh.

    "Are you for real?" Nadia asked with her eyes wide open.

    Even though she could enter the merchant just like any other system holder or system beneficiary, she opted to leave this task for Mathew.

    "It''s like going from a roadside stall to a massive shopping mall," Mathew admitted, finding a better way to describe the change. "And not the small joke of a mall that we were in earlier today," he added, shaking his head. "I mean those really big ones."

    "That''s..." Nadia hesitated, struggling to digest the news. Her face remained in a state ofplete focus with her eyebrows pulled together and her eyes cast down.

    ? Then, she shook her head and raised her eyes back on Mathew''s face, clearly dumping this topic to the back of her head.

    "Either way, no matter how many more options we have right now, we are still limited by our funds," Nadia said with a cheeky smile. She then raised up on her feet, standing on the tips of her toes as she looked over Mathew''s shoulder in search of what he brought from the merchant''s space with him.

    "There are five swords, two spells, and..." Mathew listed everything that he bought before suddenly putting his mouth to a stall. His body pushed forth and he leaned over the girl''s shoulder, bringing his lips closer to her ear.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "And I bought a system''s seed," Mathew revealed in a soft whisper.

    The young man pulled away before reaching out for the storage window floating slightly above and to the side of the merchant''s hood before bringing out all the items that he bought in their physical form, save for the system''s seed.

    "Here are the weapons," he said,ying down the sabers on the ground. "And here are the spells," he added as he ced two scrolls beside the swords.

    "Those sabers look pretty ordinary," Nadia muttered as she squatted down and took a closer look at the des.

    "And that''s because you don''t know the military history of our nation," Mathew replied in a slightly amused voice.

    For a geek like him, the weapons on the floor were the pinnacle of cold weapons. A weapon that, although mostly in the ceremonial way, remained a piece of military equipment from its conception all the way to the modern times preceding the apocalypse.

    "Do you mean it''s that legendary..." Nadia hesitated as she squinted her eyes and scoured her mind in the search of some remote memory, "Sigmundian?" she guessed while raising her head and looking up at Mathew''s face.

    "That''s what I thought when I first saw it," Mathew revealed with a small smile. "But I realized my mistake before actually buying it," he then added, leaning down and grabbing one of the sabers.

    Contrary to the ordinary sabers his group was using before, this model was rtively straight. Half of its de was as straight as it could be, with only thetter half slightly angling away from the side of its cutting edge.

    "Sigmundian''s saber wasn''t a type of weapon," Mathew pointed out, unting his historical knowledge, "but a name for a specific example used by the king. In fact, Sigmundian Saber was actually of Batoryean type. Or to be even more specific," Mathew grinned, "A Polish saber of Hungarian type. It was named after Stephan Batory because it was during his reign it ended up poprized."

    "Potato, potato," Nadia replied before showing her tongue with an amused expression. She then picked one of the sabers herself and stood up in a straight-up fencing position.

    "Rather than its history, I''m more interested in how effective it is," she said, bringing the weapon''s tip up before raising her weapon-holding hand up to her chest.

    Nadia pushed her hand on an arch, stretching it as far as she could in front of her while turning her angle to lower the tip of her de as far as she could.

    With just a single flick of her wrist, she painted a small circle with the weapon''s tip. She raised her elbow and then bent her arm. Then, she executed a lightning-fast downward cut.

    A horizontal sh. X-type cut from overhead. Upper sh coupled with a backstep. Parry during a small jump.

    The girl went from one form to another, quickly getting herself ustomed to the weight, length, and handling of her new weapon.

    "I think I can see why it ended up so popr," she then muttered as her hand returned to the default position above her chest.

    This time, however, as she stared at the de right before her eyes, there was a look of reverence shing in her pupils.

    "And they say des are a man''s fantasy," Mathew joked a little before shaking his head. Then, his expression soured a little. "Thinking about this, it''s quite a pity that rather than using des," he muttered, turning his eyes towards the two scrolls on the ground, "I will try to focus more on using spells."

 Chapter 325 Bad News

    "What spells did you buy?" Nadia asked as she lowered her de before promptly attaching it to her belt.

    She asked for some gauntlet-type of weapon, something that Mathew entirely forgot about. Her desire likely came from her bloodhound ss and the fighting style that the girl created with her ss at its foundation.

    And yet¡­

    She held her hand on the saber''s handle, caressing it with her fingers in a way Mathew only saw her caress his dick before.

    ''She likes it,'' Mathew thought. And that thought ended up putting a small smile on his face.

    "I bought two spells in total. The first and more important one allows me to craft barriers and anchor them on items so that anyone who goes out will have an addedyer of protection," Mathew revealed without even a hint of hesitation. "As for the other spell," Mathew cut his sentence short before turning around and showing the girl his back.

    "You wouldn''t be yourself if you didn''t add a little bit of drama to even a simple question, would you?" Nadia pointed out with a smile on her own, her fingers still gently caressing the handle of her saber.

    "Maybe I''m just a little bit jealous over how you treat your new weapon?" Mathew suggested with a smirk while looking over his shoulder.

    "Huh?" Nadia jumped a little before turning her eyes towards her hip, where she attached the saber just a moment earlier. "Oh, I didn''t even realize what I was doing," she admitted with her eyebrows moving up a little.

    "Anyway," Mathew turned back to face the girl again, dropping the dramatic act. "The second spell I bought is something we were severelycking," he said only to give the girl a wink.

    "A means to production?" Nadia attempted to guess.

    "That I have covered with the thing I whispered in your ear," Mathew replied. "As for what I believe we arecking, it''s explosive power with high pration ability."

    "So you n to go against higher evolved monsters soon?" Nadia quickly figured out where Mathew''s choice of spell would lead down the line.

    "Yes and no." Mathew shook his head.

    "Yes, because sooner orter, we will have to face them," he said while leaning over the stack of items he bought and picking them all up. "And no, because I have no intention to go out of my way¡­"

    "MATHEW!"

    Norbert shouted as soon as he crawled out of the vertical tunnel which, due to Mathew''s decision to postpone the reconstruction of the entire school, remained the only easy way to ess the top floor.

    "I''ve been trying to reach you, but you didn''t notice any of my attempts!" Norbert whined while breathing heavily on the floor.

    "What happened?" Mathew rushed to the former policeman''s side and knelled down.

    It was an umon sight to see the man so tired.

    ''I spent so long at the merchant I kind of forgot about it, but we just returned from a pretty long expedition,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. ''And judging from his breathing, he ran all the way here before climbing as fast as he could.''

    Mathew''s face darkened as his emotions washed away.

    "I received a distress message from Daniel," Norbert reported as soon as he regained some breath. "There is a huge hordeing their way," he added to his report as soon as he breathed in some more. "And¡­"

    Norbert''s face tensed up.<novelnext></novelnext>

    He closed his eyes and took a moment to stabilize his breath, rxing on the dirty floor of top floor.

    "I scouted at the very limits of my ability," Norbert muttered a mere momentter before opening his eyes and looking straight into Mathew''s face. "At that distance, I can''t be sure but¡­"

    Norbert pursed his lips and looked away.

    "Just speak," Mathew urged the man.

    ''If there is a hordeing to the media building, then there is no time we can leisurely waste on hesitating!'' he protested in his mind.

    "I think there are at least fifteen evolved zombies within the horde," Norbert reported in a soft voice, still refusing to look Mathew in the face. "And while I couldn''t sense their level, there are some monsters in that horde too."

    ''Those are¡­'' Mathew gulped his saliva down. ''Pretty bad news, are they not?'' he thought, keeping those words behind the barrier of his lips not to put any further burden on their only scout.

    ''He already went through enough by pushing his ability to its limits only to see what had to be quite the gruesome sight,'' Mathew thought.

    "Those are pretty bad news, are they not?" Nadia muttered, free of the reservations that stopped Mathew from speaking up.

    "Can you take a look at this horde again?" Mathew then requested.

    "I might try," Norbert shook his head and looked at Mathew with a strange look in his eyes. "Is there anything you want me to look for in particr? Or just the usual level gradient?"

    Mathew''s hand traveled all the way to his chest, where he kept the two scrolls with the spells.

    ''I can only use that pration spell once. Even if I could get some time to regenerate twenty points of mana, using it again would sap all my strength.''

    "Look for any monsters or evolved zombies that might appear to be tough to sh," Mathew requested.

    ''Even if it will be hard, this is the only kind of enemy we need to worry about,'' Mathew thought, certain that both his and his girls'' levels were high enough to make theing fight a rtively easy encounter.

    "Ah, before you go to take a look, try to estimate how long it will take them to reach Daniel," Mathew requested right as Norbert was about to close his eyes.

    "Sure thing, give me a moment," the officer replied, pushing himself up and sitting down with his legs crossed before closing his eyes.

    For a fewteen seconds, nothing really happened, save for the slight changes appearing on Norbert''s face, as if his mimicry reacted to what his ghost-form was seeing.

    He then pushed his eyelids up¡­ Only for some early signs of terror mixing with panic to appear at the bottom of his eyes.

    "They split up into two," Norbert reported with a tense voice. "Most of the usual zombies are going as they were¡­"

    Norbert gulped his saliva down.

    "But a small detachment with most of the high-leveled zombies split up and is heading right for the school!"

 Chapter 326 Two-Pronged And Scattered Attack

    ''Why is this happening?!'' Mathew thought, momentarily failing into a daze as he attempted to see through the situation he found himself in.

    The appearance of the horde wasn''t anything out of the ordinary. Sure, it wasn''t something that he expected to go through so soon, especially right after they managed to clean the immediate area of the school from the zombies, but it wasn''t something to be surprised at either.

    In other words, just a bout of bad luck, especially whenbined with how they just returned from another expedition.

    The appearance of the horde was just bad luck, a shitty draw at the lottery called life in the zombie apocalypse world. But...

    The same couldn''t be said about the number of evolved zombies and monsters that went for a ride along with the horde!

    ''Is it all happening because I used so many cores at the merchant?'' Mathew thought, turning around and throwing a quick look at the shadowy figure standing on the edge of the broken part of the floor.

    Mathew squinted his eyes... and then shook his head.

    ''No, that cannot be,'' he then thought, raising his hand and putting the nail of his right thumb between his front teeth. ''Judging by how quickly Norbert got here, he had to notice Daniel''s messages before I even entered the merchant''s realm.''

    "Mathew?" Nadia called out, noticing the troubled look on the young man''s face.

    ''Then where did this hordee from? Is this really just bad luck for it to appear now when we are all exhausted?''

    Mathew closed his eyes and scoured his brains. He focused all of his mental power on the task... but without feeding on more information regarding the matter, it was hard for him to piece the puzzles together in a way that would make sense.

    ''No, I cannot ignore the fact that I used quite a lot of cores,'' Mathew thought, opening his eyes and raising them on the two of hispanions, eagerly awaiting for him to get out of his daze.

    ''Didn''t Norbert say that a detachment made mostly of those higher-leveled enemies is heading here?'' Mathew then recalled the important detail. ''Maybe that''s what happened because of the cores I used?''

    Mathew shook his head and forced himself out of his dazed state.

    "We don''t have much time, Nadia!" Mathew said in a stern tone, glossing over how he was the one wasting the time. "Get Le and Daria here. We need everyone to get through the touching grass so that we can recover."

    Despite how useful it was, Mathew didn''t like to use this feature of the merchant unless it was absolutely necessary.

    Sure, it was great to know that it apparently allowed healing even the gravest of injuries as long as one used it before their demise. It was great that it would recover anyone capable of using it to the absolute best state they could be...

    But there was no cost attached to it. No consequence.

    That alone made Mathew distrust the entirety of the feature. As there wasn''t something like a free meal in this world, especially ever since the apocalypse began.

    And then...

    Then, there was the element of one''s mental state.<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''I don''t want people to expect to be forever capable of just restarting their body,'' Mathew thought.

    Save for the side effects that he didn''t know about, this kind of mental approach was likely to make people disregard their problems or injuries as they would be sure they can just heal them right away.

    And if this kind of mindset were to settle in the minds of Mathew''s people, what would happen if they ended up acting too recklessly for their own good, end up with heavy injuries... while being way too far to reach the touching grass feature in time?

    "On my way," Nadia stood up straight as if saluting before rushing towards the far end of the school''s wing, clearly intending to use the broken stairway rather than crawling through the narrow tunnel that connected the top floor with the others.

    "What''s the timeline," Mathew asked, turning his attention towards the former policeman.

    "One to two hours before they reach Daniel," Norbert replied right away. Hen then closed his eyes and sank into the ghostly form of his system.

    "It''splicated," he then added once he opened his eyes back up. "The detachment I mentioned before, it isn''t cohesive like the rest of the horde," he added as he lowered his eyes.

    "What do you mean by that?" Mathew asked, even though he could guess a huge part just from the tense look behind Norbert''s eyes.

    "They are noting here as one group," Norbert replied as his face darkened. He then closed his eyes again, taking yet another look at the situation rtively far away. "The fastest ones will hit this ce in ten minutes," Norbert reported as his darkened face took on a grave tone. "The majority of them will arrive within an hour but..."

    This time, Norbert''s face turned fully nk.

    "There is one that I can''t even begin to describe," he uttered in a shallow voice.

    "Try to anyway," Mathew insisted.

    "It''s as big as..." Norbert hesitated, scouring his mind to look for the words that befitted what he saw with his ghostly form. "It''s as big as six buses," he finally found a way to describe it. "Imagine two lines of three buses standing side by side. Then raise their usual height by a half. Cover the exterior with what looks like ten inches thick armor."

    Norbert''s face continued to turn whiter and whiter with each word he used to describe the slowest of the monsters approaching the school.

    "It should arrive in four hours," he finally gave out the only answer Mathew cared about.

    "Good," Mathew shook his head and pped his cheeks with his hands.

    "We are here!" Nadia then shouted, appearing right at the mouth of the corridor along with Le, Daria, and surprisingly enough, Carol and Beatrice.

    ''How did she climb up the stairway?'' Mathew thought, staring at Beatrice for a second before waving his hand toward the merchant.

    "All of you, touch the grass," Mathew ordered before turning his eyes towards Beatrice. "As for you, you have three minutes to figure out how to deal with all the monstersing here," he gave another order, only for his face to tense up as he reached the point where he couldn''t avoid dropping a massive bomb on the woman and the tactical leader of the group. "And make sure to include how we need to go to the other fortress of mine to help them defend against the horde too."

 Chapter 327 Assignments

    "Five more minutes before the fast onese," Norbert reported right as all the girls finished touching the grass.

    "Direction?" Mathew asked, done with distributing the weapons amongst his party.

    "They areing from the north," Norbert replied.

    "Huh?" Mathew shook, turning his head towards the officer with a slightly confused expression on his face. "Shouldn''t they be¡­"

    "Approaching from North-west instead?" Norbert cut into Mathew''s words, guessing what the young man was about to say. "That''s what I expected too, but they moved west at first and only started going directly towards us once they could do so in a straight line."

    "And that''s how they can reach us so quickly," Mathew muttered in response, only for his eyebrows to twitch a little. "No, they will be here even faster!"

    ''They couldn''t showcase their full speed by going in a zig-zag pattern enforced by the blocky structure of the city,'' Mathew thought, rushing towards the northbound window and taking a look outside.

    And just like he expected, there was a cloud of dust kicked by several monster-like zombies rushing down the street.

    They were still about fifteen blocks away, right on the edge of how far into the city Mathew could see.

    ''They will be here way sooner than in five minutes,'' he thought, gritting his teeth.

    Mathew then turned his eyes up¡­ only to see the sun slowly heading towards the line of the horizon.

    ''It''s still about an hour or two before the sun will set,'' he noticed, only for his eyes to sh up.

    Mathew turned around from the window and rushed back to where everyone was grouping up.

    ? "Beatrice, I''m sorry, but I will take care of it after all," Mathew started, butting in right as the woman was exining the strategy she came up with.

    "Daria, I''m sorry, but I will leave the horde at the media building to you and Carol," Mathew announced. "Keep the defenses up until the nightes, then you should have an easy time cleaning it all up. Just be warned, there might be a powerful monstering your way rather than heading here," Mathew added, raising his eyes to the girl he didn''t see for quite some hours today.

    "Sure thing," Daria smiled, unable to stop herself from ying with the de in her hands.

    A single look at Le and Carol sufficed for Mathew to confirm that the des he brought out had some sort of a strange charm. Because not only all his girls but even Norbert appeared to be deep in love with it, either unable or unwilling to stop themselves from ying around with their new weapons.

    "Le, Nadia, I will need you two here with me. Oh, and Carol," Mathew turned his eyes towards the girl he already dealt with, "you should take your hunters with you. They will be of no use here."

    "Mathew, bad news," Norbert cut in, reaching out from behind for Mathew''s shoulder.

    "What now?!" Mathew whined.

    So far, the situation appeared to be manageable. But they were already stretching their forces thin while using everyone''s abilities to their utmost limits.

    If more shit were to hit the fan at the same damn time, Mathew would have no other choice but pick up which location and group of people were the least important and thus would be abandoned!<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''But that''s weird,'' Mathew thought as Norbert opened up his mouth, ''we already covered both of our bases and there are no expeditions. Where else could the zombies strike?''

    "They are heading towards Marcus'' camp," Norbert reported with a tense look on his face.

    "Who?" Mathew asked. "Evolved ones? Higher zombies? Mass of the horde?"

    "A mix of them all," Norbert replied with a sigh. "I can see two higher zombies, one evolved monster, and a group of around two hundred zombies," he reported.

    "Those horde zombies¡­" Mathew muttered, squinting his eyes as suspicion filled his head.

    "On the level of those we were fighting, not the ones we found at his ce," Norbert quickly dispelled Mathew''s hopes.

    ''Shit,'' the young man cursed in his thoughts and lowered his head while closing his eyes. ''We don''t have anyone else to send there.''

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    ''Should we split up even further? Or maybe try to hit various groups at different times? Or maybe abandon them to their own devices?''

    Mathew squinted his already closed eyes to the point his eyeballs started to hurt.

    "Ma¡­

    "I will go," Le spoke out right as Nadia was about to volunteer herself. She then turned her head towards Nadia and looked the girl in the face. "I''m more suited for fighting a horde mixed with some stronger opponents," she pointed out. "And you are stronger when you are fighting worse opponents," Le stated with a shrug of her shoulders.

    "That''s¡­" Mathew muttered, opening his mouth only to end up failing to produce any further sound.

    ''If you do that, you will give up on your night, won''t you?'' he thought, averting his eyes to allow his and Le''s eyes to meet.

    From all the preparation the girl made from the night ever since they returned to the school Mathew could tell just how much she was looking forward to it.

    And yet, when the shit started to hit the fan, she was actually willing to potentially give up on it just for the sake of helping someone whom neither Mathew nor she nor anyone else in their group truly cared about?

    "If we abandon them now, we won''t be able to count on those new workers to do their job properly," Le pointed out with a faint smile on her face. "Just like we can''t the workers not to incur the wrath of Marcus'' forces, we can''t abandon Marcus and his fighters if we want to keep the goodwill of the workers," Le exined as if it was the most obvious thing the world.

    "And I''m the most fitting to go," she then added while looking straight into Mathew''s face.

    "Fine," Mathew took a deep breath before nodding his head in agreement. "Le, I''m really thankful for that," he then added, finally gathering the courage to look the girl in her face. "And I won''t forget that," he concluded.

    "Stop setting up death gs," Le grinned, pulling out her saber and swinging it in a circle. "For now though," she leaned her head before ncing over her shoulder towards the northbound window, "we do have some things to take care of, don''t we?"

 Chapter 328 Its Time To Deploy

    "They areing," Norbert muttered while opening his eyes.

    The entire fighting force of Mathew''s camp was currently gathered at the north part of the fence, with several pieces of broken furniture stacked in a way that allowed them quick ess to the other side of the barrier.

    As she never participated in the fight and had no means of doing so, Beatrice was the only one who stood a considerable distance away, here only to learn more about how the fight would look like.

    From the front, there were Le and Nadia. Behind them stood Daria and Mathew, with Norbert and Carol holding the rear along with all the hunters of Carol''s squad.

    ''Just a little bit longer,'' Mathew thought, pulling out both of the scrolls from the inner pocket of his clothes before quickly scanning their content.

    As soon as his eyesy down on the runes on the scroll, the items instantly crumbled into dust while Mathew''s brain froze for but a second.

    A string of bit-type of data surged into his brain, instantly tranting into knowledge and the ability to procure the spells the scrolls described.

    "You will be going first," Mathew muttered, raising both his eyes and his hands only to rest his fingers upon the shoulders of the two girls at the front.

    ''APV,'' he uttered in his thoughts, calling forth the spell of ''Anchorable Protective Veil'' by its acronym.

    The mana within Mathew surged towards his palms. It then formed into some sort ofplex circle of runes right below his skin before phasing over and imprinting itself into the neck of the girls'' clothes.

    "That applies to you too," Mathew said as he turned around, passing the barrier over to Daria as well.

    ording to the n, Carol would remain within the fortress during the initial attack so there was no need for Mathew to waste the precious little mana he had to construct a protective veil for her as well.

    ''I''m the only one that will go out without it,'' Mathew thought, turning his attention back to the street. ''That means, I will have to suck some of the stones dry to recover, it''s pretty damn hard to move around with no mana at all!''

    Due to the restrictions of his system, Mathew''s stats were all effectively topped at a hundred points, even though they were actually much higher than that. As such, after using the APV spell three times and with each cast of it costing twenty-five points of mana, only a quarter of Mathew''s total mana pool should be left.

    ''But just in case, let''s check¡­'' Mathew thought, summing the system window with a single thought.

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Mathew Karian]

    [Level - 2/2]

    [Vitality - 447]

    [Brawn - 335]

    [Agility - 309]

    [Mind - 100(202) [277]

    [Arcane - 310]

    [Total 1678]

    [umted Levels - 38/43]

    [Avaible points: 90] > [Avaible points: 70]

    ''Huh?'' Mathew shook, his face tensing up a little.

    There were three numbers within his mind statistic. The number within the square brackets reflected his theoretical level, the number within the round brackets showcased his current state of mana while the number outside any brackets at all described the total amount of mana he could possess.

    And just like one could see from those numbers, there was something wrong with them. Because for some reason, Mathew''s current mana was more than twice as high as his maximum effective mana!

    ''Maybe it means I can''t use any spells that take more than a hundred mana at once?'' Mathew put forward a guess¡­<novelnext></novelnext>

    Only to shake his head and get rid of all those thoughts when he heard the noise from the street reach a certain level of volume.

    The group of the fastest evolved zombies hase.

    "Nadia, Le! Stall them!" Mathew called out, right as the monsters emerged from the cloud of dust they kicked up by running.

    Yes, monsters.

    Norbert called them zombies, yet they were no longer anywhere near human-like to be called zombies.

    Their legs were three times as long as they would be in an intact corpse, consisting of far more bones and muscle mass than it should be theoretically possible. Their arms were twice as long too, making them run in a hunched forward position and on all fours.

    As if topensate for their longer limbs, the monster''s torso shrunk down to a mere third of its usual size, leaving nothing but a massive, horse-like mouth filled with three rows of razor-sharp teeth in it.

    ''Disgusting,'' Mathew thought right as the two girls from the front jumped over the fence and rushed toward the zombies.

    There was a total of seven of them, three of which heralded the group from the front while the remaining front kept on running down the street, clearly set on jumping over the barrier.

    "I''m leaving the front ones to you!" Nadia shouted, kicking the ground with all her strength and passing by the two attempts of the nearer monsters to sh her with their long and de-like front limbs.

    "On it!'' Le jumped forth while unsheathing her saber.

    The monsters were quick to change their target, with one raising its back legs in an attempt to pin Le down with its front limbs while the other two swung their front, de-like arms at her at different heights.

    ''They are cooperating,'' Mathew noticed as soon as he figured out the bigger picture behind those three seemingly separate attacks.

    Two attacks from two different sides and executed at a different heights made it impossible for Le to dodge to the sides nor to jump over or duck below the attacks. Those two shes weren''t aimed at hurting her, though.

    All those two monsters wanted was to immobilize her, holding the girl in ce for the third, downward-pierce attack.

    "Heh," Le chuckled.

    She then dashed to the right, jumping up and swinging her new saber right against the iing sh.

    The girl''s body turned parallel to the ground and only an inch above the cuting from the left.

    Yet, as if that wasn''t enough, Le''s counterattack not only managed to break the stability of one of the monsters¡­ but her saber went through the de-like leg of the monster as if it was butter, cutting it in one, clean swoop!

    The attack from the right ended up failing short to reach Le''s body, leading the monsters to slightly stumble due to theck of expected resistance. In the end, however, it struck right at the leg with which the third monster attempted to pierce Le''s head, breaking both of those elongated arms in a single, unnned crash!

    ''They are coordinated,'' Mathew thought, repeating the line that appeared in his mind before. ''But they are not at all capable of using this coordination to its full extent!''

    With one of the four legs of all three of the monsters now broken, Le leisurely went around their bodies, shing at their front and back legs with ease.

    In the end, the greatest challenge that she faced was about avoiding the falling body of the monster once three of its limbs would be cut off, threatening to bring the scary-looking mouth of the monster to the level of Le''s body.

    "That was quick," Mathew muttered as he moved up on the improvised ramp and looked down at the bloody scene right beside the barrier.

    Le took just a single minute topletely rid the world of her three enemies. And as Mathew looked up, he could see Nadia standing by the pile of rotting meat with a bored expression on her face.

    "And that means," Mathew blinked his eyes a few times before looking back.

    "It''s time to deploy," Beatrice finished what Mathew wanted to say.

    She took a step forward and tapped Carol''s arm.

    "Everyone," the woman raised her eyes and looked at all thebatants of Mathew''s group before casting a quick nce at Marcus hiding in the nearby bush to observe the situation. "Good luck."

 Chapter 329 I Cant Find Them!

    "Are you really going to stay back and do nothing?" Mathew ignored how the entire group was about to depart, opting to turn toward Marcus instead. "Is that how little you care about the people you left back at your base?"

    Marcus couldn''t know for sure what was happening. After all, contrary to the rest of Mathew''s group, he didn''t partake in the meeting where Norbert revealed the details of the situation.

    All he could do, so far, was to observe their actions and try to guess the situation from those. And judging how he remained rtively close to the group, that''s exactly what he was doing.

    "What are you talking about?" Marcus asked while squinting his eyes.

    Given how his cover was now blown, he stepped out from behind the bush he was hiding in and stood right before Mathew, ready to confront him.

    "It''s exactly as I said," Mathew smiled lightly, "there is a small hordeing to your base," he stated.

    "If it''s small, then there shouldn''t be any reason for me to worry about it, would there?" Marcus countered. A confident smile appeared on his lips. "You might not think of them much, but the fighters I left behind¡­"

    "I''m not talking about the kind of horde that attacked you thest time," Mathew interrupted Marcus'' words to fix his misunderstanding. "Sure, the number of the group that''s heading the way of your camp is smaller this time¡­"

    Mathew averted his eyes. He then took a deep breath and closed his eyes, taking a moment to gather all his boldness.

    "Listen, the zombies that areing your way are the kind that we are used to fighting with. And everyst one of them is far stronger than whatever you fought with before."

    Marcus squinted his eyes, instantly dropping his confident and borderline arrogant approach.

    "How much stronger?" he asked while taking a step forward.

    "A tad weaker than the two leaders of the horde we cleaned up for you?" Mathew put forward an educated guess. "Or maybe right on their level?" he then gave another shot at estimating the strength of the higher-leveled mob zombies that were heading towards Marcus'' base. "Oh, and there are a few evolved zombiesing with them too," he then added.

    "And those are¡­?" Marcus asked, met with more words that he didn''t know the meaning of that he could outright ignore.

    "The difference of strength between the horde zombies and the evolved zombies is¡­" Mathew hesitated for a moment as he looked through his brain to find a proper way to showcase what he meant. "About four times as big as the difference between the mob zombies and the two leaders from thest horde you saw?"

    Marcus'' face tensed up.

    Whatever he was doing in the past somehow conditioned him to be both decisive and more importantly, quick on the uptake. As such, he didn''t need to dawdle to figure out just how shitty his current situation was.

    "It''s only my guess here, but I believe it''s all because I summoned a merchant back at your ce," Mathew then revealed, taking a step in the direction he didn''t n to do just a moment ago.

    ''This is too much of an opportunity for me to miss it,'' he thought as he stared Marcus right in the eyes.

    "The situation is dire, I''m not going to lie. The zombie is hitting every ce that I own right now," Mathew exined. "And so, I believe the reason why your ce is attacked is due to me summoning a merchant over there."

    "You¡­!" Marcus shouted, his face tensing up as his eyes filled with wrath.

    But all of those aggressive emotions dissipated in an instant, reced by a cold,posed look all over Marcus'' face.

    ''Damn,'' Mathew gulped down his saliva, amazed to the end of his wits, ''he calmed down fast!''

    "No matter what I say, it won''t change the situation, right?" he said, uttering his words one by one as if trying to keep the calm facade he forced on his face. "But you are not telling me all of this for no reason," he then pointed out.

    Marcus then brought his arms up and crossed them over his chest. He pulled his chin up and stared down at Mathew''s face.

    "What do you want me to do, then?"

    Mathew¡­ didn''t reply.

    At least, he didn''t do so with his words.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Instead, the young man turned his head around and gave Beatrice a quick, knowing look.

    The woman stared back at him for but a second before proving that she reached the level of the police assault forcemander for a reason.

    "You will go with Le," Beatrice announced while looking at Marcus'' face. Then, as if unable to be bothered anymore with the topic and unwilling to waste any more time, she shook her head and shouted, "Everyone, move out, and good luck!"

    This time, there were no further topics that could stall the deployment of Beatrice''s formation. And so, one by one, everyone climbed up the makeshift barricade on the inner side of the school''s barrier before jumping down to the street on its other side.

    The entire group of seven moved down the street, quickly traversing the open and zombie-free area as they rushed deeper into the city.

    As they traveled, no one bothered to utter any words, opting to save their strength for their jog and theing fight.

    And soon, the first split came to be.

    "We will be going, then," Daria announced while she pulled to the side of the group with Carol.

    They reached the point where the two of them had to take a turn in order to reach their deployment zone.

    "Good luck and don''t overdo it," Mathew replied before pushing the rest of his now smaller group forth.

    Then, Marcus and Le split off as well to head off toward Marcus'' base.

    And with only Nadia and Norbert by his side, Mathew continued to push forth before reaching the point Beatrice advised.

    ''So this is where we will be making our stand,'' he thought, stopping right in the middle of an unnervingly empty crossroads.

    Mathew could see pretty far in every direction of the world by simply looking down the street. And yet, there wasn''t a single zombie roaming the near-abandoned city anywhere in sight.

    ''It''s weird,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes. ''We didn''t kill nearly enough of the zombies to clean such a massive chunk of the city,'' he thought, looking around in a desperate search for some enemies.

    In the current situation, fighting some stray zombies was far better than what it would mean if there weren''t any anywhere near!

    "How long before they hit us?" Mathew then turned to the side and cast a quick nce at Norbert.

    The reason why they brought this nonbatant out to thebat zone was due to the main foundation of Beatrice''s n.

    Rather than just splitting their forces and thus dividing their strength, she opted to push Mathew''s group outside, putting them in a spot far closer to both the Media building and Marcus'' base than the school building.

    As such, whoever would finish their part of the fight first, would have an easier timeing to the aid of the other two groups!

    "ording to their speed so far, it should only take them¡­" Norbert muttered as he closed his eyes, rushing to confirm his guess.

    Yet, when he opened his eyes a momentter, his face turned white.

    "What?" Mathew asked, gritting his teeth when he realized something else went wrong.

    "I¡­" Norbert hesitated for a second.

    He then shook his head and blinked his eyes a few times before closing them again. Yet, once he returned from his ghostly form back to reality¡­

    His face tensed up to the point Mathew had yet to see.

    "I can''t find them."

 Chapter 330 Nadia Takes The Innitiative

    "What do you mean, you can''t find them?" Mathew asked, more surprised than angry or scared.

    ''You knew where they wereing from, how fast they were approaching, and could keep tabs on them at all times,'' the young man thought, ounting for every possible advantage that Norbert had when it came to surveince. ''So how in all hells could he lose them?''

    Mathew didn''t direct his internal question at Norbert. A single look at the man''s face was enough to confirm he was just as surprised as Mathew.

    No, Mathew directed his question was the situation itself.

    "It''s impossible for me to lose their tracks," Norbert muttered, lowering his eyes and rubbing his chin. "It''s more like¡­" he hesitated for a second before raising his eyes and opening them wide as he looked right at Mathew''s face.

    "I can no longer track them with my ghost form!"

    ''That''s¡­ a different exnation,'' Mathew quickly figured out the meaning behind Norbert''s words.

    His surveince wasn''t based on modern technology that they could understand. It was based on his ability and system alone.

    ''And just by going with the rules of the systems and how they affect the world¡­'' Mathew thought, only for his face to darken.

    Mathew then closed his eyes in order to pretend not to notice the intense look that Norbert gave him.

    "In other words¡­" Norbert spoke out¡­

    "Your level is too low to keep track of those zombies," Nadia joined in on the conversation. "Whether it''s their passive ability to hide their tracks or whether one of the evolved ones can actively interfere with your ability, it doesn''t matter."

    ''His level is too low,'' Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva and tightening his fists. ''I spoke so often about helping him grow, yet I didn''t do anything in regard to that. And now it came to bite me right in the ass¡­''

    There was no other ability that Mathew''s group relied on as heavily as they did on Norbert''s ghost form. And yet, due to how they didn''t have any direct way to help him grow, Mathew continued to indefinitely put the task of raising Norbert''s level forter.

    "If only I had some way to level up," Norbert muttered in an anguished voice.

    Mathew opened his eyes, ready to ept the scorn of his ally¡­ Only to see how Norbert wasn''t even looking his way.

    "I''m sorry, man," Mathew said, lowering his head a little as he apologized. "I really wanted to look into it but with everything happening all at once¡­"

    Mathew cut his words short as soon as Norbert raised his face and looked him in the eyes.

    The young man then shook his head.

    "No, I''m just looking for excused right now," Mathew admitted. "For not finding a way to help you level up, I''m sorry."

    The two men looked in silence at each other for a short while.

    Norbert raised his hand as if aiming to p Mathew''s cheek¡­ Only to then wave it away.

    "Don''t let it bother you," Norbert said, turning sideways to the young man and turning his eyes away. "I was the one to report the situation to you, so don''t act as if I don''t know just how rushed things are," he then added.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Either way, it''s a big problem to lose our means of tracking the zombies," Nadia entered the discussion as soon as the atmosphere cleared out a bit. "But that doesn''t mean we can just sit and do nothing," she quickly added, proving that fearmongering wasn''t her intention.

    And from the sh in her eyes, it was clear that she had something in mind.

    "You tracked their movements up to a certain ce and time. Meaning, they should still be somewhere within the circle as big as far they could get from where youst saw them in the time since youst saw them."

    ''That''s right,'' Mathew opened up his eyes a bit wider. ''There is no use in panicking for nothing. If one part of the n gets screwed over, everyone will be in deep shit. Right now, rather thanmenting over the situation¡­'' he raised his eyes at the girl while pride filled his face. ''We need to do whatever is still within our range!''

    "Ist checked up on them seven blocks down the road and then two blocks east," Norbert quickly reported, jumping on the opportunity Nadia created with her sheer peace of mind. "They couldn''t move any further than two blocks since I checked up on them."

    "And that gives us something to work with," Nadia said with a smile. "I think it would be for the best if the two of us were to move in opposite directions in a three-block-wide circle while getting Norbert to move through the middle."

    Nadia seized the initiative of the situation,ing up with a n that would make the best of what we knew to salvage the situation.

    ''I''m happy to let her take the reins right now¡­ but isn''t there a w in her way of thinking?'' Mathew thought.

    "Are you sure it''s a good idea to keep Norbert in the middle?" Mathew then voiced his concerns. "If they are only hiding their presence, without changing their course at all, he would be the one to stumble upon them!"

    Nadia''s eyelids moved a tiny bit down.

    "It''s partially true. I myself think it would be pointless to hide their presence and then continue down the same path. But yeah, just as undeniable truth it is that there will is a huge risk in letting Norbert go through the middle," Nadia turned her eyes towards the former policeman, "It''s also an undeniable truth that we have to split up into three. And from where I stand, no matter where one will go¡­"

    Nadia hesitated for a bit.

    She then looked down and to the side, averting her eyes.

    "And no matter where each of us will go, we can''t avoid the risks."

    ''That''s true,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    Nadia''s point about there being a range where the zombies could currently be was correct. And the most efficient way to search for it was by splitting up.

    Thanks to the square-based blockiness of the city, the circle actually turned into a set of straight streets that the zombies could be on. And by circling around the perimeter of those, one could cover the least ground while covering the biggest number of ces where the zombies could be!

    The problem was, as one could expect, that the area right in the middle would be the most obscured one, right at the edge of both nking parties'' sight. And once they would move sufficiently far enough from the zombie''s original route, both Mathew and Nadia, even in spite of their enhanced senses, could miss them!

    And that''s why, someone had to go through the middle, to ensure that didn''t happen.

    Thankfully, Mathew''s unit wasposed of three people. A perfect number for this strategy. Yet, regretfully, one of them was a nonbatant.

    "Don''t worry about me," Norbert muttered with a dark expression on his face. "I know my limits," he stated before raising his eyes and looking right at the couple. "Just be alert to my ghost''smunication, so that once either of us finds them, I will ry the message to let us gather back up!"

 Chapter 331 Risk And Benefit

    "I hate to admit it, but it doesn''t seem like we have any other choice," Mathew said while pursing his lips together.

    He wasn''t happy with the idea. It put Norbert at way too much risk while also splitting their forces and making everyone operate all on their own.

    ''I agreed with the idea of splitting up earlier, but it was only because no one would be left to fight on their own,'' he thought, recalling the thoughts that were going through his mind when Beatrice proposed her n.

    "It doesn''t seem like we have any other choice," Mathew repeated himself before releasing a long, heavy sigh. "And we don''t have the time to think about anything else either."

    Right now, every second that they wasted talking would mean a second more than the zombies could move in literally any direction. Add a few seconds together and the radius of the search would increase by an entire block.

    "And if there is anything that I learned from the books I loved to read in the past," Mathew forced a small smile on his face, trying to fake some confidence, "then it''s that even a bad action is infinitely better than no action at all," he stated.

    "And why is that?" Nadia asked, raising her eyebrows when Mathew''s words piqued her curiosity.

    "Because by not doing anything, you are giving up control. Or in other words," Mathew managed to turn his fake smile into a real one, "you are asking your enemy to dictate the situation."

    The only reason why Mathew''s mood improved was due to how confident he was in this theorem.

    It didn''te from a military manual. It wasn''t some genius strategy of the ancient either.

    It was a simple and possibly fake truth that he learned from reading some adventure story back before the apocalypse started.

    And yet, at this precise moment, it was this possibly wrong statement that gave him the confidence necessary to push through.

    "This entire action thing," Norbert muttered before raising his eyes. "I do agree with it," he stated before lowering his eyelids a little. "But if you are against this n due to its risks¡­"

    It was Norbert''s turn to put a smile on his face, raise his chin and present the world with overwhelming confidence.

    Yet, before he could utter any sort of nice-sounding trivia, Mathew opened his mouth first.

    "The one thing I''m most worried about," he started, looking right into Norbert''s eyes, "is the possibility that the zombies will be able to block ourmunication as well."

    The entire n rested upon the idea that they could somewhat maintain a constant line ofmunication between the three of them.

    If one were to encounter the horde or even its scouting party, the others could converge on their position and deal with the enemies together.

    Or to be more precise, if Norbert happened to stand on the path the zombies would ultimately take, all he would need was a single call for help through his ghost ability.

    But if the zombies were capable of blocking this kind ofmunication, neither Mathew nor Nadia would know of Norbert''s fate before actually meeting him once the entire thing would be over.

    "It doesn''t matter," Norbert stated, clearly paying no mind to what Mathew was worried about. "Because¡­ No, let me put it in a different way," he was about to drop the bomb on hispanions when he suddenly pursed his lips and shook his head. "Tell me just one thing, Mat," Norbert requested, raising his eyes and returning the stare.

    "Since when has life stopped being one massive gamble?"

    Mathew turned silent. This time, Nadia didn''t bother to speak up either.

    ''Gamble? What gamble¡­''

    Mathew only needed a moment to understand Norbert''s idea.

    One could walk out to school or work, all in perfect health and with a secure future¡­ Only to die when a random AC unit would fall off the wall and crushed them. Or they might end up in a car ident. Or be an unfortunate victim of organized violence that just so happened to take ce on the path they took.<novelnext></novelnext>

    The civilization minimized the risks that came with living¡­ But one''s life was never free of risks.

    ''People simply learned how to optimize their lives around the inevitable risks and the benefits of taking them,'' Mathew realized.

    When one sat down in the car, they epted the risk that it would break down and cause an ident. And they epted it because of how small the risk was whenpared to saving hours upon hours of the time they would otherwise have to spend walking the distance.

    And even by walking the distance, one would be putting themselves at risk, possibly even greater than the one he would be in while in the car!

    "Never," Mathew finally gave his response once he understood the weight behind Norbert''s words. "I guess I was too conceited trying to make everything as safe as possible," he admitted before lowering his head.

    ? "Great," Nadia finally joined the conversation. And from the looks of it, she couldn''t care less about all these risks and benefit topic. "Then can we finally get going?"

    "Yeah, my bad," Mathew nodded his head, admitting to being at fault again. He then shook his head and took a step back before positioning himself to the left of their small group. "Good luck, you two," he then said while putting a small smile on his face.

    "No, thank you," Nadia replied with a grin on her own, following the stupid belief that epting one''s well-wishes would always backfire, leading to immense bad luck.

    And with a farewell that simple, Mathew''s group split up again.

    The young man rushed down the street, mapping out the path he should take in his brain as he ran.

    He was surrounded by nothing but dead silence and rows upon rows of abandoned buildings.

    It was silent. Way too silent for a city that should be bustling with zombies on literally every corner and every street.

    ''I know I noticed it before,'' Mathew gulped his saliva down, ''but there aren''t anywhere near enough zombies.''

    Roughly fifteen seconds after splitting up, Mathew recalled the most important part of his current, solo mission. And so, he slowed down his run and closed his eyes.

    ''Good, nothing so far,'' he thought once confirming Norbert''s voice wasn''t calling out for him.

    Mathew then dashed forth. He ran past an entire block''s worth of buildings before taking another stop and listening in.

    This time, however, Norbert kindly reported back.

    "We are okay, keep going," Mathew heard as soon as he closed his eyes.

    He ran past another block and closed his eyes¡­ only to hear exactly the same message again. Then again. And then yet again.

    ''If not for how important it is, I bet I would find it pretty damn annoying,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyebrows a tiny little bit.

    Then, Mathew''s eyes moved over to his shoulder.

    At first, he would stop whenever he wanted to check on others. Then, he would just slow his jog down. And by the time he passed by the fourth block, Mathew left his defenses to his recently obtained protective spell, rushing all ahead even while he closed his eyes!

    "Nadia made contact."

    This time, the report was different. And as Mathew instinctively looked over in the direction his girl should be, his lips quivered before forming an uneasy smile.

    "So did I."

 Chapter 332 If Its Only Those Two... I Can Win!

    There were only three zombies within range of Mathew''s sight.

    Only three of them.

    And yet, the young man stoppedpletely.

    "So did I," he informed Norbert of the situation while staring down the three monstrous beings that stood only about two hundred meters away. "How''s the situation on your end?"

    Mathew struggled to keep his eyes both open and closed, unwilling to let the three zombies out of his sight¡­ while at the same time doing his best to maintainmunication with the rest of his local group.

    "Nothing yet," Norbert reported quickly, allowing Mathew to dedicate most of his focus to the enemies he found.

    Those zombies¡­ were unlike any of the ones Mathew fought with in the past.

    They weren''t monsters, as he could still recognize the general human-like shape of their bodies. Yet, at the same time, they reached a level where it simply felt wrong to call them zombies anymore.

    There were no signs of rot or festering wounds on them as if their bodies wereposed only of the perfectly fine parts of a thousand different rotting corpses. Their skin even had this lustrous, shiny aura to it, something that any girl across the world and throughout the ages would happily go to war for.

    But the thing that left the greatest impression on the young man¡­ was their aura.

    There was this extremely oppressive feeling around the three zombies, making Mathew feel like vomiting, choking, and suffocating at the same time.

    And all of that with just a single look.

    ''This is going to be one hell of a pain,'' Mathew thought, forcing his body to y along with his wishes as he pulled out his saber.

    ''Huh?'' Mathew shrugged slightly when all the weight of the zombie''s aura suddenly vanished as soon as he wrapped his fingers around his weapon''s handle.

    That oppressive aura was still there, Mathew could feel it perfectly well¡­ But right now, there was a strange force in y that barred said force from interfering with Mathew''s mind.

    ''No matter what happens,'' Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva before readying himself for a tough fight, ''this world only throws more and more questions at me!''

    The zombies finally noticed Mathew. Or maybe they approached close enough to make a charge justified?

    Whatever the case, the zombies rushed ahead¡­ And Mathew refused to let them do one better over him.

    ''I can''t just rush it,'' the young man thought as he ran straight ahead, making it seem as if he was some kind of lover that the zombie trio would reunite with after years of heartwrenching separation.

    Yet, instead of hugs, as soon as they reached each other, the two sides exchanged attacks.

    The zombies shed with their hands, baring their long ws and nails at Mathew''s skin.

    On the other hand, Mathew swung his saber, knocking away two of the attacks before taking the third on the t side of his weapon.

    ''Ugh¡­'' Mathew forced himself to hold the sigh of surprise and exhaustion when the attack nearly forced him through the asphalt and into the solid ground.

    It was THAT heavy.

    ''Just like I thought,'' Mathew gulped his saliva down once he pushed his body to its limits and managed to knock the attack out of the way. ''They are unlike anything I fought with before!''

    Save for their insane basic speed and strength, not to speak senses, and processing power, those zombies were hardly any different from all the others within the horde''s mob.

    They bore no special traits like wings or horns. They didn''t disy special abilities like breathing fire or creating spheres of the void by sucking in all the air around them.

    No.

    They were simple zombies¡­ Just far faster and stronger than Mathew ever expected them to be!

    sh.

    ng.

    The fight ensued, with all three zombies throwing their attacks haphazardly, making it seem more like apetition to get Mathew''s brain rather than a cooperation to take him down.

    And it was precisely due to this reason that Mathew managed to survive the initial onught.

    ''I can''t face them head-on!'' he shouted in his mind, shing with his saber right at the hand aimed for the side of his left shoulder.

    The saber and the zombie''s hand shed¡­ But only a tiny cut appeared on the surface of the zombie''s hand.

    ''Is that all that this attack did?'' Mathew thought, jumping to the back when he felt his surprise bing too great to warrant a controlled fight.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Up until this point, Mathew only ever struggled to cut a zombie when facing the leaders of huge hordes or evolved monsters.

    ''I know they are higher evolved than the ones I fought in the past,'' Mathew thought, gulping down his saliva as he retreated his hand and unleashed a barrage of shes, cuts, and smacks, all to keep at least one of the zombies at bay.

    But the others weren''t going to give him the room for such an outrageous tactic.

    Before long, Mathew was back to the defensive, desperately struggling to ward off the attacksing from literally every direction possible.

    When they fought first, the zombies would show their rivalry in their greed for Mathew''s brain¡­ or whatever was prompting all those spawns of the apocalypse to lust for human means.

    Yet, as the fight went on, the zombies continued to learn from their former mistakes and improve upon them.

    ''I need to end this quick,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he forced his body beyond the limits established by his system.

    If there was anything good that came out of just how desperate this fight was¡­

    It was the ability that Mathew rarely used just because of how extremely inconvenient and simply troublesome for it to activate.

    "Overuse!" Mathew shouted, hoping for at least a cebo effect to take ce after he cheered himself on.

    And his next sh... Managed to cut right through three of the zombie''s fingers, stopping only on the fourth!

    ''It works,'' Mathew thought, ramping up the rate of his attacks. ''It fucking works!'' he thought, overjoyed by the sensation of his body getting on fire.

    He wasn''t aware of his own movements. It was his body that fought along the lines of what he developed in the previous fights.

    And it was thisck of active thinking that allowed Mathew to focus his brain on other tasks.

    Tasks¡­ like strategizing a way to actually win this fight rather than just stalling the inevitable in hopes of some reinforcements.

    And soon, this tiny window of opportunity for Mathew to think was exactly what he needed.

    Powered by his active overdrive, Mathew singled out the weakest of the zombie trio before shifting his focus more and more toward it.

    Soon, his entire fighting choreography ended up limited to just two phases.

    During the first phase, Mathew would frantically repel all the iing attacks while forcibly creating space between each of the zombies.

    Then, for but a single instant of the second phase, Mathew would focus all of his attacks on his real target, quickly overwhelming it and stacking some wounds on it.

    And then, as if nothing ever happened, Mathew would go right back to the defense, jumping like a cat, shing with his saber as a furious cat would sh with its nails, and pushing the zombies aside whenever one of them got too close.

    It was a tedious tactic. One that made it impossible for Mathew to contact Norbert.

    But soon, it proved to be effective enough when Mathew''s saber finally found a good angle and enough momentum to strike at the neck of the weakest of the trio¡­ cutting its head away!

    For a single instant, relief overwhelmed Mathew''s soul.

    And yet, in spite of their ally falling, the other two zombies didn''t cease their attacks.

    They didn''t even slow down for a moment, perfectly willing to capitalize on Mathew lowering his guard.

    But it was all an act. And now that there were fewer opponents than before¡­

    Mathew suddenly found himself well within the scope of the fight, perfectly capable of managing two zombies of this level at once.

    It was a tough task where even a single hitnding could spell Mathew''s doom.

    And yet, the moment three pairs of hands turned into two, the degree of exercise Mathew had to go through to ward them off¡­ vanished.

    Yes, it didn''t change. And the remaining two zombies would be anywhere but easy to topple.

    But in this brief moment, Mathew understood the crucial truth.

    ''If it''s only those two¡­ I can win!'' he thought¡­

    Only to realize that while he was focused on staying alive, a pack of roughly fourteen horde mob zombies entered the alley and were now rushing toward the battle!

 Chapter 333 Mathews Desperation

    ''Shit, this is bad,'' Mathew cursed under his breath when he noticed the zombie reinforcements.

    He had his hands full dealing with two remaining evolved ones. And now, fourteen fresh corpses joined, forcing Mathew to divide his attention even more.

    ''This won''t work,'' Mathew thought when a sneaky attack from the back performed by one of the high evolved zombies went through his defenses and shattered his defensive veil. ''There is no way in hell it will work!''

    Another attacknded on Mathew''s body. Thankfully, it came from one of the mob zombies, being far too weak for Mathew to even bother with.

    For others, a second attack sneaking past their defenses would be a sign of everything going to shit.

    For Mathew, though, it served as a refreshment that forcefully sobered him up from his panic.

    ''There is no need to pay much attention to those mobs,'' he thought, ignoring two more attacks that came his way for the sake of avoiding a sh that came from a higher evolved.

    This was the breakthrough Mathew needed. But rather than letting him win the fight, it only allowed him to stall it for a little bit longer.

    ''No matter how weak those attacks are, they will stack up quickly,'' Mathew thought, falling down on all fours only to then roll to the side, escaping the encirclement the zombies attempted to perform on him.

    ''Shit!''

    The situation just turned from bad to worse.

    While not to the degree that Mathew experienced in previous hordes¡­ those mob zombies were actually coordinating their attacks!

    It wasn''t like it was the case with the evolved ones that had to fight for a while before they developed a sense of cooperation.

    No.

    The mob zombies started as just a random group of meat for the grinder. And after some random, as if after a snap of someone''s fingers, they started to act like a proper team.

    ''They are controlled!''

    Mathew gritted his teeth as he got up to his legs only to jump back, avoiding a crushing strike from the zombie that leaped high in the air to deliver it.

    ''SHIT!''

    Mathew stepped back, only for his back to hit a random wall erected by someone really disliking the idea of others peeking through to his garden.

    It was a simple, bricked fence, one that Mathew could smash to bits with a single strike.

    But to strike the fence, Mathew would have to spend this one second to do it. And that was all the zombies needed to enclose, pin down and then simply wear him down.

    Tap!

    A distant echo of a gunshot reached Mathew''s ears.

    Even though everyone in their group had a gun on them, there was only one person who would resort to using it so quickly.

    It was only a desperate measure. The loud noise of shots was bound to attract more zombies to wherever they came from.

    As such, either Nadia was in an extremely deep shit, or Norbert was running out of options to stall for time.

    ''Okay, screw it.''

    Mathew''s mind suddenly turned nk. As if someone formatted his consciousness, all the doubts, fear, panic, and anxiety vanished, pushed to the background by the perfect rity that reced them.

    ''Mind''s flesh,'' Mathew thought.

    This ability was extremely taxing when it came to mana usage. And the longer Mathew held this ability up, the sooner he would lose all of the mental power necessary to keep on fighting.

    ? Mathew''s eyes opened up as wide as they could, feeding his brain the information it needed to process the calctions Mathew''s subconscious ordered.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Then, the mob zombies attempting to encircle Mathew¡­ got flung toward him.

    Mathew didn''t use his mind''s flesh to push them away. He didn''t use them in a strictly offensive way either, too worried about sapping his mana potential.

    No, all Mathew did¡­ was pull them towards him, all to his right side.

    ''Go!'' Mathew screamed out in his soul,  focusing all his strength on his right arm as he started to frantically cut.

    Zombie, pulled on by Mathew''s mind''s flesh, stumbled on its feet, unable to control its suddenly unnaturally increased momentum.

    It attempted to swing its arm to scratch Mathew''s face with its broken nails, only for the young man to sh its neck before the attack could reach his skin.

    But Mathew had no time to waste nor any reason to celebrate.

    Because after the first mob zombie died, it took only half a second for another one to enter Mathew''s reach.

    ''Left,'' Mathew cut his saber to his left.

    ''Right,'' the young man counted, shing the third mob''s neck.

    ''Left,''

    ''Right,''

    ''Left¡­''

    Mathew managed to cut down a total of five different mob zombies before the evolved ones realized what was going on.

    Just in time when Mathew stumbled, unable to keep on swinging his saber with enough power to cleave through a zombie''s neck but with little enough momentum to rapidly move it to and fro.

    It was a good move on the zombie''s end and a physical failure on Mathew''s end.

    And yet, it was the young man that benefited from this mess.

    ''That was close,'' Mathew thought, quickly blinking his eyes to check on others.

    "I ONLY HAVE TWO MAGS LEFT!" Norbert''s report struck Mathew right in the face the moment he opened himself tomunication. "Anyone!"

    The young man had to open his eyes again.

    This time, the higher evolved zombies came forward personally, pushing their weaker subordinates to just circle around Mathew and cut his potential escape paths.

    And just like when Mathew fought with them for the first time, they started to exchange hits.

    And just like back then, Mathew would use his saber to strike away at the iing attacks, slowly chipping down the endurance of his opponents.

    But there was one small difference whenpared to the opening few moments of the fight.

    This time, his saber appeared to deal just a little bit more damage than before!

    ''So it''s really like that,'' Mathew thought, taking a total of seven quick exchanges to notice the detail.

    And then, rather than ying into the zombie''s hand and leaving the mob alone for now¡­

    Mathew struck the next iing attack before using its momentum to swirl on his heel and jump over the fence, aiming right for the nearest mob!

    ''Since my de is getting stronger for each zombie I kill,'' Mathew''s eyes shed, ''then let''s do some killing first!''

 Chapter 334 To Control The Battles Flow

    The fight started as a typical slugfest when both sides threw everything they had at the other party, hoping thebined power they could bring to the table would prove to be sufficient.

    For zombies, it was their unusually high adaptability and numbers. Those two advantages alone, when coupled with the extreme strength and resilience of the high evolved zombies, were enough to corner Mathew.

    On the other hand, Mathew''s agility, experience, and weapon allowed him to bring down one of the high evolved zombies. And if the situation were to continue as it was, he would likely win by slowly umting the damage on the zombies.

    Yet, the moment horde''s mob entered the scene, Mathew suddenly found himself in a situation with no way out.

    And what could one do in a perfectly helpless situation?

    Give up?

    No.

    If the situation was helpless, then all one had to do was change it. And for Mathew, that meant killing off all the horde mob, using their lives to increase the affinity of his saber, and then using this enhanced saber to take down the high evolved zombies.

    It was a simple n. A n that rewarded aggression, Mathew''s ability to take the mob down as soon as possible so that he could finish the fight and head off toward Norbert to help him.

    And yet, rather than rushing things, Mathew took the fight as slow as he could.

    ''Not yet,'' he thought when he managed to strike off the attacks from both of the high evolved zombies, creating an opening to jump away, gain distance, and then use it to bring all his power on one of the mobs.

    No, the only mob that he could ess was in a group of three which bore the risk of his attack failing.

    ''Not yet,'' he thought when he managed to knock one of the high evolved zombies away, buying himself a good ten to fifteen seconds during which there would be an opening after every attack of the other evolved.

    And yet, Mathew refused to go out of his way to attack the mob as the situation still wasn''t perfect.

    ''NOW!'' Mathew thought, his entire body tensing up as he jumped into the fray.

    It wasn''t even an opening, more like a mere shadow of it.

    Assuming the zombies were as fresh as they were when the fight started, Mathew couldn''t even hope to slip right between them when their bodies angled in just the right way.

    Their reaction speed would be too great.

    But just like Mathew continued to exhaust his energy, the zombies continued to strain their corpse-like bodies, burning away at the finite fuel that prompted them to move.

    ''Whatever makes them move, it doesn''t matter,'' Mathew thought, lunging forth, right between two of the enemies he couldn''t disrespect. ''Because their bodies wear off all the same!''

    Mathew lunged forth¡­ and slipped right between the two evolved ones.

    They instantly turned around, eager to punish Mathew''s reckless move¡­ Only to hit each other instead.

    ''Now!'' Mathew thought, making another leap as soon as his legs touched the ground and jumping slightly off to the right. The evolved zombies regained their position right as Mathew stepped down on the shoulders of one of the mob, pushing the fingers of his left hand into its left and currently empty eye socket.

    ''Mind''s flesh!'' Mathew thought, calling forth his ability.

    This time, however, he didn''t mess around with other zombies.

    No, this time, he used the spell to add power to his pull right as he ripped the skull of the mob zombie apart.

    ''I can do one more,'' Mathew thought, turning his eyes towards the next nearest target.

    His eyes locked on a hunched-down zombie.

    ''Is it trying to prevent me from stepping on its shoulders?'' Mathew asked himself as he kicked off the corpse of the zombie he just finished, leaping for yet another time.

    He thennded on the ground, only a foot away from his target.

    ''Hunching down won''t help you now,'' Mathew thought, crashing shoulder-first into the zombie, knocking it off its stable footing before driving the tip of his saber right through the zombie''s eye and into its skull.<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''That''s enough,'' Mathew decided, instantly rolling away before jumping back up to his feet and raising his guard.

    When the fight started, it was nothing but a simple slugfest at its core. Sure, zombies had different than Mathew. And neither of the parties actually made it a contest of pure physical strength.

    But now, the fight was different. Because what Mathew fought for wasn''t theplete domination of the battlefield that he would usually aim for.

    This time, all he wanted, was control.

    ''Guard, guard, leap,'' Mathew thought, swiping his eyes across the area to reconfirm its state and the position of the remaining opponents.

    The original fourteen of the horde mob now dwindled down to a mere seven, giving Mathew a lot more room to move around.

    ''It''s roughly as hard as it was to fight three evolved ones at the same time,'' Mathew took notice, only for his mouth to curve up. ''And I already proved that''s something I can deal with!''

    The rest of the fight went without any surprises. From the moment Mathew focused on remaining in control of the flow of the battle, it was only a matter of time before he picked off thest of the horde mob.

    Deprived of their support and a factor that forced Mathew to split his attention, the high evolved started to struggle.

    Their attacks would be knocked away by Mathew''s feet, left palm, or, most of the time, the de of his spear.

    And so, by the time Mathew finished off thest of the mob, the hands of the high evolved turned into aplete mess, no longer posing any threat to Mathew''s defenses.

    ''I guess it''s time to wrap it up,'' Mathew thought, recognizing how the sound of the shootsing from somewhere near continued to decrease in frequency.

    ''He is saving the ammo¡­ but he is still shooting,'' Mathew thought, too focused on fighting for his own survival to actively keep the connection to Norbert up.

    ''That means, I really need to hurry,'' he thought, gritting his teeth as he added even more power when striking down the attacks of the high evolved.

    And for the first time, since he killed the first of the three high-evolved zombies, Mathew went on the offensive.

    Now, every time he would strike an attack off, a riposte would follow, marking the already messy corpses of the high-evolved with yet another deep wound.

    As it turned out, while the effects weren''t as big as Mathew hoped them to be, killing the mob really ended up enhancing his weapon.

    He couldn''t simply cleave through the high-evolved. No, that kind of feat was still beyond the range of what Mathew and his weapon were capable of.

    But the shallow cuts that his saber was only capable of at the start, now turned into proper, deep wounds.

    And while the zombies didn''t bleed making those wounds far less dangerous than they would be to a human¡­

    They still relied on some semnce of physicality to move around. And with their tendons, joints, and muscles cut apart, both of them soon reached theirst stand.

    ''Here,'' Mathew shed, creating a deep dent into the neck of the zombie that fell to its knees when Mathew cut at them from behind.

    "We¡­" Mathew now allowed his thoughts to surface as his words while retracting his saber¡­ only to then cut right at the same ce.

    "GO!" he shouted, striking the high evolved''s neck for the third time and, atst, bringing the cut all the way through and sending the zombie''s head rolling.

    Two of the high evolved zombies fell. Fourteen of the horde mob turned back into the corpses they were.

    And with only one high-evolved one left, and one covered in deep wounds all over its body at that¡­

    ''Hold on!'' Mathew closed his eyes and shouted into the nothingness as soon as he cut thest of the evolved zombies into pieces. ''I''ming !''  he thought, hoping Norbert would still be alive and well enough to receive his message.

    "Actually¡­"

    Mathew''s body came to aplete stop when he noticed the awkwardness behind Norbert''s voice.

    "Nadia already came to help."

 Chapter 335 False Exhaustion

    ''That''s¡­'' Mathew thought, perfectly aware that his thoughts would be passed over to Norbert. He then breathed a sigh of relief, feeling how the additional tension that filled his body finally vanished.

    "Haaa¡­" Mathew released another sigh, only for most of his remaining strength to evaporate as well.

    ''That''s a relief,'' Mathew finally passed over a full message back only for his knees to wobble a little.  ''I will being over soon.''

    Mathew closed his eyes. He then took two, deep breaths, giving his body some time to regenerate at least a minimal amount of energy.

    Because now that the fight was over, the exhaustion of his body finally started to catch up to him.

    "I really shouldn''t rely on that overdrive ability that much," Mathew muttered to himself, looking down at his shaking knees.

    For the current him, running a marathon would be equivalent to a short jog across the school''s corridor. Doing the Iron Man''s race would be as hard as running off to the shop to pick up the milk that ran out.

    And yet, only a few minutes worths of fighting at a rate beyond his limits was enough to sap nearly all of his strength, leaving just enough for Mathew to keep himself up on his feet.

    ''If that''s how all the battles are going to look like,'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes and hanging his head to the back. He then slowly pried his eyelids open before staring at the reddish sky of the sunset. ''Then it is going to get really tough from now on.''

    Mathew took yet another, long breath. He bit down on his lips all the way to the point it let out blood.

    Another breath came.

    And so, the young man forced his legs to move, taking the very first step since the fight ended.

    Yet, rather than walking in the direction of the rest of his group, Mathew brandished his saber and started shing away at the heads of the fallen zombies.

    He first made sure to open all of the evolved zombies up before taking his time to harvest their cores. Then and only then did he bother to open up the mob of the horde, plucking out the cores over the next three minutes.

    "Okay, that''s done," the young man muttered a momentter, raising back up to his feet while keeping all of the harvested cores in yet another makeshift bag made out of a random piece of cloth Mathew cut out from the zombie''s clothes.

    "And now¡­" he whispered, turning his head towards the road that would lead him to the rest of his group.

    Mathew took yet another deep breath before raising his hands and pping his cheeks.

    He was tired. Exhausted beyond the level he ever thought possible.

    ''But it''s not like it''s a true exhaustion,'' Mathew thought, forcing himself to believe in the theory he came up with in the spur of the moment.

    ''I didn''t even approach the limits of my endurance. I just used too much energy in too little time. So¡­'' yet another breath followed, ''I should be okay after taking things easy for some time.

    Going by the rule of healing himself with the same thing that made him sick, Mathew pulled together all his strength before starting to jog down the street.

    He passed through the first block by squeezing all that he could out of his tired body. He ran across the second block while squeezing his jaws to forcibly ignore the pain in his muscles. He covered the third block with ease.

    It took the young man only a total of about one hundred and fifty meters to get his body ustomed to the new level of exercise. And by the time he started to run across the fourth block, his muscles managed to rx, allowing him to start regenerating his strength.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "It took you a while," Norbertmented as soon as Mathew took thest corner and appeared on the street where the former police officer made his stance.

    "I¡­" Mathew opened his mouth. Yet, rather than finishing up his reply, he simply shook his head and decided to drop the topic. "Nevermind," he said with a shake of his head. "Are you guys okay?"

    "Somehow," Norbert replied right away, while Nadia kept her mouth shut and her eyes wide open and locked on Mathew.

    "Do I have something on my face?" Mathew asked, raising his hand to his cheek in search of some wound or mark that could be the reason behind Nadia''s extreme attention.

    "Matty¡­" Nadia whispered while squeezing her eyebrows together, focusing her sight on Mathew''s eyes. "I think we should be the ones asking if you are okay."

    Norbert''s state wasn''t good. He had his clothes ripped apart for the sake of using the material to bandage the deep wound on his left arm.

    The former officer had several scratches on his face and a shallow cut going all across his chest.

    And yet, even with Norbert in such a state, Nadia actually worried about Mathew''s more, even though he had little to no injuries.

    "I''m just tired," Mathew replied, waving his hand to shove the problem away. "I will be fine after taking it easy for a minute or two," he then added before taking a quick look at the battlefield on the street.

    It wasn''t all that easy to discern the level of the zombies once they were properly dead. Yet, in his current state, Mathew could somehow perceive the faint signs of residual mana that hung around the corpses of the fallen zombies.

    ''Wait, is it because I''m tired,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes, ''or is it because they were killed by firearms?''

    There was only one zombie with residual energy on a considerably higher level than the ones around him. And yet¡­

    ''It''s an evolved zombie for sure, but there is no way it''s on the same level as the one I fought with,'' Mathew thought.

    "Shall we get some rest, then?" Nadia suggested, clearly too worried about Mathew''s state to even think about going through the next step of their n.

    ording to the original strategy, now that their fight was more or less over, it was time to change their deployment and help the group that struggled with their fight the most.

    ''Judging by how soon the night will start, Daria shouldn''t have any problems holding on against the mob horde,'' Mathew thought.

    He blinked his eyes a few times to avert the early signs of extreme exhaustion before turning his sights to Norbert.

    "Man, I know it has to be hard to work when you are injured like that, but could you please check on the other groups?" Mathew asked in a voice so polite it didn''t sound like him at all.

    "I already did," Norbert replied with a sigh. "The media building is holding pretty well. Peter''s base is yet to get hit," he then quickly reported. "But there is still the group of ten evolved zombies heading straight for us and that massive monstergging behind them."

    "We are going to wait here, then," Nadia spoke out, standing up from Norbert''s side and approaching Mathew. She then snuck underneath Mathew''s arms before bringing it over her shoulders.

    Despite his initial desire to get himself free, Mathew quickly gave up and epted the girl''s help, following her as she headed toward the nearest residential building.

    "Since the evolved ones areing here, it would be for the best if we stopped them right in their tracks," she muttered while kicking the doors to the four-floors-high residential building open. "And it will be for the best to fight that monster as far away from the school and the other bases as possible."

 Chapter 336 Its Not The Horde Leilas Struggles With

    Just like when Mathew decided to let Nadia take the lead and followed her opinions, his group did the same once the first cour of the fight was over. As such, rather than waiting for the second encounter out in the street, they moved to one of the abandoned residential buildings.

    This choice had several tactical advantages, where if Norbert''s ability were to be overpowered once again, they would at the very least still be able to observe the situation in a ssical way by exploiting their height advantage.

    But there was actually a point that both Mathew and Norbert enjoyed much more than the tactically advantageous high ground.

    And it was thefort of a house left in a rtively good state which was then extremely easy to secure.

    "Haaa¡­." Mathew released a long sigh as he fought his drowsiness in order to repel his desire to sleep. "I''m really getting tired quicker than usual," he then muttered to himself.

    "You had a hard fight," Nadia spoke from the other room where she was preparing a quick meal from the nonperishable foods she somehow found untouched on one of the shelves within the apartment''s kitchen. "It''s not like you are getting tired easily, it''s your exhaustion catching up to you."

    In theory, Nadia''s words sang true.

    But it was only in theory.

    ''I wonder if it''s the use of the touching grass feature that spoiled my perception of exhaustion,'' Mathew thought, too tired to be willing to pick this idea up as a topic for discussion.

    ''After getting my body and mind used to the idea of regenerating instantly¡­ Or maybe it''s due to how I never regenerate properly, cutting on the side-effects of exhaustion instead?''

    Mathew closed his eyes as he weighed the possible options.

    ''The fact that something works in one way doesn''t mean what we see is what actually happens,'' he thought, following his habit to doubt everything and anything.

    Back in the past, ancient people took things they didn''t understand and applied them to their religion. That''s how thunder turned from an unexinable event to the wrath of the god of the storm.

    And Mathew¡­

    Despite living in the modern times when the scientific method prevailed, was not that much different from the ancient people in that regard.

    ''I took the easiest possible exnation for what happened and then just assumed it''s true,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he could feel his own mind getting disgusted with his own approach.

    ''The only difference between me and the ancients is that I pretended my reasoning was sound¡­'' Mathew thought, the look behind his eyes darkening a bit.

    "Good grief¡­" Norbert''s voice reached Mathew''s ears, forcing the young man to pull himself out of his daze.

    The former policeman was currently busy removing the makeshift bandages from his wounded arm.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Just like Nadia used what she found in the kitchen to attempt to cook up some dish on the go,  Norbert tore away parts of the delicate material from the window''s curtains before cutting them into desired shapes and then stacking them by his side.

    "It''s not festering¡­" Norbert then muttered in a voice filled with relief.

    His left arm didn''t bear one, massive wound. Instead, it was covered with smaller bite and scratch marks, just as if the man used his left hand to protect against all the attacks that came his way.

    "I know that dressing that up is important," Mathew said out loud, more for the sake of forcing himself to do something than due to a real need for what he was going to ask for. "But could you do me a big one and check on the other groups?"

    Norbert raised his eyes from his wound and turned them towards the young man. He stared at Mathew for a few seconds before grabbing the fresh bandages he prepared and starting to wrap them around his wounds without saying a single word.

    Norbert circled his wounded arm with the window''s curtain material a few times, closing his eyes only once he didn''t need to look at his arm any longer to keep bandaging it.

    "The media building is holding out nicely," Norbert reported a momentter. "There is a huge horde knocking at their doors, but it''s an easy task for those two to hold them back."

    This only made sense. The deployment of everyone was decided as the function of their abilities of the reality of how the monsters split their forces.

    As such, while the part of the horde which attacked the media building had its strength based on the numbers of the horde mob, they were also the perfect fit for Daria''s and Carol''s abilities.

    ''With the night falling any moment now, Daria should be able to clean everything up in a jiffy,'' Mathew thought, breathing a sigh of relief.

    What he wanted to know about the more important of the two areas he send his people to wasn''t whether or not they were capable of handling a random horde.

    After everything that they went through, Mathew was confident they wouldn''t lose about a mere horde.

    No, what Mathew was worried about was the appearance of even more higher-evolved zombies, as they were the only ones who he could picture harming the members of his group.

    "As for Le and that Peter guy¡­" Norbert hesitated for a moment, taking his time to double-check the situation. "It doesn''t seem like they will have much trouble either, but I can see Le isn''t all thatfortable," Norbert then added with a strange expression on his face.

    "What do you mean by that?" Mathew asked, raising up from his chair as he focused his eyes on the former police officer.

    ''There should be still some time before the second wave arrives. And even if they do, they have quite a lot of distance to cover before they will reach the school from here,'' he thought, already analyzing his options. ''If Le''s in trouble, we should still be able to make it if we hurry up!''

    "Don''t make such a face," Norbert advised with a sigh. "It''s not the zombies that she''s troubled with," he then added while trying hard to figure out what face he should actually make.

    "I guess she''s just not used to how it feels to have gunfire all over the ce."

 Chapter 337 Unfortunate Incident

    "Can''t you go any faster?!" Peter shouted through his batted breath while rushing down the street at the greatest speed he could reach.

    "I can," Le replied leisurely only to leap forward, appearing ahead of the man in a mere instant. She then turned around without breaking her pace only to start running backward as if it was some sort of school exercise. "Can you keep up with me, though?"

    The two of them were rushing back to Peter''s base for the same reason why the rest of the fighters within Mathew''s group were rushing to their own locations of deployment.

    And it was all to prevent the iing horde from doing any substantial damage to any of the survivors'' bases.

    "I¡­" Peter opened his mouth, only to then close it shut¡­ and open it again when the strenuous exercise of running at his top speed forced him to keep breathing through his mouth. "Nevermind," he then said, lowering his eyes and focusing on the run rather than the talk.

    Back when they went from Peter''s base to Mathew''s school''spound, it took their group several hours to move between the two ces. Yet, it was due to a huge number of nobatants that went along with them, forcing all those who could move quickly to adjust their pace to the slowest member of the entire party.

    Right now, however, only Le and Peter were making the trip back, turning the several hours that they took before into a short, barely fifteen-minute-long jog.

    Peter turned silent after attempting to taunt the core member of Mathew''s group that went with him. He knew that this girl couldn''t be someone ordinary if she was so close to that monster of a kid.

    ''But how could I know that she was such a monster?'' Peter thought as he continued to run, barely able to keep up his pace¡­ while the girl didn''t appear to be at the level of breaking her first sweat.

    ''Huh?'' Peter''s eyes locked on a small column, an obelisk of sorts. It was a simple sculpture, signifying some sort of event of the past that he couldn''t care less about.

    What he cared for, though, was the location of said pir.

    ''We are almost there,'' Peter thought, feeling the wave of relief washing down his spine.

    A wave of relief that he instantly reined in and cast aside, aware that the second he lowered his guard, he would simply fall down to the ground and whine about hiscking condition.

    "Keep it up, man," the girl called out with a smirk on her face, slowing down for the first time since Peter suggested that they run the distance rather than calmly jogging it. "We are almost there," she added.

    ''How does she¡­'' Peter raised his eyes, too low on the air to even think about opening his mouth to talk back to the girl.

    He looked at the girl¡­ and his desire to speak vanished.

    ''Right, if she lived in this city longer than me, she likely knows all sorts ofndmarks,'' Peter thought, turning his eyes back down.

    Peter settled up in the city only half a year prior to the apocalypse. It was an exile of sorts, a result of supporting a radical faction within hispany that brought forth his so-called promotion.

    Within that short time frame, he only managed to learn the generaly of thend of the ces he frequently visited. As such, by seeing the familiar pir, he could tell how far he was and what direction he was approaching his base from.

    On the other hand, assuming the girl lived her entire life in the city, she could likely tell where she was even if someone were to kidnap her, cover her eyes and then drive her all over the ce before dropping her off in some random spot.

    "How long do we have before¡­"

    ''Before the horde attacks.''

    Peter''s question was quite simple. But he didn''t get the chance to properly ask it.

    "DUCK!" Le shouted, leaping headfirst forth and smashing the top of her head right against Peter''s abdomen.

    Not expecting such a rapid and random attack, Peter ended up bending in half¡­

    Allowing the bullet to only graze the back of his head instead of prating right through his heart.

    "What the¡­" Peter only managed to utter two words when his face turned stale yet again.

    The girl¡­ She disappeared.

    Peter stood back up and looked left and right, hoping to see her behind some sort of cover. In the heat of the moment, he didn''t even think about hiding himself at all, in spite of the strange, cold feeling on the back of his head proving the bullet didn''tpletely miss.

    "THE FUCK ARE YOU SHOOTING AT?!"<novelnext></novelnext>

    Struck by the sudden st of the sound, Peter shook himself out of the daze¡­

    Only to see Mathew''s girl ducking behind a wreck of a random car while looking at the buildings nearby with fury.

    ''Right, I told them to shoot first, ask questionster,'' Peter thought, still somewhat stuck in the heat of the moment.

    The man then shook his head, finally regaining hisposure.

    ''Slowly, no rapid movements,'' he thought, raising his hands high above his head as he made a step forward.

    "Don''t shoot!" Peter shouted, taking another step forward. "It''s me! The girl''s with me too!"

    The shoots came from the very ce the two of them wanted to reach. And judging from the slight glint of light reflected in one of the windows, it was one of the snipers¡­

    Or rather, one of the men who were too cowardly to stand fast with an assault rifle at the forefront of the battle. And as it turned out, it was also one of the men who were pretty damn trigger-happy!

    "I''m sorry," Peter muttered once he reached the ce where the girl was hiding. ''How the hell did she reach it the instant the shoot was fired?'' he asked himself. "I will be sure to chastise the idiot that shoot," he promised before turning his eyes back towards the street.

    And with a mere few more steps, Peter reached the courtyard of the car workshop that served as the main entrance to his own base. Then and only then did he dare to lower his hands, just in time for one of his soldiers to push the only garage door that was still working.

    "My apologies, boss," the middle-aged man on the other side of the doors said as he turned to the side to let Peter get inside. "It''s my fault for putting one of the rookies on the duty."

    Peter took a stop to take a look at the man.

    For a moment, he felt the urge to chastise him from head to toe.

    ''If not for that girl''s reaction, I would be gone already,'' Peter thought, gritting his teeth as he struggled to rein in his anger.

    Yet, the more he looked at the man''s apologetic face, the easier the task of keeping his emotions in check became.

    This ability of his, to keep his emotions reined in, was one of the reasons behind his rapid rise up the corporatedder.

    "Just don''t let it happen again," Peter finally said with a small sigh as he looked behind his shoulder to see Mathew''s girl standing right behind him. "It was dangerous, sure," Peter admitted as he turned his eyes back to one of his officers, "but if not for her reaction, I think the bullet would tear straight through my heart."

    Peter stared at the officer''s face for a moment before ultimately shaking his head and then waving his hand.

    "Just forget it," Peter added a momentter. "Sure, I would like to pull his legs out of his ass¡­" he hesitated for a second, "but we can''t afford to lose anyone who knows how to shoot."

    Peter turned himself around, this time facing Le properly.

    "Especially now, anyone who can shoot that well is indispensable," he rationalized his choice only to drop his eyes and lower his head. "As such, I hope you will find it in yourself to forget about it."

    There was a difference between Le and his officer.

    His officer would listen to him¡­ simply because of the strict hierarchy established within the camp. The same couldn''t be said about a girl that came from a different group, especially when, by the looks of things, she couldn''t care less about the rules and regtions of Peter''s camp.

    And so, if he wanted to salvage the situation that could easily lead to hostilities, Peter had no other choice but to derelict the duty of punishing the trigger-happy offender to Mathew''s girl.

    "It''s okay," contrary to Peter''s worries, the girl didn''t fly into a rage the moment this unfortunate incident was brought up.

    Le moved past Peter and raised her hand¡­ Only to weave it as soon as she moved past the man.

    "Just tell him that if it happens again," the girl started before turning her head over her shoulder and gracing Peter with a lovely, innocent, and yet extremely vicious smile.

    "Then I will kill him before he gets to reload."

 Chapter 338 Omaha Roof

    "The horde ising," Peter shouted as soon as he got on the same stage that Mathew used during his speech just a few hours prior to this moment. "Everyone, code red!"

    There were only a few people gathered in the exact spot Peter was at. Contrary to how it was during Mathew''s speech, without a reason announced in advance, there was no real reason for people to loiter around the front-most area of the base.

    And yet, the second Peter shouted those few words of his, everyone froze. And in the very next moment, all of those frozen people broke into a rush, as if the devil himself was chasing after them.

    "Alert the barracks!" someone shouted while climbing up the nearby stairs to the upper level.

    "I will bring out the ammo!" another member of Peter''s fighting force announced, running towards the warehouse located within the backside of the base.

    "Not bad, not bad at all," Le muttered with a small smirk as she watched all those different people rush into action like bees in a hive. "How did you drill them so hard in the few days you had, I wonder," she then added while turning to face Peter.

    The leader of the base turned his head to give the girl a long look. He then rolled his eyes a little before turning his eyes to the only man that was left on the scene, the same guy that he talked with first thing after arriving at the base.

    "This horde will be full of zombies far stronger than the ones we faced so far," Peter muttered in a low voice as if he wanted to hide this fact from everyone else. Yet, this assumption quickly proved to be incorrect when he followed with, "so make sure everyone is aware of that. I have no need for stupid heroes."

    Le turned her head and looked at Peter with a glint of even greater respect in her eyes.

    Her expression already changed when she saw just how quickly everyone rushed to do their tasks upon the announcement of the approaching horde. And now, hearing how he wasn''t going to hide the fact that theing fight would be likely far tougher than anything they faced before¡­

    "How long do we have?" Peter asked, focusing on the important stuff rather than enjoying how he managed to raise his status in the girl''s eyes.

    "Half an hour if we are lucky," Le replied after three seconds of deliberation. "But only five to ten minutes if we are not."

    Thest time she learned about the location and the speed of the horde was when everyone left the school''spound. From there, it was only a matter of deducing the time they took to reach Peter''s base before ounting for the unknown variables.

    "I think we should be able to make it in time," Peter said.

    And as if to flex the drill of his people and back up his words, Le rocked her head to the side, alerted by the noise of several tens of shoes hitting the floor in unison.

    "First unit is ready," a man shouted as soon as he jumped down thest flight of stairs before running a few paces forth more to kill his momentum.

    A group of about twenty-five men followed closely behind, all armed with all sorts of military-grade weapons.

    "Second unit ready!" Another man shouted,ing from the doors that lead behind the former mechanical shop, to the patio located in the middle of the block.

    This time, however, no one followed him.

    "That should make up for everyone from the rapid response," Peter muttered.

    "Here, boss," the same officer from before then approached Peter again, this time with a bolt-action rifle in his hand.

    "Thanks," Peter replied while taking the weapon and turning his eyes to the girl. "Do you want a gun or something?"

    Le smiled before shaking her head. Her hand then moved over to her hip only to rest on the handle of her brand-new weapon.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "I already have everything that I need to fight," she said with confidence while looking Peter right in the eyes. "And I''m going to take care of the strongest of the zombies that areing, so just focus on clearing the¡­"

    Le blinked¡­ and turned perfectly silent. She then closed her eyes and stood frozen in ce for a few seconds.

    "They areing. About a minute or two left," she then announced while opening her eyes.

    "How can you¡­" Peter raised a question right away, only to cut his sentence before he could properly ask. He shook his head and looked away. "Well, it''s not like you are going to tell me anyway," he added before turning around and facing the stairs. Yet, as soon as he took his first step off the stage, he turned his face to the unit gathered in the cleared-out workshop.

    "If my worries are correct, they might actually break inside. So don''t dawdle around and get some damn cover!" Peter urged his men before turning his head back in the direction he was moving towards and actually heading towards the stairs.

    "Come with me," he then added, urging the girl without even turning his head around to make it clear he was talking to her in the first ce.

    The two of them along with the officer that Peter used to organize everything moved up the stairs. Due to the open nature of the staircase, Le could see all sorts of barricades barring both the windows of the offices on the second floor but also barriers that blocked the entrance to each of the cubicles. And to top it all off, there was a group of five armed men scattered across the floor with a few more of Peter''s soldiers positioned by the windows.

    Le observed all of that with a single nce, before Peter brought her up one floor higher, to where the previously mentioned second unit was stationed.

    "What the¡­" Le uttered through her tightened teeth while her eyes turned wide.

    She then slowly gulped her saliva down while moving her eyes from one item to another.

    There was no third floor for the building, just the t terrace sitting right on top of it.

    Normally, there would be only some railings and benches for the workshop workers to rx at, but Peter''s men saw to transform the entire ce into an impregnable fortress.

    There were three nests with heavy machine guns spaced evenly along the entire perimeter of the workshop''s roof with two boxes of ammunition sitting right behind the sandbag-based nest of each of the guns.

    In the back of the roof, Le saw a single piece of mortar with two rows of ten projectiles each neatly arranged for use in the near future.

    And to top it all off, besides three duets manning each of the heavy machine gun nests and three more men on the standby at mortar''s side, there was a group of three snipers and three soldiers, each of them lyingfortably at the edge of the roof with only the barrels of their guns poking beyond the said edge.

    "They areing, boss," the officer reported before Le had the chance to swallow her shock and raise her eyes towards the street.

    "Everyone gathered near the workshop," another report came in right away.

    "Just in time," Peter replied with a sigh before raising his gun to his head and taking a quick look through the scope of his weapon. "And there is quite a few of them too," he added as he inspected the approaching horde.

    "I really want to know just how in all hell did you organize this kind of weaponry," Le muttered once she finally overcame her shock and returned to reality.

    Yet, while her face was covered in shadow when she spoke out, as soon as she turned her eyes towards the approaching horde, her expression lifted up and a small smile nestled up on her lips.

    "But first, let''s deal with the problem at hand. We can save the necessary talk forter!"

 Chapter 339 A Sense Of Unease

    "Open fire!"

    Le twitched a little when Peter gave out themand. His shout was pretty loud and coupled with how close to her ear he uttered it, the effect was all the stronger.

    And then, a hailstorm of bullets began.

    All three of the machine gun nests opened fire,ying waste to all the zombies currently squeezed within the mouth of the road. The mortar spewed out its first round, adding a crescendo of a wailing cry of the soaring projectile as it climbed up to the skies before rapidly descending down, right into the mass of the zombies nearby.

    ''Are they for real¡­?'' Le watched how Peter''s men brought hell to the earth. She watched how the series from the machine gun cut zombies into pieces, like an invisible de the presence of which was marked with the tracer bullets mixed into the ammunition mix.

    She watched how the mortar shells went off right in the middle of the zombie''s group, annihting the few closest to the explosion while turning the others nearby into the pasta before scattering it all over the ce.

    All of that happened before the zombies could even utter a single screech, a single rallying call to an attack.

    ''Are they wasting all these experience points for real?'' Le nearly mouthed her question out.

    It was a magnificent sight in all its gruesomeness. And yet, Le''s lips formed a disgusted grimace.

    "They are not that much of a challenge," Peter muttered once the hundreds of zombies that came turned into mere tens.

    The horde that filled every nook and cranny of the street that they picked to attack was now scattered. There was no sign of cohesion left. The entire horde was now reduced to just a few small groups who were lucky enough to happen to be behind a cover when the onught began.

    "Snipers, prepare!" Peter shouted out his secondmand.

    Up until now, only the machine guns and the mortars were at work.

    ''Was he trying to save the bullets?'' Le thought, squinting her eyes a little while she watched the rest of the soldiers on the rooftop prepare for their part of the job.

    Soon, the repeating sound of the machine guns died down. The mortar team also took some time off. Now that the bulk of the zombie force was decimated, keeping the fire up would mean just a waste of the shells.

    ''I guess it will be my time to shine soon,'' Le thought, twisting her lips in an unpleasant grimace when she looked back towards the battlefield.

    She was long used to the bloody and messy sights of the meat grinder. In fact, the intensity of the fire that Peter''s team brought upon the street made the sights far less repulsing than what she was used to.

    The destruction was on such a massive scale she could hardly recognize any of the torn-off parts of the corpses. The red mesh of flesh and innards was hardly as disgusting as the entire pieces of the human body chopped cleanly off.

    "Fire, fire, fire," Peter''s officermanded, repeating the order three times in a quick yet steady session.

    His voice was perfectly calm, nearly bored.

    Boom!

    The snipers took their first few shoots. A few zombies fell down to the ground, not moving ever again. Yet, as the seconds trickled by, the few tens of the zombies that survived started to pour out of their coincidental cover and onto the street.

    The zombies couldn''t care less about all the meat on the street. No, they had their sights set on Peter''s base. And in just a few moments, in spite of all the fire from Peter''s sharpshooters, the zombies started to walk down the street, ignoring the mounting casualties.

    ''Why do I feel like there is something weird with this scene?'' Le thought to herself, watching how the events progressed with her hand firmly set on the handle of her new saber.

    The zombies acted¡­ way too dumb.

    ''Maybe I''m just used to someonemanding them?'' Le then thought, trying her hardest to figure out the reason behind this weird feeling welling up at the bottom of her soul.

    Bit by bit, Le''s curiosity turned into annoyance and then into anxiety.

    "Shooters, fire!" Peter ordered, pushing the rest of his men to join the onught as well.

    This was the third and thest phase of his defensive strategy and it was perfect between the mass fire of the machine guns and the precise fire of the sharpshooters.

    The garage door leading to the workshop opened up, allowing the group of twenty-five soldiers from the first unit to pour outside.

    They took only a few seconds to gather up in a two-line formation before they all raised their guns to their eyes and started sting any and all zombies that could still move. And with the tree of the remaining soldiers on the rooftop joining them from above, nothing that was still alive could keep that kind of status for long.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "There is something wrong with this situation," Le muttered, no longer capable of holding her anxiety back.

    "Huh?" Peter turned his head to the girl, only to see her bite her lips and take a step forward. She then took one more pace ahead¡­

    Only to suddenly start running.

    Le scaled the roof''s railing with a single step before jumping down to the hell of the battlefield.

    She bent her knees a little bit the moment her legs struck the ground, only to then transfer her momentum into a forward charge.

    With her weapon still sheathed, she jumped right in the middle of the line of Peter''s soldiers, squeezing between the men while introducing an element of confusion into their ranks.

    "What the¡­"

    Le heard Peter''s shout right as her eyes zeroed in on the source of her anxiety. A zombie that appeared to be just like all the others¡­ but one that somehow avoided being hit in any of its critical spots.

    ''He survived all of that without even a single real wound?'' Le thought, slowly pulling out her saber.

    "What the hell are you doing here?!" one of the soldiers scowled.

    "Get back," Le whispered, her eyes locked on the peculiar zombie. "That one is not what you can shoot down with your petty weapons," she muttered while finally brandishing her weapon.

    The zombie continued its march in the meantime. And as only a few soldiers in the middle happened to be disturbed by Le''s appearance, the rest of them quickly cleaned up all the remaining mob zombies that apanied that special one.

    And it was also at this moment that both the soldiers and Peter realized they fucked up.

    And it was for one, simple reason.

    No matter how many times they attempted to shoot that onest zombie down¡­ they couldn''t do it!

    It would be an exaggeration to say the bullets didn''t do it any harm. It was the way it moved in swaying steps that made it so all the bullets aimed at its head and joints would miss their mark.

    And even the bullets that actually hit its rotting flesh, would only leave a shallow mark, barely as deep as it would need to be to make the other party bleed if it was still capable of doing so.

    Le entered the state of the highest focus. She tightened her fingers over the handle of her saber, her eyes locked on the strange enemy.

    And then, a slight movement forced her eyes to twitch, giving her a momentary look at what she didn''t expect to happen.

    One of the zombies felled by the culling series of the machine gun¡­ It twitched.

    ''Shit!'' Le finally pieced the puzzles together. And as her face tensed up, she could only do one thing.

    "GET BACK!" she shouted from the bottom of her lungs while simultaneously jumping forth to finish the fakely downed zombie.

    But at this point, it was toote. The first unit of Peter''s forces advanced too far, too deep into the field littered with what they thought to be zombie corpses.

    By the time those men heard Le''s shout,  at least thirty zombies started to move behind them with a further forty standing up at the front.

    They were locked between two groups of low-evolved zombies. And what was even worse, the garage door that they used to leave the safety of the base¡­ was now open!

    ''I guess it''s my time to shine,'' Le thought, squinting her eyes as she forced herself to step into the zone.

    All the images, all the sounds, all of the awful stench that filled the scene¡­ they all disappeared. And then, a single path appeared, like a glistering strand that hung in space, impervious to the influence of gravity or reason.

    A thread that marked the path Le had to take.

    And so, without waiting for the first unit of Peter''s forces to wake up from their daze, the girl pulled her sword back, before cutting along the threat.

 Chapter 340 Bloody Retreat

    "Retreat!" Le shouted from the bottom of her lungs while tracking the invisible tread with the tip of her saber.

    Her de went straight through two elbows, one neck, and one wrist in a single swing before she had to take a step to the side and change the angle of the attack.

    Le''s attack was quicker than how long it took Peter''s first unit to shake off their daze and adapt to the new situation.

    The situation, where instead of rounding up the remaining zombies, they were stuck in the middle of an open field with zombies all around them.

    "RETREAT!" Le shouted again, leaping to the side before kneeing another zombie that reached out for the throat of one of the soldiers.

    ''I made it,'' the girl thought, breathing out before turning her head to scan the situation around.

    She managed to save one of the soldiers. By the time Le turned her head around, two others in the other part of the formation had their limbs caught in the firm grip of different zombies.

    ''Shit!'' Le cursed under her breath, swirling on her heel while taking a deep breath of fresh air.

    For a second, she nearly jumped to help the two victims. Yet, before she couldunch herself, she had to watch how one of the soldiers had his throat ripped apart by the zombie''s sharp, broken teeth while the other scowled in pain when another zombie prated his thigh with its boney fingers.

    "For fucks'' sake!" Le screamed out while executing a quick, triple sh with one attack following each of the words she uttered.

    She then bit her teeth down and jumped.

    Not in the direction of the soldiers that were about to get bitten, though.

    No, rather than trying to save each and every individual, Le jumped back, shing at all the zombies that dared to stand between her and the rtive safety of the base.

    "MOVE!" Le shouted again as soon as shended, turning around and swinging her saber in a wide circle, beheading two more zombies and leaving only about seven of them left between herself and the soldiers still stuck in the daze out on the street.

    ''Five got bitten already,'' Le counted with a single nce, bitting down on her teeth as she brought her weapon back to a neutral stance.

    The soldiers finally started to move. Even those that received injuries still attempted to fight back, smashing their weapons against their opponents in close quarters or shooting them at point-nk range.

    Slowly, extremely slowly, but they started to move, inching their way towards the open garage doors behind which safety awaited.

    ''What now?'' Le asked herself, standing guard and ready to jump back into the fray the second she would notice a situation where she would still have a chance at making any real change.

    Her eyes lingered on the faces of the total of now seven wounded soldiers, all of whom were as good as dead.

    They were still fighting. Desperately fending off the attacks while doing their best to let the entire unit retreat.

    She saw their desperation when the first of the soldiers got swarmed and ended up abandoned.

    Boom!

    A bullet of mercy came from the roof of Peter''s base, ending the poor fellow''s struggle.

    And finally, the people on the roof shook off their daze and started to cover the retreat of the ground unit.

    ''They can''t rain hell like before,'' Le quickly realized when she noticed just how small the distance between the soldiers and the zombies was.

    A machine-gun series would help... but it would be as likely to hit one of their allies as it would be to reach its desired target.

    ''In that case...'' Le''s eyes wandered away from the group of now twenty-three people with a total of nine injured. Her eyes moved all the way until they reached the particr zombie that caught her attention before.

    It was standing at the very back of all that remained from the horde, observing the events with a perfectly still expression on its dead face.

    ''That''s it!'' the girl twitched.

    The sense of anxiety from before vanished from her soul. Her fingers tightened over the handle of her saber.

    ''He is the one behind this disaster!'' Le thought.

    And now, it all made sense.

    The zombies that carelessly wandered right into the kill zone of Peter''s base. The zombies that fell down and pretended to be properly dead. The single moment when all the surviving zombies rose back up and executed their unexpected counterattack.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Le gulped down her saliva, fighting off her desire to just rush ahead and deal with the opponent.

    ''I know I can take the fucker down on my own...'' she thought, biting down on her lip, using the pain to rein in her own emotions.

    And so, the girl simply raised her saber before pointing its tip right at the zombie in the back.

    The zombie in question raised its eyes upon noticing the movement.

    And for but a brief moment, the two of them looked right into each others'' eyes. Le into the dead pupils of the zombie, the zombie into the fury-filled eyes of the girl.

    "Shoot the fucker with all you have!" Le then shouted, paying no mind to the intimate moment that sprouted between the two.

    Traaaaa....

    In a mere instant, the intense wall of fire followed. And this time, no matter how much the zombie attempted to move, it couldn''t avoid all of the bullets striking it in its vital points.

    The soldiers nestled within the machine gun position had to be waiting for this specific order, pressed to do something yet unable to shoot given the proximity of the zombies to their allies.

    And now that Le conveniently provided them with a target they werefortable with mowing down, they likely didn''t even wait for Peter to confirm her instructions.

    TRAAA.....

    The sound of the intense gunfire went away as soon as it came to be. Itsted three seconds at the very most, yet it was more than enough to kill anything that was still alive within that particr zombie.

    Whiiiiizzzz....

    BOOM!

    The mortar shell came inte, only serving to scatter the zombie remains all over the ce.

    And as if by a touch of a magical wand, the behavior of the zombies changed.

    Sure, they still focused all their efforts on reaching the victims closest to them, but the sense of cohesion that kept them together before has now disappeared into a thin air.

    "Kill them all!" Le shouted yet again, lowering her saber only to jump forth.

    She passed right by the retreating soldiers and jumped into the crowd of the remaining zombies without any hesitation. Yet, even though it would take her only a few moments to finish all of those mob zombies off, she only killed those who had a chance to catch up with the retreating unit before turning around and fleeing herself.

    The entire expeditionsted no longer than three minutes total, from the moment the garage doors opened to the moment they closed back down. And yet, the worst part of the battle has yet toe.

    Le released a heavy sigh once the loud crash of metal striking the ground could be heard behind her.

    With the entrance to the base secured, she no longer needed to worry about a zombie attacking her from behind.

    Right now, all she had to worry about were the guns that would soon be pointed at her head.

    "Where did they bite you?" Le asked, approaching the nearest out of the twenty-one soldiers that managed to make it back to the base.

    "Actually, I wasn''t bitten, this but a scratch..." a young, barely twenty-years old soldier of the first unit reported back while raising up his left arm.

    There was a faint smile on his sweat-covered face, showcasing just how proud he was of his first battle scar-to-be.

    "I see," Le muttered in return, breathing all the air out of her lungs in one go.

    And then, without even a shred of hesitation, she fixed her grip over her saber before executing a horizontal cut, shing the young man''s hand right at the height of its elbow.

    "Wha..." the young man only uttered a short cry of surprise. He looked down at his now bloody stump, watching in shock how the crimson liquid shoot out from his opened veins.

    His brain had simply yet to process the pain that he was about to experience.

    "Someone, tend to his wound," Le quickly ordered, ignoring the shock that her action caused amongst the survivors of the unfortunate attack. And before anyone else could react in any way or form, she approached her next victim.

    "Where?" she asked, looking down at the horror-struck face of the next wounded soldier in line.

 Chapter 341 Clash On The Roof

    ''Calm down,'' Peter thought, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He held the air in his lungs, turning his chin up as if he wanted to bathe his face in the warm rays of the setting sun.

    Peter gradually released the air out before finally raising his lips back up. He then took another breath and¡­

    "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" Peter shouted from the bottom of his lungs, bringing his eyes down and throwing a furious look all over the roof.

    The people all around didn''t know how to react.

    They did everything exactly how they trained. The second the horde appeared, their brought down all the wrath of the modern warfare upon them, showering them with bullets and mortar shells while they were all grouped up before switching to precise fire to take down the rest and then following up with a ground assault to clean up the stragglers.

    If there was an element that wascking in this form of defense, it would be air-based assault andplete air supremacy. Yet, given how they were nothing more but a makeshift civilian militia, asking for nes would be way too much.

    They did everything just how they should. And yet, the seemingly easy defense turned into one hell of a disaster.

    "Do you guys shat in your mouths or what?!" Peter screamed out again, his face turning white from all the excessive fury.

    ''Equipment loss I can somehow recover, but the people that died¡­'' he thought, turning his eyes down towards the streets, where the four members of the assault team now roamed the bloody battlefield as the new sort of zombies.

    The only reason why Peter could recognize them from the top of the roof was the massive difference between the old zombies and those that rose from the dead just recently.

    "Calm the hell down," Ciryl, the highest-ranking officer under Peter that continued to stand by his side suddenly spoke up, braving the danger of speaking to Peter while he was at his wit''s end. "We still need to deal with those who went inside despite their wounds!"

    Ciryl''s words were like a bucket of cold water thrown on top of Peter''s head.

    "Right¡­" Peter muttered, gritting his teeth as he turned his eyes towards the stairs leading back to the building.

    With people bearing zombie-borne wounds now in the building unless they were utilized in a timely matter, they would bring an end to this entire base.

    ''And seeing how hard it is to kill this sort of zombie, more mistakes are only bound to happen,'' Peter thought, gnashing his teeth together as he scrambled toe up with a new n.

    Peter raised his hands and pped his cheeks twice. He then blinked his eyes thrice before giving his head an energetic shake.

    "Okay, I calmed down," he said, moving his attention away from the soldiers on the roof. "Right now, we need to¡­"

    "What the fuck was that supposed to be?!" Le shouted the second she stormed out from the staircase that Peter was looking at just a moment ago. "Didn''t I warn you that those zombies are far, fucking, stronger?!"

    Before Peter could give his orders, the girl forced her way past the two soldiers that already moved to stand guard at the mouth of the staircase.

    It wasn''t like they didn''t try to stop her. Those two well-built men with heavy guns handing in their hands simply proved to be incapable of stopping the ball of fury that the girl turned into.

    "Calm down," Peter urged Le. "We don''t have the time for this right now. We need to deal with the wounded¡­"<novelnext></novelnext>

    "And why do you think it took me so long to get here?!" Le shouted back, not giving Peter any time to exin the situation.

    The girl locked her hands on her chest as she stood her ground. She raised her chin and looked at Peter along the bridge of her nose while throwing fire from her eyes.

    "Did you¡­" Peter attempted to ask the obvious

    "Kill them?" Le finished for the man while raising her left eyebrow. "No, I did not," she then revealed after a moment of theatrical pause. "I slowed down the progress of the virus by cutting off whatever they got bitten or scratched at," she then revealed without holding anything back at all.

    ''That would exin the faint screams I could hear before,'' Peter thought, squinting his eyes a tiny little bit.

    "What good will such brutal measure do?" Peter then asked.

    It wasn''t like he enjoyed the idea of losing even more people than it was already necessary. But first, he couldn''t ept this sort of half-measures that would only put the problem forter in the future. And secondly¡­

    Being the quasi-politician he was, he could feel that by submitting to the words of this girl, he was rapidly losing the authority of the troops gathered on the roof, the elite he handpicked to serve directly under hismand.

    ''Even if what she did was right, I can''t let other things it was her initiative,'' Peter thought, gritting his teeth as he steeled himself for the war of words that was about to ensue.

    But Le¡­ simply rolled her eyes.

    "Slowing down a virus does exactly that," she stated while keeping up her arrogant and furious appearance. "It gives us more time."

    "More time to do what?!" Peter shouted, although not as eagerly as when he was scolding his troops on the roof. "To enjoy the screams of pain of those who you maimed?!"

    "To give Mathew more time to arrive here with the cure," Le replied, unfazed by Peter''s antics.

    ''I know revealing the fact about this cure might not be a good idea,'' she thought, suddenly feeling some doubts about her decision.

    Yet, a single image of the terror-stricken faces of those who returned to the safety of the base with zombie bites or scratches over their bodies was enough to reaffirm Le''s confidence.

    ''Either way, we can''t afford to lose manpower so easily. I''m sure Mathew will understand,'' she thought.

    "A cure?!"  Peter, obviously, took a moment to process the groundbreaking news, only to then jump on the opportunity to further his own agenda. "You had a cure and you didn''t even bother to tell me?!"

    Le''s lips twitched only to form a smirk.

    "And why would I?" she asked, leaning her head over her shoulder. "Either way, it was never for me to decide whether to give you the cure or not," she then added only for her smirk to turn into a grin. "And if you want to argue about this point¡­" her grin turned into a fully-fledged smile, "then you can wait a moment. Mathew will be here in just a moment!"

 Chapter 342 Daniels Maze

    "Sei!" Daniel shouted while throwing his right fist out.

    The skull of the zombie stood no chance against his attack. It shattered in a mere instant, sending the zombie''s brain matter all over the bloody field where he decided to take the approaching horde on.

    Ring!

    A rtively low yet extremely prative sound filled the area, making the former police officer turn his head to the side and look back towards the barricade protecting the main entrance to the building.

    ''I should head back I guess,'' Daniel thought, pulling his hand back. He moved his eyes back to his front, giving the battlefield onest look, before turning around and unhurriedly retreating behind the two walls made from rubble and sand-filled bags.

    "How''s it going?" Gabriel, one of the few men who volunteered for the protection force of the base asked right as Daniel passed by him.

    "Only the usual so far," Daniel replied, epting the towel that the other party passed to him before moving away from the hole in the barricade, giving the man some room.

    "That''s good to hear," Gabriel replied with a small smile, securing a huge piece of cloth over his left arm before pulling out a short, makeshift spear from a special holster on his right hip. "I guess I should be able to manage for one turn," he added before jogging out from beyond the barricade and standing at the mouth of the special defense area.

    In the time since Mathew left Daniel to manage the second base of the group, quite a lot of things changed.

    Starting with the organization of the group, Daniel turned a bunch of highly motivated but also highly unskilled strangers into quite the workforce.

    ''We might becking the firepower, but Mathew''s support sure does help with that,'' Daniel thought as he passed by the ruins of the building''s proper entrance before climbing the main staircase and reaching his resting spot by the front window.

    It was his favorite position to oversee the events, given how it gave him the perfect view of the greatest achievement that his group could pride themselves on.

    Thanks to the strictly hierarchical structure that he introduced, Daniel squeezed everyst bit of usefulness of the people that he and Mathew saved in the building.

    The people that used to do nothing but produce and manage sounds and content now turned into a group mainly consisting of dedicated workers, several supporters who ensured everyone''sfort, and acking number of fighters who supported Daniel in the task of keeping the entire ce safe.

    It was this organizational change and harsh handling of the whiners andiners that allowed the construction of the special defense area. Or to be more precise, the construction of a special type of maze that now blocked the majority of the street in front of the building''s destroyed entrance.

    ''Thanks to those girls, this maze can work even against a horde, huh?'' Daniel thought, not holding back from acknowledging the benefits of having the two girls that Mathew deployed to help them survive the zombie onught.

    Just like all five of the other fighters besides Daniel, the girls worked in turns. And every two rings of the bell, they would go out, and switch with their counterpart before taking the brunt of the horde''s attack on themselves, forcing the zombies to slowly trickle into the maze instead of assaulting it all at once.

    The maze itself was a construction wonder, a project that should not be possiblypleted in such a short amount of time.

    On its own and against an intelligent human, it served no purpose. As long as one followed some basic sense of direction, climbed one of the maze''s walls to get a look from above, or even followed the right-hand rule, they could cross it within a few short moments.

    But zombies¡­

    The maze itself consisted of a set of simple triangles of rubble and whatever Daniel''s workforce could use to create a stable construction. Those triangles would easily split the iing zombies into two, funneling them down different meandering paths.

    Some paths would be outfitted with simple obstacles that would slow the zombies down. Others finished with a dead-end, forcing the zombies to waste time and energy to climb over the maze''s wall, only to enter yet another fake path.

    Yet, no matter how long it would take them, all the zombies would ultimately end up in the same, rtively narrow area, with only one entrance and one exit. And it was right in this ce, where a single fighter could take his or her time to battle the zombies one by one, while the other undead would be taking their time to reach the ce.

    ''There are seventeen mobs left in the maze,'' Daniel thought after scanning the entire maze from a vantage point that allowed him to peer into each of the possible paths at once. ''And there are no signs of even more of theming from where those girls are going wild,'' he thought, raising his eyes beyond the maze, only to end up staring at the wall of a nearby building.

    Ever since those two girls appeared, things turned pretty hectic at Daniel''s base.<novelnext></novelnext>

    First, he had to call everyone up and raise an rm, ensuring no one would needlessly wander outside of the safety of the media building. Then, he ended uping up with the shift battle system on the spot, so that all of his systemless fighters could save their strength and have a chance at a proper rest between their shifts.

    Soon after the two girls arrived, a horde on a scale Daniel never saw before appeared, threatening to simply overrun both the maze and the media building, regardless of all the other traps and ploys Daniel put in ce in recent days.

    And when all hope appeared to be lost, Carol came out to hold on to the zombie''s advance all on her own. Then, before the girl could even get tired or run out of energy to cast her area of attack spells, the night began, allowing Daria to transform into her monstrous form andy waste to all the zombies that avoided Carol''s wrath before.

    It was impossible to hold the few thousand zombies that attacked all at bay with only two people, regardless of how insanely overpowered they were.

    And yet, when around a total of a hundred zombies managed to get past the two girls¡­

    They were met with the maze. And although it was designed to handle much smaller groups of zombies, the special defense area quickly proved to be capable of handling that number of zombies too.

    ''Still¡­'' Daniel clenched his jaw as he turned his eyes down towards the centerpiece of the maze only to watch the desperate struggle of Gabriel currently facing just two zombies at once.

    He used his cloth-wrapped arm to ward off the bites of one of the zombies while poking and shing with his short spear to keep the other one at bay.

    It wasn''t a fight that Gabriel was going to lose, but it certainly was one that would give him quite some trouble.

    ''If only we had more people,'' Gabriel thought, gritting his teeth as he closed his eyes for a second.

    As great as the maze was, it could only secure the front of the building when it came to an assault. And while the back entrance was protected by the ruins of all the other buildings that made up the local block, there was no telling when and what number of zombies would somehow get through this obstacle to attack them from the back.

    In order to avoid this kind of disastrous scenario, Daniel had no other choice but set the resting ce for the rest of his fighters to be at the back entrance of the building, so that they could protect it in case of some unforeseen attack.

    ''Is this my punishment for only ever using the cores from the zombies that we hunted as a mean to get our food and other supplies?'' Daniel thought, burrowing his furrows as a hint of doubt appeared in his soul.

    It was his and only his decision to adopt this kind of tactic. It worked out great so far, allowing him to put the majority of his manpower towards the construction of the maze.

    And yet¡­

    It was also the reason why the fighters of the group both boasted the greatest privileges¡­ but also the greatest burden and risk.

    And those two downsides of the role were the direct reason behind such a low number of those who were willing to risk their life hunting zombies when just a single scratch would be enough for them to have their lives forfeited.

    ''Either way, there is one thing that I cannot ignore,'' Daniel closed his eyes as he slowly arrived at the conclusion that he wasn''t all that happy to acknowledge.

    BOOM!

    The noise of a distant explosion followed a short sh of light that came from the mouth of one of the nearby streets.

    Given how it was currently her turn, Carol, one of Mathew''s girls that came to support the defense of the media building, was clearly not holding herself back while taking on the bulk of the zombie forces by herself.

    ''Without Mathew''s support, we would all be long dead,'' Daniel thought, gritting his teeth as the consequences of this realization appeared in his mind. ''And between what I learned about the apocalypse from him before and the scale of this zombie attack¡­''

    Daniel released a long sigh before turning around and resting his back against the wall.

    ''I guess the time to fulfill my end of the bargain ising.''

 Chapter 343 Just For A Little Longer

    Ring!

    The sound of the small bell being struck announced the end of Daniel''s break. But it also announced the time for Daria to switch with Carol who was currently upied by killing as many zombies as she could.

    ''I better get going,'' Daniel thought, yawning a little as he stood up.

    He threw onest look over the window at the insides of the maze and counted up all the zombies still stuck in it, before turning around and heading for the stairs.

    It took him only a few moments to get from where he was resting to the main entrance of the building. And yet, even though they both had far more distance to cover, both of the girls were already there.

    "Thanks for your hard work," Daniel said as soon as he saw Carolnding down right on top of one of the zombies Gabriel was fighting with. Using her weight, she pinned the undead down to the ground before finishing it off with a quick heel delivered straight to its nose.

    Carol then turned around, ready to finish off the other zombie Daniel''s subordinate was fighting with, only for Daria to do one better over her friend, smashing the top of the other zombie''s head with the handle of her saber.

    "Those des are really amazing," Daria muttered with a faint glint of excitement in her eyes. "I almost regret having the kind of ss and ability I have that makes this de mostly useless for me," she then added as her face darkened a tiny little bit.

    "To think a day woulde when you wouldin about being too strong," Carol replied, standing up from the ground with the core of the zombie she just finished already in her hand.

    Contrary to how everyone else in the base would use the cores, she didn''t put them away forter use. Instead, she enclosed it within her fists and closed her eyes. The girl exhaled all the air from her lungs and held herself back from breathing for a moment before slowly taking in the air back.

    A faint light shone from between the girl''s fingers, dissipating a mere secondter. And once Carol opened her eyes back again, the signs of exhaustion that were formerly written all over her expression were now nowhere to be seen.

    "Is that single core all you need to recover?" Daria asked going through a simple stretching routine,pletely unfazed by the noises of the next few zombies slowly approaching from the deeper parts of the maze.

    "Yeah," Carol nodded her head with a small smile, "not fully, but enough to get right back to the job," she exined.

    "You still need to take some rest," Daniel finally joined in on the discussion while following Daria''s example and stretching his arms and his torso a little. "Even if you are focusing on using your spells, the fight is rarely just about stamina or, in your case, mana."

    "Yeah, yeah," Carol replied while rolling her eyes, putting on a face a teenage girl would make while scolded by her parents. "Also," she then turned her eyes back to Daria, "did you get the message?"

    This time it was Daria''s face that darkened.

    "Yeah," she muttered while slightly biting down on her lip, "I will do my best to hold back," she then assured.

    Daria then ceased her small stretching exercise, straightening her posture as she looked at the hand of a zombie that just appeared on the top of the left wall that separated the choking point of the maze nearest to the battle spot. "Oh, and before I forget," she ignored the zombie and turned her eyes toward Daniel. "You should organize some people to start cleaning up the corpses soon," she advised before taking a step forward.

    Daria waited for a seemingly arbitrary amount of time, before randomly swinging her saber horizontally at a huge upwards angle.

    Her attack seemingly went against nothing but air¡­ Yet, as soon as the tip of her weapon reached the top of the barricade, the zombie finally managed to climb over the wall high enough to push its head above the obstacle.

    Just in time for Daria''s saber to sh right through its throat, sending the zombie''s head to roll back into the deeper part of the maze.

    "I will do just that, but only once we push this damn horde far enough for this task to be safe for noncons," Daniel took the girl''s advice in his own way before sending her a peculiar look. He unknowingly ended up using the military jargon from his past that stood for nonbatants. "But what message were you girls talking about just now?"

    This was the one, strangely unexinable problem that he had with the support that came from Mathew''s side.<novelnext></novelnext>

    The only way in which both groups couldmunicate as of now was through the use of Norbert''s ghost ability. And yet, even though Norbert could easily reach out to contact Daniel, his close friend, directly¡­

    For some reason, he only ever bothered tomunicate with the girls that Mathew sent over!

    ''Is that bastard a feminist or something?'' Daniel thought, watching how Carol nodded her head before heading back into the building to clean herself up and get some rest. ''Or did some stuff change that made Mathew fully buy his loyalty?''

    Daniel closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

    He could sense another zombie approaching, even though, weirdly enough, it didn''t give out its presence with the usual noises the zombies would make.

    ''Is this one of those evolved ones?'' Daniel asked himself, keeping his eyes closed.

    Ever since he dedicated most of his time to hunting zombies for their cores, his abilities improved by leaps and bounds. And along with them, his senses also reached a peak he never thought to be possible for a human to stand on.

    As such, even with his eyes closed, from just the small cues within the grand, noisy scheme of things, he could tell he still had some time before the zombie would appear.

    "About the message, Mathew requested me to hold back on the cores I consume," Daria spoke out, forcing the man to open his eyes. And as Daniel looked at her, she gave him a quick smirk before turning her eyes toward the front of the maze.

    "I will be off, then," Daria said, done with her warm-up routine. She then smiled and nodded her head at the man before summoning a cloak of the night.

    Her figure distorted as more and more of the solid darkness surrounded her body before, in just a few moments, there was no trace of her original build left.

    Daria took on the form of some sort of a magnificence beast, that one could perceive only by not paying attention to it at all. The moment Daniel''s eyes focused on the details, her new form turned out to becking; its shape constantly changing, the borders of her shadowy figure in constant flux.

    ''I bet the physicians of the old world would go into a frenzy over the chance to study this form,'' Daniel thought as only a single word came to his mind when he looked at the girl''s new form.

    Indeterminacy.

    The girl didn''t wait for Daniel toe back to his senses. The second she finished changing to her fighting form, she dashed forth, climbing the walls of the maze in a single leap before bolting off to the distance, ready to take on the rest of the horde all on her own.

    ''I guess I cannot avoid the reality for much longer,'' Daniel thought, turning his eyes away from where Daria''s new form disappeared into the night and moving them over at the zombie that finally walked out from one of the many corridors within the maze.

    He pushed his right leg to the back and his left hand forward, lowering himself on his knees right as he started to leisurely hum one of the wholesome songs from the past century he liked.

    ''We might have our differences, but right now, this ce can''t remain autonomous,'' Daniel thought, forcing himself toe to the terms with this unfavorable reality.

    He gathered mana in his right fist, waiting for the zombie to approach.

    ''But just for a little bit longer,'' he thought, his entire body snapping when the zombie entered the range of his fists.

    In a single instant, right when the drums hit their low note in the song he was humming, Daniel nearly bent in half, sending his mana-imbued fist toward the zombie''s strangely clean face.

    ''Just for a little longer, let me act as the true boss of this ce!''

 Chapter 344 The Next Step

    "There is a huge problem at Peter''s ce," Norbert reported as the trio retracted their steps and moved towards the intersection that would lead them directly to the media building.

    Out of the two other areas that they had to defend, the one where they deployed Carol and Daria was simply closer.

    "How bad is it?" Mathew asked, raising his eyes at the former police officer while simultaneously gritting his teeth.

    The regeneration ability of his body was on an entirely different level whenpared to a normal human. And yet, the injuries he received during the sh with the highly evolved zombies continued to make themselves known, filling his mind with nothing but pain for every step that he took.

    "Le is okay, but there were some causalities amongst Peter''s soldiers," Norbert quickly revealed the few bits of information he received from the girl. "Right now, she is cleaning up the mess and is urgently requesting the basic cure."

    The basic cure. The one item that would make anyone who still remained alive go into a frenzy for.

    A medicine that actually allowed one to heal the zombie infection as long as it didn''t reach the critical point.

    "How many wounded does she have?" Mathew asked, letting out a long sigh as he got ready to calcte the costs of the operation.

    "A total of five wounded and at a risk of infection," Norbert reported right away.

    ''He didn''t have his eyes closed for long,'' Mathew took notice of the small detail. ''And from how much of the important stuff he knows, it seems that Le really knows how to report stuff!''

    Sadly, that was the only good part about the news that they received from Peter''s base.

    "How''s the situation at Daniel''s ce?" Mathew then asked, trying to push his thoughts away from the problematic part of the situation, even if only for a moment.

    After all, before making an educated decision, one had to educate themselves about the full extent of the circumstances.

    "Nothing much to report, as it appears," Norbert replied after a short while. He closed his eyes and walked a few steps aheadplexly blind. "They are just killing the zombies," Norbert then added with a shrug of his shoulders.

    ''So at least one of the bases has it rtively easy,'' Mathew thought, finally able to breathe a small sigh of relief.

    "I guess it''s decided then," the young man added after a short moment of thought. "We will swing by the media building, grab the cure from the merchants and Carol just in case before heading for Peter''s base," Mathew decided.

    "Will we make it in time?" Nadia asked with a look of uncertainty on her face. "This might not be a long trip but¡­" she hesitated for a second. "Unless she took some drastic measures, the zombie virus is going to turn the wounded pretty damn soon."

    Even if not a single member of Mathew''s group turned into a zombie during the current fight, the young man couldn''t im to never receive even a single causality. And even if he were to ignore one of the hunters that fell during the fight for the school''s courtyard, he saw more than enough of his fellow students turning into zombies right at the outbreak of the apocalypse to know just how right Nadia was with her point.

    "Apparently, Le went the extra mile to buy us some more time," Norbert filled the rest of the group a mere momentter. "But that''s quite problematic in its own way."

    "Did she¡­"<novelnext></novelnext>

    "She cut their wounded limbs off," Norbert then confirmed Mathew''s worst-case scenario guess. "She only spared a guy who got scratched on his waist," the former officer added only to close his eyes again. "She''s waiting for him to turn to cut him down at a moment''s notice," he then added as soon as he confirmed the details of the situation.

    "Why didn''t she just leave¡­" Mathew spoke out before he could think about his words.

    He cut his words short and gulped his saliva down. "That would be pretty damn bad for the morale I guess," Mathew muttered as he looked down.

    "The good thing is, that should buy us enough time to get there with the cure," Nadia pointed out. "And rather than thinking about how problematic her initiative might be, you should focus on what you will demand from Peter in exchange for the cure."

    Just like most of the time, Nadia''s words shook Mathew''s awake. Or rather, she directed his thoughts towards the most pragmatic side of the situation.

    "That''s right, thanks for pointing it out," Mathew admitted as he leaned his head to the back, taking a look at the darkness of the night sky. "It''s not like we can offer it for free just because."

    The cure, even if it could be easily obtained, was the greatest ace card in the sleeve of Mathew''s group. After all, its worth wasn''t decided by its price, but by how much others were willing to pay for it.

    "Any ideas?" Nadia speeds up her walk to reach Mathew''s side and wraps her arms around her.

    On the outside, she was simply cuddling with him. In reality, though, she noticed the sorry state he was in and sneakily attempted to support him.

    "I¡­" Mathew hesitated for a second. "I do have one," he admitted.

    ''But is it really okay?'' he then asked himself as he lowered his head to its natural position before walking a few more steps inplete silence.

    For once, Mathew turned thankful toplete silence on the street, something that he found to be extremely unnerving so far.

    "You want to turn his base into the third fortress, don''t you?" Norbert muttered in a low voice.

    "Are you against it?" Mathew asked in return, turning his eyes towards the former officer''s profile.

    In the darkness of the night, he could only see the rough shape of the man''s face, even with the help of his augmented senses.

    "That''s just the most pragmatic thing to do now," Norbert replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "Even if you are currently not the strongest in our entire group, it''s only a matter of time before the zombies evolve beyond the point of what the girls can handle," the former officer pointed out.

    Norbert then stopped in his tracks, forcing Mathew and Nadia to follow suit.

    "It''s only a matter of time before the evolution of the zombies will outpace our current level of growth," Norbert pointed out what was quickly bing obvious to everyone. "And from the looks of things, going beyond the level of the mere fortress is our best bet at handling this sort of threat!"

 Chapter 345 Daniels Stance

    "There it is," Mathew muttered once his detachment finally reached the general area of the media building. They still had to walk down the street before taking the final turn but they could already see the upper floors of the building peeking above the roofs of the mostly smaller, apartmentplexes in the vicinity.

    The travel, save for the struggle to ignore the pain of his wound, was more or less all the same. With no zombies anywhere in sight, there was no need for Norbert to keep his guard up, allowing the group to move at a steady pace.

    The situation changed only once they reached the direct proximity of their destination, where the spillover zombies from the attacking horde started to appear.

    They were the evolved mob ones, just like the mob that they fought with before. And while it would be foolish to call them weak, for Mathew''s party¡­ that''s exactly what they were.

    Yet, it wasn''t the zombies that made Mathew''s group stop. It was a strange construction that appeared to bar their path the second they took onest corner before reaching the media building.

    "What the hell is that?" Mathew muttered, staring at the blood-covered surface of a roughly two-meters high wall made out of rubble and glued together with the hopes and wishes of its builders.

    "A maze," Norbert replied right away, showing no sort of a surprise in contrast to Mathew and Nadia. "They built it to better manage the iing zombies," he then exined.

    "And how are we supposed to cross it?" Mathew turned his head to the former officer before squeezing his lips tightly together. "Over the top?"

    "There has to be some sort of a path," Norbert replied, closing his eyes. "Give me a second."

    They didn''t need to take any stops for Norbert''s scouting while traveling due to all the zombies either leaving the area or converging within the horde. As such, this was the first time Norbert used his abilities in a long while.

    "Follow me," Norbert then ordered the second he opened his eyes.

    ''Is he¡­'' Mathew stopped for just a second when Norbert''s expression caught him off-guard a little. ''Annoyed?''

    There was only a hint of anxiety on Norbert''s face. A slight bruise appeared on his forehead, a few tiny cracks circling his eyes.

    There wasn''t anything much for Mathew to get a clue. Definitely not enough to figure out what was going through Norbert''s head. But more than enough to clue him in that there was something going on.

    Mathew''s group managed to cross roughly half of the entire maze when the area filled with an extremely annoying, prative sound of the belling from beyond the blockade.

    ''Is this¡­'' Mathew only managed to form half a thought when his body tensed up.

    He was far from being the strongest in his group. But that didn''t make his sense any weaker than what the rest of his girls could offer.

    ''Enemy!'' Mathew nearly jumped, turning around on the spot to face the attack¡­ Only to see Daria''s shadowy form rushing through the top side of the maze.

    The girl apparently noticed them as well. Her nightly form couldn''t stop in ce, it was running too fast to kill all of its momentum on the spot. And Daria was too smart to even try it.

    Instead, she slowed herself down only a tiny little bit before taking a turn and dancing atop the maze while circling around to where Mathew was.

    Daria took onest leap, directing herself towards the top of one of the walls that Mathew was currently stuck behind. She then dissolved her shadowy form mid-jump, turning back to human right in time tond right on top of the wall''s edge.

    "How are you, guys?" Daria asked with a small smile while squatting down in her heightened position.

    "Seen better days," Mathew replied with a small groan while forcing a small smile on his face.<novelnext></novelnext>

    He was away from one of his wives for only a few hours tops¡­ and yet, he could feel a strange sense of relief seeing Daria seemingly alright.

    "How are things on your end?" Mathew then asked, hoping for some more exnation than Norbert''s short reports could provide.

    "Most of the horde is cleared out," Nadia replied, her smile souring when the topic instantly switched to the job. "It should be fully done in the next shift," she then added only to turn her head towards the media building nearby.

    "Speaking of shifts, we should pick up the pace," Norbert pointed out, rolling his eyes due to how this meeting caused yet another stall to their ns.

    And given the situation at Peter''s base, they really didn''t have the time to waste.

    Norbert''s words acted like the bucket of cold water thrown on everyone''s head, making them shut their mouths and move their legs instead.

    Soon, the idea behind the maze became apparent when Mathew had to give up on Nadia''s helping arm to let her fight off some of the mobs that were stuck within the deeper parts of the maze.

    Thankfully, Daria''s words were right on point. The horde that came to attack the media building was nearly wiped out by now, leaving a mere three zombies within the entirety of the maze. And due to this, in only two more minutes, Mathew finally reached the ce where the ruined part of the media building formed its new, natural entrance.

    "Mathew," Daniel spoke out the second Mathew''s group emerged from thest of the maze''s corridors.

    "Daniel," Mathew replied, turning his eyes towards the bearded face of the former police officer.

    For a moment, the two of them simply stared at each other. The air turned tense as both Mathew''spanions and Daniel''s soldiers didn''t really know how to react.

    "You took a beating," Daniel spoke out right before the situation could turn too tense for everyone''sfort and potentially invite some trouble. He then grinned with a look of superiority appearing on his face.

    "I wonder how many high evolved zombies you fought to have this kind of smirk on your face," Mathew replied with a darkened expression on his face.

    The situation, rather than rxing, turned even tenser.

    And then¡­

    Both of the menughed out, dropping the pretense and both taking a step forward before shooting their right hands forth to shake on the meeting.

    "I''m sorry, but we are really on the clock right now," Mathew then said as his eyes wandered toward the hole in the building''s wall behind Daniel''s back.

    "I''m aware," Daniel replied before taking a step to the side and bowing lightly while pointing his hand to the makeshift entrance. "I heard the details from Norbert," he then exined the source of his information.

    ? "Do you have anything against our current n, then?" Mathew asked right as he passed by the officer, opting to turn his head over his shoulder rather than properly turning around.

    "You mean going before the level of a fortress?" Daniel asked to make sure he was on the same page. And given theck of negation from Mathew, he released a deep sigh before shaking his head.

    "This is something that ultimately had to happen. And while I would love to keep some autonomy here," Daniel paused before taking yet another deep breath. "I''m fully prepared to do whatever I can to make that n of yours happen."

 Chapter 346 Question Of The Future Leaders

    Mathew wanted to rush right past Daniel to reach the nearest location with the merchant.

    The major reason why they were at the media building, to begin with, was to obtain the cures needed at Peter''s ce, after all.

    And yet, when faced with Daniel''s statement, Mathew froze.

    An invisible and untouchable barrier appeared within the hole leading inside the building, stopping the young man in his tracks.

    It was nothing more but a mental barrier, but it stopped Mathew from progressing his tasks just as well as a wall of steel would.

    "I''m d that you are on board," Mathew muttered. He then turned properly around and looked right at Daniel''s face. "But you do realize that even I don''t know what will be needed to aplish it."

    The entire idea behind progressing beyond the level of fortresses was nothing more but Mathew''s logical deduction of the next logical step that would work in ordance with the stuff that he learned about this new, changed world''s system so far.

    There was a need for three merchants in order to establish a fortress. And so, Mathew opted to believe he was in need of three fortresses if he wanted to go beyond their level.

    He knew that there was something above the fortress due to how certain features of the area managed by Daniel were locked behind this very requirement. And yet, the idea that the number of fortresses necessary to advance beyond that basic level¡­ was nothing more but wishful thinking.

    And even upon the assumption that Mathew''s guess was actually correct¡­ No one knew how much establishing this next-level zone could cost!

    ''Those are only the two basic things that I can think of in advance,'' Mathew thought while staring deeply into Daniel''s face. ''Only God and whoever''s behind this system knows what else would be necessary for this next level to happen.''

    "I''m aware," Daniel replied after giving the matter some thought. He returned the intense gaze with a determined look on his face, as if in an attempt to showcase what he thought about the topic before. "I might not like the idea, but it doesn''t change the situation we are in."

    Mathew released a small breath of relief.

    ''It would be way too suspicious if he were to be fully on board with it despite his earlier wish to remain rtively autonomous,'' he thought.

    If there was anything that Mathew always had in mind, it was to be wary of those that weren''t strictly bound to him. And even though he was the one to establish the fortress in the media building, ever since he left it for Daniel to manage, he no longer could im any real control over it.

    "Still, there is one thing I''m quite worried about," Daniel then said while bringing his arms out and then resting them on his sides. "Assuming you allow that Peter guy to manage his own fortress and let me keep the post here," the officer started only to then put a small smile on his lips as he leaned his head to the side.

    "Then who will manage the school grounds?" Daniel asked out after giving Mathew some time to prepare.

    "Isn''t that obvious?" Mathew bounced the ball back while putting a smirk on his own face.

    "Yeah, you or one of your wives," Daniel replied while rolling his eyes. "But that''s not what I meant," he added while slightly shaking his head.

    His smile disappeared from his mouth, reced by a small grimace of worry.

    "What if whateveres after the fortress won''t just be an upgrade but a separate entity?"

    Mathew opened his mouth, ready to reply¡­ And then slowly closed them back, unable to find any proper answer.

    ''I didn''t think about it,'' he thought, realizing thepse in his n.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Up to this point, Mathew assumed that whatever woulde after the fortress would simply elevate the status and potential of the fortress that he set for his main base.

    ''What should I do if it works as Daniel suggests?'' the young man asked himself, lowering his eyes as he sank into the depths of his own thoughts.

    Mathew didn''t lose himself in the daze, though. He soon shook his head before raising his hands and pping his cheeks.

    "There is no use thinking about it right now," Mathew said as he turned around and faced the hole in the wall once again. "I have someone who can take care of the school in that case, but I will give it proper consideration once we know what we are actually dealing with!"

    Mathew didn''t waste a single word more on the man, opting to rush inside the building as quickly as his still recovering body would allow. Once inside, he took the trip along the path made from nothing more but his memories all the way to where he summoned the very first merchant during the invasion of this ce.

    A short trip to the shadowy realm of the merchantter, Mathew returned to reality with three packs of five vials each in his hand and his storage seven hundred and fifty cores lighter.

    ''It''s a relief I can buy them anywhere I want,'' Mathew thought as he rushed back towards the building''s entrance while taking a look at how the ce changed in thest few days.

    There was a distinctive difference between how he and Beatrice managed the renovations to the school and how Daniel organized the work within his own area.

    While Mathew and the workers directly under him focused on restoring as much of the school as they could, Mathew could tell that most of the work hours of the people under Daniel went into building the maze, limiting the renovations of the building only to the absolute minimum.

    ''At least there are no corpses rotting around,'' Mathew thought when he had to kick away yet another broken brick out of his way in order to clear the path ahead.

    Thankfully, the never was that much fighting inside the media building, greatly limiting the degree of damage done to its interior.

    "Here," Mathew said, reaching out with his hand while holding one set of five vials in it. "They are for you, just in case," he said, passing the set over to Daniel.

    "Those are¡­?" the man took a look at the set of five vials for a moment before turning his eyes up to look at Mathew''s face.

    "It''s the cure," Mathew confirmed Daniel''s expectations. "I don''t know to what degree it can help, so don''t rely on it too much. There is a reason why it''s a low-leveled one," he pointed out.

    "It''s okay," Daniel nodded his head while bringing the vials to his chest and pressing them tightly against his clothes as if worried about potentially dropping them on ident. "I never intended to push the limits, but it''s reassuring to have them," he said before raising his eyes back to Mathew''s face. "Thanks."

    "No biggie," Mathew didn''t waste time waiting for Daniel''s thanks, opting to instantly approach the rest of his group.

    And to his happy surprise, Carol was already there, currently getting ready to set off on her mission of cleaning the rest of the horde.

    "It''s good to see you here," Mathew said while passing one set of vials to Norbert and the other to Nadia.

    "Are you happy to see me?" Carol asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise.

    She already knew Mathew''s group came given how she met Nadia and Norbert in the staging area of the media building. And yet, Mathew''s words still managed to get her by a surprise.

    "I''m happy that you are already here," Mathew replied, cutting Carol''s rtionship-rted hopes short. "Because I need you toe with us," he said only for his face to take on a darker shade, "just in case."

 Chapter 347 Situation Deteriorates

    "I know it''s been a while since west saw each other, but¡­" Mathew spoke, turning his face to Daniel as soon as Carol understood the situation.

    "It''s fine, I understand," Daniel replied. He then put a small smile on his face. "Right now, every second counts, isn''t that right?"

    Mathew took in a deep breath before slowly releasing it back.

    "I wish it wasn''t the case," he said while shaking his head. "But yeah, every second counts."

    "Just onest thing, then," Daniel stated only for his smirk to vanish, reced by a fully-serious expression. "I remember there were some reports about some sort of a huge threat still looming," he pointed out while moving his eyes over to Norbert''s face. He allowed his stare to linger for a moment before looking back at Mathew. "And going back to the topic of the next level, I assume we will need some ungodly amount of cores to get it, right?"

    Mathew pressed his lips together, annoyed by the mere motion of that possible requirement.

    "When I asked to drop this topic before it wasn''t only because we don''t know that yet," he stated, allowing a part of his annoyance to appear in his voice. "It''s also because I don''t really want to think about the potential cost of it."

    "Guys, we really need to¡­" Nadia attempted to cut in, hurrying the two men up.

    "Five seconds won''t make the difference," Mathew replied while giving the girl a quick, cold stare, before looking back at Daniel. "About the cores, we should be fine if we harvest all the zombies from the current horde. As for that big-ass evolved monster¡­"

    Mathew hesitated for a second.

    He didn''t see exactly what kind of threat it would be. All he knew about it came from Norbert''s report. And while it was better than nothing, the young man didn''t really have that much thrust in the former policeman''s words.

    Not because he didn''t trust Norbert due to some personal reasons¡­ But due to the point that Norbert brought recently himself.

    Norbert''s ability still remained at either the very first level or somewhere near the extremely low levels. And with that in mind, not only the amount of information he could provide was limited, but what was even worse, it wasn''t all that reliable.

    ''Given how the zombies can now mask their presence from his surveince, there is no telling what kind of ability that evolved monster will have,'' Mathew thought.

    "As for that big-ass monster, I can''t really tell you anything worth talking about," Mathew admitted while spreading his arm open. "Once we deal with the trouble at Peter''s base, we will gather up the best fighters to try to challenge it."

    "I see." Daniel nodded his head. "Good luck, then," he said.

    "Guys!" Nadia spoke out again. This time, however, her tone was harsher. "We really need to go!"

    Mathew closed his eyes and nodded his head.

    "She is right," he said before taking his first step out toward the depth of the maze. "We might see each otherter tonight," Mathew said towards Daniel before turning in the direction they had to take to reach Peter''s base, "Let''s go!"<novelnext></novelnext>

    The situation in the city was just like during their earlier transit, although this time it was reversed. As such, rather than moving through entirely empty areas without a single zombie in sight before reaching areas where there was some leftover undead, Mathew''s now strengthened group had to first fight their way through a few mobs before finally reaching the areaspletely devoid of any life or undead activity.

    "How are we standing time-wise?" Mathew asked once they crossed roughly half the distance that separated Daniel''s fortress from Peter''s base.

    "Depends on what you want to know," Norbert replied before taking a stop and closing his eyes. "The situation at Peter''s base is¡­ deteriorating."

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    ''We really need to hurry,'' he thought, forcing his body to keep still given how he still has yet to get all the information he actually asked for.

    "What about that big monster?" Mathew asked once he managed to calm himself down.

    "An hour left before it hits the school," Norbert replied a momentter with a darkened expression on his face. "And that''s assuming nothing out of ordinary will happen."

    This was the greatest source of anxiety for Mathew in regard to this unknown threat. He could deal with an extremely tough opponent, especially with all the help he would have on hand. He could deal with an armored enemy thanks to his new spell.

    But how he was supposed to deal with something that he couldn''t expect?

    "Well, let''s hope nothing strange will happen, then," Mathew summed up after a few moments. "But I still would like to hear more about the situation at Peter''s ce."

    Norbert opened his eyes, allowing the group to pick up the pace and get moving again.

    After all, it was using the ability that robbed Norbert of his mobility, not the simple act of talking about what he saw through his ghost''s form.

    "They are already at each other''s throats," Norbert reported with an even darker shade appearing on his face. "Le has her weapon out, but Peter is still trying to keep the situation stable."

    ''Shit, that''s really bad,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. "Let''s hurry up a bit more, then."

    It was easy to understand how the situation could devolve so quickly. In theory, cutting away the parts of one''s body that were bitten by a zombie was a rational thing to do. Yet, people were bound to cling to the hope that this scratch wasn''t deep enough or that bite came from a zombie with clean teeth.

    Still, people who went through forced amputation were half the problem. The main reason behind the conflict likely came from Le''s wish to finish off those who got infected in ces that couldn''t be simply amputated in hopes of stalling for time.

    "I don''t want to worry you, but Peter''s men already have their guns out too," Norbert added in a silent voice once the group changed from a jog to a nearly full-on sprint.

    "Then, we need to hurry even more," Mathew muttered through his gritted teeth only to send a nce over his shoulder. "Or do you want me to carry you as we run?"

 Chapter 348 Huge Mess With Nothing To Show For It

    "The closer we get, the harder it is not to worry," Mathew muttered when he stomped down on the skull of a zombie he just deprived of all limbs.

    "I wholeheartedly agree," Nadia chimed in, cutting down yet another zombie that stood on their path.

    The rest of the group couldn''t really give their opinion on the matter as they were too damn busy killing the zombies that blocked their way.

    It wasn''t like in the area where Mathew''s initial detachment took their fight. There, not even a single zombie managed to escape. Even despite Mathew''s injuries, he made sure to finish all those that dared to stand against him while Nadia took care of both her own group and those that Norbert managed to stall.

    The situation was only slightly worse at Daniel''s ce. Not because people there were lesspetent than Mathew''s initial detachment¡­ but simply because they were still in process of cleaning up the horde when Mathew came to pay a visit.

    Yet¡­

    Mathew''s now strengthened group didn''t even need to reach anywhere near Peter''s base when they stumbled into the free-roaming zombies.

    A few days ago, it wouldn''t be something strange. Such was the nature of the zombies, to roam around in search of prey. And yet, even since something made most of the zombies vacate the area, one could encounter them only around the ces where a horde woulde to siege.

    The situation far away from Peter''s base was already worrying, yet as they got even closer¡­ things only took a turn for worse.

    "Did they even try to face the horde?" Mathew muttered once he had to strain his recovering body to clean up another group of zombies by himself due to how literally everyone else in his group, save for Norbert, was busy doing the same.

    "They did," Norbert said in a grim tone. "The problem is, they took on the advance guard of the horde and called it quits due to internal problems that arose from suffering casualties."

    "I wish I could say I understand," Mathew replied, gritting his teeth as he focused his attention back on the task at hand.

    Thankfully, they only encountered the mob zombies. And while Norbert wasn''t really reliable at this point, given how he could tell the precise locations of the mob zombies around them, there was a huge chance they didn''t need to be wary of a high-evolved one roaming around as well.

    Bit by bit, Mathew''s group managed to force their way closer to Peter''s base. Ultimately, the mob zombies were just that. An annoying obstacle on their path that wasn''t worth being called a threat.

    And then, after nearly reaching their destination, Mathew''s group stopped.

    "What the hell is this?!" Mathew couldn''t hold his annoyance back.

    His reaction was nothing out of ordinary. Any normal person would react like that if not worse at the sight of an entire street covered in guts, blood, and pieces of human flesh and innards alike.

    But, the gruesome sight wasn''t the reason behind Mathew''s shock and disbelief. Or rather, it wasn''t the gruesome part of the sight that shocked him.

    There were only a few corpses of the zombies left on the street. Fifty of them tops. Far less than what one could expect from the site of carnage before their eyes.

    And not a single one of those zombies had its core plucked out!

    ''Are they trying to groom evolved ones or what?'' Mathew asked himself, squatting down over one of the nearest corpses.

    ''I can feel mana lingering in those corpses as well,'' he realized a secondter.

    "Mathew," Nadia called out. Her face showcased that her feelings weren''t all that different from what was going on through Mahtew''s head. "I know how shocked you are, but we don''t have the time for this," she said before turning her head and looking over the nearby block. "Not yet."

    ''So let''s leave all those cores for zombies to harvest, consume and evolve on their own,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Yet, he stood back up and nodded his head to his first wife.

    "Carol," Mathew then called out, looking to the side.

    "What''s up?" Carol replied, jumping up a little to make herself more visible and to showcase her eagerness.

    "I will leave cleaning this ce out of cores to you," Mathew ordered before turning his head towards his second wife. "Daria, keep herpany just in case. And unless you really think it''s necessary, stick to your human form."

    They were a throw of a stone away from Peter''s base. Unless the unrest inside took over everyone''s attention, Peter''s men likely spotted them already.

    And even though Mathew came here with the idea of unification, that didn''t mean he had to reveal all of his cards.

    "Will do," Daria replied with a rxed smile while cutting down yet another stray zombie with her de.

    And from the look of tion that then appeared on her face when she drew her eyes to her de, the girl was quite content with the idea of testing that new weapon of hers.

    "Well then, let''s crack this nut," Mathew then muttered to himself, putting on a tough look as he stepped toward the base.

    With Nadia always on alert to keep him safe, Mathew approached the garage doors of what used to be the mechanical workshop without any further dys. And then, after a short moment of fighting with his own disgust, he reached out and knocked against the metal of the doors, ignoring all the blood that covered it.

    A face shed in one of the barred windows nearby, before the garage doors started to pull up.

    "It''s you, guys," one of Peter''s officers whom Mathew still remembered from only a few hours ago appeared in the gap between the doors and the ground before pulling the doors all the way up.

    "I would rather have my wife greet me," Mathew said right away while squinting his eyes and putting his hand on the handle of his own de.

    "She''s inside," the man replied and stepped to the side, inviting Mathew''s party in. "Get inside before some zombies will take this chance," he requested before his face darkened. "We already have enough problems at hand, there is no need to invite even more of them."

    ''More of problems, or more of zombies, I wonder?'' Mathew thought as he stepped inside the building, followed by the rest of his group.

    "They are noting inside?" the officer asked as he threw a quick nce at the two girls busying themselves with fighting the zombies outside.

    "Someone gotta finish the job," Mathew shortly replied before ignoring the man and pushing deeper into the building.

    The young man only managed to make a few steps and take a single corner before the true scale of the problem revealed itself to his eyes.

    It seems as if everyst man of Peter''s group was gathered in the open space of the former workshop. And as of now, all those people were divided into one of the three groups.

    A few of them stood by Le''s side. And out of a total of five of those who stood with her, quite noticeably, three of themcked one of their limbs.

    The great majority of the crowd stood in opposition to Le''s group, clearly out for blood.

    And only Peter and two of his officers stood in the middle, trying to keep the two groups apart and keep things calm.

    "You are finally here," Le said, looking over her arm the second Mathew appeared from beyond the corner. "Right on time. As you can see," she said, before turning her face back towards the group conflicted with her, "your presence is highly appreciated."

 Chapter 349 Bloody Solution

    While on the way to Peter''s base, Mathew spent quite a while trying to figure out what was the source of the problems over there.

    Because the situation appeared to be simple only on the surface.

    From an outsider''s perspective, Le''s actions were the most straightforward course one could take. Rather than waiting for people to turn into zombies, she did everything in her power to buy them as much time as possible so that they could survive until Mathew would arrive with the cure.

    As for the people who couldn''t have their wounds cleaned out, cauterized, or simply amputated, she opted to keep them separated from the rest of the group, ready to pounce on them the second they would start to turn.

    It was that simple. A set of rational decisions aimed to save as many as she could while taking the necessary cost of doing so.

    But¡­

    ''What if someone tripped and cut their hand open on a piece of rubble?'' Mathew thought while he was still busy walking through the empty streets. ''What if someone refuses to acknowledge they got infected?''

    Losing one''s limb wasn''t only physical torture. It didn''t end in extreme fear of having their life permanently altered due to amputation. There was still the mental trauma that only reinforced whatever post-traumatic stress disorder Peter''s wounded would have after the lost battle with the zombies!

    The more Mathew thought about the situation, the more points he noticed. And by the time he arrived on the scene, this simple problem grew into a massive,plex maze of conflicting views, desires, and needs.

    "Your presence is highly appreciated," Le said, her face rxing a tiny little bit when she noticed Mathew''s arrival.

    "What''s the situation?" Mathew stepped forward and asked, trying to pay no mind to the weapons held by literally everyone involved in the conflict.

    He saw the corpse of the high evolved zombie. He heard the recounts from Norbert over how he managed to use his own guns to hold the zombies at bay.

    And by recalling the physical prowess of each of those high evolved zombies that he fought with, he now knew for sure that in his current state, a bullet to his head would be as lethal as it would be for a normal, system-less human.

    "They are refusing to show their wounds," Le reported, shaking her head to point at the right side of the opposing group with her chin.

    Normally, one would use their hand to point at someone. But with how tense the situation was, the girl was smart enough not to make any movements that could make the other party think she was about to draw her saber.

    "What is the problem, though?" Mathew asked, resting his hands on his hips as he moved his eyes from Le''s face to the huge group of people who stood opposed to her. "If they can''tply with such a simple order, just throw them out."

    Mathew shrugged his shoulders and rolled his eyes. On the inside, though, he paid extreme attention to how the other party would react.

    After all, his idea of fanning the mes a little was reliant on the reaction of those who he wanted to agitate!

    "Shut your crap, kid!" one of Peter''s soldiers shouted, near instantly falling prey to Mathew''s scheme. "It''s not about undressing. Your whore of a girlfriend will cut us the  second she sees even a single scratch!"

    While shouting, the man tightened his grip on a semi-automatic rifle he held in his hands.

    ''I guess there is no other way,'' Mathew thought. He then looked the agitated man straight in the face.

    Mathew''s face softened a bit. ''Lessons are best taught in blood.''

    The situation was far too vtile and way too important for Mathew to use any other means.

    "First off, the next time you dare to insult me or any of my women," Mathew started, strangely calming down. "Your head will fly, regardless of your potential wounds."

    Something warm was spreading in his abdomen. A strange call that hest felt only a few hours before, when he had to put his all on the stake of survival.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Back then, he had to face a trio of high evolved zombies supported by a huge host of mob zombies. Right now, he was facing at least twenty firearms, all ready to gun him down.

    And yet, Mathew felt no fear.

    No, that''s the wrong way to put it.

    He could feel his fear, somewhere at the border of his consciousness. But it wasn''t the fear that drove him. His fear, only served as the sobering factor, allowing him to keep his head rtively cool.

    "As for your amputated limbs," Mathew said as he deliberately turned his eyes towards the rest of Le''s opposition, away from its most agitated man, "I might have a solution for that. And as impossible as it sounds, there is a chance I could let you have them back."

    Mathew waited a few seconds for the other group to fully digest his words.

    "That doesn''t apply to you," he turned his eyes back towards the man he targeted. "You already lost your chance."

    The fun thing was, the guy has yet to have any of his limbs amputated. From how lightly he moved, it was unclear whether he was injured at all in the first ce.

    And yet, being singled out like that only fanned the mes in the man''s soul even more than before.

    "You little¡­!" the man screamed out, raising his weapon.

    "Le."

    The girl didn''t hesitate. And while she might be unable to withstand a close-range shot of a weapon of this caliber¡­

    With all of her system upgrades, she was far faster than a mere mortal could ever dream to be.

    And just like Mathew ordained, she took the man''s head off with a single sh of her saber, even before he could fully raise his weapon to aim it.

    "EVERYONE, STAND DOWN!" Peter screamed from the bottom of his lungs, desperately trying to keep the reins of the rapidly deteriorating situation.

    A mix of different feelings coursed through his face.

    He was hopeful and thankful when Mathew arrived, clearly expecting him to help calm the situation down. He got annoyed when Mathew went against his unspoken wish and agitated the conflicted parties. And his eyes widened in terror when he saw the ultimate solution Mathew found.

    The body of the unfortunate victim of the conflict stood still for a few seconds, a fountain of blood shooting out of its severed arteries.

    The body fell forward as if wanting to get down to its knees and beg for mercy. Then, gravity pulled it down, making it ssh chest-first against the floor.

    The blood spurting from the severed neck of the corpse quickly formed a pool of blood that near instantly reached the soles of Mathew''s shoes.

    "Raise your gun and you are dead, it''s that simple," Mathew announced in a calm tone, not paying the situation any greater mind. "And in the meantime, I wonder if you guys would be interested in a cure for the zombie virus," he then added, casually pulling out a set of five vials that he kept on himself.

    The situation was about to break into total chaos. The people Mathew threatened weren''t so fickle as to lose their cool when seeing one of their fellow soldiers die. And seeing thepleteck of hesitation when it came to killing one of their own, many of them were only a second away from taking the risk of duking it out anyway.

    Yet, when Mathew pulled the vials out, a single thought of hesitation sparked in everyone''s mind.

    "The only question is," Mathew used the moment of shock his reveal caused to put a small smile on his face. "Can you afford its price?"

 Chapter 350 Pointless Negotiations

    "Can you afford its price?"

    Mathew''s question was simple only to someone who didn''t put any thought into it. And yet, most of Peter''s men didn''t appear to lower themselves over theplex ploy hidden beneath it.

    Some got shocked by the mere existence of the cure that they couldn''t even think about the question of its price.

    Others instantly turned angry seeing how Mathew expected something in return for literally saving someone else''s life.

    And from the entire crowd, with the exception of Mathew''s people who were in the know, only Peter and two of his officers appeared to realize the true depth of Mathew''s question.

    "You just killed one of my men," Peter pointed out after taking some time to think over the situation. "I don''t think you are in the position to request anything right now."

    ''Is this the angle you want to take?'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes a tiny little bit.

    Then, the young man put a small, cheeky smile on his face.

    "If you want for me and my people to leave, just say the word," he informed. "I''m here only due to convenience. And there is a very precise number of cores that describe the value of having you agree to my terms."

    Mathew didn''t utter a single lie.

    There were only three reasons why he picked Peter''s base for the potential third fortress. And two of those reasons could be boiled up to nothing more but convenience.

    First, came the fact that there were already two merchants at this ce, one that Mathew summoned himself and the other one that he expected Peter summoned on his own. With that, the cost of raising the fortress would decrease by two hundred cores as opposed to setting it up in another ce.

    Two hundred cores wasn''t a small number. Counting only the evolved mob zombies, harvesting that much required taking down forty of them.

    But, at the same time, this number wasn''t all that great to seriously influence Mathew''s decision to pick Peter''s base.

    The other two reasons were as follows.

    First, this ce had people that already interacted with Mathew''s group. In other words, it was easier to get them to cooperate than to look for another group that could provide the manpower necessary to staff the third fortress.

    Andstly came the fact that it was already an established base. And as opposed to the initial idea behind Mathew''s expedition which was supposed to aim for the castle ruins on the town''s outskirts, it saved the young man the effort necessary to set up the structure of the fortress.

    "I never intended to ask you to leave," Peter replied after taking some more time to think.

    And the reason behind his response was as obvious as it could get.

    Now that Mathew unted the existence of the cure not only to him but also to his men, some of which were infected, Peter had no other choice but to swallow the bait whole, line and fishing rod included.

    "But I still believe it''s not okay for you to ask for something in return when you already took something from us without a care in the world!" Peter tried another angle, clearly set on negotiating as hard as he could.

    Even if he didn''t know Mathew''s exact ns, he wasn''t stupid. And he had to figure out that there was some sort of meaning not only behind Mathew delegating his own wife toe and help but thening in person with a cure conveniently at hand!

    ''Now that I think about it, it kinda looks like I created this problem in the first ce just to have the benefit of being able to solve it,'' Mathew noticed, gulping down his saliva as he hoped Peter wouldn''t notice this potential connection.

    "Well, if you put it that way, who am I to refuse?" Mathew, worried that Peter could get suspicious of the coincidence, decided to go for another push. "A life for a life, then," he said, before pulling out one vial from the set and passing it towards Peter. "Rather than arguing over the fact that this guy not only insulted my woman but also attempted to point his gun at me, let me offer you peace with this vial."<novelnext></novelnext>

    On the outside, Mathew just made a massive concession. He offered a cure to the damn zombie virus over the killing of someone who stepped over the line of what would be allowed in thiswless, apocalyptic world.

    But in reality, what Mathew offered wasn''t the cure.

    It was poison.

    A poison that could cure one''s virus, but would poison the integrity of Peter''s entire group. Because now that he had his hand on a single cure¡­

    Who would Peter offer it to?

    Peter reached out, grabbing the vial the second Mathew made it clear he was actually willing to pass it over for free. He grabbed the ss and pulled his hand back, only for his face to turn stale the moment Mathew''s fingers let go of the cure.

    ''So he noticed,'' Mathew thought, stopping a grin from appearing on his lips.

    "Now then," Mathew now smiled openly, ready to crank the pressure up, "unless you are willing to y favorites with who you will offer this cure, how about we go back to talking about the price of the rest of them?" Mathew asked, reaching out with his hand toward Nadia.

    The girl didn''t need even a single word of exnation. While it would be way too much to say she could read Mathew''s thoughts, she was more than empathetic enough to figure out what he was ying at.

    As such, without uttering a single word, she smiled as she pulled out another set of cures before passing it over to Mathew''s outstretched hand.

    "From what I remember, you only need seven¡­" Mathew hesitated as he nced over at the headless corpse still splurting blood at his feet, "six cures," he stated after fixing the count. "Counting the ones you already have, you only need five. And here, I''m willing to offer you nine of them."

    Peter''s back was against the wall. His expression was stale, his lips pressed together in voiceless anger.

    "What do you want, then?" Peter asked as he tightened his grip over the vial nearly to the point where he would simply smash it into pieces.

    "It''s quite simple." Mathew''s smile turned even brighter. "We will summon a third merchant here. Then, we will transform this base of yours into a fortress. After that¡­"

    Mathew stopped his words when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

    He turned his head to the side, only to see Nadia shaking her head to the side.

    The girl then used the moment of silence to step forward.

    "You guys will have to follow ourmands if the need for that arises. There is a chance we will also make you do stuff that will be in the interest of all three bases rather than your own," she exined the situation.

    ''Why did she stop me?'' Mathew asked himself, raising his eyebrows as he watched the girl exin the situation to Peter''s group. ''I was about to say the same!''

    "All in all, once we are done doing our stuff, we will generally leave you to your own devices, unless something big happens," Nadia finished with a shake of her shoulders.

    "Wait, that''s all?" Peter asked, shocked beyond his belief. "To that, I can easily agree, but..." he hesitated for a moment, unsure whether he should voice his doubts or not. "If it was that simple, then what was this entire drama for?" he nearly freaked out.

    This time, Mathew didn''t allow the girl to exin his thoughts to him, mostly because of the worry that Nadia somehow ended up misinterpreting them.

    "I had to make you ept our terms before hearing how good they are," Mathew said as he gently tucked Nadia''s arm to pull her back before stepping forward himself. "Otherwise, you wouldn''t understand just how gracious they are."

 Chapter 351 Spot That Couldnt Be Any Less

    Mathew took his sweet time walking around the perimeter of Peter''s base.

    ''Now that I have his approval, there is no need for us to rush into picking the ce for thest merchant,'' he thought, passing by the empty buffer zone of the residential building to the north of the area.

    This was the spot that bore the marks of the activity that initially made Mathew quite against any sort of rtionship with Peter. This was the ce where the man-made zombies resided, acting as a warning to all the free-roaming zombies nearby.

    ''Now that I think about it, I wonder how he figured it out,'' Mathew thought, taking a short stop by one of the rooms.

    The only reason why he picked this room, in particr, was the slight damage to its doors that allowed the young man to peer inside.

    And just as expected, there was a bunch of three zombies, all consisting of nothing more but their heads and torso.

    All of their limbs were amputated, making it nigh impossible for them to be a threat to a sane person, even assuming they could somehow free themselves from the restraints.

    ''How he figured out that zombies canmunicate in some way or form that we do not understand?''

    It was in humanity''s nature to ignore the things they couldn''t perceive. There was a need for hundreds of years and countless geniuses to live their lives and leave their heritage to turn into a fertile ground for those who came after them for humans to start figuring out what was beyond the level of a simple observation.

    To a degree, things that were beyond human understanding were a step up from the things they couldn''t experience. It was their brains that humans used to peer through the veil of the unseen.

    But how they were supposed to figure out something that was beyond what they could understand?

    ''Well,'' Mathew heaved a short sigh before moving on. ''It doesn''t matter,'' he thought as he reached the end of the corridor.

    The young man then turned around on his feet and moved back towards the building''s main hall.

    "Another dud?" Nadia asked, ncing over at the entrance when Mathew came out of it.

    "Yeah," the young man nodded his head, "it''s like this ce was designed around just a single area," he stated, turning his eyes to the very ce they call came from. "And I don''t really like the idea of cing the third merchant in that damn workshop!"

    There had to be a total of three merchants in order for the summoning of the fortress to be possible.

    The first one was a merchant that Peter summoned himself, located right by the side of his private quarters at the very back of the mechanical workshop. Yet, despite how near the front line of the entire base that ce was, due to the destruction of some of the walls, one had to go around the entire ce in order to reach it.

    The second merchant was the one that Mathew summoned himself, located in what could only be said as the most random ce. It used to be the area where Peter would keep his potentially troublesome guests, just like it was the case with Mathew during their first meeting.<novelnext></novelnext>

    As such, that ce wasn''t all that great of a merchant location, which resulted in his wares being fully generic, without any twist.

    "Maybe it''s not that bad of an idea?" Nadia suggested once she saw Mathew''s face twisting. "It''s not like we have much choice regarding that either," she then added with a shrug of her shoulders.

    "To be honest, that''s what I was thinking myself," Mathew admitted. He then hung his head to the back as he stared up at the dark sky of the night. "But I was worried that it''s just me wishing to get this over with."

    Mathew pulled his head back to its normal level. He cast a long nce at his first wife before taking a deep breath.

    "Well, nothing good wille from waiting around and getting annoyed," he said,ing to terms with the reality. "No matter how much I brood over it, the outline of this base won''t change, so let''s just go and summon the third one."

    Mathew was perfectly aware that he was someone who liked to overthink things. And so, in his desire to fix that annoying part of himself, he instantly followed his words with actions, heading right back to the ce where tonight''s drama took ce.

    The situation at the workshop was more or less the same as it was when Mathew left it to look for the ce to summon the merchant. The only difference was that Peter was busy applying the zombie cure to thest two of his injured men rather than the first two.

    "You are back already?" Peter asked, raising his head over his current patient. "Is it done?" he then changed his question while his face tensed up a little.

    There was no denying that Mathew was quite forceful when negotiating the deal. As such, there was no surprise in how Peter still wasn''t all that happy with the idea.

    "Yes and no," Mathew announced, moving right past his local counterpart before reaching the very middle of the workshop. "That will do I guess," he then muttered upon reaching a part of the room that couldn''t be more ordinary.

    ''And now, for the first climax of the night,'' Mathew thought, pulling out one of the cores that he dug out from the high-evolved zombie.

    The young man saved it on himself rather than stashing it away in his storage simply for convenience''s sake. And now, he tightened his fingers around it.

    "I wish to summon a merchant," he spoke out, closing his eyes right as the core in his hand suddenly exploded in light.

    Mathew kept his eyes closed for a second. And by the time he opened them back up, the entire room turned into a mess.

    Most of the people who just happened to be there were now wiggling on the floor, desperate to regain their sight. Some were screaming, others were covering their eyes with their hands.

    And to top it all off, Mathew''s hand was hidden within the hood of the merchant, as if he was about to enter his subspace right away.

    "The first part is done," Mathew muttered, pulling his hand back and looking towards the garage door leading outside. "Now I can only hope Daria gathered enough cores for the next step."

 Chapter 352 Carols Reservations

    "Did you get the ones over by that entrance?" Carol called out while cracking open a zombie''s skull all the while ignoring itsst-ditch attempts at maneuvering with its jaw alone to bite at her ankle.

    Carol then dropped the pointy end of her saber down, right into the zombie''s brain matter, before using the de as a shovel to dig the core out.

    "I''m about to," Daria called back, already making her way over to the site Carol pointed.

    There was hardly any danger to their job.

    Sure, there were some zombies who remained mobile even after all the carnage brought forth by the firearms. Even the head of the evolved zombie that by some miracle survived the mortar shell explosion wouldn''t cease its attempts to bite at them.

    And yet¡­

    This wasn''t the level of danger that Carol would seriously consider, not to speak about Daria.

    After all, even in her human form, the bare difference in levels between the girls made Daria several times stronger than thest of Mathew''s actual wives.

    "Ugh," Carol let out a small moan of disgust as she plucked the core out of the mush of the zombie''s rotting brain. "I will never get over just how awful of a job it is," she muttered.

    "You better do," Daria called over. "Once all the fighting ends, this is the most important part of the job. Leaving the cores would not only make the entire fighting part pointless but also lead to even tougher opponentsingter."

    The idea that zombies could feed on the cores of their fellow zombies was nothing more than Mathew''s idea. And yet, just as it was with most of his strategies, expectations, and decisions, the girls eagerly took them for certain.

    Because while there was a risk Mathew''s guess would turn out to be wrong, so far, the records of his ideas were perfect.

    "Can''t we just leave it all to workers?" Carol asked while smashing another head with the heel of her shoe. "It''s not like all of them are of any use anyway," she pointed out with a shrug of her shoulders.

    "You can''t always expect that kind of convenient people to be around," Daria replied with a sigh, cutting off thest remaining leg of a crawler before finishing it off with a strike to the back of its head. "Just take Mathew''s group off this mission. They were out in the middle of nowhere with no support anywhere in sight. And they still gathered the cores!"

    Carol opened her mouth to reply, only to shut them closed when the garage gate started to roll open only for Nadia to walk out of the base a momentter.

    "Did you gather the cores?" she asked.

    "Most of them, yeah," Daria replied while taking a quick nce at the battlefield. "I would say about four-fifths?" she attempted to put what she saw into concrete numbers.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "How many did you gather?" Nadia continued with her questions while keeping a straight look on her face.

    "Around¡­" Daria hesitated for a second as she ran a quick count in her head. ''I have about five hundred, Carol should have around half as much,'' she applied a fair share of generosity towards her trust in Carol''s ability to harvest the cores. "Around eight hundred?" Daria then put forth an educated guess. "Give or take a hundred," she then added just to get the point of it all being a guess across.

    "Well, that''s should be enough," Nadia released a small sigh of relief.

    "Wait for a second... enough?" Daria put a puzzled expression on her face while dropping thest few cores she just harvested into the bag she used to collect the loot. "Isn''t the fortress only about a thousand worth of basic cores?"

    "If you are talking about that storage window, it didn''t appear in here," Nadia quickly exined. "Math believes it''s because the first merchant in this ce was summoned by someone outside of our group," she then added.

    "No, that''s not what I meant." Daria shook her head. "We have about eight hundred cores gathered. Even if I were to discount just how much the ones from the high evolved are worth, that should make up to about four thousand worth of cores, isn''t that right?"

    Nadia''s eyes widened a little. Then, a small smile appeared on her lips.

    "Oh, that''s right," she admitted before lowering her head a little and then shaking it. "I thought you spoke about the total value gathered, not the number of physical cores," she exined before turning around and heading back inside. "Get the cores ande with me, we are about to turn this ce into a fortress."

    That was the n all along. And the only party that wasn''t in the known since a while ago was Peter''s group. As such, the revtion came as no surprise to the girls who missed all the action inside the base.

    "I will stay here," Carol said right as Daria was about to enter the base.

    "Don''t you want to see how it happens?" Nadia asked, taken aback by Carol''s sudden announcement.

    "I would love to do that," Carol replied with a shake of her head. "But our job here is not over yet," she added while stretching her arm out and pointing at one of the zombie heads that refused to die, still pping its jaws around in the pointless hope of biting at something. "And it''s better to finish it up as soon as possible," she added as she looked over her arm and into the night-covered alleys of the town.

    "Right, there is still that big monster we need to take care of," Nadia muttered. She then shook her head before raising her eyes to Carol. "Thanks for volunteering for the job. It''s much appreciated. I will be sure to mention it to Mathew," she said before turning around and decisively heading inside.

    "I guess I should hurry up," Carol muttered before heaving a long sigh and stomping down on the head she spotted a moment earlier. She then looked around, painting a mental path that would take her along all the still-moving zombies that she could spot.

    "After all, there is no way they will allow me to join the big subjugation if there will be still more work to do here," she muttered to herself before charging at the nearest of her targets.

 Chapter 353 Fifty Thousand

    "Will this do?" Nadia asked as she stepped back into the workshop, dragging a sizeable bag filled with cores behind her.

    She then pulled the bag up before lightly tossing it at Mathew''s feet.

    "I think so," the young man said before nodding his head with gratitude. "Let''s begin."

    Sote into the night and events, Mathew saw no point in wasting time on bullshit.

    "I wish to establish a fortress," he said while digging his hand into the bag of cores.

    But nothing happened, save for some observers starting to rapidly blink their eyes once they started to dry up.

    "Eh?" Mathew shook his head, turning his hand around while staring at it.

    Mathew''s confusionsted only for a short moment.

    "Ah, right," he pped his face, "we didn''t take over the first merchant in this zone," he muttered the usible reason for the procedure failing. "Le, I''m sorry for dragging you around but could you please go and pay that merchant a visit?"

    ''So that I will learn whether you can do it for me, or if I have to make the trip personally,'' he thought, hiding a small smirk.

    Automation, people, automation. With many fortresses to possiblye into the future, Mathew didn''t want to start by establishing himself as the only one who can ever manage merchants within his group.

    "I will be right back, then," Le said, nodding her head before bolting off into the distance¡­ of one of the nearby doors.

    She was a girl that didn''t really enjoy stacking up problems or excuses. Solutions fitted her character more.

    The wait took only a short moment. The distance Le had to run was rtively short and she was a pretty damn fast runner. Coupled with how the time appeared to work differently during one''s visits to the merchant''s subspace, Le returned to the group in less than a single minute.

    "All set," she then reported with a slightly smug smile.

    "Good," Mathew nodded his head, "then let''s begin again."

    Mathew turned his eyes towards the shadow underneath the cape of the merchant before him.

    The young man closed his eyes, trying to picture a massive wall surrounding the entire area of Peter''s base. A futile and most likely pointless act, but Mathew wasn''t willing to give it up.

    After all, how would it feel if heter learned that just a bit of an additional effort could, on the off chance, prove extremely helpful?

    "I wish to establish a fortress," Mathew called out with his hand back in the bag of cores. And this time, the procedure worked as expected.

    The flow of time twitched before grinding to aplete halt.

    The cores within Mathew''s bags suddenly lit up, as if the energy contained within was about to burst free.

    And then, it simply happened. But rather than filling the air and then dissipating into nothingness, the energy from the cores rushed all towards a single point in space.

    It was a point just like many others, perfect between Mathew''s head and the shadow of the merchant.

    The energy all rushed into this single point, granting it angr momentum as it did.

    ? In a single sh, all the bright light from the cores turned into free mana, only to take this exact same second to all get absorbed by the vortex Mathew noticed in this slowed-down version of the world.

    The vortex spun thousands upon thousands of times in a single second, quickly reaching a critical state.

    And then, it overflew.

    The mana inside the vortex jerked, shooting out in all possible directions. And yet, in spite of the extremely violent and chaotic nature of the explosion of light¡­

    The mana actually rushed towards the general borders of Peter''s base before fueling the construction of a thin yet extremely resilient barrier around the premises.

    [Fortress established.]<novelnext></novelnext>

    A single line appeared in the corner of Mathew''s vision.

    [Unlocked Settlement establishment]

    [Do you wish to establish a settlement here?]

    [Conditions: Can only be used within the borders of one of your fortresses]

    ''Do I wish to establish a settlement here?'' Mathew read out the message in his mind. Then, his face twisted a little.

    ''Fuck no!'' he inwardly screamed, shaking at the mere idea of doing it in Peter''s base rather than in the area he had no firm grip over.

    ''How many cores does establishing a settlement take?'' Mathew thought about his question, hoping for his system to show its generous side and just answer the question.

    ''I will most likely be able to get this question answered by visiting any of the merchants,'' Mathew then thought, fully ready not to get any convenient answers.

    [The cost of establishing a settlement equals fifty thousand basic cores worth]

    The system managed to take Mathew by a surprise by actually providing him with the answer to the one question that kept on lingering in his mind.

    "Fifty thousand cores, huh?" Mathew muttered to himself, his thoughts muffled due to the sudden discovery.

    "Matty?" Nadia whispered, her voice somehow breaking past the barrier of the twisted flow of time.

    Or was it?

    "Matty, are you okay?" Nadia asked again, her voice filled to the brim with worry.

    "Huh?" Mathew twitched, finally realizing what was going on.

    He turned his head and smiled.

    "Yeah, I''m alright."

    Since he refused the idea of establishing the settlement, whatever kept control of the time clearly saw no reason to keep expending its energy to keep the time twisted. And so, the second Mathew rejected the idea of setting the next level of a base in the area he was least certain of, the force that kept the time altered simply vanished.

    And it was just a result of Mathew''s distraction that he didn''t notice earlier.

    "Yeah, fifty thousand," Mathew repeated himself shaking his head over the cost. And yet, his lips curved up and formed a small smile.

    "That''s¡­ quite a lot," Nadia muttered, twisting her lips in an ugly grimace.

    There was no way for them to gather that many cores from what they had on themselves so far. Even when adding up all the profits from the recent horde and counting on the core of the massive monster they had yet to defeat¡­ They would still likely be several thousand cores short!

    "Well, there is no use whining about it," Mathew said a bit louder. "At least we know how much it will be rather than being kept in the dark," he attempted to point out whatever good points of the situation there were.

    "I¡­ guess?" Nadia muttered. She then shook her head before crossing her arms over her chest. "Either way, the fortress here is done now, right?" she asked.

    "Yeah," Mathew nodded his head.

    And a single next look that he threw at the girl already gave him all the info regarding what was going through her mind.

    Mathew sighed.

    "If that''s the case, then there is nothing stopping us from going after that huge monster, is there?" Nadia pointed out, raising her right eyebrow while leaning her weight over her left foot and then tapping the ground with her right.

    "That''s correct," Mathew said before releasing another sigh. He then ced his right hand on the handle of his saber before smiling leisurely. "So let''s go and kill the bastard!"

 Chapter 354 Fortress Is Up, Time To Hunt The Bastard

    "Are youing or not?" Nadia asked, shortly stopping by the workshop''s doors and turning around to nce at Mathew.

    "I¡­" Mathew hesitated for a second. He then curled the ends of his lips up a little. "In a second," he then said, reaching out and grasping at the merchant''s shadow.

    He established the fortress in this merchant''s presence so the ess to all the options of the fortress was likely connected to his subspace.

    ''There we go,'' Mathew thought when the time appeared to stop around him while the shadows surged from behind his back.

    Soon, the familiar emptiness of this shadowy realm coaxed all his senses, allowing the young man to finally rx.

    ''Now, let''s see,'' Mathew blinked his eyes a few times before putting his full focus on the new options of the system that revealed themselves to his eyes.

    [Basic Construction Zone]

    [Transforms designated space into a manually operated workshop]

    [Possible blueprints:

    - Basic Fusing Frame

    - Basic Component

    - Basic Resource Orb]

    [Required:

    - Settlement unlocked

    - Fortress level 3

    - Fortress internal level 12]

    The second Mathew''s eyes fell onto the new window, his vision suddenly changed.

    The shadows appeared to disperse, revealing the slightly blurry image of the room where Mathew stood back in the original dimension.

    Mathew could see nearly the entire workshop. But to add to the experience, Mathew could see shing rectangles appearing all over the open room.

    ''That''s where I can summon those construction zones?'' Mathew thought, interpreting the strange vision that went away as soon as he turned his eyes away from the window describing the feature.

    ''Well, now I have all the more reasons to rush for that settlement¡­ But,'' Mathew turned his eyes towards one of the shelves that filled the shadowy space of the merchant.

    It was his first time visiting this particr merchant, and yet, Mathew could tell that this one particr shelf stood out.

    There were no visual clues, there was nothing strange about how it was built. Yet, by mere feeling, Mathew could tell this was the vocal point of the merchant that focused on the thing that interested him the most.

    ''And those are the upgrades that I need a total of twelve of,'' Mathew thought, lowering his eyes over the shelf to look at its content.

    And just like back in the school, Mathew could see rows upon rows of scrolls resting upon a small, simple pedestal.

    Each of the scrolls was disyed in a way that allowed Mathew to easily read through most of its content that disyed the most important bits of information.

    [Barrier level 1]

    [Sanitation level 1]<novelnext></novelnext>

    [Illumination level 1]

    [Additional defenses level 1]

    Those were just a few that Mathew noticed right away, due to how they were disyed in the most eye-catching spot. Yet, as Mathew turned his head to the side, he could see row upon a row filled with those scrolls.

    ''They are really going above and beyond with the possible content,'' Mathew thought as the idea of the higher force controlling the events appeared in his mind for a second.

    Mathew shook his head, ridding his thoughts of useless banter andining.

    ''It''s a pity I can''t really see any way to increase the general level of the fortress,'' Mathew thought, raising his hand to his chin as he threw onest look at the aisle of the merchant''s subspace.

    He then pulled his head to the back as he looked around the ce onest time before raising his hand and waving it.

    "I wish to leave now," Mathew said.

    And the space around him obediently copsed,  pushing him right back to reality.

    "And I''m back," Mathew said, putting a small smile on his face.

    "Is it one of those rare moments when someone asks for a second and actually finishes everything in said second?" Nadia asked, lightly raising her eyebrows as her hands got close to crossing over her chest.

    "Yeah, yeah," Mathew turned away from the merchant and ran up to the girl''s side. "I''m done, let''s go," he hurried the girl, not giving her any time to scold him for histeness.

    "Where is it?" Mathew asked after barely a few steps he had to make before joining the rest of his group.

    "Ten minutes worth of march up to the east," Norbert reported while securing his hold over some sort of automatic weapon hanging down from his neck.

    It was clear he wouldn''t miss the chance to partake in theing fight. And one didn''t need more than just a single look to see that.

    "So it moved to where we came from?" Mathew asked, slightly surprised by the development.

    "Yeah," Norbert nodded his head while not even trying to hide a small smirk.

    He saw Mathew staring him down for a second and had to understand what kind of thoughts Mathew''s mind went through.

    "Cheeky little bastard," Mathew then muttered, looking at Norbert in the first half of his sentence but moving his eyes away from the other.

    In this way, it was impossible to tell whether he had the massive monster in mind or Norbert.

    "Just make sure not to stand out too much. This can be a really tough fight so it might be impossible to keep you safe if you get too close," Mathew warned before turning around in the right direction and starting a rtively rxed jog.

    There was no use wasting one''s energy before even making contact with the enemy. Sure, it is only ten minutes away was worrying enough and put Peter''s freshly established fortress in danger¡­ But it wasn''t close enough for all hell to break loose.

    They still had time¡­ But with every passing second, there was less and less of it.

    ''I wonder if I will be able to take him down with that new spell of mine,'' Mathew thought.

    He could vaguely remember someone mentioning that the massive monster had some sort of armor. And prating armor was exactly what Mathew''s new spell excelled at!

    Mathew was eager to test the extent of his new spell¡­ but nothing could prepare him for the sight he encountered only eight minutes after they left Peter''s base.

 Chapter 355 Crayfish

    "I''ve lost vision!" Norbert reported in an alert voice. "It''s only two streets further!" he then shouted, giving thest known location of the huge monster they were hunting.

    "Let''s go!" Mathew cheered.

    Save for some remaining groups of wanderers, defeating that huge monster would put an end to this nerve-wracking event.

    It was thest obstacle that separated Mathew from establishing the next level of the fortress, something that he had on his mind for quite a while.

    Thest obstacle, save for the insufficient amount of cores they had for establishing the settlement.

    ''Worst case scenario, we could sell most of the weapons, buy a set of brand new ones and make up thecking number like that,'' Mathew thought, sparing a bit of his mind to n for the future.

    But soon, all his thoughts ceased to wander when he faced the true scale of the enemy they hoped to hunt.

    "Oh damn¡­" Mathew released a short sight while his head moved up so that his eyes could catch the whole thing.

    It was a crayfish spanning three stories high and tens of meters long.

    By stacking regr-sized buses, one would need four rows and twoyers of four buses standing one behind the other. Only then, the total size of this massive beast coulde to scale.

    ''There is no way I will be able to kill it with just a spell or two,'' Mathew thought, freezing on the spot.

    There was something in the raw presence of this crustacean that made him tremble. And for the briefest of moments, Mathew couldn''t tell why.

    And then, it struck him.

    "Everyone, get fucking down!" Mathew screamed out from the bottom of his lungs.

    The monster raised both its tail and its front ws before freezing in this weird, stretched-out position.

    Mathew hugged the ground before shooting his head up to look around.

    The girls all fell down, quickly reacting to Mathew''s desperatemand.

    Norbert was halfway done dropping down¡­ when the crayfish body suddenly tensed up, only for a concentrated stream of solidified steam to strike his arm.

    ''Shit!'' Mathew cursed in his thoughts when he saw a gaping hole left in the officer''s shoulder.

    It wasn''t like a wound Mathew was used to. No gun could create such a clean and wide opening in one''s body.

    ''I could fit my fist in there,'' Mathew thought, frozen at the moment.

    "MAT!" Nadia shouted, forcing the young man out of his daze.

    "Pull him away!" Mathew shouted right away. "Get him back to the base while we can still save him!"

    Everything went to shit the second anything started.

    The crayfish rxed for but a second before raising up, ready to repeat its shot again.

    ''I remember now,'' Mathew thought, watching powerlessly how Nadia rose up from the ground with her eyes fixed on the monster''s tensing body.

    ''She should be able to take one shot¡­'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth.

    And then the time around him froze over.

    ''Wait, she could take one hit because of that protective spell I cast upon her,'' he thought, only for his attention to return right back to Norbert. ''But he had one too!''

    Mathew''s eyeballs moved as slowly as if they were submerged in some sort of slime.

    He turned his face just enough to cast a nce at Norbert''s body.

    The blood that Mathew saw splurging out of his wound was now breaking apart like some sort of graphical artifact.

    The officery down on the ground, desperately clutching at the wound that wasn''t there in the first ce.<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''This isn''t right,'' Mathew thought, recalling the terror-struck face Norbert made when he got hit. ''Well, I don''t have the time to think about it too much,'' Mathew decided, turning his attention back to the monster.

    "Don''t get up!" Mathew shouted right as the began to flow again. "Stay down, Norbert''s okay!"

    The fight didn''t start well. But at least, it didn''t turn into a disaster right away.

    Poof!

    A rapid, snappy sound filled the open area of the street when the monster sent its second surge of solidified steam.

    Now that everyone was hugging the ground, the shot went right above everyone''s heads.

    "Jump the bastard!" Mathew shouted, sensing the right moment for the counter-attack.

    ''As terrifying as it is, we need to get it killed!'' Mathew thought, focusing on his own part of the battle.

    The young man closed his eyes and invoked all the relevant windows of his system.

    ''My mana fully regenerated,'' Mathew observed, suddenly d that he held back on using any of his abilities up to this point.

    Because now, he was going to make the best possible use of it.

    ''At the current rate, I should be able to shoot four¡­'' Mathew did a quick count. ''No, three¡­'' he hesitated for a second. ''Wait, no. It''s four after all.''

    The stats that Mathew recalled from thest time he checked the system didn''t match up with the stats he could see right now.

    ''It seems all the fighting from when the night started brought my wives'' levels quite a bit,'' Mathew thought, taking the raise in his mind stat into ount.

    ''Now, then,'' Mathew finally directed his attention back to the objectives at hand. ''First, let''s recast the protection on Norbert,'' he thought, pulling out one of the cores he picked up from one of the few zombies that still roamed around Peter''s base.

    ''Anchorable, protective veil!'' Mathew invoked, watching how twenty-five points of his mana vanished into nothingness.

    "Here, catch!" Mathew shouted as he threw the infused stone back to where Norbert was gathering himself up from the ground.

    ''Now then,'' Mathew thought, turning his eyes back towards the monster.

    Le was busy shing at its right leg, hoping to quickly reduce their level from four to zero.

    Daria was already in her shadowy self, engaging in a contest of strength with the lobster-like monster''s left w. Carol didn''t allow others to overshadow her, currently conjuring several chunks of the earth only to m them right between the joints of the monster''s left legs.

    And in the meantime¡­ Nadia simply stood down in front of Mathew, keeping herself low while watching out for any potential threat to the young man.

    ''I can''t let such a dedication go to waste, can I?'' Mathew thought, pushing all the stray thoughts aside before focusing mana between his hands.

    ''Piercing bolt!'' he then shouted in his thoughts.

    The mana in his hands jerked up, sucked away from his hands, and towards a vortex that appeared between them.

    The spell botted up for only two seconds before thest strand of mana filled the vortex, redirecting all of its energy towards the target.

    A solidified mass of magic energy shot forth, lodging itself right into the crayfish shell, on two-thirds of the height of its tail.

    ''Shit¡­'' Mathew cursed, nearly falling to his knees upon the casting of the spell.

    It was one wild ride to control a spell that sapped more than half of the total mana he could control at once.

    But thanks to the buggy nature of his system, Mathew wasn''t done yet.

    "It''s one hell of a beast to control," he muttered as he gathered mana in his hands yet again. "But it will have to work!" he then shouted, releasing his second shot.

    And this time¡­ the bolt of energy struck the monster right in the head!

 Chapter 356 Living Through Death

    ''It''s a hit!'' Mathew thought the second his attack connected with the monster.

    He aimed the spell well.

    It struck right between the two small limbs that kept the monster''s eyes slightly above the rest of its body.

    Sparks fell down along with several pieces of cracked chitinous armor of the monster.

    A surge of blue blood spurted out of the hole Mathew''s spell created right where the monster''s brain should be.

    But rather than killing it, the wound only agitated the crustacean.

    "SCREEEE!!!" it made out a massive, annoying noise¡­ only to jerk its body away from all those who tried to keep it in ce.

    First, it pushed Daria''s shadowy form away, freeing one of its ws. Then, it brought all of its left legs together, crushing the stones that Carol conjured around its joins, freeing its movements once again.

    ''Not good,'' Mathew thought, gulping his saliva down.

    This was a great hit. A critical attack if there was a way to invoke this sort of game mechanic within the real world. And a critical hit aimed right at the monster''s weak point.

    And yet, save for leaving a small hole and agitating the massive crustacean, it achieved close to nothing.

    ''Could it be¡­'' a single thought passed through Mathew''s head.

    It was a result of all the small things he noticed beforehand.

    Mathew recalled what type of game would disy this kind of opponent. He then thought about all the mechanics of that game, hoping to find some handle for the ongoing fight.

    And then it struck him.

    ''Is this¡­ some sort of a boss monster?''

    Nadia couldn''t allow herself to stay back any longer. The only saving grace of the situation came from Le''s efforts which paid off when she managed to slice through two of the monster''s legs, taking away a huge chunk of its mobility.

    Nadia exploited this mobility gap, rushing right to where Le was now backing off against an onught of the monster''s attack.

    The evolved monster turned out to be far more challenging of an enemy than Mathew ever expected. It was at least an entire grade above the high evolved zombies, once again proving that evolved monsters could reach far greater heights than evolved zombies of the same level.

    ''Still, if this is a boss monster¡­'' Mathew gulped his saliva down.

    He managed to figure out a few things by following the game''s analogies. And while some of the monster''s movement made it seem like it wasn''t restricted by the mechanics of the game on Mathew''s mind, it still executed several attacks that Mathew was already familiar with.

    ''Then it''s going to take a few more critical hits like that to defeat it!''

    Mathew bit down on his lips. He then took a quick look around to confirm the state of things before getting into the action himself.

    For now, the coast was clear.

    The girls managed to once again restrain the movements of the monster, keeping it fully upied.

    And Mathew couldn''t ask for a better opportunity to shoot his spell again.

    ''Let''s go!'' the young man thought as he gathered the mana at his hands again.

    ''Piercing bolt!'' Mathew thought, allowing for a new vortex to form in between his hands.

    The monster jerked to the side, turning its head area to look at Mathew.

    ''It sensed the spell!'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he forced himself to stay immobile while the spell charged up.

    The lobster jumped and turned around in the air for a fair bit beforending. It now faced Mathew directly, and already started to bend its body.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "It''s going to shoot!" Norbert screamed out, getting down on his stomach while cing a long rifle he just finished assembling in front of him.

    "Shit," Mathew cursed.

    He did the math on the go. He could finish casting the spell and then try to get down¡­ but it would likely be toote for him to dodge.

    ''I can still count on that protective veil¡­'' Mathew forced his brain to its peak capacity.

    And in a single instant, his instincts provided a shortcut for his decision-making, prompting him to fire the spell off.

    The vortex between Mathew''s hands sucked all the mana Mathew''s body had to offer. It spun around for just a single second, before it cracked apart, releasing the surging block of condensed mana.

    A condensed shot of a solidified mist shot out of the lobster''s bent back, heading straight for Mathew''s head.

    "NO!" Nadia screamed from the bottom of her lungs, unable to do anything but watch how the powerful ranged attack crept forth, straight into Mathew''s head.

    Both attacks connected.

    Mathew''s piercing bolt fell only a hand width to the side from where he got his previous attack. And while it failed to strike exactly the same point as before, it also happened to crush the small limb that held one of the monster''s eyes up.

    "SCREEEEE!!!" the monster cried out, turning and twisting in pain after the attack.

    But it wasn''t only Mathew''s shot that connected.

    The surging mass of the concentrated mist went right for Mathew''s head, cracking his forehead open with ease before flying straight through his brain. It then burst free out of the back of Mathew''s head, leaving an exit hole only a dum-dum ammunition was capable of creating.

    Pieces of Mathew''s brain scattered all over the ce as his body remained unsteadily on his two legs, before keeling over and falling down to its knees.

    "NOOOO!" Nadia''s soul-piercing scream filled the room, making her forget about the threat of the still ongoing fight.

    Even with Mathew''s death, they had no other choice but to continue the fight¡­

    But Nadia couldn''t care less about it. She rushed forth, raising her head in the middle of her leap to take one more look at Mathew¡­

    Only to see him wriggling in pain on the bare asphalt on the road, clutching his hands at the front and back of his head.

    "MATHEW!" Nadia cried out, dropping all of her guards as shended by the young man''s side. And so she remained in ce, on her knees, with hands raised to the level of her chest while she was unable to decide what she was supposed to do at all.

    "I''m alive!" Mathew screeched out, struggling to get over the immense pain he felt in his head.

    He felt it all.

    The hit connecting. His head bursting.

    He felt every piece of his brain scattering over a huge area and his body falling down to the ground.

    He felt it all¡­ even though it didn''t happen?

    ''So that''s how this bastard works¡­'' Mathew thought, turning his eyes down to look at the cracked parts of the stone that fell out of his pocket.

    The protective veil spell did protect Mathew against a single attack. It didn''t prevent it, though. It reverted the cause and effect of the attack, making it so it never really happened.

    Sadly, as it only activated once the attack connected, those who used this veil would have to live through the experience of their death!

    ''That was one hell of a ride,'' Mathew muttered, nearly throwing up when he pulled out another core before casting another veil on it. ''But I can see it working,'' he thought as he turned his eyes towards the monster.

    It was only a small difference, but its movements slowed down. The uracy of the monster''s attack also decreased, its missing eye clearly affecting its ability to fight.

    "There is only one question now," Mathew muttered as he forced himself on all fours before starting to gather mana in his hands yet again. "Will it run out of its hit points before or after I run out of my mana?"

 Chapter 357 Explosive End

    Mathew used his prating shot thrice and cast his protective veil the same number of times. In total, using those skills cost him a sum of two hundred fifty-five points of mana.

    And counting all of the points in mind he had right now, he could barely afford to cast one more prating shot before drying all his mana up.

    ''This isn''t good,'' Mathew thought, fighting off the nauseating feeling of the lingering memory of his own death. ''I don''t think we will be able to take it down with just one more shot!''

    The fight evened out again. Between Mathew''s shot and the constant pressure the girls put on the monster, they managed to reduce both its mobility and uracy. Still, even with two out of its eight legs missing, the lobster didn''t seem to lose its ability to shoot beams of concentrated mist, nor its ability to swing its ws around.

    In other words, it was as big of a threat now as it was before all the damage it received. But some progress was surely made.

    "Line him up for another shot!" Mathew screamed from the bottom of his lungs, forcing his own mental state to ept the inevitability of what wasing.

    ''It reacted the moment I was about to cast,'' he thought, running out of his former hideout in hopes that changing his position will give him at least a tiny bit more time to dodge. ''I really don''t want to enter a shooting contest with it again¡­'' Mathew thought, dashing from cover to cover, making use of all the perks the destroyed cityndscape offered.

    In the meantime, the girls worked hard to achieve what Mathew asked of them.

    Carol switched from trying to block the lobster''s legs to actively alternating between ice-cold water that would freeze while mid-air and then spewing mes out of her hands.

    ''That''s a clever use of physics, alternating heat like that,'' Mathew took notice of the girl''s craftiness.

    Mathew''s spell appeared to be the only mean capable of prating the lobster''s natural armor. And so, rather than wasting her mana by throwing spells that would simply bounce off the monster''s shell, Carol attempted to crack its armor by applying extreme cold and then switching to extreme heat.

    It would take a long time to work, but with enough effort, this method could work.

    The lobster couldn''t pay Carol much attention, though, as the rest of the girls kept it perfectly busy.

    Daria used her shadowy form to defend Le from any attacksing her way, giving her friend the opportunity to look for the monster''s weak points.

    And so, Le wouldunch herself forward in short strides, and execute one or two swift strikes towards a point of interest before retreating underneath the protective veil of Daria''s range.

    On the other side of the monster, Nadia kept up with the movements of its two remaining legs.

    She started the fight by making use of her newly obtained saber. Yet, as time went on, her physical prowess quickly made her weapon prove to be a bottleneck, a limiter on the damage that she could dish out.

    Holding nothing back, Nadia then threw the saber away, opting to use her own hands instead.

    Nadia pped one of the lobster''s legs away before kicking the other. Losing its stability, the lobster desperately wiggled its legs around, rushing to keep them on stable ground. And in the opening it created, Nadia snuck closer to its side before dishing out a powerful fist!

    The crustacean armor cracked while the monster squealed in pain.

    Following the rebound that she threw the monster into, Nadia turned herself at her hips only to throw another fist in the exact same ce.

    Ting!

    A strange sound filled the streets when Nadia''s punch went through the cracked armor, giving her fist ess to the soft insides of the monster.

    "REEEEE!"

    The monster cried out before desperatelyunching itself up. It dropped its guard just to get away from the girl that it now fully perceived as a threat.

    ''That''s what I was looking for!'' Mathew screamed inwardly out, gathering the mana into his hands.

    This time, however, the task proved to be far more difficult.

    With no spare mana coursing in his body, Mathew had to squeeze everything in himself just to gather enough.

    The monster twitched the second Mathew started to gather his mana. Yet, still mid-air, it couldn''t do anything about it.<novelnext></novelnext>

    The monster fell down to the ground at the same time as Mathew managed to finally squeeze everything he had.

    ''Prating shot,'' the young man thought, finally giving all his mana a concrete shape.

    The power surged out of Mathew''s hands and towards the vortex created between them.

    "NOT AGAIN!" Nadia then screamed from the bottom of her lungs right at the same time as the monster started to bend, hell-bent on punishing Mathew''s attempt with a shoot on its own.

    "STOP!" Nadia screamed out, lurching upwards while pulling her right fist to the back.

    And then, with the strength derived from all over her body, she punched forth, striking her fist right in the middle of the lobster''s tail.

    "REEEE!" another cry filled the streets, sending the monster''s tail back towards the ground and disturbing its casting.

    ''Wait, this is¡­'' Mathew hesitated for but a second.

    A strange feeling, a sense of purpose, filled his brain.

    And so, he changed the target of his shoot from the ce he already struck twice to the area that his guts designated.

    "GO!" Mathew shouted when a load of mana exploded out of the vortex, cutting through the air as it aimed for a seemingly random spot on the lobster''s body.

    The shot went¡­ and prated right through the armor. And then, wonders started to happen.

    First, the lobster stopped.

    Then, the armor on its tail started to swell up at a rapid pace.

    "GET AWAY FROM IT!" Mathew shouted, somehow figuring out what was going on before it actually happened.

    Everyone fell down where they were.

    ''Shit, that''s not enough!'' Mathew despaired.

    He clearly hit some sort of organ that the lobster used tounch its projectiles. And now, the same pressure that used to power those shots was building up inside the monster''s body!

    ''It''s going to explode,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he stared powerlessly at the bloating body of the monster.

    The power of theing explosion would be powerful enough to cover the area of all the blocks around. Within this st radius, not a single soul would be left safe.

    "Now it''s my time to shine!" Norbert screamed out, reminding everyone of his presence. And with a single pull of his finger, he shoot the huge rifle that he was so busy piecing together.

    Norbert''s shot struck the side of the monster''s shell, chipping away at its weakened armor and creating a small hole.

    A hole that then proceeded to pop like a balloon before all of the monster''s insides exploded out of it.

    ''Shit!'' Mathew cursed as he hugged the ground, waiting for the worst to happen¡­ Only for the majority of the force behind the explosion to die off in the process of throwing the monster''s insides out.

    ''Did that¡­ work?'' Mathew slowly raised his head, looking at the blue-blood-covered scene of the battle. His eyes then moved over to Norbert who exhausted all of his luck with his shot, ending up as the only one covered in the lobster''s insides, even despite how far he was from the actual battlefield.

    Mathew gulped his saliva down.

    ''Maybe the guns are not as useless as I took them to be?''

 Chapter 358 Drawbacks Of Norberts Wish

    "I can''t control them!" Norbert screamed out.

    His voice was filled withplete and utter despair, one that could only be born in the guts of a man who truly lost something important.

    "Talk to me, Nor¡­"

    "SHUT UP!" Norbert screamed out before Mathew could even finish a single sentence.

    ''What the hell is going on?'' Mathew backed out a few steps, taken off-guard by Norbert''s reaction. ''Did he go mad? Or was he injured?'' He quickly ran through all the most obvious options.

    But, thanks to the monster''s blood being blue, Mathew could tell Norbert didn''t really suffer any sort of injury. At least, not a visible one that would open up his skin and cause him to bleed.

    Because while his body was covered in blood, all of it was blue and quickly turning stale!

    ''Did the shockwave damage his internals?'' Mathew tried to figure the situation out again. ''Maybe it popped his eardrums? Fucked up his eyes?'' he then attempted to use what little he could understand from Norbert''s desperate screaming.

    Tug.

    Mathew turned his head to see Carol pull at his sleeve while pointing with her other hand behind her.

    The meaning was fairly obvious.

    Mathew turned his eyes to the rest of the group, nodding his head to each and everyst one of his girls to signal them to withdraw a few steps.

    "Do you have any idea?" Mathew asked only when they got out of the immediate range of Norbert''s hearing.

    "Before I will answer that, one question to the four of you as you are more sensitive towards it," Carol whispered, keeping her voice low even despite all the distance that separated them from Norbert. She then turned halfway around and pointed her hand at the steaming corpse of the lobster-like monster.

    "I remember you muttering something about it being a waste, back at Peter''s base," Carol stated as she dropped her hand. "I believe it was about how killing the zombies with firearms is a waste because you do not get the experience that allows you to level up, am I right?"

    Mathew raised his eyebrows a little.

    ''Did I ever talk about this with her?'' he thought, scouring his memory to find an appropriate memory. Yet, no matter how hard he searched, Mathew couldn''t find a thing.

    The young man turned his eyes towards the rest of his real wives, only to be met with exactly the same face of confusion that he was making.

    ''Did she figure it out all on her own?'' Mathew then thought, turning his eyes back towards the girl.

    "Oh,e on!" Carol then protested, only to then rapidly raise her hands to her mouth when she realized she raised her voice.

    The girl cast a quick nce towards Norbert, checking whether her slightly louder shout brought even more pain to her step-brother.

    "I might not be as strong or as sensitive to mana as you guys are," Carol then whispered from behind her fingers. "But I could still tell," she imed while rolling her eyes. "And when I noticed your reaction to it, I was quite sure."

    Mathew shook his head.

    "Okay, I understand," he said, stopping his head just in time to cast a look right at Carol''s face. "But what''s exactly your point?"<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Can you sense the energy to level up from that corpse?" Carol asked in a low voice while pointing her hand at the monster''s carcass again.

    Mathew turned his eyes towards the steaming pile of blue blood and white insides of the lobster-like monster. He took some time to properly observe it before releasing a deep sigh.

    "Yeah," he said, turning his eyes back towards the girl. "I think I can finally see your point."

    There was no leftover energy within that monster''s corpse. And by following the rule of every game possible, the majority of the experience point from a fight would either be distributed across the entire party, a feature that Mathew had yet to find in the real world or would mostly go to the one who dealt thest, killing blow.

    ''And in this case, that would make Norbert,'' Mathew thought, turning his eyes towards the broken man a few feet away from them.

    "I think he isn''t crazy nor injured," Carol then whispered, mostly to keep her stepbrother from hearing her voice rather than trying to keep the news to as few ears as possible. "He simply received so much experience fromst hitting that monster his levels skyrocketed," Carol finally exined the crux of her idea.

    She then heaved a short sigh and shrugged her shoulders.

    "His level grew and so did his abilities. But as it wasn''t a gradual process, he simply isn''t used to the change yet," Carol stated before spreading her arms out and then shaking them.

    "That¡­" Mathew hesitated only for a second. He then heaved a sigh on his own. "That makes quite a lot of sense," he admitted in a low voice before reaching out toward the bottom of his shirt and tearing away a rtively clean part of it.

    Mathew moved forward, approaching Norbert again. He held the piece of rtively clean cloth in front of himself with both of his hands, hoping Norbert would somehow spot him and understand his intentions even if he didn''t open his mouth.

    After all, trying to exin things to the former officer while he would freak out at hearing even the tiniest sound didn''t seem like the smartest idea.

    ''Just like that,'' Mathew thought, leaning over Norbert''s curled-up body while covering his eyes with the cloth. He then wrapped it a few times around his head, making sure not a single photon could reach his eyes.

    ''First part done,'' Mathew thought once he finished wrapping the cloth on Norbert''s face. He then took a few steps back before tearing another piece of material from his shirt.

    This time, however, he didn''t approach Norbert directly. Instead, he took his time to split the cloth into three parts, two small squares, and a long strip.

    Mathew filled the squares with a bit of earth he dug out with his hand from the side of the road. Then, he moved back to Norbert, pressing one of the earth-cloth pockets to his ear before using the long strip of cloth to secure it in ce, over Norbert''s ear.

    Mathew then repeated the whole process for the officer''s other ear before taking two steps back and taking in some air.

    ''Well, here goes nothing,'' Mahtew thought, gulping down his saliva. "Norbert¡­" he started with just the man''s name, hoping not to irritate him too much if his countermeasures would prove futile.

    Norbert''s body twitched¡­ but the man didn''t reply.

    "Are you any better now?" Mathew then asked a proper question, albeit in a low voice.

    Norbert still kept his mouth shut. Thankfully, though, his body unveiled itself a little only for the man to reluctantly nod his head.

    Only to then change his mind and rapidly shake it in denial.

    "It''s good that you can listen to me, though, so listen," Mathew said, deciding to take this opportunity to convey their findings to the man in question. "It appears that you got what you wanted," Mathew muttered while turning his eyes away. "Whatever you see and hear right now¡­" the young man hesitated a little, "is likely just an effect of your abilities growing a bit too fast for you to control them."

 Chapter 359 Carols Idea

    "I can''t control them!" Norbert screamed out.

    His voice was filled withplete and utter despair, one that could only be born in the guts of a man who truly lost something important.

    "Talk to me, Nor¡­"

    "SHUT UP!" Norbert screamed out before Mathew could even finish a single sentence.

    ''What the hell is going on?'' Mathew backed out a few steps, taken off-guard by Norbert''s reaction. ''Did he go mad? Or was he injured?'' He quickly ran through all the most obvious options.

    But, thanks to the monster''s blood being blue, Mathew could tell Norbert didn''t really suffer any sort of injury. At least, not a visible one that would open up his skin and cause him to bleed.

    Because while his body was covered in blood, all of it was blue and quickly turning stale!

    ''Did the shockwave damage his internals?'' Mathew tried to figure the situation out again. ''Maybe it popped his eardrums? Fucked up his eyes?'' he then attempted to use what little he could understand from Norbert''s desperate screaming.

    Tug.

    Mathew turned his head to see Carol pull at his sleeve while pointing with her other hand behind her.

    The meaning was fairly obvious.

    Mathew turned his eyes to the rest of the group, nodding his head to each and everyst one of his girls to signal them to withdraw a few steps.

    "Do you have any idea?" Mathew asked only when they got out of the immediate range of Norbert''s hearing.

    "Before I will answer that, one question to the four of you as you are more sensitive towards it," Carol whispered, keeping her voice low even despite all the distance that separated them from Norbert. She then turned halfway around and pointed her hand at the steaming corpse of the lobster-like monster.

    "I remember you muttering something about it being a waste, back at Peter''s base," Carol stated as she dropped her hand. "I believe it was about how killing the zombies with firearms is a waste because you do not get the experience that allows you to level up, am I right?"

    Mathew raised his eyebrows a little.

    ''Did I ever talk about this with her?'' he thought, scouring his memory to find an appropriate memory. Yet, no matter how hard he searched, Mathew couldn''t find a thing.

    The young man turned his eyes towards the rest of his real wives, only to be met with exactly the same face of confusion that he was making.

    ''Did she figure it out all on her own?'' Mathew then thought, turning his eyes back towards the girl.

    "Oh,e on!" Carol then protested, only to then rapidly raise her hands to her mouth when she realized she raised her voice.

    The girl cast a quick nce towards Norbert, checking whether her slightly louder shout brought even more pain to her step-brother.

    "I might not be as strong or as sensitive to mana as you guys are," Carol then whispered from behind her fingers. "But I could still tell," she imed while rolling her eyes. "And when I noticed your reaction to it, I was quite sure."

    Mathew shook his head.

    "Okay, I understand," he said, stopping his head just in time to cast a look right at Carol''s face. "But what''s exactly your point?"<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Can you sense the energy to level up from that corpse?" Carol asked in a low voice while pointing her hand at the monster''s carcass again.

    Mathew turned his eyes towards the steaming pile of blue blood and white insides of the lobster-like monster. He took some time to properly observe it before releasing a deep sigh.

    "Yeah," he said, turning his eyes back towards the girl. "I think I can finally see your point."

    There was no leftover energy within that monster''s corpse. And by following the rule of every game possible, the majority of the experience point from a fight would either be distributed across the entire party, a feature that Mathew had yet to find in the real world or would mostly go to the one who dealt thest, killing blow.

    ''And in this case, that would make Norbert,'' Mathew thought, turning his eyes towards the broken man a few feet away from them.

    "I think he isn''t crazy nor injured," Carol then whispered, mostly to keep her stepbrother from hearing her voice rather than trying to keep the news to as few ears as possible. "He simply received so much experience fromst hitting that monster his levels skyrocketed," Carol finally exined the crux of her idea.

    She then heaved a short sigh and shrugged her shoulders.

    "His level grew and so did his abilities. But as it wasn''t a gradual process, he simply isn''t used to the change yet," Carol stated before spreading her arms out and then shaking them.

    "That¡­" Mathew hesitated only for a second. He then heaved a sigh on his own. "That makes quite a lot of sense," he admitted in a low voice before reaching out toward the bottom of his shirt and tearing away a rtively clean part of it.

    Mathew moved forward, approaching Norbert again. He held the piece of rtively clean clothing in front of himself with both of his hands, hoping Norbert would somehow spot him and understand his intentions even if he didn''t open his mouth.

    After all, trying to exin things to the former officer while he would freak out at hearing even the tiniest sound didn''t seem like the smartest idea.

    ''Just like that,'' Mathew thought, leaning over Norbert''s curled-up body while covering his eyes with the cloth. He then wrapped it a few times around his head, making sure not a single photon could reach his eyes.

    ''First part done,'' Mathew thought once he finished wrapping the cloth on Norbert''s face. He then took a few steps back before tearing another piece of material from his shirt.

    This time, however, he didn''t approach Norbert directly. Instead, he took his time to split the cloth into three parts, two small squares, and a long strip.

    Mathew filled the squares with a bit of earth he dug out with his hand from the side of the road. Then, he moved back to Norbert, pressing one of the earth-cloth pockets to his ear before using the long strip of cloth to secure it in ce, over Norbert''s ear.

    Mathew then repeated the whole process for the officer''s other ear before taking two steps back and taking in some air.

    ''Well, here goes nothing,'' Mahtew thought, gulping down his saliva. "Norbert¡­" he started with just the man''s name, hoping not to irritate him too much if his countermeasures would prove futile.

    Norbert''s body twitched¡­ but the man didn''t reply.

    "Are you any better now?" Mathew then asked a proper question, albeit in a low voice.

    Norbert still kept his mouth shut. Thankfully, though, his body unveiled itself a little only for the man to reluctantly nod his head.

    Only to then change his mind and rapidly shake it in denial.

    "It''s good that you can listen to me, though, so listen," Mathew said, deciding to take this opportunity to convey their findings to the man in question. "It appears that you got what you wanted," Mathew muttered while turning his eyes away. "Whatever you see and hear right now¡­" the young man hesitated a little, "is likely just an effect of your abilities growing a bit too fast for you to control them."

 Chapter 360 Problematic Corpse

    "Whatever you see and hear right now is likely just an effect of your abilities growing a bit too fast for you to control them," Mathew said before turning his eyes to the side and swallowing all sorts of other things that he felt tempted to speak about.

    ''There is no need to bother him with all my doubts,'' he thought, forcing his mouth to close up rather than bombarding the officer with his questions.

    Why did people back at Peter''s base failed to get any experience from the zombies they killed with their firearms? Was it because they didn''t have a system in contrast to Norbert? Or maybe there was something else?

    Mathew shook his head.

    ''There will be a lot of time to think about itter,'' Mathew thought as he gulped his saliva and shook his head. He then turned around and took a look at the monster''s corpse. ''For now, though, we should look for a way to get rid of it all.''

    Just like was the case with the zombie corpses, leaving a monster''s carcass to just lie around would pose a massive sanitary risk. And while it was possible to just mark out the entire area around the corpse as a no-go zone for the people within their group¡­

    What would happen if another group of people came? What would happen if a need arose for Mathew''s people to reim this area?

    ''And we still don''t know what will happen if zombies or animals feast on it, even if the corpse no longer holds the experience type of energy¡­'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes.

    The young man then took a full, deep breath before opening his eyes again.

    "Are you any better?" Mathew then asked silently, opting to focus on the problem before him rather than the problem he saw no solution for.

    "I¡­ I think so," Norbert replied in a hesitant voice.

    Still, this kind of answer was already better than no answer at all or some crazed mumbling he performed before.

    "Don''t worry, we are not moving yet," Mathew said with a gentle sigh. "So you can take your time to get used to this new situation. And in the meantime¡­" Mathew changed his normal, talking voice to mutter as he turned away from Norbert and started making his way toward the rest of the group.

    "How is he?" Carol asked before anyone else, clearly worried about the state of her step-brother.

    "Not great, not terrible," Mathew replied while shaking his head. "He needs some time so let''s let him rest," he then suggested before turning his eyes away from the girls and then to the sky.

    It was still as dark as it could be. Without any of the city lights, only Mathew''s stats allowed him to peer through the veil of darkness. And yet¡­ It was only a small hint, but Mathew could tell in some time, the sun would start to raise.

    ''Is this an instinct or something?'' Mathew thought, sparing only a short thought on the topic before moving his eyes back to the one thing he didn''t really want to think about.

    The corpse of the lobster-like monster.

    "If only we could eat it¡­" Mathew sighed before taking a step forward.

    "What''s the problem?" Nadia asked, finally noticing the signs of Mathew''s anxiety.

    "This," Mathew nodded his chin forward. "We have to do something about the corpse before it starts rotting," he exined.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "It''s still pretty far from the areas we control, though?" Nadia replied while turning her head over to the side and resting her hands on her hips.

    For a moment, she simply stared at  Mathew''s face with a confused expression on her own.

    Nadia then rolled her eyes before taking three steps forward, turning around, and bringing her hands on top of Mathew''s shoulders.

    "Matty, listen," she started with a whisper while staring directly into his eyes. "There are likely thousands of corpses littered all over this city, not to even think about the rest of the world."

    A moment of silence allowed the young man to slowly digest the girl''s words.

    "What do you want to say?" Mathew asked with a light sigh.

    "Just leave it be," Nadia said without even a second of hesitation. She then heaved a sigh of her own. "Listen, there is no way for us to clean it all up on our own. And if we were to bring enough manpower, then it would turn pretty damn hard to protect them all."

    Nadia shut her mouth and closed her eyes. She then took a few deep breaths as she forced herself to calm down.

    "You can''t fix the entire world, dear," she said, staring right into Mathew''s eyes. "You can''t fix all the problems. So, rather than troubling yourself with what you can''t do, you should focus on what you actually can."

    Mathew didn''t avert his eyes. He stared right into Nadia''s eyes, taking his time to think her words through.

    ''It''s true that this area is still a bit away from all of our camps. So even if raising a settlement was to turn all the areas between them into our zone of control, it still shouldn''t be that much of a problem¡­''

    Mathew took in a deep breath.

    "Well then, we can''t do everything there is to do, right?" he muttered, finally giving up on the idea of cleaning up the monster''s corpse. "Still, make sure to find its core," Mathew said as he brought his own hands up, grabbed Nadia''s arms, and removed them from his shoulders. "This fight was way too damn hard to give up on the loot, especially, given how we need all the cores we can get right now."

    "That''s more like it," Nadia muttered, freely allowing Mathew to move her hands away while putting a smile on her face.

    "What?" Mathew raised his eyebrow, confused by the sudden shift in the girl''s words.

    ''What''s more like it? This kind ofment¡­ how does it connect to what we were talking about just now?''

    "I''m just d to see the true you back," Nadia grinned before taking a step back and taking a look to the side at the rest of their group. "But as much as I would love to keep going¡­" she whispered, turning her eyes back towards Mathew''s face before pretending to struggle to get her arms out of his grasp, "but it''s not my turn tonight," Nadia said only for her face to sour a little.

    Then, she raised her eyes only to wrestle her wrists free from Mathew''s hands.

    "And you need to make sure to reward all of us properly, don''t you?"

 Chapter 361 Reasons Behind Mathews Rush

    "Ugh, disgusting¡­" Daria muttered while she moved her hand around the white and blue insides of the monster''s corpse.

    Her entire body twitched over and over again, proving just how much she hated her job.

    "I''m sorry for making you do this," Mathew apologized in a weak voice, still trying to recover from the exhaustion of the fight.

    He could walk, stand up or maybe even run around¡­ but doing so even for a few seconds would be enough to sap most of his strength. As such, by the decision of all of his girls, he had no other choice but to sit tight while the girls got down and dirty in their attempt to recover the monster''s core.

    "I won''t be the one to dig the core up whenever we hunt another big-ass monster like this," Dariained under her nose. And yet, despite all of herining, she continued to dig with her hand around the steaming-hot insides of the lobster''s white flesh.

    "Stop whining," Le replied to her friend. "You lost fair and square so just get this core and get this thing over with!"

    Le simply standing near the corpse forced her to grab the upper part of her skirt and raise it to cover her nose with the cloth, unable to bear the stench of the quickly rotting mess.

    ''Now that I look at it, we couldn''t dispose of it even if we tried our best,'' Mathew thought, feeling a sense of inner relief.

    Seeing how quickly the monster''s flesh was deteriorating, he could im it wasn''t him deciding not to do anything about it. It was all the monster''s fault for dposing too quickly for his group to do anything about it!

    "I know I lost, you don''t need to rub it in my face now," Daria bickered back, only for her face to suddenly tense.

    The movements of her body stopped when she put all of her focus on the sensation below her fingers. And then, a small smile appeared on her lips in spite of her standing right on top of a steaming pile of stinking, rotting flesh.

    "I think I''ve got it!" Daria called out, burying her hand even deeper into the white flesh. She thentched her fingers against something before grabbing the backside of her arm with her other hand and pulling back with all the might of her body.

    Whatever Daria found inside the monster clearly didn''t support her efforts to extract it. She fixed the position of her feet, locking them against the monster''s shell and one of the bones inside its body. Then, she repeated her attempts at pulling the core out¡­

    Only for her arm to move up by a mere inch.

    "Le, I''m sorry to ask this, but could you go and help her?" Mathew requested.

    In theory, all Daria needed to do was to transform into her shadowy form to extract the core not only with ease but also without getting herself all dirty with the monster''s blue blood.

    Sadly, by allowing Daria to act out in her shadowy form, they would risk her consuming the core. It was something that the girl was still learning to control. And while she would obviously get far stronger by consuming the essence of that massive monster''s strength¡­

    Right now, their group had better use for the value hidden within the monster''s core.

    "I think¡­ I''ve got it now!" Daria muttered before squeezing thest bit out of her muscles¡­

    Snap.

    Whatever held the core within the monster''s flesh reached the limit of its endurance. And the second Daria''s pull went beyond that limit, the flesh simply gave up, allowing her to finally pull the core out of the corpse.

    "Woah!" Daria then cried out in surprise when she failed to stop her backward momentum, falling right down on her ass and smearing her still rtively clean clothes with blood and filth of the rotting flesh.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Ugh¡­" Daria let out a moan of disgust as she took a nce at the massive crystal in her hand.

    It was at least four times as big as the biggest core Mathew saw before. And the shine within was on a whole different level too.

    Still, the strands of thickened blue blood and strips of white flesh that was attached to the core made it look pretty damn disgusting!

    "Good job!" Mathew called out, hoping to encourage the girl as much as he could from the safe distance where the awful stench of the rotting corpse didn''t reach.

    "I wonder how much it will be worth¡­" Daria muttered, staring right at the core for a second before shrugging her shoulders and raising back up to her feet. She then took a short leap, jumping down from the top of the monster''s biggest wound and dropping to the ground. "Now then, shall we be on our way? I really want to go and take a shower."

    "Are you ready?" Nadia, who observed the entire situation from Mathew''s side, turned her face to her partner. She also reached out with her hand, offering to help him stand up.

    "Yeah," Mathew raised his eyes towards the sky while epting the girl''s hand.

    The first rays of the morning sun cut through the horizon, announcing the nearing end of the current night.

    "Here," Daria approached Mathew before stuffing the core into his hand the second he managed to get on his feet. "Do you think we will have enough by now?" she then asked, clearly d to get rid of the disgusting piece from her hands.

    "Honestly, I have no idea," Mathew replied while taking a closer look at the massive core in his hand.

    It was huge¡­ but pretty light. Sadly, up close, it was even more disgusting than when Mathew could only see it from far away.

    "At least, I don''t think we will be that far off," he then added before covering the core with a piece of cloth that Le scavenged from one of the buildings nearby.

    "Worst case scenario, we can just sell our weapons," Nadia suggested with a shrug of her shoulders. "Weren''t they worth five hundred each?" she asked, bringing back the small detail Mathew shared somewhere along the line. "We used them to kill quite a few zombies, so their price should, at the very least, double by now."

    "The idea in itself is not wrong," Mathew signed while busying his hands with attaching the simple package with the huge core to his belt before raising his eyes to Nadia''s face. "But don''t forget that establishing the settlement is just the first step."

    All the way up until very recently, going beyond the level of the fortress was the ultimate goal of the group. And yet, the second they started to near theirpletion, Mathew''s thinking started to change.

    The reason why he was so anxious to establish the fortress wasn''t only about keeping the stronger zombies at bay. Sure, it was an added and great benefit that brought rtive safety to all those within the settlement''s range¡­

    But no, there used to be one more major reason that now turned into three more reasons that Mathew had for rushing the settlement.

    The upgrades to the already existing fortresses required the presence of the settlement to work!

    ''With that, we should be able to start some production, allowing us to shift from a group centered around hunters to a party making use of the nonbatants,'' he thought, wrapping his clean arm around Nadia''s shoulders before making the first step back towards the school base.

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    ''And as long as we manage to abuse that productiveness mechanics, it will be possible to buy as many systems as I need to turn everyst member of our group into an able fighter!''

 Chapter 362 Fishing Out The Cores

    "Finally home," Daria muttered, holding her hands as far away as she could from her body.

    She was still covered in the lobster''s guts, trying her hardest with every step to ignore the disgusting matter all over her clothes.

    "Go get yourself cleaned up," Mathew muttered, before reaching out and patting Daria''s shoulder. "You did well," he added before gently pushing the girl forward, through the current entrance to the school''s base.

    "You don''t need to wait for the next step," Daria said as she went on ahead, raising her hand as she left, "I''m going to take a long while to clean it all off."

    "Sure thing," Mathew replied, waving his hand at the girl before proceeding into the school.

    ''I''m not clean myself,'' he thought, looking down at the state of his clothes, ''but I should manage, for now at least," he thought.

    It felt disgusting to rub his flesh about the parts of his clothes that soaked into the monster''s blue blood. And yet, with the perspective of finally taking the next step that he envisioned for so long, Mathew couldn''t care less about small details like that.

    "I''m going to look into establishing the settlement right away," Mathew announced once Daria disappeared from their view as she was heading off towards a different part of thepound than the rest of the group.

    "I will go with you," Nadia decided right away.

    "So will I," Le joined in as well, taking a step closer to Mathew''s side.

    "Oh right, I''m sorry," Mathew turned towards his left, casting a quick look at Le''s face. "We were supposed to spend the night," the young man brought up the topic when he felt the warm rays of sun shining upon his back.

    The light prated through various gaps in the building, filling the insides with a warm aura.

    ''We sure are lucky it''s not winter,'' Mathew suddenly thought, startled by the suddenness of this realization.

    "It''s okay," Le muttered silently while hanging her face a little bit. "It''s not like you can choose when a horde will attack," she added, trying to y the question off with a carefree attitude.

    "I will be sure to make it up to you, I promise," Mathew then said while resting his hand on the girl''s shoulder.

    "Thanks," Le sighed. Then, she brought her hand up and removed Mathew''s fingers from her shoulder. "But let''s leave that forter," she decided, focusing her eyes on the entrance to the detached office by the school.

    Just like Mathew established the school fortress at the administrative merchant, he was now hoping to repeat the process but this time, with a settlement instead.

    "First, let''s gather our cores," Mathew muttered once his group reached the merchant''s location.

    "We will go look for all the stashed cores," Carol reported, grabbing Norbert''s arm and pulling him away.

    "Much appreciated," Mathew thanked the two before turning his attention and hand towards the merchant.

    After the usual scene of the shadows taking over reality, Mathew found himself within the merchant''s subspace yet again.

    ''I wonder how it will change after the level-up,'' Mathew thought as he stepped between the shelves, heading straight for the central point of the subspace.

    Mathew wasted no time checking the wares on the shelves. He didn''te to the merchants to shop around, after all.

    ''First, the cores from the storage,'' Mathew thought, reaching out for the window and pulling out a massive crystal shining with a vibrant light.<novelnext></novelnext>

    The crystal was the size of four Mathew''s heads stacked on top of each other and its shine alone threatened to disperse the shadows of the merchant''s realm.

    ''Roughly thirteen thousand,'' Mathew thought, taking a nce at his system to check for the exact number.

    Mathew ced the massive crystal back into the storage before pulling out the sack with the core of the lobster-like monster his group defeated.

    ''I wonder how much is it worth,'' Mathew thought, passing the crystal into his storage as well.

    The number disyed by his system jumped up by over two thousand.

    ''We are still ways off,'' Mathew thought, biting down at his lip.

    Farming more cores didn''t pose that much of a problem. As long as they intercepted a few hordes on the bigger end, Mathew''s group could easily reach the number of cores necessary to establish the settlement.

    But Mathew wanted to do it now. Not sometime in the future, not in a week. Now.

    And he still had quite a lot of room to maneuver.

    First, Mathew brought up the sack with all the other cores his group gathered during the hunt. He then added up the cores he left in the storage at Daniel''s fortress.

    Then, Theo quickly checked the value of his saber.

    As expected, its prize went up by a huge margin, courtesy of extensively using it on a high-level horde.

    Sadly, even with its increased price, Theo couldn''t count on selling his weapons alone.

    ''My saber went up to two thousand,'' Mathew quickly did the math. ''Adding all the others and deducting the cost of buying a new set¡­''

    Mathew closed his eyes as he quickly ran the numbers.

    ''Now, add the spread from the potentially different value for each weapon¡­'' the young man did thest adjustments¡­

    Only to find out, that between everyst core that he coulde up with, he would still be four hundred cores worth.

    Thirteen thousand cores in the bank. Two more for the monster''s core. Then seven more for exchanging the weapons. Then came nine thousand from the cores Mathew cashed out and a further twelve thousand from what Daniel entrusted him with. Adding thest six and a half thousand worth of cores that they gathered from the battle at Peter''s base¡­

    And no matter how hard and creatively Mathew counted, they still came half a thousand short!

    ''Shit¡­'' Mathew cursed under his breath before throwing all of the cores he had on himself into the storage. ''I need to exchange weapons¡­'' he thought as he emerged back into reality, instantly falling into a daze. ''And thene up with a few hundred cores more¡­''

    Mathew''s wait and distress didn''tst for long, though. Before he could fully even fathom the difficulty of the problem given how there were no zombies to be found anywhere near, Carol returned with a happy look on her face.

    "I''ve found two thousand cores more," she announced while raising and shaking a huge pouch in her hand. "Will that be of any help?"

 Chapter 363 Outside Interference

    "Will that be of any help?" Carol asked with a small smile as she presented a sizeable bag to Mathew.

    "Any help?" Mathew muttered, hesitating for but a second before reaching for the loot and raising his eyes to the girl''s face.

    For a single moment, he managed to see past Carol''s history which made him somewhat disregard her. In Mathew''s eyes, she wasn''t as important as the main trio of his wives. But in this one instant, she appeared to be a hero he needed but didn''t deserve.

    "I was half a thousand short to go through with the settlement," Mathew muttered as he weighed the bag in his hand. "With those two thousand, we have enough."

    For a short moment prior to Carol''s return, Mathew went into a state of borderline panic, as gaining more cores was easily possible¡­ only in theory.

    In practice, though, he was out of options.

    There was nothing left of value within the school that he could sell and that the residents of the school wouldn''t miss. There were no zombies anywhere near that would allow him to farm up the missing cores. And judging by the state of the city that he saw while traveling on his recent adventure, they would have to move for quite a distance before encounteringmon zombies again.

    All in all, solving the problem of missing five hundred cores was extremely easy¡­ as long as one didn''t mind spending at least an entire day''s worth of effort.

    And with the fulfillment of his long-standing wish right at the end of his fingers, Mathew could tell he had no patience of this kind left in himself.

    "I''m d I could be of help, then," Carol smiled before resting her hands on her hips and slightly lowering her head, taking on a cheeky but smiling expression. "Now then, are you going to do it?"

    Mathew shook his head.

    He was still struggling to get over the dissonance created by the sudden bout of desperation and the equally sudden end to this headache. These rapid changes in the situation confused him, making it harder for the young man to keep processing the reality around him.

    Thankfully, Carol''s words snapped Mathew out of his daze, allowing him to refocus his attention on the only thing that mattered at the moment.

    "Yeah," Mathew nodded his head before turning around and reaching for the shadows hiding underneath the merchant''s hood. "I''m going to do it right away!"

    Mathew ignored the question of what exactly Carol meant by doing it that shed through his mind. Judging by the context, she likely referred to the thing he was interested in himself.

    And on the off-chance that Carol sought a physical reward for solving Mathew''s major headache or even just doing her job of collecting all the spare cores left around the school¡­

    Mathew simply decided that he would think and then take care of itter.

    The young man reached for the shadows and allowed their surge to separate him from reality. From there, he followed the standard procedure of approaching the center of importance within the merchant''s subspace before throwing all of the cores Carol gathered into the storage.

    ''Neen hundred and fifty-seven, huh?'' Mathew thought as he watched the numbers change on his system. His lips then quivered a little, turning into a small, proud smile. ''She was nearly on the spot with the count.''

    Once again, Mathew was faced with a reality where the girl who led her life in a way that made it extremely easy to judge her¡­ proved that she didn''t exactly fit the frame she painted for herself.

    And just from how she could estimate the number of cores in the bag so closely, Mathew couldn''t help but feel a sense of admiration grow in his heart towards his fourth wife.

    ''No, stop!'' Mathew then froze before grabbing the edge of a nearby shelf and squeezing it tightly. ''I already have my hips full with three of them. I won''t handle another girl,'' he thought.

    Mathew''s face froze. Not because of the internal drama that he was going through, though.

    No, the problem of having more girls vying for his attention than he could handle was a topic he had to think through¡­ But its appearance wasn''t sparked by anything Mathew could fathom.

    It was thought as disturbing as it was serious¡­ but ultimately, it came out of nowhere.

    ''As if it wasn''t my brain featuring this problem,'' Mathew thought, steeling his face to stop any and all emotions from showing on it. ''As if¡­ this thought came from an outside party¡­''

    The young man fought off the desire to look around that exploded in his mind. He suppressed the natural instinct that nearly forced him to assess the situation so that an appropriate response of the fight or flight mechanism could kick in.

    ''But wait, what could be their aim?'' Mathew asked himself.

    He decided against trying to uncover who was messing with his head. Outside of their connection to this entire apocalypse, he had no clues that allowed him to figure out the other party''s identity.

    As such, rather than wasting time over questions he couldn''t answer, he focused on the things that he could achieve.<novelnext></novelnext>

    ''This single thought pulled my attention away from my actual goal here,'' Mathew thought while still acting as if he struggled with Carol''s position within the ranks of his group.

    ''And that means¡­''

    Mathew moved all at once. He reached behind his back only to pull out all the cores from his storage before dumping them all on the merchant''s altar.

    "I wish to establish a settlement here!" he then shouted, before whoever was interfering with his situation could have any time to react!

    [Congrattions on establishing your first settlement!]

    A new line appeared in Mathew''s system.

    [As the seventh survivor globally to achieve this feat, you will receive a ceholder gift package!]

    Mathew only had to wait for the second line to appear in his system for the entire thing to start showing cracks.

    And the first crack that came to his eyes just happened to prove that the details of his system weren''t created automatically¡­ but were actually handcrafted!

    [Unlocking options locked behind the settlement requirement.]

    The third line went back to a proper, professional form without any clues that could give away its origin.

    [Unlocking area-specific rewards requires the host to fulfill the following criteria:

    - Fortress construction: Level 3

    - Fortress development: Combined level 3

    - Further requirements are area-specific]

    [Main Area Reward Requirements:

    - No zombies present within a kilometer range away from the fortress

    - At least fifty residents

    - Ohe on, what else can I put in here?! Do you think¡­]

    Thest part of the message Mathew managed only to nce through before it disappeared. But that fraction of a second during which it changed was long enough for Mathew to notice it.

    [Main Area Reward Requirements:

    - Calcting, please hold]

    Mathew simply stood in ce, staring at the letters that made up words and then sentences within his system.

    He blinked his eyes once and then twice.

    ''Did I see it right?'' Mathew asked himself while doing his utmost to keep his expression straight. ''No, that''s not the point. Since they deleted it the second it appeared¡­''

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    ''I need to make sure they think I didn''t see it!''

    Mathew released his breath. The time he could buy with random actions ended. And so, he opened his mouth and whined.

    "Just hold long am I supposed to hold?!"

 Chapter 364 Alices Miscalculation

    *Five minutes earlier*

    "This doesn''t make any real sense¡­" Alice muttered while furiously tapping her fingers against the floating hologram of a keyboard.

    She had her eyes glued to the holoscreen floating roughly a meter away from her face and surrounding roughly eighty percent of her entire vision span.

    Alice''s fingers stopped. She locked a certain set of data on the screen before raising her thumb to her mouth and chewing on its fingernail.

    ''So cute,'' Castor thought from the back of the ship.

    Despite gaining the grace of the auditor, he decided against changing his sanctuary for a newer, bigger ship. He was too used to this small piece of junk that he called home for more than three consecutive missions.

    Alice, at first, wasn''t all too pleased with the idea of staying on such a piece of wreckage welded together to form the tiniest sanctuary the procedures allowed. And yet, after only a few days, she grew not only used but also attached to the tiny insides of the ship.

    Sure, it felt ustrophobic at times, but there were some perks to the tiny interior of Castor''s sanctuary. And one of them was how he could be busy preparing a meal for the two of them without losing any of the adorable sights of Alice''s small actions as she worked on the system bestowed upon the below them.

    "Still trying to crack that casket open?" Castor asked, leaning forward to catch a nce at the content on Alice''s screens.

    Ever since she came on board, she instantly went on to work on the mess left behind by Catlea.

    Just fixing the system to the point she could actually do some proper work took her half the day. And half a day''s worth of work of someone positioned so damn high in the fleet''s hierarchy was worth quite a bit more than an entire month of the grind of your average system operator.

    Still, she nailed it. In slightly less than half of a single cycle of the revolving around its own axis, she cleared out most of the unnecessary and simply abundant procedures, finally reaching the system''s core.

    And that''s where Alice, one of the few coding aces of the fleet, ended up stuck.

    Save for some makeshift patches she pped on the most critical points of the system evolution, she spend every free moment she had since in pretty much futile attempts at making any sense of the core of the system.

    "I''m not one to give up so easily," Alice replied with the thumb still in her mouth and her eyes glued to the screen.

    After his quick nce, Castor didn''t even bother trying to understand the huge arrays of numbers andmands present on the girl''s screen. Just seeing her struggle to understand it was enough for the man to know he couldn''t figure it out himself even if he were to spend the rest of his life working on it.

    ''It''s curious how Catlea managed to mess this up so damn hard even Alice struggles to resolve it,'' Castor thought, adding two units of spice to the automatic kettle beforeunching the program specified within the integrated recipe.

    "I don''t mean to tell you what to do, but don''t you need to take a look at that case of ours?" Castor asked, unable to hold back his worries.

    The specific case he had in mind was rted to the one guy that managed to make the most out of how messy the core system was. And from thest report he checked, he was pretty damn close to the next step of the system evolution, something that Alice only hurriedly patched to hide how this entire part of the system¡­ has yet to be properly developed!

    "Worst case scenario I will just scramble the lower levels tobine a next one," Alice replied, minding not the slight rudeness behind Castor''s question.

    He was the owner of the ship they were in and the person in charge of the evolution of the civilization on the below¡­ But in terms of expertise, he wasn''t even an ant whenpared to the horsepower Alice packed in her brain.

    "Again, I don''t want to order you around, but¡­"

    A loud, beeping noise cut Castor''s sentence short.<novelnext></novelnext>

    A secondter, a message in red shed on the right side of Alice''s holoscreen.

    [User-set rm]

    [Agent is about to open up the undeveloped part of the system]

    The message was short. But its timing couldn''t be worse.

    ''Damn,'' Castor held back his breath. ''I only wanted for her to make sure this wouldn''t happen¡­''

    Castor bit down his lips so hard he tore through the outeryer of the polymer that covered them.

    A tiny bit of blue blood oozed out of his lip, instantly covering the full extent of the wound and allowing the nanites within the blood to patch the injury up.

    "It looks like you were right," Alice said with a sigh before waving her hand to the side and putting all of her ongoing work aside.

    The alert itself was set to appear whenever someone would near thepletion of the second stage. And up to this point, it shed twice.

    In thest two instances, Alice managed to solve the situation by coding down the entire extent of the next phase for the sessful agents in a mere moment.

    This time, however, the second the status of the situation appeared on her holoscreen, the girl froze.

    "Are you for fucking real?" Alice muttered as her eyes opened up wide.

    This was the first time for Castor to see the girl so agitated to let her emotions show on her face¡­ or to actually utter a curse out loud!

    ''It''s those guys,'' Castor thought. Just a single look at the mess that appeared on the girl''s screens instead of a few neat lines of the core information about the agents sufficed to prove his thought correct.

    After all, out of all the problematic agents Alice''s private scanning software detected, only the case Castor was worried about could produce such a mess of a report.

    At least two thousand different points of origin converged to give birth to the natural evolution of the system which that specific agent used. A far cry from the original ten to twelve that all the other agents could ess. A result that could onlye to be due to that particr''s agent lucking out and interfering with the damn time continuum!

    And now, Alice had to figure out all the most important details from this mess before hurrying it up to develop a next phase that would somehow make any sense!

    "I''m sorry, I really should''ve taken a look into it earlier," Alice muttered right as her fingers moved towards the keyboard once more before she started to furiously type new lines of code.

    ''Huh?'' Castor''s face twitched.

    His memory about his former partner was all fuzzy, obstructed by the blockers that made great work on his memory. And while he couldn''t recall any specific events, there was one thing he was damn sure of.

    This wasn''t how this situation would y out in the past.

 Chapter 365 "He Noticed"

    This wasn''t how the situation would y out in the past.

    Castor''s blood was still full of the highest-quality neuroblockers that the fleet had ess to. Their density decreased over the past few days, but he was still barred from essing the details of his memories that led up to the events that took ce on the auditor''s ship.

    Castor could recall why he went there. He remembered what was talked about out there and how it all came to Aliceing to his tiny ship and offering her insane talents to support him.

    He could understand all of that. Yet, when it came to a specific part of his memories, the neuroblockers buzzing in his blood showed their full potential.

    The selectiveness of cutting his memory proved the insane quality of the blockers. Cheaper alternatives would be hardly any different than having his head struck by a hammer in the oldest method of stealing one''s memories.

    And yet, despite how gently those blockers worked, when it came to what they were actually supposed to erase, they did a job so great that no matter how much Castor strained his mind, he couldn''t get past their blockade.

    ''I know I shouldn''t even try to uncover what memories I lost¡­ but it''s like this damn itch,'' Castor thought, momentarily distracted away from the matter at hand.

    Thankfully, the annoying ringing of the rm wasn''t something that would allow his thoughts to wander for long.

    "Don''t worry about it," Castor muttered, shaking his head to get rid of all the thoughts rted to the blocking procedure he went through back at the auditor''s ship.

    ''Back in the past, this situation would y out differently,'' Castor thought once he became aware he couldn''t just ignore his own, inner thoughts. Or rather, while he could strain his mind to do so, it would only increase the massive itch he already felt at the back of his soul. ''But it''s not something that matters now,'' Castor then decided, taking a deep breath before turning his eyes towards the data on Alice''s screens. ''Right now, only what''s before my very eyes matters.''

    Castor didn''t get to fully resolve the inner turmoil in his heart. It wasn''t something that could go away by filing oneself with determination or by focusing on an important task.

    Castor didn''t recover from the turmoil in his soul, but at least for the current moment, he put it all aside.

    "How bad is it?" Castor asked once he managed to somehow sort his current internal state, giving himself a mind clear enough to focus on the topic at hand.

    "Right now, it looks like we might just luck out a little," Alice reported while furiously tapping her fingers against the floating hologram of the keyboard right below her wrists.

    Castor couldn''t understand a thing of what she was writing, but the speed at which she constructed the code was so damn insane even aplete amateur like him ended up awe-struck by it.

    "They are missing just a bit more than a single damn percent of what I set the cost of the third evolution to be," Alice gave the details Castor asked for while managing three other tasks on her side screens and keeping tabs on the events on the main holo-disy.

    "Then there should be no reason to be in such a hurry, right?" Castor pointed out.

    He only knew some basic stuff about coding¡­ but he didn''t need to be an expert to connect the dots.

    Drops of sweat trickled down Alice''s forehead even though the venttion was one of the only elements of the ship that Castor was quite happy with. Her fingers moved at a speed that went several grades above what a fully flesh human could ever achieve, nearing the perfection only a machine could achieve.

    Castor didn''t know two things about coding, but he could tell that the girl was in the greatest hurry she could be!<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "You told me a few times it might happen," Alice muttered.

    Her fingers slowed down by the tiniest margin. Her face twisted a little as a look of self-oriented anger and disappointment shed in her eyes.

    "I''m not going to ck or lose my focus now that the world itself proved my former attitude wrong," she said before slightly shaking her head and putting her entire focus back on the job.

    "Didn''t you need to solve the problem with the system before you could even attempt to develop a proper third evolution?" Castor pointed out something that made sense through the context of one of the few discussions they had since the girl arrived on the ship.

    Alice''s fingers stopped. She then slowly turned her head to the side, all the way to the point when Castor could see the full profile of her face. The corner of the girl''s lip rose. She then gave Castor a quick wink.

    "I''m winging it," she revealed with her small smirk turning into an open smile.

    ''Ah, that''s right,'' Castor thought, taken slightly aback by the girl''s rtively carefree attitude.

    The second she replied to Castor, Alice moved right back to her task, once again molesting the projection of the keyboard with the furious attacks of her nimble fingers.

    ''Back then¡­''

    "Shit!" Alice cursed out loud. A behavior unfit for the rank she held in the fleet.

    ''What?'' Castor nearly jumped, taken aback by the girl''s cursing.

    Alice''s freezested for but a second, only for her fingers to dance over the keys even faster than before.

    ''I shouldn''t distract her right now,'' Castor decided, watching from the back of his ship how the girl fought against the time to finish what she put aside for all this time.

    Then, for but a fraction of a second, the girl froze¡­ before mming her hand hard against the projection of the backspace key.

    Alice froze yet again. This time, however, not for a fraction of a second.

    This time, Alice froze for three entire seconds.

    And then, at an extremely rxed rate, she typed a few words into the system before pulling her levi-chair''s backrest to the back.

    "I''ve fucked up," Alice muttered as she stared nkly at her screens. Then, she turned her head around and looked at Castor with a look of terror behind her eyes. "He noticed."

 Chapter 366 Castors Decision

    ?

    "He noticed."

    Just two words formed one of the shortest sentences possible. Two words that held a simple meaning, carried a piece of straightforward information.

    Two words shouldn''t be all that hard to stomach. And yet, those two words pictured one of the few worst scenarios possible that Castor and Alice could experience.

    "Shit¡­" Alice muttered, turning her eyes away from Castor''s face and sinking deeper into her levi-chair. She lowered her eyes before hiding her face in her hands. "I''m sorry, I really am¡­"

    "Stop it," Castor cut the girl''s whimpering short. "There is no time to whine now," he announced before taking a deep breath and raising his face.

    For but a second, Castor closed his eyes and held his breath. A few seconds passed.

    "Haaa¡­." Castor released the breath that he held and opened his eyes back up.

    All the turmoil that shook his soul the second the shit hit the fan was now gone, reced by the cold rity. His eyes lost all of their usual shine, all of the emotions that Alice could normally see in them.

    ''Ugh¡­'' Alice gulped her saliva down as she stole a quick nce at the man''s face. ''Seeing him like that¡­'' she swallowed her saliva yet again, instinctively trying to solve the problem of her parched throat. ''It''s¡­ new?''

    "Do you have anything prepared for the third phase?" Castor asked as he turned around and approached one of the smaller, side consoles before calmly typing a few words into the system.

    "Only the skeletal structure of the scenario," Alice admitted while her eyes followed Castor''s movements.

    "So you don''t have anything properlypleted?" Castor asked in a t, steady voice while keeping up with what he was doing at his console.

    "Let me check," Alice muttered, turning her eyes toward her own set of holoscreens.

    Alice''s fingers danced upon the projection of her keyboard, quickly rearranging all the data disyed on her screens.

    "I have two nearly finished scenarios that I was cooking for the two other agents we are tracking," she reported.

    Her hands danced again, pulling up a set of the assets she already used on the other agents to the front of her screens.

    "Worst case scenario, I could reuse the procedures we''ve already implemented for the other agents¡­" Alice''s voice ground to a halt, turning weaker and weaker with each word.

    The girl then turned her head around, finally taking a proper look at Castor''s¡­ back.

    "Surely, you are aware of the problems that are bound to arise if we do this," she muttered, her throat refusing to produce any greater sound.

    "Yeah," Castor responded in his new, empty voice while still busying himself with whatever he was typing on his own console. "We could try to throw random shit at the wall and see what sticks," he muttered, changing his voice for the first time.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''Is he focusing on something?'' Alice thought, her curiosity nearly taking over the dread of the situation they were in.

    It was a normal thing for the agents of the subjected to their program to grow increasingly aware of the interference. It was a natural result of their meddling, something that the fleet failed to eliminate from the procedural results even after literal tens of thousands of attempts.

    Given the massive baggage of experiences like this, the think-tank of the fleet decided not to wrestle with the impossible and opted to adopt this repeating result into the procedure instead.

    It was thanks to this development, implemented measly twenty million unified years ago, that the procedure now included a point of contact. A simple solution to the problem of interference where the meddling party would officially establish contact with those who reached the fifth stage while fulfilling a few other criteria necessary for it to happen.

    The problem with the current situation was that the agent in question only reached the third stage! And now, he received a solid confirmation that there indeed was a third party orchestrating the events!

    "We can''t change the past," Castor slowly muttered, oozing his words one by one while clearly focusing on the task at hand. "And now that he knows for sure that there is something greater going on, ignoring the situation will only lead to a disaster," he announced, his voice regaining its former calm and tone right as he swiped his hand to the side, sending a data package to one of Alice''s screens.

    The girl looked up¡­ and froze.

    "Wha¡­ what is this?!" Alice freaked out a little as she stared at an extremelyplex scenario, a project that neared ny percent of itspletion.

    "Long story short, there was a time when the influence of my former partner has yet to bury all of my creativity," Castor shortly exined, already moving on to implementing the scenario within the agent''s system. "Help me out, would you?" he then requested, clearly struggling to reach even a fraction of the operating speed that Alice could perform without even trying.

    "Sure thing," Alice muttered in reply.

    Her head was a mess. While the situation wasn''t all that hard to understand, she couldn''t help but be shocked by the development.

    ''This project¡­ it''s insane for how crude it is,'' she thought, taking over the implementation process only toplete it within a few short seconds.

    "It''s ready," she then announced, turning her eyes over at Castor''s face.

    "The prologue should buy us enough time to prepare," Castor said, squinting his eyes as he locked his arms on his chest. "So, let''s not keep our man waiting."

    Alice blinked her eyes a few times before taking a deep sigh and pressing the confirmation button.

    The screen disying the situation of the agent in question flickered as the surge of quantum particles carried on the new data into the agent''s system, clogging up themunication ray that kept the video up.

    Then, the agent''s eyes closed. His body fell back only to rest into afortable chair made straight out of the shadows of the merchant''s domain.

    "Now then," Alice muttered, turning her eyes from the screens over to Castor''s face. "What do you want to prepare us for?" she asked, only for her eyes to widen up a little when she saw what Castor was doing.

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Castor asked while dressing himself up in a special suit, a suit he didn''t expect to use until the veryst moment before the wave of mana would shower the below them. "I''m going to pay him a visit."

 Chapter 367 Vision Of The World Foreign

    ?

    "Just how long am I supposed to hold?" Mathew asked out loud, pretending as if he didn''t see a single suspicious thing.

    ''I slipped up¡­ but I think there is still a chance that whoever observes me, missed it!'' he wished with all his heart.

    It was still way too early for him to face off with whoever was in control of his fate. He was still too weak, too ignorant about the true ways of the world.

    ''If I can''t even see through the inner workings of my own system¡­ how am I supposed to confront the fucker that brought this damn apocalypse upon my entire world?''

    Mathew was rational enough to realize he stood no chance against the entity responsible for all of what happened. Not after he went back through time just because that was the most straightforward interpretation of the wish he made with hisst system!

    ''Still,'' Mathew took a deep breath, ''it really is taking a whi¡­''

    The world around Mathew turned nk. It was an experience vaguely simr to how it felt to enter merchant''s subspace¡­. But the process of transition sped up to its limits.

    There was no time for the darkness to surge, gradually separating Mathew from the real world.

    No, this time, it all happened instantly.

    And just as rapidly as darkness reced the usual shadows of the merchant''s subspace, Mathew''s consciousness resurfaced in a world of endless green.

    ''What the hell¡­'' Mathew thought, startled by the sudden development.

    He took a look around, only to realize he was in the middle of an insanely dense forest, woonds that could only beparable to the densest parts of the amazon jungle.

    Mathew looked to the right and then to his left¡­ but no matter how much he strained his eyes, all he could see was more of the same.

    "Just what the hell is going on¡­?" Mathew asked himself, eager to find an answer.

    He tried to look at his system¡­ Only to realize that for the first time since he unlocked the ability to look at it directly, he couldn''t actually ess it.

    ''Did that ability get locked or something?'' Mathew asked himself, desperate to find some clues. ''No,'' he quickly came to terms with how it was just his wishful thinking. ''Rather than a single ability getting locked, it''s more likely that I''m nothing more but a passive observer right now.''

    This was the only conclusion that Mathew arrived at after an entire minute in this new world of endless greenery.

    ''Huh?'' Mathew''s brain suddenly twitched.

    He didn''t see or hear anything. He¡­ he simply felt a presence nearby. And as he turned his attention towards it, he saw the impossible. The peak of male desire from the pre-apocalypse world.

    A girl with fluffy cat ears sticking out from the sides of her head.

    This was the only feature that made her extremely unnatural. But upon a closer look, Mathew couldn''t help but notice that even her facial features made her look like a cat, even though they were, without a second of doubt, human.

    "Who are you?" Mathew asked, unable to stop his curiosity. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    It was simply stronger than him.

    To see a catgirl in a flesh and give up on trying to talk her up? He was still too much of a geek in his soul to allow such heresy to pass!

    "HUH?!" the girl jumped as if someone stepped on her¡­

    That''s right!

    Now that she turned around, Mathew could see a tail sticking out from the point where her ass cheeks started to transform her back into her legs!

    The girl looked right at Mathew. She lowered her center of weight and brought her hands to the side, positioning her fingers for a scratch that would clearly be a world of hurt.

    Then, Mathew noticed another feature.

    Just like the brother of one of the most well-known anti-hero of one of the most popric franchises ever, about three centimeters long nails appeared at the tips of her fingers!

    ''A real catgirl¡­ in the flesh¡­'' Mathew thought, staring wide-eyed at the wonder of godly creation.

    ''I know I have Nadia and all the other girls¡­ but this is a damned catgirl!'' he thought when an image of his wives shed in his mind.

    Back to the vision, though, the girl stared right at Mathew¡­ or rather, right through him.

    After a moment of remaining perfectly motionless, she started to slowly inch her head to the sides, turning her eyes in a desperate attempt to locate the source of whatever startled her so much.

    Then, Mathew heard it. And from how the girl suddenly turned her head to the side, she heard it too.

    A crack of a stick breaking under the weight of someone''s foot.

    ''Are there more of them¡­?'' Mathew thought, full of hope, even though deep down in his soul, he knew this would be the case.

    Another noise then appeared from a different side. Then from another. And then, men started toe out from the bushes from all the directions the poor catgirl could take to escape her pursuit.

    Those men were wearing clothes that instantly allowed Mathew to recognize the reality of the lore behind the strange world he was observing right now.

    They were dressed in abination of thick gambesons and then chainmalls, both of which were hidden under a thin tunic with what looked like a coat of arms pained all over it.

    Each of the men carried a different type of weapon in their right hands, from short swords, through one-handed axes all the way to a damned mace. Yet, if there was one thing that they all had inmon, it was the small that each of them carried in their left.

    "Don''t struggle," one of the men ordered, taking a step forward toward the girl while raising his-bearing hand. "Don''t struggle and we won''t needlessly hurt you," he announced¡­ only to then lick his lips. "We might even bring you a world of pleasure!"

 Chapter 368 Right Of Slave Consummation

    ?

    ''Shit, they are everywhere!'' Kaya despaired. But she knew she only had herself to me.

    The gifts that the ancestors of her tribe left her kind with made it near impossible for any of those despicable humans to catch up to her in the thick vegetation of the ancient forest.

    This was even more of the case for the idiots that came into the woods while burdened with all the armor they wore on their backs.

    A normal human would never be able to catch any of her kind in this forest, unless¡­

    Unless she made a mistake like standing down and staring at absolutely nothing for a good while, giving her pursuers the chance to surround her and close all the possible escape routes she could take!

    "Don''t struggle," one of the men ordered, only to then continue with some sort of gibberish talk that Kaya couldn''t care less about.

    The intensity behind their gazes, the wilderness faintly visible in their moves, even the heat that she could feeling from their groins¡­

    ''I can''t let them catch me,'' Kaya told herself. ''And if I can''t avoid capture¡­''

    A sense of dread filled her feeble body.

    She could picture what would happen if those despicable bastards would pin her down.

    She was fast, super fast. But the second she would lose the advantage of her mobility, she would be faced with strength that only a selected few of the beast-folk ns could match.

    After all, if there was anything humans were good at, it was the finesse of a brutal force!

    Kaya lowered her chest even further down, resting both of her hands on the ground, slightly ahead of the top of her head. She squinted her eyes, limiting the amount of information she could get in order to raise the intensity at which she could perceive it.

    Her cheeks started to burn with extreme heat. Her entire body warmed up way above its normal state. Her tail ruffled up, ready to act as the counterweight for the movements that would be simply impossible for the humans surrounding her.

    Crack.

    One of the humans moved.

    Kaya remained motionless, focusing her entire attention on reading his moves.

    He moved his right hand up, clearly feinting an attack, only to then switch to his left in an attempt to throw the weighted at her.

    Another one of the vers moved up. This one didn''t bother with the feints, putting all his thrust in a quick throw of his own.

    ''From the sides, huh?'' Kaya thought, her lips involuntarily curving up.

    Her body reached the optimalbat temperature. All her muscles were now warmed up.

    The sense of excitement filled her to the brim all the way to the point she could feel her crotch turning wet.

    ''If you want to attack from the sides¡­'' Kaya''s thoughts dulled down as the time appeared to slow down around her, ''then I will attack¡­''

    Kaya released all the tension she stored in her legs and hands, leaping forward without even a hint of hesitation. While mid-air, she reached with her right to the side, ready to sh with her fangs at the man blocking her path¡­

    Only to see his face.

    And that bastard¡­ was actually smiling!

    The man that blocked Kaya''s path ahead didn''t bother trying to attack her first. Instead, he simply raised his-bearing hand, getting ready for when she would try to break out of the encirclement.

    Still in the air, Kaya desperately sent her gaze around, hoping to find some tree trunk, a branch, or maybe even a bird that she could kick at to change her trajectory¡­

    But the humans nned their trap well. There was nothing for Kaya to grab at or push herself off from. And so, when the man that she hoped to sh with her fangs raised his hand and threw his right at her face, the girl finally realized it was all over.

    The struck her face, and the thin strands of the rope dug into her delicate skin.

    The weights attached to the ends of each specific strand instantly altered her trajectory, pulling her down toward the ground. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Thump.

    Kaya heavily struck the ground. The fall pushed all the air out of her lungs, making her gasp to recover it¡­ only for two mores to instantly fall down on her, robbing her of everyst ounce of mobility she hoped to retain.

    And as if that wasn''t enough, one of those damn bastards instantly threw himself at her stomach, pinning her to the ground with an addition of his own damned weight!

    "DIE!" Kaya screamed out, trying to somehow reach the man with her fangs.

    But those damned vers were clearly not new to this kind of job. They didn''t give the girl even the hint of a chance.

    "I WILL KILL YOU ALL!" Kaya screamed while still gasping for air, struggling to properly breathe with all that weight pinning her down. And while she tried to trash around, to make herself as hard to subdue as possible, her oppressors quickly took control of both of her hands before binding them behind her back.

    "AAAGH!" Kaya screamed out in agony when her joints cracked, threatening to give up at any moment or upon even the slightest movement on her end.

    Those men were either really good at their job or simply extremely mean!

    "Leader, I can have a go, right?" a younger-sounding voice reached Kaya''s ears from the back, from the only direction that she didn''t bother to check out while she still hoped to fight her way out.

    ''No¡­'' Kaya thought, perfectly aware of what was going to happen now.

    "That''s how wememorate the first hunt of every epted member," the man at the front who could im the lion''s share of responsibility for taking Kaya down replied.

    The man then squatted down right in front of Kaya''s face before reaching out and grabbing her by her chin.

    "I told you not to struggle," he said in a soft voice, showing no signs of hostility at all as if he was just a guard at the city subduing some rtively innocent troublemakers rather than a damn ver who made a living by stealing beast-folk freedom. "Was it all necessary?" he then asked with a clear grief in his voice.

    "Hold her down for me!" the guy behind Kaya shouted with excitement. Then, Kaya felt fingers press against her lower back only to move down, towards the edge of her short pants¡­

    ''No¡­'' she protested in her thoughts.

    Tears appeared in Kaya''s eyes.

    "No¡­ please¡­" she mumbled through her tears, feeling how this huge hand grabbed her pants and applied downward force, clearly intending to tear them off her ass.

    "Hold your horses, fucker," the leader of the group said in a suddenly grim voice.

    A momentary noise of steel rubbing against some sort of skinter, the hand grabbing at Kaya''s pants moved away after letting go of her the cloth.

    "The right to consummate the ve belongs to the members on their first hunt," the leader said again, this time with no one daring to speak while he did. "And as for now, you have yet to be a member."

    There was no anger in the man''s voice. Being a beastfolk, Kaya could hear it. But what his voice was full of, something that humans couldn''t apparently hear, was hostility.

    "Thank you¡­" Kaya muttered, realizing that she, at the very least, wouldn''t be vited on the spot. "Thank you¡­" she whispered, struggling to exert enough energy to use a voice any louder.

    "This right belongs to the first-time hunting members of our n," the leader then said. "And you are not a member yet," he then repeated himself.

    Kaya''s eyes twitched.

    Somehow, she could sense that the situation wasn''t as simple as she already started to hope for.

    "Briar!" the leader of the n then called.

    Tears streamed down Kaya''s eyes like rivers.

    "You called, leader?" a new, calm voice entered the scene from an angle Kaya couldn''t see.

    "Today is your first hunt," the man said before taking a step away from the bound girl. "Do with her as you will."

 Chapter 369 Encounter

    ?

    "Do with her as you will."

    Mathew''s hands tightened into fists.

    He already learned that he couldn''t influence what he saw happening in any way or form. It was a miracle that his voice somehow managed to reach this poor girl''s ears.

    A miracle¡­ or rather a curse.

    ''She stopped because of me,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he watched the expression on the face of a man called Briar change.

    He could see the initialck of understanding turning into shock and then happiness as he turned his eyes toward the immobilized and bound girl on the forest floor.

    Due to the hastiness of the man who tried to undress her earlier, half of the girl''s ass was now exposed, giving the lucky ver a perfect trailer of what he was about to im as his own, even if only for the time being.

    "Those bastards¡­" Mathew muttered, squeezing his fists so hard that his fingernails started to cut into the skin of his inner palms.

    Yet, no matter how much he despaired, he could do nothing.

    He couldn''t physically affect what he saw before his eyes. No amount of punches, kicks, and elbows that he sent to those vers'' bodies did anything.

    He couldn''t use his spells either. Pration projectile wouldn''t form. His mind''s flesh actually would appear¡­ but just like his fists, it couldn''t affect the world that he was spectating.

    Not even the explosion of a core that Mathew somehow managed to will into existence affected the events in any way or form.

    And thus, he was forced to watch how the man called Briar approached the girl with an excited look on his face.

    That fucker pulled his pants down without any hesitation before stepping right between the girl''s legs.

    He then reached out and grabbed her waist, pulling it up with ease in spite of all thes pinning the girl down.

    Briar pulled out his knife and tore open a huge hole in thes right above the girl''s hips. He then threw the knife the way away and pulled down his own undergarments to reveal his stinky dick and balls while reaching out for the catgirl''s pants with his other hand.

    Tears streamed down the girl''s face. She closed her eyes, unable to do anything more to cut herself from the brutal reality of what was about to happen now. And from the looks of it, she had not an ounce of strength left to fight her fate.

    Mathew brought his hand up and clutched at his heart. Seeing the terror, pain, fear, and desperation painted all over the girl''s cute, cat-like face¡­

    It was too much for him. Too much for a man who saw the apocalypse eradicate nearly all of humanity with his very own two eyes¡­ twice. This moment of simple violence in what looked like a fantasy world, however, felt way more personal than the deaths of millions and billions of people Mathew never even heard about.

    Briar reached out¡­ but the movement of his hand slowed down as it came closer and closer to the girl''s short pants. And right as he was about to grab it, the time flow of the vision stoppedpletely.

    "Not a great sight, isn''t it?" A stranger''s voice suddenly filled Mathew''s head.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    It was ever-present. It came from every possible direction, from within Mathew''s core included.

    "What?!" Mathew freaked out on the spot, turning around to find who was trying to talk to him.

    Yet, no matter how much he searched, he couldn''t find the owner of the voice.

    "I''m talking about what you are seeing," the voice exined. "Isn''t it something that you would be happy to prevent?" the voice continued without any care for Mathew''s confusion.

    "Who the hell are you?!" Mathew screamed out.

    He surely felt bad for the poor girl¡­ but faced with a direct threat to his own existence, he couldn''t care less about her.

    If there was anything that nearly three weeks of experience in the world of apocalypse taught him, it was to always secure his own arse before bothering with the asses of others.

    "I''m exactly what you think I am," the voice surprisingly replied to Mathew''s question, proving that its owner could actually hear the young man, allowing a two-sidedmunication.

    ''Exactly what I think he is?'' Mathew pulled his eyebrows together. The gears in his mind spun at their top speed, quickly connecting the dots and spitting out the simple answer.

    "Are you the one responsible for this entire fucking apocalypse?!" Mathew screamed out from the bottom of his lungs.

    In the face of the absolute, this was the extent of what an ant like him could do. Scream and wail in anger, unable to affect the higher being''s decisions at all.

    "Yes and no," the voice replied.

    A lump of darkness appeared amidst the greenery of the now time-stopped forest. And just like the shadows in the merchant''s realm that Mathew was already used to, the blob of darkness formed into a shape of a human¡­

    Only to suddenly explode with light that upon fading away, revealed the exact copy of Mathew''s own body.

    "First off, I''m not showing you this to announce I will steal your spot or anything," the voice exined the worry that has yet to form in Mathew''s mind. "It''s just the form that''s easiest for me to assume for our little talk."

    Mathew gritted his teeth. He squeezed his jaws so strongly he could feel his ears starting to hurt.

    "But before we begin, there is one unchangeable truth that you need to be aware of," Mathew''s clone announced with a facecking any sort of expression.

    Sure, his mouth was moving. Even the clone''s hands moved around to gesticte. But there was this imprecise uncanny feeling that made it obvious this clone was nothing more but a stupid doll that the owner of the voice was using.

    "And what truth could that be?" Mathew asked, realizing and finally epting the fact that in his current position, he was fully under the control of this strange being''s whims.

    "It''s that everything that we talked and will talk about won''t remain in your memory," the voice announced, only for Mathew''s clone to produce an extremely fake smile. "So, while we talk, I want you to think of the message I will allow you to send to your future self to convey the points that you need to understand."

 Chapter 370 "You Are Killing Yourself"

    ?

    "Let''s start with your former question," Mathew''s clone said as it finally moved away from the spot it originally appeared at.

    It brought its hands together before locking them behind his back and going on a stroll around the time-frozen forest.

    "This apocalypse is just a way in which my people are altering the iing wave of mana," the voice exined. "You can think of it as a front of extremely powerful radiation, cauterizing all the life that is not ustomed to its presence."

    Mathew''s clone turned silent, most likely to give real Mathew some time to digest the news.

    "If we did nothing, then once the wave of mana would strike your, all life would be lost in an instant," the clone announced after some time before stopping and turning its face to look at Mathew. "With no exception. All. Life. Gone. Be it humans, animals, nts, or even bacteria and viruses. Nothing could face mana this powerful if it isn''t already ustomed to it."

    The clone faced its front once again before picking up its pace.

    "So, you are saying that this zombie apocalypse¡­" Mathew hesitated, unsure how to properly form his wild thoughts into words.

    "Is our way of gradually introducing mana to this world to save those lives that can be saved," the clone replied to the question that Mathew had yet to actually form.

    This alone was enough to shut the young man for another long while, giving the clone some time to do a full circle around Mathew and begin its second round.

    "Then¡­" Mathew muttered after a long while. Given just how unexpected this talk was, he didn''t have the list of questions that he wanted to ask prepared, forcing him to take his time before recklessly opening up his mouth.

    And with the added tangent of not being able to remember the conversation at all and only being able to convey some of the crucial points through some sort of message¡­

    To say the situation was confusing would be akin to calling a mouse the most powerful one among all the animals on earth!

    Mathew lowered his eyes to look at his own hands¡­ but by doing so, he unknowingly looked down at the face of the cat girl that he saw struggling before.

    "Then, what is this entire meeting all about?" Mathew asked, struggling to pull his eyes from the girl''s teary face.

    There was something inside him that drove him crazy to help her, even if he didn''t know her at all. An instinct to protect which crossed over the barrier between the worlds and reached towards the girl that had no right to exist in the world Mathew came from.

    "I think you should be able to figure out the answer to that yourself," Mathew''s clone replied. It then stopped in its track, turned around, and faced Mathew directly. "But I will cut right to the chase. Right now, by refusing to pick a ss and allow us to smoothly change your system, you are killing yourself."

    Those few words struck Mathew like a hammer.

    e¦Áglesn?¦Íel "Killing myself?" he repeated after the clone. Then, Mathew gritted his teeth and tightened his fists. "Is that the case?" he then asked, squinting his eyes as he raised them on the clone with a hint of hostility shing at the depth of his pupils. "Because to me, it looks like you are trying another trick to deprive me of the strength I gained with my own two hands!"

    The clone kept on looking at the original. And by staring right back at it, Mathew could see his clone slowly gaining the ability to convey some basic emotions with its mimicry.

    "Listen. For a sentient being to adopt mana, it has to wrestle control over it from the source," the clone exined. "This entire apocalypse is set in a way that allows the survivors to do so by killing the zombies, being deranged by the wild mana overflowing in them."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''So far, this appears to make sense,'' Mathew thought, quickly analyzing the visitor''s words. ''But so would any story that they likely prepared in advance. If I still go with the understanding that they are trying to dupe me out of my system¡­'' Mathew hesitated a little, only for his hostility to grow even stronger, ''then it''s pretty much obvious that it''s nothing more but a fake story aimed to make me believe them!''

    "It''s not a fake story aimed to make you believe us," the clone replied directly to Mathew''s thoughts, taking the young man aback for the nth time during this single meeting.

    "So you can read my thoughts too," Mathew muttered.

    The level to which he dropped his eyelids reflected the growth of hostility within his soul.

    "Such a task is child''s y for us," the clone replied while nodding its head. "But back to the story. By killing¡­ how you call them¡­ zombies, you are iming control over the mana they are infused with. But what happens when you are using that exploitative system of yours¡­"

    The clone suddenly cut its exnation short. Then, it smiled before crossing its arms over his chest.

    "Rather than giving you the answer, let me as you this," it requested. "What do you think happens when you gain more mana than you properly took control of?"

    For the first time in a long while, Mathew''s hostility decreased. While he was aware that the voice behind his clone would be perfectly aware of the change, Mathew just couldn''t help how being treated seriously like that made it easier for him to ept the other party''s words.

    He didn''t reply right away, though, opting to take his time to analyze the question first.

    "Is the mana I can rightfully control getting diluted with the mana I can''t?" Mathew put forward an educated guess.

    "That''s a good attempt," the clone said with a smile. "Trying to push the question into the framework of what you can understand is a great methodology for learning about the things you don''t understand," the clone praised.

    But as if it didn''t want to praise Mathew too much, the owner of the voice then made Mathew''s clone shake its head.

    "Sadly, youck the terminology necessary to understand a force from the seventh dimension that mana is at its core," it then dropped what felt like one hell of massively valuable information.

    "What''s the answer, then?" Mathew asked, forcefully stopping himself from analyzing what he heard, worried that it was exactly what the other party wanted.

    The clone giggled a little.

    "Your guess is close but not on the spot. But mana isn''t like some sort of liquid that enters your body," the clone exined. "It''s true nature is far closer to radiation. The mana you wrestled control over is radiation that your body can control. The mana that you didn''t im, though¡­"

    The voice from the clone put a theatrical pause, proving it wasn''t a being that was all about science or magic, but a being that understood small social clues or maybe even stuff like art and culture as well.

    "Works on my body just like real radiation, right?" Mathew then asked, finally obtaining enough clues to figure out where this strange, godlike being was leading him to.

 Chapter 371 Making The Deal

    ?

    Mathew wasn''t the schr type. He paid just enough attention in sses to get by without annoying the teachers. The majority of his actual knowledge came from all the books, memes, and videos he consumed in his free time.

    The nature of this knowledge was different from what he brought out from the school, giving him a broad view of a variety of topics without providing him with enough background information to properly understand any of them.

    In other words, while he could keep a conversation on nearly every topic and maintain the illusion he knew what he was talking about when it came to details, he only had hismon sense to rely upon.

    And it was exactly the same with his knowledge about radiation.

    Mathew knew about nuclear bombs, atomic power nts, and the various disasters that came from the two of those topics¡­ He knew about the so-called devil''s core and how it came to kill a huge number of people that experimented on it to learn more about radiation.

    But when it came to precise knowledge of how exactly radiation brought death upon anyone who was exposed to too much of it?

    "Did I cross the line of no return?" Mathew asked, using all of what he knew to arrive at a rtively simple conclusion.

    ''If this excessive mana I have works like radiation, then I should be asking for cancer, isn''t that right?''

    "Not yet," the clone answered, confirming a huge chunk of Mathew''s guesses. "At the current rate, though, it''s only a matter of two or three days before all the damage you suffered so far would umte to the point your body won''t be able to keep up with healing it."

    ''So it''s not exactly cancer, huh?'' Mathew thought, breathing a slight sigh of relief.

    Cancer. The mutation of the cells, degradation of the very building blocks that made up everyst part of the human body. Not exactly a sickness, but also an illness in every possible meaning of the word.

    Even with modern medicine, curing cancer was akin to tossing a coin into the air and hoping that fate would settle it in one''s favor. And just by tossing the coin, or epting the devastating treatment, one would subject themselves to a world of pain.

    But what made cancer even worse in the current state of the world is that with most of the medical practitioners and specialists oriented at cancer treatments now gone and likely turned into zombies, humans lost the ability to even make this one desperate coin toss!

    "Yes, it''s not cancer," Mathew''s clone once again responded to the man''s private thoughts. "But you don''t need to worry about it all that much. While a human body is too primitive to deal with it by itself, as you are now a mana-infused being, it is a threat no greater than themon cold was to your old self."

    Mathew raised his eyebrows, taken aback by the information he didn''t ask for yet weed with all his heart.

    "It''s reassuring to know that," he admitted, rxing by a tiny little bit.

    ''Even if I have no means to know whether it''s true or not, it''s still nice to hear that cancer will never be a problem to me or any of my wives,'' Mathew thought, fully aware he couldn''t hide those thoughts from the other party.

    "Please, do not stretch my statement that far," the clone suddenly opposed Mathew''s thoughts. "In order for one''s body to be capable of dealing with cancer, and most of the othermon sicknesses by the way, one needs to reach at least fifty points in their vitality stat, or an equivalent of it in the system they have themselves."

    ''So that means¡­ Beatrice? Norbert?'' Mathew quickly connected the dots, realizing the reason for the clone''s added warning. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    And as much as he disliked the fact, having this strange being warn him about the requirements behind this miraculous effect mana would have on one''s ability to lead a healthy life.

    Mathew raised his eyes and took a closer look at his own face currently represented on the clone''s head.

    And it was the clone''s silence that proved Mathew''s thoughts were right on point.

    "So, in order to avoid the disaster that''s currently looming over me, I need to pick a ss, right?" Mathew then asked, pushing the discussion back to one of the main topics at hand.

    "That''s correct," the clone replied with a slight nod of its head.

    "To be fair," Mathew leaned his head over his shoulder while presenting the other party with a slight smile, "seeing how you did nothing over billions of people dying, it''s pretty damn hard to believe you are concerned about my life so much you woulde to warn me in person."

    The clone''s face remained still for a few more moments¡­ only for it to turn to the side as the being clicked its tongue.

    "I can tell where you are going with this question," the clone said, turning his eyes back to Mathew''s face. "So let''s cut the useless chatter and just spit it out," the being requested as its body took a step closer. "What do you want?"

    ''Tsk, you didn''t even give me a chance to gloat over my ability to deduce it,'' Mathewined in his thoughts, turning the situation on its head and taking advantage of the other party''s ability to read his thoughts.

    In response, the mouth of the clone twitched, showcasing that this strange being actually held back a smile.

    "First, I need all my wives to retain both their status and their current ability to grow," Mathew started as he pulled his right hand forward and then raised his thumb. "Then, keeping up my current strength and the ability to grow as well is a must," he continued as he pushed another finger up.

    "The first of your request is eptable, but the second one is not," the clone interrupted. "I can tell you want to keep up all the stats that you are supposed to have right now rather than just the ones you can use," it pointed out the main point of Mathew''s small ploy. "But just like I already exined, if you keep all of those stats, you will die."

    "What''s your proposition regarding that point, then?" Mathew inquired, unwilling to just give up and ept how limited his status would be if he epted just the stats he could actively use right now.

    "You can only get about half of what you have," the clone replied while spreading its arms out to the sides. "And that''s already me stretching what we can do for you," it said before pulling its arms back and putting a small smile on its face. "You can consider it our way of apologizing for letting this problematic situation arise in the first ce."

    "That''s..." Mathew hesitated. But he did so only for a short moment.

    Between only being able to use about a hundred of each of his stats and then dying and using half of his true stats that he never had proper ess to before... the second option didn''t seem like that much of a bad deal!

    "Then, on that point, we can agree," Mathew said with a smile. "Let''s move on to the next point, shall we?"

 Chapter 372 Forgotten Deal

    ?

    "I think that sums it up," Mathew said after roughly a total of an hour''s worth of negotiations has passed.

    Despite the early ease at which the mind operating his clone would agree to his terms, the more Mathew attempted to gain, the harder it became for his requests to go through.

    "Let''s sum it up, then," Mathew''s clone said as it stretched its back before releasing a long yawn. "We turn your wives independent, meaning, their situation won''t change at all save for how they will no longer have their systems and levels rted to you. You will get a total of forty percent of your current stats, with all of the currently locked ones turning into stats that you can freely distribute within your status. Your skills and abilities won''t be touched, more, they will receive an additional scaling through your statistics."

    The clone took a deep breath, proving that while in this form, this strange being had to follow the same physiological rules that any other human had to.

    "On our end, we will be locking most of the exploits that you''ve used so far, but we will keep the stuff you can get at the merchant''s the same. Not a single of the features you unlocked already, save for leveling through merchants, will be affected either."

    "And in exchange, I will lose the ability to gain statistics from the growth of my wives. I will also no longer be able to freely bestow my system upon other girls by simply topping off the most intimate action they performed with someone else in the past," Mathew then added, filling in the details that could be taken as a loss on his end.

    "And as the final point, you will be allowed to pass on some hints regarding the matter of the third phase with your message while giving us the right to force you into following the discussed steps by gradually locking more and more of the settlement features if you refuse to do so," the being finished up with thest part of the arrangement they had discussed.

    This was something that Mathew actually proposed in spite of how it affected him only in a negative way. He willingly gave them the authority to lock in the benefits that he worked so hard for with his wives and all his allies to get. And it was all for a very simple reason.

    "I''m a rather distrusting guy. Now that we''ve talked for some time, I''m¡­" Mathew took a short pause, not wanting to utter a meaningless lie just to get the other party to look at him more favorably. Because, due to their ability to read his thoughts, rather than earning him some brownie points it would end up doing the opposite.

    "I''m somewhat willing to ept the current arrangement. But once you wipe all of my memory regarding our contact, there is no way I will trust in a single word of the message, even if I will be the one passing it down."

    This was Mathew''s reasoning behind his willingness to go for somewhat unnecessary concessions. Yet, rather than empowering the other party to bully him in order to keep him in line, it was a simple measure aimed at forcing his hand when it came to the matter of the developments that were already nned for all those who unlocked the third phase of their growth.

    ''I never expected I would go that far just to save some random girl I know nothing about,'' Mathew thought, rolling his eyes over his own gullibility.

    He never really cared about all sorts of tragedies that were happening beyond the scope of his vision. He was a simple human, unable to care for things he was unaware of. And while he often sympathized with the victims of abuse, violence, or other unpleasant things, Mathew wasn''t as conceited as to try to pose as someone who could help by just screaming about the topic. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Mathew couldn''t care less about the things that he didn''t see. But when he bore witness to a tant and extremely unpleasant abuse, his instincts to protect would be greatly tickled. And unless he did what he believed to be right, he would never get rid of the itch caused by his desire to do the right thing.

    "Well, I guess this concludes all that I wanted to discuss with you," the clone said. It then stretched its hands to the sides before looking down at its own body. "Still, I didn''t expect having a fully flesh-based body would feel so nostalgic," it then added in a tone Mathew didn''t hear it use yet.

    "You don''t need to try to make me any more sympathetic towards you anymore," Mathew countered what he instantly assumed to be a small tactic to manipte his feelings.

    After all, even if he were to forget about all that happened, his natural attitude towards whoever was currently residing in the copy of his own body would remain deeply ingrained into his soul.

    "I''m not trying anything like that, man," Mathew''s clone said, slowly shaking its head as it stretched out its hand forward and slowly moved it around. "The feeling of the air brushing against your skin, the cold, the pain, the hunger¡­" it listed out a few rtively unpleasant things, "for you, those might be a bother. But for me¡­"

    The clone turned silent, leaving Mathew in a strange, pretty damn ufortable situation.

    ''Am I supposed to just stay silent and let him have his moment?'' Mathew asked himself, only to p his own face when he noticed his mistake.

    The being within the clone could read his thoughts. As such, it would be aware of even this awkwardness-borne question.

    "Damn," Mathew cursed a little right as the clone curved its lips in a small smile. "I thought this mind-reading thingy was annoying, but now it''s just in awkward," hemented.

    "Let me give you onest piece of advice before we all go our separate ways," the clone said, lowering its hands and sharing a small smile as it returned to the very position it was in when it first appeared within the time-stopped scenery of the forest. "Training your mind to have full control over your own thoughts¡­"

    The clone''s smile turned wider before its entire body started to turn transparent.

    "It can greatly improve your ability to wield mana," the clone''s voice turned into a whisper right as its presence dissolved into the greenery behind it along with all the memories that Mathew had regarding the meeting.

 Chapter 373 Mathews Reflection

    ?

    Mathew brought his hand up and clutched at his heart. Seeing the terror, pain, fear, and desperation painted all over the girl''s cute, cat-like face¡­

    It was too much for him. Too much for a man who saw the apocalypse eradicate nearly all of humanity with his very own two eyes¡­ twice. This moment of simple violence in what looked like a fantasy world, however, felt way more personal than the deaths of millions and billions of people Mathew never even heard about.

    Briar reached out¡­ but the movement of his hand slowed down as it came closer and closer to the girl''s short pants. And right as he was about to grab it, the time flow of the vision stoppedpletely.

    ''What the hell is going on?'' Mathew thought.

    Formerly worried about the poor girl''s fate, he was now starting to freak out.

    It was one thing to watch some sort of vision. Given the circumstance, Mathew even put the analysis of what he was actually seeing for ater date.

    But the time-flow shenanigans went above and beyond what he could or was willing to ept. The moment something started to fuck around with time, the stakes of the situation rose through the roof.

    Then, the same darkness that preceded the birth of this forest-based vision, appeared right at the edge of Mathew''s peripheral vision.

    "WHO?!" the young man turned around on the spot, ready to unleash all the power that he could still somehow wield in this strange, suspended state of being nothing more but a mere observer of the events.

    "First off, calm down. This is not an attack."

    The voice reached Mathew''s ears right as the clump of darkness started to condense, quickly turning into a human-like shape.

    ''Wait a second,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes.

    The voice¡­ sounded strangely familiar, yet foreign at the same time.

    "What you are about to see is a mere message, one that I spent quite a long time trying to perfect. But even if I know what sort of traps and pitfalls to avoid with it¡­"

    The darkness finally took its final form, clearly designed to resemble the shape of Mathew''s body.

    "No matter what I say, I know myself well enough to know you won''t ever believe it."

    ''Is that¡­ the being that''s behind the apocalypse?'' Mathew put forward an educated guess.

    Assuming this entire apocalypse was caused by a singr entity or even a single group with a shared goal was stupid. There was absolutely nothing to prove or even hint at there not being more than one force behind this entire mess.

    And yet¡­ for how messy all the elements of Mathew''s system were, they always ended up somehow fitting the greater picture, making it hard to believe that, for example, the zombies were the doing of one faction while merchants were the creation of another one.

    With that in mind, when this darkness-borne being finally started to take shape, Mathew could barely hold his excitement back. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''Even if I can''t as much as spit at them, maybe I will at least get some answers?'' the young man thought.

    He wasn''t delusional enough to believe he could stand against a being that could cause all the mind-boggling events that opposed every physical or biologicalw that Mathew ever heard about.

    In the face of the beings that were behind the apocalypse, merchants, their subspaces, and even Mathew''s system, the young man was nothing more but a mere ant. But just like in the world before their interference ants would end up snatching some of the crumbs of what humans would miss, Mathew hoped to find some hints that could potentially clue him in about the true nature of everything that was going on!

    And then, two things happened at the same time.

    The darkness that formed the human-like shape suddenly vanished, reced by a perfectly colored and natural-looking reflection of Mathew''s very own self. And while the visuals reached Mathew''s eyes, he also realized just where he heard the voice of this visitor before.

    He heard it in his headphones while listening to the awful attempt at singing one of the songs he was quite fond of.

    It was his own voice, distorted by theck of the beautification that one''s brain would usually perform.

    ''What kind of trick is that?'' Mathew thought, his suspicions raising through the roof.

    "I know that you won''t trust a single word that wille out of my mouth. After all, you won''t be able to recall ever recording this message. But for reasons I cannot divulge, it happened. And yes, I am you. And in a sense, you can consider this message toe from the future."

    Mathew''s eyes widened a little bit.

    Everyst detail of his reflection was in ce. The tiny, barely a millimeter-long scar located an inch below his left eye from when he fell down and nearly impaled himself with a fork through the eye as a mere kid. The small mannerisms of the facial expression, the manner at which the messenger stood in ce¡­

    Everything was exactly as Mathew would expect it to be from his own reflection.

    ''No,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth in hopes that the pain of doing so would help him free himself from whatever mental force the being behind this illusion was trying to use on him. ''For beings capable of turning an entire into a hell of a zombie apocalypse, creating an illusion of this level shouldn''t be a problem, right?''

    Mathew gulped his saliva down.

    ''But even if it''s all just a trick¡­'' he held his breath for a second, ''is there actually any downside to listening to what it has to say?''

    "I took a pause here because I expected you would need some time to digest the news," Mathew''s copy spoke, only for the original to clench his jaws even further.

    ''Right on the spot, god damn it!'' he thought.

    "But the time that I can use is limited, so let me get down to the business. Here is what''s going to happen to you, the girls, and how your situation is going to change when youe out from this vision."

 Chapter 374 Unforseen Consequence Of The System Change

    ?

    Mathew came out from the merchant''s subspace a changed man. Both in terms of his mental state but also in terms of nearly everyst detail about his system.

    ''I never expected that advancing to the next logical level would bring me this damned nerf,'' he thought, tightening his hands into fists. ''So much for making all our bases more secure¡­''

    Mathew closed his eyes and brought his chin up, heaving a deep sigh towards the skies.

    "Mathew?" Nadia asked in a tiny voice, instantly recognizing that something was wrong.

    She uttered her call¡­ only to pull her eyebrows together before lowering both her eyelids and her head while bringing her hand to her chest.

    All the girls present on the scene followed suit, with looks of confusion blooming on their faces.

    "What just happened?" Nadia muttered, her eyes turning wide as she raised her face and took a closer look at Mathew.

    "Quite a fucking lot," Mathew replied, still keeping his head raised and his eyes closed. Yet, rather than borating on the point, he turned silent.

    "Mathew," Nadia raised her face and voice at the same time, "what the hell happened?!"

    Only by hearing his first wife raise her voice did Mathew manage to shake himself free from the chains of his daze.

    "A lot happened, but I only understand a small portion of it," he repeated half of what he said before, changing the other half to something with more sense than just a random curse. "But starting with the most important points, my system changed," Mathew announced as he lowered his face and looked a the girls with empty eyes. "In other words, while you all keep both your systems and your stats, you are no longer my wives."

    It was as if lightning struck the room. The surprise and confusion that formerly took over the girl''s face now turned into shock and even disbelief.

    "What do you mean by us no longer being your wives?" Carol asked, taking one step closer while a lot of conflicting feelings appeared on her face.

    To the side, Nadia bit down on her lips, clearly dissatisfied with Carol being the one to ask this question.

    "Exactly what you heard," Mathew replied with a nk look on his face. "My system changed. And while I''m not privy to know why or how, but the connection of a system that we shared is no longer there. Or in other words¡­" Mathew turned his eyes to the side, unable to look the girls in their faces, "there is no longer any reason for you all to stick with me."

    Nadia''s face twitched. Those words struck her like a hammer.

    She opened her mouth, only for her lips to move in the air without producing a single sound.

    A hand appeared on Nadia''s shoulder. Still too shocked to produce even the tiniest voice, she could only look to the side.

    "It''s okay," Le whispered softly with her eyes locked on Mathew''s face. "Let me deal with it. I think I can tell what''s going on¡­ to a degree."

    Le didn''t wait for Nadia to give her approval or deny her request. She simply informed Mathew''s former first wife of what was going to happen before stepping forward.

    "Mathew!" Le shouted in a sharp voice, one that wouldn''t ept any sort or form of refusal.

    The young man didn''t reply. He only ended up turning his face even further away.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''God damn it,'' he thought, gritting his teeth as he could only wish to be anywhere else but near any of his former wives at this moment. ''I didn''t even think about it when I heard the news¡­ but isn''t this the case?'' he thought.

    For thest few days, ever since the apocalypse started, he didn''t hear a single word ofint from his former wives about their status or the situation they ended up in.

    Sure, as they got used to each other presence, they likely stopped caring about how they were now bound to Mathew as there were no perspectives for this aspect of their life within the apocalypse ever-changing.

    But the second Mathew announced the change of reality out loud, he was the first one to realize this problem.

    ''Now that their power doesn''te from my system, what reasons do they have to stick with me?'' he thought, gritting his teeth. ''Thanks to raising my status due to that shady deal I heard about I''m currently far stronger than any of them so they shouldn''t be able to try to stab me in the back to take over the settlement¡­''

    "MATHEW!" Le shouted from the bottom of her lungs, infusing her voice with a strange type of mental power, one that didn''t stem from the system¡­ but from her soul itself.

    Mathew nearly jumped, the unknown power behind Le''s voice instantly forcing him to fall in line and stand at attention with his eyes directed straight ahead.

    "Stop fucking overthinking things and just fucking listen!" Le ordered in a sharp tone. Yet, rather than lecturing him right away, she simply turned around and looked at Nadia instead.

    "Now that you are no longer bound to him, do you wish to leave?" Le asked.

    "Huh?" Nadia nearly jumped when the spotlight of everyone''s attention moved over to her. "Why¡­ And why would I do that?" she managed to answer after taking a few seconds to gather her wits.

    Nadia then shook her head before raising her hands and bringing them down on her cheeks with all the force she could muster.

    p!

    The crisp sound of her fingers pping her own face filled the room.

    Nadia then shook her head again before raising her now clear eyes.

    "I think I get it," she then said, her voice returning back to its normal self.

    Nadia took a step forward. And then another. And before long, she stood right in front of Mathew while staring at his petrified face.

    "Now, I leave him to you," Le muttered, a hint of slight dissatisfaction shing through her eyes. Yet, she turned around and walked away nevertheless.

    "Mathew, listen to me," Nadia muttered as she brought her hands up and hoisted Mathew''s head between them. "While I can''t speak for others," she started only when her touch forced Mathew to lower his eyes and properly look her in the face, "I was never with you because of that system, to begin with."

    Nadia took a deep breath while still holding Mathew''s head between her hands. She then lowered her own chin and closed her eyes for a second before moving her hands down and simply hugging her former husband.

    "So please, stop acting as if us abandoning you now was the most natural thing to happen!"

 Chapter 375 Dispelling Mathews Worries

    ?

    "Are you feeling better now?" Nadia asked after holding Mathew in her hands for a while.

    Mathew blinked his eyes a few times, trying to get rid of the tears that welled up in his eyes without actively wiping them off with his hand. He then lowered his eyelids, closing his eyes for a moment.

    "Yeah," he finally said after a short while before raising his hands to Nadia''s hips and gently moving her a bit away, freeing himself from her hug. "I''m sorry. So many things happened so quickly that I just got a tad confused, that''s all," he stated.

    "If that''s the excuse you want to go with, I''m fine with that," Nadia muttered as a slight hint of dissatisfaction appeared on her face right as he took a step back and rested her hands on her hips. She then gave Mathew a long, judging stare. "But it wouldn''t hurt if you allowed yourself to be vulnerable for once," she pointed out.

    "There is no room in this world for men to be vulnerable," Mathew replied, taking a deep breath to cull all of his weakness and rein all of his insecurities in.

    "Well, it would be hard to deny that¡­" Nadia muttered as she looked away, unhappy with it but still admitting the right behind Mathew''s words.

    All the talk about men being vulnerable was nothing more but the sentence that would periodically appear throughout history. In some cases it would be limited just to phrases crowds would put on banners, in others, it would be reflected in how the men behaved.

    But there was one thing inmon that connected all the instances throughout history where those vulnerable men made their appearance.

    It always happened right before a great civilization would fall, marking those times as the height of decadence that would bring an end to the greatness built by the tough men and be the dawn of times that, once again, would create said, tough men.

    And with just a single look at the state of the city outside of Mathew''s fortress, one could tell that the good times the strong men created have now been long gone.

    "I will go and bring Daria back," Le then stepped out, right in time to stop the sudden silence from bing awkward. She then gave Mathew''s face a side nce. "I can tell that there are quite a lot of things that you want to tell us, so it''s better if we are all together rather than having you repeat everything over and over again."

    "Thanks," Mathew said, taking a quick look at Le''s face only to then avert his eyes as his cheeks, once again, covered in a slight blush. "Thanks for everything. And I''m sorry you had to see this shameful disy I presented."

    "No biggie." Le put on a small, surprisingly kind smile on her face as he waved her hand away. "With how much responsibility you have on your shoulders, I''m actually surprised just how much it took to make you cave in, even if only a little."

    "Cave in?" Mathew echoed Le''s words.

    He didn''t contest her im, he simply failed to properly understand it and thus asked for rification.

    "Yeah, caved in," Le nodded her head to confirm she used the exact words she wanted. "You are a smart guy. The fact that you are somehow able to make sense of the irrational world around us proves this point," she states as she turned around and prepared to leave for the bath area, "so there is no way you would think we went as far as to establish an order to who gets to sleep and fuck with you just for the sake¡­" she stopped in her tracks as she suddenly found herself lost for words.

    "For the sake of what, exactly?" Le then asked herself, raising her chin as she naturally looked towards the ceiling while looking for the answer. "Well, it doesn''t matter," she said and shook her head. "My point is, you are too smart to have illogical insecurities like that. So, a moment of weakness is the only possible exnation for your outburst from earlier," Le stated as she looked over her arm and gave Mathew yet another of her rare, kind smiles. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "But seeing you show us your weak side¡­ I can''t say I hated it," Le admitted, giving Mathew a wink before picking up the pace and leaving to do the task she volunteered for.

    "Does this make me a bad woman if I feel threatened by how well she put it together?" Nadia muttered with a slight hint of dissatisfaction appearing on her face.

    "Not at all," Mathew replied right away, taking a step forward to close the distance between the two of them and bring the girl into his arms. "I think it''s just my insecurity sshing over and affecting you as well, making you doubt your ce by my side in the exact same way I doubted my own right to have you by my side."

    Mathew surrounded Nadia''s shoulders with his arms before pulling her into a tight hug. He didn''t let go of her for a good fewteen seconds, using her warmth, softness, and willingness to stay close to him like that to rebuild the confidence that the recent events took away from him.

    "There are times when you are really hard to talk to," Nadia said, seemingly out of nowhere, while still within Mathew''s embrace.

    Then, her body rxed as she took in a deep breath only to release it in a long sigh.

    "So howe there are times when you know exactly what to say?" she asked as she finally gave in and brought her own arms forward, wrapping them around Mathew''s waist as she returned the hug.

    "Guys¡­" Carol, who had enough social awareness to stay silent during the entire event, finally decided it was the right time to remind everyone of her presence. "I don''t mean to be rude¡­ but I guess there is no avoiding it now," she said, forcing both Mathew and Nadia to look toward where she stood.

    Carol then gulped her saliva down before a wild blush appeared on her cheeks.

    "I heard all that you guys said and I don''t want to disrespect it nor to rain down on your parade on this clearly emotional moment¡­" Carol said, only to then bring her eyes up and towards Mathew''s face, refusing to look away as she prepared herself to ask what was going on in her mind.

    "But with all that you guys said in mind¡­ I hope it won''t mean you will forget about all my contributions now."

    Mathew''s face turned still for a second. He then brought his eyebrows together, his forehead heating up a little as his mind turned on the higher gear to decipher the meaning behind Carol''s words.

    "Do you mean it in this¡­"

    "Yeah," Carol confirmed Mathew''s guess before he could even fully spell it out.

    Mathew stared nkly at the girl for a second before heaving a long and heavy sigh.

    "I guess there was never any need for me to be worried about you all leaving me," he said, right as the look on his face soured a little. "And that kind of reminded me of why we established the sleeping order in the first ce."

 Chapter 376 Groups Meeting

    ?

    "Okay, guys, let''s break it all down, one thing after another," Mathew said once all of the important members of his group gathered in one ce, ready to discuss all the changes that establishing the settlement brought to their situation.

    The group of Mathew''s closest allies didn''t only involve his former wives but also Norbert and two of the workers, each of whom was responsible for writing down the bullet points that would be discussed so that the information could be passed over to Daniel and Peter respectively.

    "First thing first," Mathew looked over at Daria whom Le brought over from the showers in a hurry. "I''m no longer able to able to im any further wives. And, in fact, you girls are no longer my wives either."

    Mathew started with the biggest of the changes¡­ even though most of those to who it applied already knew about it. What''s more, after giving it some thought, the young man realized that for how grand it appeared to him at first, there was hardly any real meaning behind this change.

    "Wait, what?" Daria opened up her eyes wide, freaked out by the sudden drop of the news just like everyone else was when Mathew first brought it up.

    "Wait!" Mathew called out to the girl, raising his hand to make the girl stop with her questions before she could freak out any further. "It''s really hard to exin it in short words. Basically, your power is no longer directly rted to me and I''m no longer able to bestow systems like yours upon the girls I would im for my wives."

    Seeing Mathew''s reaction to her own, Daria somehow managed to keep her cool, patiently waiting for her former husband to exin himself.

    "Basically, somehow I made this decision without making it, but I''ve ended up changing my system to unlock the full extent of my power," Mathew said, finally finding the right approach to the topic. "And for how strange it is, you girls didn''t lose even a speck of your power because of that."

    This was Mathew''s greatest concern when it came to him changing his ss and thus system. Even though having his stats limited to about a hundred in each of the categories was a massive downside¡­ but when he considered the possibility of his wives losing their power as an effect of his changing his ss, he opted not to do it.

    And yet, Mathew always knew that a time woulde when he would have no other choice but to go beyond that point, even if just for the sake of not bing a weakling that any random zombie could kill with a mere scratch.

    In the end, Mathew never made the decision to advance his ss. This decision was taken for him by some force that he didn''t really understand. Thankfully, his greatest worry didn''te to be as all of his wives managed to not only keep their current status but also retain their ability to grow stronger.

    "I would love to say that I''m now as powerful as all of youbined, at least in terms of raw stats, but that''s not the case," Mathew then moved over to the next topic that was directly rted to the first one he brought up. "Right now, my stats are as follows. I have three hundred points in vitality, one hundred and fifty points in brawn and agility, two hundred in mind, and nearly three hundred in arcane," he revealed for everyone to know.

    Mathew took a deep breath before turning his eyes away from his direct and closest allies to one of the two former ssmates of his that he tasked with the job of recording everything that would be said during the meeting. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "You can omit this entire part," he ordered while looking at the guy responsible for writing down the information that would be sent to Peter at ater date.

    "Sure thing," Mathew''s former junior from a ss below smiled before quickly dragging his pen across the line that he just finished writing.

    "Moving back to the topic, I managed to keep all my skills intact. And from what I can see, they grew a tiny bit stronger than before, even before ounting for the spike in the statistics I can now ess."

    Up until this point, Mathew never really brought the topic of everyone''s stats to anyone''s attention. His group consisted of fighters and fighters alone. And as they kept fighting together through all this time, there was no need to put their strengths into numbers as everyone was aware of the power of the other members of the group.

    But this was no longer the case for everyone''s knowledge about Mathew''s powers, given the sudden spike in his stats.

    "We will have to put your newfound strength to a test," Beatrice muttered under her nose from the corner of the group she upied. "We can''t have you unleash hell upon the zombies anywhere near the premises that we want to keep intact before that," she then pointed out in a slightly louder voice.

    "I wholeheartedly agree," Mathew said as he nodded his head. "I wouldn''t want to kill some unfortunate passersby just because I''m not aware of the full extent of my strength. It''s one thing to see how much my stats have grown, but another thing to see them y out on a practical basis."

    "That''s not all," Beatrice then said, her voice once again raising in volume. "You said that you cannot bestow your system anymore," she pointed out before looking all over the faces of everyone present in the crowd. "Wait, seriously?" she twitched when she saw apleteck of interest in anyone''s face. "Are you guys not concerned by that at all?!"

    ''It''s my first time to see her freak out that much,'' Mathew thought, gently biting down his teeth against his bottom lip to keep his mouth from forming a smile.

    And as Mathew looked slightly to the side, he could tell that Beatrice''s outburst was something new for Norbert just as well.

    "Guys, are you seriously blind to how this was our greatest asset?!" Beatrice now freaked out for real. "Your ability to grant the one and the only thing that allows others to keep up with the rate at which the zombies evolve and grow stronger?!"

    "Ah," Mathew twitched as a short sound escaped from his mouth. "If that''s what you are worried about, then there is no need for you to freak out like that," he stated before putting a wide smile on his face. "Because right now, I can purchase system seeds from the merchants and bestow them upon others without any need for me to sleep with them!"

 Chapter 377 One Bomb After The Other

    ?

    "That''s quite the¡­" Beatrice gulped her saliva down. "A bomb for you to drop."

    Her hands dropped. Beatrice''s entire face melted down as she started to gradually acknowledge the implications behind this message.

    "Doesn''t that mean we can just give it to¡­"

    "Hold your horses," Mathew called stops before the woman could really start going. "To answer your question, I didn''t see any attachments that would limit my use of the seeds," Mathew said, guessing what the woman had in mind. "But before you even ask this, tell me, are those system seeds something that we could tread lightly?"

    Mathew closed his eyes over his chest and gave the woman a long look.

    "We could save many more human lives!" Beatrice mumbled through her lips, giving Mathew a look of a teacher disappointed in just how ipetent their students are. "Imagine if half of the poption had a system back when this apocalypse started!"

    "That''s exactly what I''m talking about." Mathew countered right away. "I cannot really imagine our society developing peacefully if some people could randomly get so much stronger!"

    History proved that too much power in the hands of the public stood against the very idea of public order. Without thews and force to put them in ce, one''s personal power could only lead to a disaster.

    And in a world where all forms of power were now gone, ground to dust, recklessly spreading the seeds of the system would lead to this exact scenario.

    "Right now, weck a proper means of controlling those who we could bestow with a system," Mathew pointed out. He then rested his hands on his hips and looked at the woman directly in her agitated face. "Right now systems are kept to a narrow number of people, creating a clear hierarchy. But what will happen when every other person will get a system on their own?"

    Mathew didn''t even need to start the topic to imagine what this situation would look like. And it wasn''t a pretty sight at all.

    "I''m not saying we are going to hide this possibility." Mathew shook his head. "Bestowing systems upon others is too much of an opportunity for us to waste," he said before stopping his head and taking a look around, giving all of hispanions a serious look. "But I also implore that we do not use it recklessly!"

    "He''s making sense," Daria quickly agreed, nodding her head with understanding.

    "I still want to know how effective those systems will be," Le pointed out another potentially conflicting part of the topic. "It''s not like the good ones will be cheap, right?" The girl leaned her head to the side as she pointed out. "So we will need to factor this cost into our ns as well."

    ''She''s really seeing through the crux of the matter,'' Mathew turned his eyes to the girl, giving her a short nce filled with praise.

    Then, his feelings quickly turned sour when he recalled how he basically stood her up on her night.

    ''I wonder how our situation will change in that regard, given how my wives'' system is now gone,'' Mathew thought.

    Just a few short moments ago, this thought alone was enough to put him on the edge of a mental break. Now, however, it was just a simple notion filled with maybe a tiny bit of curiosity.

    Now that they no longer needed to keep up the appearances of the husband and his wives for the sake of the system, how would Mathew''s rtionship with the girls change?<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''Only time can tell, I guess,'' Mathew took a deeper breath as he thought.

    The topic of his wives inadvertently lead his thoughts to the one major point that he had yet to pick up.

    "Right, girls, there is one more matter to discuss," Mathew spoke out, ready to turn his thoughts into actions. "And it''s not only huge but also pretty damn urgent," he added to shake the girls out of their daze.

    This entire talk consisted of nothing but topics that were extremely hard to summarise and even harder to quickly talk through. As such, it was only natural that the girls would rather have some time to slowly digest the news they were receiving at every step.

    Sadly, there was no time for it. Or rather¡­

    ''I don''t know if there is a time limit on this mission or not, so it''s better if I don''t take any chances,'' Mathew thought, reinforcing his idea for how he wanted to proceed.

    "First thing first, back when I visited the merchant to establish the settlement, I''ve got a strange vision," Mathew revealed, finally getting to the details that exceeded anything that they experienced or talked about so far. "It was a glimpse of what you would call a world in a fantasy setting. All I know for sure is that magic ismon there¡­." Mathew took a short pause to let the tension build up a little, "and races other than just the humans that we have here, on earth," he then added.

    Mathew twitched.

    A weird sense of nostalgia and pride filled his head as he realized a small tidbit.

    ''Did I just use human race¡­ in a context that''s actually scientifically appropriate, ever since the very conception of this word?'' Mathew asked.

    Calling people of different skin color or other gic traits as different races was the inherent drawback of humanity''s simplistic and brutal past. It was also the result possible only in a world where no other race contested the right to call themselves humans in the first ce.

    Only with the appearance of a fantasy world that was a home to human-like sentients whose biological traits differed from those of people on earth, did humanity gain the right to use a race as a differentiating factor in the first ce!

    "Before you ask any questions," Mathew raised his hands.

    The time that he wasted falling into a daze the girls made use of to analyze his words and prepare their replies. Yet, rather than waiting for them to ask for more details, Mathew opted to offer them willingly.

    "There is most likely a chance that we could obtain means to traveling to that foreign world," the young man pointed out. His lips then started to tremble, with his soul unsure of what feeling to settle on.

    Should Mathew be wary of all the challenges that this opportunity would invite down the line? Or should he be enthusiastic about what next could this changing world offer them?

    "The one caveat that I want to stress out, though," Mathew then added, taking some time to prepare before he could rain down on everyone''s various parades. "There is most likely a time limit to how quickly we need to get to that other world if we want to really keep the option to travel there."

 Chapter 378 Mathews Mental Restriction

    ?

    "Caveat this, limited time that," Nadia chimed in the discussion by slightly mocking Mathew''s words. "Mathew, listen," she said as soon as she approached her man close enough.

    Nadia then climbed up on the tips of her toes while reaching out with her hands for Mathew''s head. Nadia pressed her hands against the young man''s cheeks, securing his head in ce just for her to climb even higher and strike his forehead with her own.

    "There was never a need for you to try to coax us into helping you out," Nadia whispered, banking on the direct proximity to carry her lowered voice. "So if you want us to go and do something, just tell us what."

    ''Is it the aftershock of my previous breakdown?'' Mathew thought, strangely suspicious of the chance in Nadia''s behavior.

    She was the one who was the biggest reason behind Mathew''s attempt at pulling the girls into the decision-making process. And now she was admitting that they would all go wherever Mathew would send them¡­ just because?

    ''That has to be it,'' Mathew thought; his looks softening up a bit.

    "All I know is that in order to ess this other world, we need to develop this ce,"  Mathew revealed. "Just like we could do so with the fortress, we should be able to do the same with the settlement."

    This part of the message from his future (past?) self was pretty clear.

    If he wanted to open up the doors that would lead to the other world he saw, Mathew had to raise the level of his settlement.

    That''s all Mathew learned from his vision. No details as to what exactly he had to do, no specifics as to what area of his settlement had to grow.

    ''If it''s really me who recorded that message, then I either couldn''t tell the precise details or I knew that by not divulging them, I will make them all the more visible!''

    If there was anyone that Mathew knew really well¡­ then it was Mathew himself. And just by stretching his imagination and putting himself in the shoes of the person that recorded the message, be it some stranger posing as him or Mathew''s version of himself from a different timeline, Mathew could see a few more ways of looking at the situation.

    And by looking at something with different light, Mathew could now see the clues that could lead him to the answers he was seeking.

    "How many cores do we need to gather for that upgrade?" Nadia asked, pulling Mathew''s mind back to reality. She then took a step back and rested her hands on her hips. "It will be a lot easier to gather them if we know what amount we are looking for."

    "To be honest, I don''t know," Mathew shrugged his shoulders. "I came back as soon as the message ended, so I didn''t have the chance to look through all the options yet," he revealed.

    "Then, how about you do it now?" Nadia then suggested as if it was the most obvious thing to do under the sun.

    "There is no point," Mathew quickly refused Nadia''s suggestion. "It''s not like we have any real number of cores left," he pointed out.

    They only managed to unlock the settlement thanks to the two thousand cores that Carol found stashed away in the area. Without them, they wouldn''t be even able to afford the upgrade!

    As such, however many cores they were currently left in Mathew''s possession, he didn''t even need to check to tell they wouldn''t be enough.

    Not for the upgrades that Mathew had in his mind. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Is it a problem to check it?" Nadia asked, raising her eyebrows as a sense of surprise appeared on her face.

    "Not really a problem¡­" Mathew muttered, ncing over to where the merchant''s figure stood in silence, paying no heed to anything that was happening around it.

    Mathew then bit down on his lips before averting his eyes.

    Ever since he figured out their meaning, he always felt safe within the merchant''s subspace. It was a realm separated from all the bloodshed of the apocalypse, a safe haven for someone tired of all the fighting and cooking up ns for the future.

    A safe haven... That turned out not to be anywhere as safe as Mathew expected it to be.

    ''I''m quite sure something more happened while I was at that merchant''s subspace,'' Mathew thought, turning his attention to the small cracks that appeared whenever he would try to scan his memory of the event second by second.

    There was this one point, right where the time flow of the vision came to aplete stop, where things didn''t really make sense.

    Sure, everything was in the exact same spot in the two following instances of time. There were no sudden jumps of matter that would suggest someone messed around with Mathew''s perception.

    No, there wasn''t a single element that Mathew could pinpoint as the one responsible for the eerie feeling he had.

    Yet, no matter how much Mathewcked the means of proving his point, he was sure of this one element.

    Right after the moment when the time of the vision came to aplete stop and before his other self appeared to pass on a message¡­ something happened.

    ''Most likely the point of interference,'' Mathew thought as he gulped his saliva down.

    The beings behind this whole apocalypse clearly keep him on a watchlist. And the second they could snap at him, they did so right away!

    But, looking at the situation from the outside¡­ it was only when Mathew stepped into the merchant''s subspace that he exposed himself to the attacks of those who were behind this realm in the first ce!

    "Is there any problem with checking it out?" Nadia repeated her question. This time, however, she didn''t do it lightly.

    The girl approached Mathew first. Then, she gave a long stare at his face, waiting patiently for his bout of overthinking stuff to pass. And only when Mathew''s eyes regained their brilliance did Nadia bother to speak at all.

    "It''s not like I want to pressure you," Nadia added in a slightly meeker tone, clearly bothered by Mathew''s reaction to her suggestion. "I just didn''t think¡­"

    "You didn''t think there were any drawbacks to doing so," Mathew finished for the girl before nodding his head. "Trust me, I was the same just a moment ago," he admitted before turning his eyes and looking at the darkness hiding under the merchant''s hood.

    "But right now, I''m not so sure if it''s safe to interact with merchants. So unless absolutely necessary..." Mathew gave Nadia a quick nce, "let''s not do it for no real reason, okay?"

 Chapter 379 Merchants Redesigned

    ?

    Mathew stood still while facing the faceless merchant.

    He gave out his opinion about how possibly dangerous it was to get into contact with their realm¡­ Only for all the girls to agree that he needed to stop with his bullshit and just stick through it.

    ''It''s not like I don''t understand their point of view,'' Mathew thought, calmly taking his time to steel himself for the experience. ''Without those merchants, we would be all long dead. Without weapons, without provisions to supply our bases, or even without the levels that we got from them¡­''

    Mathew shook his head. He then took in a deep breath before reaching out.

    His hand, however, stopped just an inch away from the merchant''s hood.

    ''But they didn''t feel it,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth. ''The sense of something creeping all over their consciousness, invading their most inner parts¡­''

    This was the true reason why Mathew didn''t want to enter the merchant''s subspace again.

    Not because he feared being watched by some otherworldly being. Those who were responsible for the apocalypse likely had no need for the merchants to keep an eye on him at all.

    No, it was this creepy feeling alone that Mathew experienced right at the moment when his memories were slightly shaken. Right at the point that made him suspicious whether all that he could remember happening¡­ was really all there was to his experience.

    ''But their point still stands,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth as he pushed his hand forward. ''And right now, we can''t really afford not to use those merchants!''

    Mathew grasped at the shadows. And as per usual, the shadows surged forth, quickly detaching him from reality, pushing the world that Mathew knew aside.

    ''It''s like suddenly falling into a hole,'' Mathew thought. Ever since the unpleasant experience, he paid a lot more attention to the details that he grew so used to he started to omit them. ''It doesn''t feel that I''m moving, it''s more like the space itself moves apart. It doesn''t feel like I''m falling¡­ but if there is no space, the notion of falling loses its meaning.''

    There were only so many thoughts that could pass through Mathew''s head while the shadows coiled around him to create the familiar space of the subspace with its merchant and all the massive shelves that he had to offer.

    This time, however, the shadows changed their mind¡­?

    ''No, that''s not it,'' Mathew thought, startled when the process of getting into the subspace prolonged way beyond the usual. ''They didn''t change their mind as they don''t seem to have any mind in the first ce. It''s more like¡­'' Mathew hesitated for a second, taking a moment to pinpoint the right word to describe his feeling. ''It''s more like they need more time to build this subspace up?''

    The reason behind the dy was just another small detail that Mathew from yesterday wouldn''t pay much mind to at all. A rare but only slightly annoying change that the young man would ignore in favor of thinking about more important topics.

    Thankfully, as soon as the merchant''s subspace revealed itself to Mathew''s eyes, he quickly realized the reason behind the dy.

    "What the hell is this?" Mathew asked out loud, weirded out by the change.

    There wasn''t a single shelf with the merchant''s wares disyed. There was no furniture or construction of any kind¡­ save for a simple set of a desk, chair, and an old type of personalputer.

    ''Did it take longer because it had to recreate the structure of earthyputers from the scratch?'' Mathew thought, taking a step closer toward the familiar device.

    The type ofputer was so old Mathew could barely recall ever having one. The screen itself was bigger than the actualputing unit, like the technology Mathew could only ever see in Wikipedia or an actual museum. Theputing unit itself wasn''t all that better, with yellowish-white stic in ce of the ss and ck metal Mathew was used to.

    Even the keyboard screamed ancient times when he looked at it. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I wonder why they used this kind of model when replicating something more modern would likely be easier?" Mathew muttered to himself as he took yet another step closer before sitting behind the desk and resting his hands on the keyboard.

    "Were they worried that my shut-in instincts would take over, leading to me spending hours upon hours in the subspace just ying random games?" Mathew whispered, acting as if he wanted to hide his voice¡­ while in fact hoping that whoever was obviously listening, would take this suggestion and offer Mathew some sce.

    "Well, it''s not like it matters, I guess," Mathew then muttered before finally taking the leap of faith and pressing theunch button on theputer''s case.

    Something started to work. The noisesing from the case were the greatest proof of that. Gears started to turn, and the solid disc of the hard drive started to spin.

    Bit by bit, theputer produced more and more noise. And by the time the screen turned on, it only joined the cacophony, making Mathew wish he had some noise-canceling headphones.

    ''I hope I will be able to get used to it,'' Mathew thought, resting his hands on the keyboard while he waited for the system to properlyunch¡­

    Which never happened.

    Mathew didn''t get to see the logo of thepany that made the hardware. There was no logo that would allow him to recognize the software either. No login phase appeared just like theunched piececked any of the convenience icons that Mathew was used to.

    And yet, regardless of it all, Mathew only needed a single look to figure out the system of theputer.

    The alleys turned into folders. Shelves turned into catalogs while items changed into singr listings with a picture, a reference button that Mathew couldn''t tell the use of, andstly the price, the desired quantity, and then the simple "purchase" button.

    "Seeing how there is no sell button," Mathew looked up from the screen and towards the area behind it.

    And just as if responding to his thoughts, the shadows coiled only to form an altar that looked like an insanely massive, stone bowl.

    The creeping feeling appeared again, sending a cold chill down Mathew''s spine.

    The young man twitched in his seat. He used all of his willpower to stop himself from freaking out.

    ''I can''t disappoint them,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth and ignoring the feeling as he quickly scrolled through the items now avable at the merchant. And soon enough, he found the "settlement" folder along with the "local upgrades" catalog.

    There were only six icons inside. Four of them stood for specific yet general upgrades to the area while the two others turned out to be folders named "convenience" and "defense."

    ''Seeing how I can actually buy defenses for the settlement¡­ it doesn''t seem like just upgrading from a fortress will be enough of a barrier to stop the zombies or the monsters," Mathew muttered to himself, quickly analyzing the meaning behind the items that he didn''t even bother to check.

    Right now, the four items appearing right away within the subfolder were that much more important.

    Utilities, production, manufacturing, trade.

    Four words that held more meaning behind them that Mathew was willing to ept right away. Four words that he looked forward soo damn much to seeing¡­ Only to end up terrified to no end when he actually did.

 Chapter 380 Four Upgradeable Parts Of The Settlement

    ?

    There were four general areas of improvement that Mathew could invest in, in order to improve the settlement.

    First came the utilities, an area that he was not only already familiar with but also one that started off at level three, as opposed to the rest of them which all came in at level zero.

    ''So this part is responsible for all the types of things that we are using and that would normally depend on a developed civilization around, like electricity, running water, sewage¡­'' Mathew thought, quickly analyzing the content of the category.

    But as he read more and more into it, he realized just how much wider the real thing was than his original image of it.

    There was a water filtration system, air filtration system, passive cure infusion, active cure infusion, passive power growth, active (inactive) power growth areas¡­

    Anything that one could expect from the modern living standard would be there, split into several different categories to showcase just how borate of a task it was to aplish something as simple as providing running water.

    Thankfully, though,  there was no option to increase just a single element of the settlement utilities, saving Mathew the trouble of micromanaging everything despite apleteck of knowledge on how to do it properly.

    Yet, besides all the things that he could understand, there were also things that he had never seen or thought about before.

    ''Passive and active cure infusions?'' Mathew thought, staring at the first element that caught his attention with how out of ce it appeared to be. ''And what is this power growth, not to speak about something that''s active yet it''s not¡­''

    Mathew really wanted to take his time to analyze those things too¡­ but he knew there were limits to how much he could think about stuff before his mental energy would be exhausted.

    ''And there is no way I will waste all of my brainpower just to figure out the meaning behind a few words without even checking the rest of the stuff!''

    Prompted by his decision, Mathew turned his eyes toward the next main element of the settlement, the production.

    This time, it was pretty simple and straightforward.

    Every level of production of the settlement would spawn a new production spot. And as Mathew read more into the details of the deal, he learned that it would be up to him to decide the fortress where it would take ce¡­ but picking a specific area was outside of his means.

    The system behind the settlement would do it for him, always picking the most suitable area.

    On the outside, it was a great thing. Once again, Mathew wouldn''t negatively influence the process of picking a spot with his ignorance. After all, he knew about production just as much as he knew about rocket science¡­

    ''Or not,'' Mathew quickly found apse in the logic of his thoughts. ''I actually know less about production than I know about rocket science, given how I used to geek out and learn some about the letter in my free time!''

    On the outside, having the system pick the best possible production area appeared like a great deal. Yet, the moment Mathew reached the FaQ part of the settlement''s production description, he realized just how wrong he was.

    ''So that''s how it works¡­'' Mathew thought while releasing a long sigh while his body slumped down on his chair.

    Production, as described on theputer screen that stood for the merchant now, had nothing to do with what Mathew associated with the world in his mind.

    What he expected the production to be turned out to be included only within the manufacturing upgrade tree. The production wasn''t about creating items that they could properly use.

    The production was all about creating basic ingredients for the items, be it food like vegetables, resources like wood or coal, or even some mystic-sounding elements like the core''s heart or core buffer. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''Thosest few things do catch my eye¡­ but it''s not what I looked forward the most to,'' Mathew thought, forcing himself to once again look over the details that he didn''t fully understand to save his mental strength for the next two elements.

    Mathew finally moved his eyes and the cursor of the screen before right-clicking on the ''manufacturing'' folder. And just like the two times before, rather than opening the context window of the upgrade, Mathew revealed the simple exnation behind it.

    "There it is¡­" Mathew uttered as a wide smile formed on his lips.

    The one thing that he was looking for since what felt like ages ago. The element that he already encountered while conquering the media building but that was locked all the way until now.

    The manufacturing. Or in other words, the ability to refine raw cores and turn them into actual useful products!

    Sadly, for how much more useful this part of settlement upgrades was, Mathew quickly found out that it was actually far moreplicated than he expected.

    "I should''ve figured that out in advance," Mathew muttered to himself as he removed his hand from the mouse and then stretched back on his chair. "If manufacturing was as easy as the production, this entire system would be greatly unbnced."

    ''And there is no way they will allow me to find another problem to exploit to my advantage,'' a voice in Mathew''s head added, startling the young man to no end.

    "What the hell¡­?!" Mathew nearly jumped. His eyes opened wide as he searched for the possible source of the voice that his own thoughts didn''t create.

    It was the greatest feeling of an uncanny valley that Mathew ever went through in his life.

    It was as if this single thought was extremely foreign to his body like some sort of an invasive parasite¡­ while being the most natural thing that he could think of at that precise moment!

    ''Once again¡­'' Mathew took in a deep breath, ''I can''t waste my energy trying to analyze the details,'' he thought, releasing his breath back into the shadowy world.

    Matthew then looked a bit closer into the problematic nature of the manufacturing.

    On the outside, it was an extremely simple scheme. Just like with production, upgrading this part of the settlement would create a manufacturing area in the fortress of Mathew''s choosing while leaving the picking of the exact location to the merchant.

    The next part was still simple, as it was all about providing such a manufacturing area with enough manpower to make it run smoothly¡­ and then supplying it with all sorts of basic ingredients.

    And from the single look that Mathew took of the few recipes essible, it was the supply of those basic ingredients that was the major problem.

    ''Wood, stone, nails, cores, and even damn tools I can provide,'' he thought, clenching his teeth. ''But where the hell do I get lesser manufacturing core? Or ambient processing chip?''

    Mathew could read the name of the ingredients required in some of the recipes. And while he could see those names on the names of some of the other, simpler recipes, stuff like ambient processing chips were not anywhere on the list.

    And so, following his rule from earlier, Mathew turned his eyes over thest major element of the settlement, the trade, only for a wave of understanding to wash over his mind.

    "I guess that''s where I will have to get all those unknown items from!"

 Chapter 381 How Much For Ten Upgrades?

    ?

    "Aaah, a breath of fresh, real air," Mathew eximed lightly as soon as the shadows retracted, freeing him from the hold of the subspace and all the hidden yet watchful eyes that likely observed him there.

    "How did it go? Any problems?" Nadia asked, still in the same spot and position she was in when Mathew reached out to enter the merchant''s subspace in the first ce.

    "I think I have all I need," Mathew replied, stepping away from the headless merchant and stretching his back as he walked.

    Even though for everyone else the time was eitherpletely stopped or extremely slowed down, he still spent quite some time sitting in a cheap, ufortable chair while staring at the old-type CRT monitor.

    "And?" Nadia asked, slightly raising her eyebrows as she saw her man put all of himself into his stretches.

    "Well, it''s both simple andplicated at the same time." Mathew released a short sigh.

    "Can you move on to the details already?" Beatrice asked from the side. "I understand that this back and forth is normal for you but it does not contribute to our development at all. And don''t forget, it''s you who imed we are pretty much in a damn hurry."

    Beatrice didn''t appear to be angry. At most, she was slightly annoyed.

    Just like with Nadia''s position, her reaction to Mathew''s unwillingness to enter the subspace didn''t disappear as no real-time has passed for her.

    ''It''s a pretty weird feeling,'' Mathew thought, ''to be the only one who has long since moved on.''

    "Whether we are in a hurry or not doesn''t matter, as we don''t have the cores for even a single upgrade,'' he pointed out. Mathew then squinted his eyes and looked up, recalling the details of the message he got from his other, past or future, self. "And we need seven more upgrades to get the bonus I talked about," he then added.

    Recalling the content of what he heard from his other self took Mathew only a second. Every word of the message was deeply imprinted upon his mind due to how important it was to him.

    No, the reason for his hesitation was Mathew''s need to recall what he was talking about with the girls before stepping into the merchant.

    Once again, a problem created by the two different time-flows that they experienced.

    "Anyway, let''s talk about the details you want," Mathew said, picking a clean spot on the floor to sit down and cross his legs while slightly pushing his chest forward to put his back in a position that allowed him to rx his tired muscles. "There are four types of upgrades. The utility area upgrade that we have on the third level already. It refers to all the¡­ well," Mathew smiled, "utilities that we are using even though they shouldn''t be working at all."

    "So the total number of upgrades we need is ten," Daria joined in, pointing out the connection between Mathew''s earlier statement to what he said right now.

    "That''s right," Mathew nodded his head. "We need seven more upgrades between utilities, production, manufacturing, and trade," he exined. "Production is about growing, mining¡­" the young man hesitated for a second, "extracting stuff?" he said in an uncertain voice, unsure what words would best describe what he saw back in the system.

    "Wait, trade?" Nadia butted in before Mathew could properly ramp up his exnation. "Manufacturing I can understand as the second step, as transforming the basic products from the production upgrades into something moreplex. But trade?" she then asked again. "Isn''t that just a copy of what the merchant does already?"<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Mathew turned his eyes to the girl before nodding his head.

    "As usual, yes and no," he gave the short answer. "You are right about the manufacturing stuff, but trade¡­" Mathew pursed his lips, failing to stop his face from putting on a displeased grimace. "I can''t say for sure and I think we should test it more extensively¡­ But I don''t think we can buy the stuff that we will need from the merchant without upgrading the trade."

    "So we will need to pay for a trade upgrade, right?" Beatrice chimed in, her annoyance washed away by her curiosity about the topic.

    Being the former leader of a police unit, she could easily switch her entire mindset to fully focus on the important topic at hand, leaving all the useless emotions and thoughts for the future.

    "Most likely, yeah," Mathew nodded his head. "But once again, I can''t say for sure. I only saw the general descriptions of each of the upgrades and a few recipes. And the recipes that I saw all required stuff that would be too much of a drag for us to produce. To top it all off," Mathew twisted his lips, showcasing how annoyed he himself was with the notion, "the items that we will likely need¡­ I couldn''t find them in the merchant''s store."

    Nadia released a short sigh.

    "They wouldn''t put in something important for us to pay with cores for if we could circumvent its use, would they?" she muttered.

    Before Mathew received the message, everyone in his group did their absolute best not to mention or even reference the beings that were responsible for the ongoing apocalypse. Ever since their influence started to show in more direct ways, though, they gave up on all their attempts at keeping shut about it.

    "Anyway, there is still the topic of pricing," Mathew pointed out, quickly moving away from the topic of recipes and what products they could get from them.

    Given how he couldn''t pick the location of the production upgrades, he had no idea what sort of items they would be able to produce. That, in turn, would determine what sort of items they would be able to manufacture while deciding what other items they would need to buy. As such, discussing the topic of what items they could potentially produce would be nothing more than a waste of time.

    "All three of the upgrades that we have yet to get cost five hundred cores to get," Mathew finally revealed the price of the upgrades. "But bringing the utilities to a fourth level would cost four thousand cores. Meaning¡­"

    "For every level of the upgrade, its cost doubles," Le joined in.

    It was only a guess¡­ but a guess of which the math checked out.

    "And that means, if we go with the cheapest path to reach a total of ten upgrades for the settlements, we need to gather four thousand cores," Beatrice did the math and summed up out loud.

    Mathew then spread his arms open.

    "It''s not a small amount, but it''s nothing that we would struggle with!"

 Chapter 382 Leilas Nostalgic Illusion

    ?

    ''Nothing that we would struggle with,'' Mathew thought as he left for the wall of thepound.

    He revealed everything. The cost, the use, and the limitations of each of the upgrades along with their ultimate goal. Yet, once everything was said¡­ nothing was actually done.

    ''We could barely afford to go through with getting the settlement,'' Mathew thought as he managed to find a rtively empty spot where he couldn''t see anyone moving around while busy with their own tasks. ''So how the hell are we going to gather more of the cores now?''

    The simplest answer was to go on another expedition. Theoretically speaking, they didn''t reach the castle that Mathew wanted to check out, so they could try approaching it again.

    Yes, theoretically.

    Because Mathew just recently brought forth the biggest purchase in his life so far. And with how he was already struggling with the evolved zombies, how he needed everyone''s help to take down an evolved monster¡­ Now that the cores he spent would enter the zombie economy, just what kind of opponent he was supposed to expect?

    ''It''s already pretty damn hard to find the zombies anywhere near the fortresses. Meaning, if we want to farm the cores, we need to go far beyond the range of our supply,'' Mathew thought, sitting down directly on the ground before using a piece of rubble as his backrest.

    "What are you doing, brooding by yourself out in the sticks?" Le asked as she slowly walked from behind the building''s corner and joined Mathew by thepound''s wall.

    Just two days ago, this ce would be bustling with zombies and their constant attempts at breaking past the barrier. In those two short days, though, the situation changed. And for whatever reason, there wasn''t even a single zombie anywhere in sight.

    ''On one end, this allowed my workers to clean this area up,'' Mathew thought trying to change his mindset by thinking about the positives. ''But on the other¡­''

    The perspective of walking halfway across the city just to find some zombies his group could hunt dawned on Mathew''s mind again, forcing his head down and preventing him from opening his mouth.

    "Hey! I''m talking to you!" Le protested as she heavily sat down right by Mathew''s side. "Don''t ignore me like that!"

    "Ah," Mathew twitched. "I''m sorry, "he then lowered his head in apology. "I was too deep in my thoughts to notice you. Were you saying something?"

    Instead of replying, Le scoffed and turned her head around with a short ''hmph''. Her knee moved up and down as she tapped her heel against the ground¡­

    No.

    Le kept up her act only for a moment before her body rxed and returned to a simple, sitting position. She then stretched herself to the back before rxing her entire body.

    "I can tell that you were thinking hard about something," Le said in a low, gut-born tone. "And it irks me that you don''t want to share."

    Mathew raised his eyes and looked at the girl only to then turn his eyes back towards the nothingness of the empty city.

    "I''m just trying to figure out how to get more cores," Mathew admitted. He then heaved a long, deep sigh. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I guess this exins why you are so keen to get this entire production thing going," Le then probed a little.

    "That''s right," Mathew was pretty damn quick to reply. "Only once we can get more cores without actually going to hunt will I feel any better," he admitted. "Right now, it''s already a huge pain in the ass to find more cores. But what about the future? What about when we clean the entire city out of any remaining zombies? What about¡­"

    Mathew cut his words short.

    Le was intelligent enough to see through his worries now.

    And the greatest problem of having to invest a considerable number of cores¡­ for something that would provide an unknown amount of cores back.

    "I hate how we always need to risk our lives if we want to improve anything," Mathew admitted in a suddenly lower voice. Once again, he hung his head low from his shoulders as he locked in eyes on the grass. "But no matter how much I try, I can''t find any other way."

    "It''s okay," Le said, shooting her hand to the side and resting it upon Mathew''s shoulder. "I can see how hard you are trying for our sake," she added as she reaffirmed her grasp on Mathew''s shoulder before pulling him to the side, forcing his head down on herp. "We all can," she reassured again while moving her hand to stroke Mathew''s hair.

    "What are you doing?" Mathew asked after taking some time to enjoy the softness at the back of his head.

    "It was originally supposed to be my night before the morning came," Le pointed out with a resolute smile, the movements of her hand only intensifying. "So, is there anything wrong with me just ying around like that for a bit?"

    Mathew took in a deep breath¡­ and ended up releasing it once he realized he had no good way of pushing the girl aside.

    "I know that you want to rush out and gather the stones," Le whispered as her fingers brushed against the skin of Mathew''s scalp. "I know that you would be ready to start another expedition right away, all for the sake of growing the strength of our camp¡­"

    Le''s voice faded into the nothingness of thete afternoon. The movements of her hands slowed down as well as the look on her face turned nostalgic.

    "I can still remember how this ce used to be before everything started," Le then whispered, her eyes locked on the buildings on the other side of thepound''s barrier. "And right now they are just at a hand''s reach¡­ You can see those buildings being there¡­ But they are nothing more but a pretty illusion," she muttered.

    ''What is she on about?'' Mathew asked himself, confused by the sudden shift of tone in the girl''s words and actions.

    "This illusion works only because you forced all of the zombies out of this area," Le added after a few more moments. "It''s thanks to you that I can stare at this illusion as long as I won''t reach out to see that it really is nothing more but a mirage¡­"

    The girl continued, regardless of Mathew''s confusion.

    "And for letting me have this sweet delusion in this broken world," Le lowered her eyes and looked down. She then leaned in, bringing her face closer to Mathew''s lips. "I thank you," she whispered, leaning in a tiny bit further and cing a gentle kiss on Mathew''s mouth.

 Chapter 383 What Needs To Be Done

    ?

    Mathewy down on the ground. Free from the burden of anyforts, he was down directly on the rubble that covered the school''s courtyard.

    Only his head was in a bit morefortable position, resting on Le''sp.

    The girl''s hand caressed his head, running up and down his hair and gently massaging his scalp.

    They didn''t exchange a single word for the longest time, simply staring into the distance at how the sun slowly made its way across the arch of the sky.

    ''A bit of peace is what I need,'' Mathew thought, lowering his eyelids as he felt slowly falling into a shallow slumber.

    Right now a short nap was exactly what he needed. A way to detach himself from all the emotions and stakes of the recent events. A moment of respite from all the problems that continued to stack into infinity.

    How do we get more cores? What''s the move that minimized the risks but increases the possible gains? How should we proceed?

    Being the de-facto leader of a huge faction of survivors, Mathew''s mind continued to be gued by questions like those.

    And under the constant stress of pushing everyone to take the next step¡­ Mathew finally grew tired.

    Too exhausted to care. Be it about the other survivors, their future or even having fun with his wives.

    He was too tired for any of those things to hold any meaning. And on top of Le''sp,  Mathew found his escape.

    The air gently brushed against his face. It caressed his skin while carrying his consciousness away, to thend of rest and rejuvenation.

    Yet, as soon as Mathew got even close to falling asleep¡­

    His body would jerk awake, forcing all the doziness and sleepiness aside.

    The events of the past few days turned him into a monster of action, a man who couldn''t rest easy unless it was necessary to keep on pushing forward.

    And right now, Mathew''s desired nap would make him stay in ce. He wouldn''t progress anything over the course of his nap. He wouldn''t grow stronger or find any answers either.

    No, resting right now would be treason to all those who risked their lives to keep this entire thing¡­

    Going?

    ''Wait a second,'' Mathew pulled his eyebrows together while still acting as if he was struggling to just fall asleep.

    ''Why do I even try so hard?'' Mathew asked himself, stunned by the sudden discovery he made.

    There was no reason for him to do everything all on his own!

    Rather than that, didn''t he gather all sorts of people to bolster the strength of the survivors? And if such was the case, why was he stuck on picking the group''s focus so much?

    ''It''s not like I''m the only one who can contribute, thus limiting our options to just a single focus,'' Mathew realized, his eyes slowly opening up.

    This time, it wasn''t his anxiety that forced him awake. This time, it was his motivation to finally change something.

    "Matty?" Le asked in a soft voice, flicking a wild strand of her hair away before moving her hand over to caress Mathew''s cheek. "Are you okay?" she asked. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I will manage," Mathew groaned, struggling to get back up from the girl''s softp.

    Contrary to how the situation appeared to head towards a more sexual scene before, Mathew ended up keeping the moment rtively peaceful.

    ''I guess she simply noticed I was bothered by something so she opted not to distract me too much,'' Mathew quickly realized when the girl didn''t pursue intimacy.

    "No, seriously," Le continued, outright ignoring Mathew''s unsatisfactory answer. "What''s wrong?"

    Mathew raised his eyes up to the girl''s empty face. Save for some bits of affection, there was no single other emotion in her eyes.

    Not even curiosity to back her question up.

    "I''m thinking it''s high time for us to stop sheltering everyone," Mathew finally admitted. Or rather, he used fancy and nice words tomunicate a pretty dire message.

    "We did the heavy lifting so far, but it''s time to let others join in on the fun. Right now it doesn''t matter if they are students or not. We don''t have the luxury to just leave everything to our group of few."

    Mathew turned silent after muttering his passage.

    ''I''ve created hunters in hopes that one day, they would take over keeping the fortresses safe,'' Mathew thought as his eyes wandered over to the massive schoolpound.

    "So, why do you feel so damn tense?" Le then asked while leaning her head over to the side.

    Mathew turned his eyes and stared at the girl for a second.

    "I''m about to sentence quite a few people to their deaths," he pointed out.

    "And?" Le angled her head even further. "It''s not like you are going to kill them. You will just give them missions and it will be up to them to fulfill those missions for you."

    In theory, it was a valid strategy.

    If they had no more magic cores left, Mathew could simply send his men to gather some instead of going to hunt them himself.

    If there was a small horde forming in the vincity, Mathew wouldn''t be forced to deploy his wives and most important allies if he had some soldiers he could throw at the zombies instead.

    "It still feels like practically leading their execution," Mathew muttered as he turned his eyes away from the school and towards the deep, dark-blue sky. "Because they will need to gather some stones before I can even give them a system or two."

    This was the crux of the problem. The reason why I didn''t rush to create a private army on my own. And it all started with ack of cores.

    With absolutely no cores on hand, I couldn''t purchase even the most rudimentary system for my hunters. On the other hand, they all had to be armed with a system to even stand their ground against anything stronger than the weakest possible zombie.

    Or, in other words, I had no other choice but to gather my friends and most important allies before going for one more raid, onest excursion before I could retire from the role of an explorer and pass the torch to someone who I would gift with a suitable system!

    I took in a deep breath.

    "It feels like you figured something out," Lemented from behind in a rxed voice.

    "Yeah, I did," I nodded my head forward even though the girl was behind my back. "And in short words, we are going to gather up and storm the castle!"

 Chapter 384 Caliber

    ?

    "We are going to storm the castle¡­" Mathew muttered as he rushed around toplete the few preparatory steps he needed before his n could start. "If only it was that simple¡­"

    Right now, Mathew''s group needed the cores. It was the only factor that limited their ability to grow, be it their economy, forces, or the level of their settlements.

    And while storming the castle was the end goal of Mathew''s ns, the road to that goal would be long and arduous¡­ and physically demanding at every step.

    "Oh, Mathew!" one of the survivors whose name Mathew couldn''t be bothered to remember jumped from their seat and greeted him.

    "Yeah, it''s me," Mathew replied before looking over the young man''s arm to the room he was guarding.

    Even in a tight group like theirs, there were some things that not everyone could have ess to.

    The cores Mathew could take care of himself by storing them in the merchant''s storage. But weapons were a whole different story.

    "I need all the shotguns and pistols that we have," Mathew announced his request without stalling.

    "A big expedition?" the other party replied, turning around to release the primitive yetplicated lock that kept the weapon''s storage room from the unauthorized survivors.

    "You could call it like that," Mathew replied while trying not to roll his eyes.

    In a sense, he envied the guy.

    He appeared to be around the same age as Mat, and Mathew could even vaguely recall knowing him from back before the zombie apocalypse. Now, however, after less than a single month packed full of adrenaline-inducing events, Mathew could hardly even recall a single memory that involved him.

    Still, even though they were both thrown into this apocalyptic hell at the same time, while Mathew kept on running around doing everything to stay on the right side of the flow of the events¡­ the guy guarding the ''armory'' simply sat down in ce and ensured no one attempted to breach the lock.

    ''Knowing my luck, he only needs to sit here for eight hours before someone takes over,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth to quell the jealousy that sparked up in his soul.

    Eight hours and his shift would be over. Just like a job in the old world.

    A dream that Mathew had no hope of ever making a reality.

    "We don''t have any shotguns, I have no idea where that request came from," the guard reported once he returned from the room with a small, makeshift bag. He then got down to his knees and opened up the cloth he used to bring all the weapons Mathew requested.

    "Twenty-three pistols, two automatic ones," the survivor reported as he disyed everything that he brought out. "We hold the magazines separately¡­ but there is only one mag for each of the guns," he added.

    "Then cut down the number of pistols to fourteen and add one spare mag to the seven of them," Mathew quickly changed his request. He leaned down and picked up one of the guns, inspecting it for a while before turning his eyes back to the guard. "How do we stand on ammo?"

    The guard looked away, his cheeks turned red. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Actually¡­" he hesitated, pulling his eyes away even further. "We have more ammo than we could use," he then added, turning his eyes back to face Mathew before breathing a long sigh. "But with only so many magazines, you will have to refill them on your own after every fight."

    ''Well, that makes sense¡­'' Mathew thought. He then pulled his eyebrows together. ''And that means, I will have to adjust the strategy to keep the reloading time in mind.''

    "Do they all use the same type of ammunition?" Mathew then asked as he looked down at the weapons disyed on the cloth that the guard used as a makeshift bag.

    They all looked more or less the same, but without a doubt, were not identical.

    ''Most of them are looted, so it''s no wonder they are not all the same,'' he thought. Then, he raised his eye back on the guard.

    "And how the hell would I know that?" the guy only shook his shoulder with a baffled expression on his face. "I''m here to guard them, that doesn''t make me qualified to even hold one," he added.

    "A fair point," Mathew admitted only to unleash another sigh and watch how the guard retreated back into the room. He came back a mere momentter, holding another bag, this time a proper one, with something clearly weighty inside.

    "There should be a few hundred rounds in here," the guard said before cing the bag next to the guns on disy. "I guess that you could take one shot and try to fit it into all the mags avable," he suggested. "If a single round fits into all the mags, they are likely using the same caliber," he added with a shake of his shoulders.

    ''I wonder if that''s true,'' Mathew thought. ''But I guess I can just Norbert about it.''

    Mathew wasn''t delusional enough to pretend to know something that he did not. Especially when there was a firearm expert in his group that could answer all his doubts, saving him the need of risking someone''s health and safety by making them follow up with the guard''s suggestion of testing the ammunition.

    "So, you are cooking a big expedition, are you not?" the guard asked, clearly unwilling to drop the topic, even after Mathew thought they moved on from it.

    "More or less," Mathew nodded his head, eager to cut the chatter, grab the stuff he came here to get, and move on to the next part of the preparations. "We spent all the cores and we can''t do shit without more of them," he pointed out while shaking his shoulders.

    Then, Mathew reached down and grabbed both of the bags before straightening himself up and giving the guard a funny look.

    "Additionally, we only need a single person to be on the lookout to ensure no zombies will approach thepound," he pointed out.

    It was a utility the fortress gained back when it was first established. Yet, after cleaning all the zombies from within the range of its surveince, Mathew came to pretty much ignore and even forget about its existence.

    But right now, once his n would be set in motion, this utility would prove to be invaluable.

    "What about it?" the guard asked, perplexed by Mathew''s strange choice of topic.

    "If we only need one person to keep watch on our barrier, don''t you think it''s high time to move the hunters from the guard duty and make them actually prove to be useful?"

 Chapter 385 The Walls Of The Fortress Are Not Safe

    ?

    Getting the hands was just the first step in Mathew''s ns for the expedition. And bringing them all the way to the pile of rubble that reced the once glorious staircase that connected the central point of all the floors was a mere second step.

    ''They are not here yet?'' Mathew thought once he emerged from the long corridor of the wing he used to descend down to the ground level.

    There were only five out of six surviving hunters. And while Mathew could easily locate their quasi-leader, Frank... The only other one that he remembered, the annoying Kasper, was nowhere to be seen.

    ''Is this another round of him annoying everyone around?'' Mathew thought before heaving a deep sigh.

    "Frank!" he then called right as he emerged from the corridor and gently brought both of his bags down on the ground.

    "Yes, sir!" the only volunteer of the group stepped forward when called, quickly locating Mathew via the direction of his voice. Upon seeing the de-facto leader of the survivor''s group, Frank stretched his chest out and saluted in a military manner.

    This event wasn''t something that Mathew organized out of everyone''s view. That''s why, with some of the refugees from Peter''s camp passing by, Mathew could feel their stares prating deep into his back.

    ''So cringe...'' he sighed and took a step forward.

    "Where is Kasper?" Mathew then asked while giving the area a quick look. Yet, even those few more moments that it took him to get to the rally area weren''t enough for the annoying hunter to show up.

    "He is..." Frank turned his eyes away, his face turning extremely ufortable. "I''m guessing he is with one of his..."

    "One of my what?" Frank asked,ing out from behind the massive pile of rubble still stuck in the middle of the main reception hall.

    He didn''te alone, though.

    "One of your bitches," Frank finished up his sentence, refusing to let Kasper''s angered voice intimidate him. "It''s been a while since you freed yourself from between their legs!"

    ''Are we for real?'' Mathew thought, too baffled to even react out loud. ''Is this really the kind of high-school drama that we have while the world is literally falling apart all around?''

    The quick exchange between the two hunters didn''t go unnoticed by all those who just happened to be nearby. And now, what was supposed to be the first rally before the expedition now turned into a live show for all the survivors.

    "It''s funny of you to say that," Kasper announced with a wide smile.

    Then, he turned around and waved at the two guests that came with him but ended up sticking to the shadows.

    A shudder moved down Mathew''s spine when he noticed a quick nce Kasper threw his way.

    ''No!'' he instinctively screamed out in his mind. ''Don''t you fucking dare to bring me into...''

    "I''m just following in the footsteps of our real leader," Kasper then announced before lowering his arm and pointing at the two girls that came with him with his open palm. "Meet Kathia and Ann," he introduced the girls, "they are my wives!"

    ''Oh, you can''t be for real!'' Mathew raised his eyes to the broken ceiling only to close them down and take a deep, deep breath.

    "Why the hell did you bring them here?" Mathew asked as he brought his face down and looked directly at the annoying hunter for the first time since he made his appearance. "We are not going on a road trip. No, even that''s wrong!" Mathew shook his head.

    He then took a moment to steel the look on his face, killing all the friendliness and sentiment still left in his eyes.

    "No. We are not going on a road trip. In fact, we are not going anywhere," Mathew announced, jumping on the chance to push aside Kasper''s folly and focus on the matter at hand. "It''s you guys who will be going out to kill some zombies."

    That was it.

    That was the entire message...

    Or rather, the part of it that the hunters needed to hear right now. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Say your farewells, make your peace with what mighte, and prepare to set out."

    Mathew only gave the hunters a few moments to absorb the news before dropping another reality check on them.

    His words proved that what he announced wasn''t a joke or an intelligent way of scaring them with some mundane task.

    No, his orders were real.

    Then, Mathew turned his eyes back to Kasper.

    ''The more I try to avoid this topic, the harder it will get to bring it upter.''

    Mathew looked at the two girls Kasper brought with him. He could vaguely recognize the pair. The older one was the same age as Mathew and ording to his memory, was a part of the volleyball team.

    Despite her passion for balls, she didn''t have the height that some people associated volleyball yers with. Still, one couldn''t take away the damn athletic build that she boasted by wearing what Mathew could only call a slightly more modest version of lingerie.

    On the other hand, there was the younger of the girls, Kathia.

    Despite all the stereotypes that surrounded her when she first moved into the school, she had nothing to do with the v rowdiness of the fallen empire to the east.

    Instead, she was the angel of the book club, a sweetheart who, despite her tiny building, would go to great lengths to help one find the book they were looking for.

    A person that ushered in her passion for literature and was more than driven to share it with others.

    "Kasper," Mathew finally called the man out after eyeing the two girls that came with him. "Do you really think it''s a good idea to bring those two out to where even I would be in a potential danger?"

    Mathew didn''t hold back his punches.

    ''There is no doubt that the zombies around the castle ruins won''t be as low-leveled as I would wish for them to be,'' he thought, gritting his teeth. ''And I can''t hope that we will gather enough cores from the weak zombies on our way there.''

    This was the crux of Mathew''s n.

    Instead of going all in to conquer the castle ruins in one swoop, he wanted to give his hunters a trail of blood and fire. And by doing so, he could gather enough cores to outfit the more talented ones with a system.

    But those two girls?

    Although sweet and clearly enjoyable in bed, they didn''t look like someone who would happilye out of the safety of the fortress ande charging at the nearest horde of zombies with nothing but a handgun and courage in their hands!

    "No sir, I don''t think so," Kasper turned his face to match Mathew''s eyes. The two of them looked at each other for a while... but neither ended up willing to just give up and look away.

    ''This guy...'' Mathew clenched his jaws, doing his best not to let his annoyance appear on his face.

    Letting it appear would be the same as announcing Kasper''s victory!

    "No one would be happy to risk their lives rather than just staying behind the safety of the walls," Kasper admitted... but he then took a step back, sliding right between the two girls only to tap them on the back, making the two of them step a single pace forward.

    "But as things are right now, there is no safety behind those walls," Ann stated.

    "Not unless some are willing to keep those walls safe," Kathia finished the revtion, showcasing the motive that pushed both of the girls to actively risk their lives.

    ''So it''s not like they want to do it,'' Mathew thought before breathing a long, deep sigh. ''But they are aware that someone has to do something.''

 Chapter 386 Two Orders

    ?

    "Everyone, gather up!" Mathew shouted once the matter with Kasper''s girls was¡­

    Settled it was not.

    Mathew simply decided to gloss it over. There was no real point in putting doubt into the motivation those girls had for joining the fight¡­ especially when Mathew''s very intention was to bolster the number of hunters before setting off.

    ''There is no point wasting time on discussing the path they took to be hunters either,'' Mathew thought, before fully taking the entire topic out of the focus of his mind and stuffing it into the very back of his head.

    "Tonight you all have just two tasks to fulfill," Mathew announced once all the whispers and chatters died off and everyone properly tuned in to his voice.

    "First, I want each and everyone one of you to go out and look for two more recruits," Mathew announced before turning silent to let the small crowd absorb the news.

    There were nearly a hundred people in the fortress alone by now. Adding up all the people serving directly under Peter at hispound and then under Daniel in the media building and this number swelled up to over two hundred people.

    And with that kind of number and in how the world worked right now, having just eleven fighters was far too little.

    There was Mathew, his three original wives, Carol and Norbert that could be counted as forces to be reckoned with. Then, there were a total of seven left.

    A total of mere thirteen people took on the burden of gathering the cores, exploring new parts of the city, and defending against any and all zombies and monsters that the survivors crossed paths with.

    Taking Mathew''s wish to remove himself and his wives from the picture, that number would drop to a mere eight or nine, depending on how one would count Norbert''s presence.

    As such, the decision to raise this number to at least twenty-one was something that Mathew had a long timeing.

    "During your first mission, I will be apanying you to prevent the worst from happening. We will also provide you all with one firearm each and then however many melee weapons we will be able to procure," Mathew went deep on exining what was he scheming in his head.

    "Your first mission will be to obtain at least fifty cores for each of your teams!" Mathew announced before, once again, giving the hunters some time to break down the news and properly think them through.

    The job, despite how bad it sounded, wasn''t all that hard.

    As long as they stayed clear from the denser areas of the town, the number of zombies they would encounter should be too much for simple firearms to handle. As long as the hunters and their recruits would hold the line, no zombie should be able toe close to the barrier of fire this unit could create at a moment''s notice.

    By keeping everyone together and moving as a single, cohesive unit, gathering three hundred and fifty cores would take a while¡­ But it would also be a mere beginning.

    "The trail I''ve plotted for this expedition will take us to the media building first. Once there, I will exchange the cores you guys will obtain and bestow each and everyst one of you with a system!"

    This was the highest point of the announcement. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    A payday of sorts. A promise of a reward that the hunters would earn as long as they found two recruits and then survived the ordeal.

    "You will all have the rest of the night to get yourself used to your system. You might spend the night training, resting, feasting, or fucking, I couldn''t care less," Mathew shook his head. "Bute the sunrise, we will set off for the main goal of our mission!"

    Mathew took two steps forward. By doing so, he got close to the hunters enough to make it near impossible to have them all within his view at the same time.

    "And our goal will be to reach and then clear the ruins of the castle on the hill overlooking the town!"

    This mission was a long timeing. Even though the main reason why Mathew ever brought the topic of the castle up now turned deste with the evolution of their fortress into a settlement¡­

    The castle itself didn''t lose even a shred of the value that made it a great target back in the nning phase!

    ''Knowing how things work, we will need three settlements to go to a level above them,'' Mathew thought as he threw onest look at the hunters before retreating back to where he was just a moment ago.

    "You can leave the task of clearing the ruins to me and my wives. There might be a strong or evolved monster sh zombie waiting there, so it would be a tall order for me to task you with it. But the road leading to the castle?"

    Mathew shook his head before putting on a cheerful smile and crossing his hands on his chest.

    "Save for the most extreme of situations, my group won''t lift a finger. And if one of you receives injury too heavy to heal¡­" Mathew made a short pause, this time to increase the dramatic effect of what he wanted to say next.

    Soon, all the hunters leaned forward, eager to learn the n for the worst-case scenario.

    "Then, it will be one of the recruits of yours that will receive the system you were supposed to get."

    This was a simple yet necessary rule.

    The cost of a zombie cure was too damn high for Mathew to afford it right now.

    Sure, he could go out, earn enough cores to get some vials and then keep it just in case¡­

    But what would happen to those who would lose a limb? Or have their intestines gutted out?

    Healing that level of injuries would only be possible via the system and the touching grass feature. In other words, only those with a system would be able to make use of it¡­

    And why would Mathew invest cores worth of system seeds in people that would receive fatal injuries in their first serious fight and under Mathew''s direct supervision and protection?

 Chapter 387 Small Stunt

    ?

    "So you''ve really made up your mind," Le said as she came out from behind the corner, revealing that she spied on Mathew''s rallying speech.

    "I didn''t expect you to be here," Mathew turned his head around and said, casting a quick nce in the girl''s direction.

    Ever since he left herp, Mathew threw himself into the hurry of getting everything settled and prepared for theing expedition.

    ''I have no idea what she was up to since then¡­ could it be she kept on following me?'' Mathew asked himself.

    His thoughts lingered on the topic for a second before the young man shook his head. ''What''s even the point of thinking about this?'' Mathew asked himself while taking a deep breath.

    "I finished up with what I was doing so I came to check on you," Le exined before putting on a faint smile. "Even though it was my idea to spend my allocated time the way we did, I couldn''t help but feel some lingering regrets," she added as her smile turned into a smirk.

    "Are you for real?" Mathew groaned.

    He could already picture what the entire process would look like. After all, the girl was right.

    Not only have recent events pushed into the time she was supposed to get with him. Not only did Mathew himself cut the time she managed to salvage short when he felt the burst of motivation to go and prepare for the expedition.

    But to top it all off, even in the short time they spent together, they refrained from acting out of the line, limiting themselves to just some innocent cuddling.

    Right now, Le had every right to be dissatisfied with how her turn turned out to be, leaving Mathew with no valid excuse if she demanded him to pay her back.

    ''It''s going to take a while to get everything over with¡­'' Mathew thought, helpless at the idea of wasting the precious time he already nned for other matters that required his oversight.

    "Is the idea of sleeping with me that repulsive?" Le suddenly asked while putting a sad, disappointed look on her face.

    For a second, seeds of tears danced in the corners of her eyes.

    Then, as if her emotions were all fake, Le shook her head and reced her sadness with a look of amusement.

    "Don''t worry, don''t worry!" Le stepped out from her hideout behind the corner and approached Mathew only to pat him on his shoulder. "I can see how busy you are. Don''t worry, I won''t take you away for god knows how long, keeping you away from the important stuff."

    Mathew raised his eyes.

    ''It''s pretty damn obvious that she''s horny,'' he thought after a mere moment of observation and analysis.

    Le''s eyes were shining and so did her skin. Her movements were extremely soft. Her entire aura gave off the feeling of thefiest cushion in the world.

    Everything about Le screamed an invitation.

    Just standing near the girl made Mathew involuntarily lean towards her, his body reading right into the pheromones produced by Le''s excitement. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''So that''s what it feels to be in heat,'' Mathew thought, closing his eyes and slowly taking in a shallow breath.

    Right now, inhaling deeply would mean stuffing his brain with Le''s scent¡­ and the rich sense of pheromones that underlined it.

    It was a trap that Mathew didn''t dare to proim he could freely escape from.

    "I know I''m asking for a lot, but I will need you and all the others to be at your best during the expedition," Mathew said as he desperately reached up¡­ and sessfully managed to rest his hands on Le''s shoulders.

    "But can we put it forter?" Mathew asked. "I will talk with the others and we will push the schedule for a day. In this way, you will get the turn that you were robbed of.

    The entire system of Mathew''s wives sharing his rest time was full of ws. The more one would lean into it the more gaps in logic they would notice. Still, as nothing more but a word-based contract, it was freely up for changes¡­ Changes that Mathew had no other choice but to implement now.

    ''If I let them miss their days due to work, there will always be one cker at all times,'' Mathew realized which only served to further nail down the point in his mind.

    Regardless of if it was Nadia, Daria, Le, or Carol, Mathew could already picture them refusing to exert themselves out of fear of missing their turn with him. And even if, with time, their feelings towards him were to change¡­

    The sense ofpetition and rivalry would only grow stronger.

    "Once again, it''s okay," she stated before turning around and looking over the corner she was hiding behind just a moment ago.

    Then, as if the entire thing was orchestrated right from the beginning, Nadia, Daria, and Carol walked out of the corner as well.

    "I¡­" Mathew hesitated for a second.

    He didn''t feel guilt¡­ for there was nothing that he did recently that would warrant the presence of the guilt.

    He was simply surprised by the appearance of his wives. Surprised¡­ and puzzled.

    There had to be a reason for them appearing together at the same time, after all.

    And there was no reason for him to keep his surprise hidden either.

    "I have no idea why you pulled out a stunt like that," Mathew admitted before releasing a long, deep sigh. "But I do believe now it''s the best time to make use of my surprise to reveal the intention behind this act."

    "There was no need to be such a killjoy¡­" Nadia pouted a little while crossing her arms on her chest.

    "We are here to ask what our job will be," Daria stepped forth and said, revealing the reason for the presence of the girls on the scene.

    "Also," Carol then stepped forward, "aren''t I the leader of the hunters?" she asked while taking to the front of the group. "Why wasn''t I invited to this meeting in the first ce?"

 Chapter 388 Delegating The Job

    ?

    "Why wasn''t I invited to this meeting in the first ce?"

    Hearing Carol''s question, Mathew''s jaws involuntarily tightened, nearly making him cut his bottom lip with his teeth.

    ''Why didn''t I include her, that''s a good question,'' he thought, ransacking his mind for any viable answer or a dying tactic.

    Mathew opened his mouth, ready to unleash the usual dose of bullshit¡­

    ''Wait, no,'' he thought, closing his mouth back down. ''Rather than looking for an excuse, why I didn''t invite her for real?''

    Mathew closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He then took a few moments for this slight meditation to help him calm his nerves.

    "I guess it was just a brain fart," he then revealed after analyzing the proper reasons why he didn''t include the girl. "Now that I think about it, I was so set on splitting those I consider my wives from those who are just cooperating that I didn''t consider your position," he admitted before lowering his head a bit. "Sorry for that."

    Carol''s face, initially slightly angry, calmed down.

    She wasn''t angry in the first ce, just confused and slightly hurt at most. But now, her cheeks turned slightly red, a detail that she put on a greater disy when she turned her head aside to avert her eyes.

    ''What is she getting all embarrassed for?''

    If there was any field that Mathew gained a lot of experience in over the past few days, it was the ability to read his women. By interacting with them over and over again and in situations all over the spectrum of intensity, he learned a little about what their small expressions and ticks could possibly mean.

    And to be frank, blushing and looking away were one of the few most obvious clues.

    "I guess I''m your wife indeed, hehe¡­" Carol, to Mathew''s surprise, muttered under her nose, voicing out hermentary despite the initial attempt to hide her feelings.

    "Anyway," Mathew rolled his eyes, trying to move on from this ultimately meaningless topic and back to the important stuff. Yet, his attempt went up in smoke when he failed to stop a humble smile that appeared in reaction to Carol''s slight giggle.

    There was just something in seeing one of his girls act innocently happy like this.

    Even if her acts around the beginning of their rtionship could be called everything but honest or innocent.

    ''Thinking about this, I didn''t sleep with her even once since she became my wife,'' Mathew noticed¡­

    Only to roll his eyes again as he cast the thought aside.

    ''If I want to keep up my ability to have those lovely girls by my side,'' he thought, taking a deep breath, ''then I need to deal with my duties first!''

    "Listen up, now that I think about it, there is another reason why I didn''t include you in this meeting." Mathew removed all the excess emotions from his soul as he looked properly at Carol''s face.

    The girl herself raised one of her eyebrows while crossing her arms over her chest.

    "Is that so?" she asked, full of obvious doubt¡­ if not openly putting Mathew''s words in question.

    "It''s not something I consciously thought about, just something I voiced out in my thoughts now." Mathew raised his hands in a gesture of going on defense. Then, he turned his head over his shoulder, to where the hunters of the group were already rushing away to find potential recruits. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "On this expedition, we are bound to get some wounded or just t-out cowards," Mathew sighed, "and it will be your job to escort them back to the fortress every now and then."

    When Mathew journeyed and adventured with his wives or experiencedpanions like Norbert and Daniel alone, he didn''t really consider the option of retreat. The very idea of having even one of hispanions suffer a serious injury was just too drastic for Mathew to ept it.

    ''I know it''s immature, I know it''s something I should prepare for, but¡­''

    Mathew released a long sigh.

    ''But, huh?'' he thought as he lowered his eyes. ''A word that magically erases everything that came before it.''

    Mathew knew that not allowing the idea of one of his wives or closepanions drawing the short straw was outright stupid. Yet, he only noticed it when he observed the different approach he automatically assumed towards the hunters, both the current ones and the potential recruits.

    Mathew refused the reality where any of his wives got hurt. But he actively anticipated his current expedition toe at a bloody cost.

    "And how is that preventing me from taking an active part in the meeting?" Carol asked, this time simply confused.

    "You are the leader of the hunters," Mathew pointed out. "It should be your job to keep all of them safe and all¡­" The young man hesitated for a while. "But I worry that if I let you lead now, you will soone to face the same problem that prompted me to organize this expedition in the first ce.

    Carol couldn''t know Mathew''s reasons. She didn''t talk with him about it and it was rather unlikely Le would bber to her about it. Yet, he didn''t cut the deliberation short by simply revealing them, not even when he had yet to bring both Nadia and Daria up to speed.

    No.

    ''Nadia knows me well enough to figure it out. Daria doesn''t seem to care. Carol, though¡­'' Mathew squinted his eyes, ''she needs to figure it out herself.''

    "The reason why you are organizing the expedition¡­" Carol muttered, revealing where did she start her search for Mathew''s reasons. Instead of trying to figure out the potential problems ahead of her, she opted to analyze Mathew''s experience and learn from his mistakes instead of making her own.

    For a moment, the group turned silent, with only the noise of the hunters running around to be the first to reach their potential recruits cutting into the peaceful atmosphere.

    "Is it because we can only go out together if we want to ensure our rtive safety, limiting the scope of how much we can explore just by ourselves?" Carol came out with a guess after less than a minute.

    "That''s certainly a good point," Mathew nodded, "but not the crux of the matter."

    "I see¡­" Carol muttered as she lowered her head and brought her right hand up. Once again she dived deep into her thoughts, even ending up nibbling on the nail of her thumb as she sought the answer to Mathew''s query.

    "Something that you are facing now and I would face in the near future as a leader of the hunters¡­" Carol whispered to herself, sorting out the information she had and had to use to figure out the answer.

    Waiting for the girl to figure it out, Mathew raised his eyes and looked at the rest of his group.

    Nadia was simply standing in the back of the group, nodding her head with a slight smile as she observed Carol with curiosity. Le didn''t seem to care at all while Daria was too preupied looking for something to sit down at to bother with the situation at all.

    "Is it about delegating the job to others?" Carol asked roughly two minutester.

    "Bingo," Mathew smiled. "Sooner orter, you will move on from leading the hunters. And while you didn''t do that all that much in the first ce," his smile soured a little, "I want the first batch to be ready to take the responsibility as soon as this expedition is over."

 Chapter 389 Briefing

    ?

    ''They really went above and beyond to find the recruits, didn''t they?''

    Mathew stood on the broken end of what used to be the central stairway of the school''spound.

    Looking down, he could see a crowd of exactly twenty-three people, two more than he expected to see.

    ''It looks like he brought two more too,'' he thought after making a quick count and ending with his eyes on Kasper.

    He brought two girls with him before Mathew even ordered the hunters to bolster their ranks and now, he brought what looked like a couple too.

    ''So he didn''t want two more girls but was scared ofpetition if he were to invite recruit single guys?'' Mathew thought, trying to figure out what was going on in Kasper''s head.

    Still, it was just a meaningless tangent. If anything, Mathew had the right to be angry and put Kasper down for going beyond the scope of what was ordered.

    "Carol," Mathew turned his head to the side where his wives waited for the end of the mission briefing.

    "Yes?"

    "Once I''m done, can you deal with that moron?" Mathew requested in a tired voice.

    Just thinking about how he would have to deal with Kasper was enough to sour his mood and exhaust his mind.

    "What moron?" Carol asked while turning her eyes down to where all the hunters and recruits gathered. She quickly scanned the entire crowd only for her face to twitch slightly when she locked her sight on Kasper. "Ah¡­"

    Carol turned silent for a moment, her face showing a hint of the same annoyance that was the source of Mathew''s mental exhaustion.

    "Sure thing. Dealing with people like him is a part of my job, I guess?"

    Mathew turned his face away from Carol and over to his earlier wives.

    He put Carol in the center of his attention for a while because, no matter how much he wished to deny it, he pretty much put her in the back of his head up until now.

    Yet, no matter how much he was willing to try to pull her into the tight group of the few people he actually cared about, he wasn''t going to do so at the cost of neglecting his proper wives.

    "Are you ready?" Mathew asked in a low voice while moving his eyes from Le, through Daria, and at Nadia ending.

    Daria smiled and nodded his head. Le simply rolled her eyes, showcasing how little she cared about the briefing.

    Even without speaking up, it was clear that she considered the entire meeting as nothing more but a damn waste of time.

    And Nadia¡­

    "Go on," she said with a gentle smile before raising her hand to her mouth and hiding a small chuckle that followed. "You''ve got this!"

    ''I guess there is no putting it off forter,'' Mathew thought as he released a deep sigh. Then, he turned his eyes back to the crowd on the level below.

    "Ekhem!" Mathew cleared his throat.

    Alerted by the sound, the people stopped the chatter and focused their attention on the man above them.

    Looking down, Mathew could see all sorts of emotions reflected on their faces.

    Most of the hunters managed to ovee the primal fear of the zombies, a fear of the unknown mixed with the impossible. They were no adults or scientists but even they knew that things like zombies went far above and beyond what the science and the world''sws allowed. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    They managed to ovee their fears and now were mostly looking forward to the mission. Some craved the excitement and adrenaline of a real-life fight. Others anticipated the high of besting what they used to fear.

    Still, without even a hint of doubt, all of them were more than eager to earn their right to get a system seed and elevate their status from mere hunters to system owners!

    The hunters were mostly happy to set out on the mission¡­ But the same couldn''t be said about the recruits that they brought along.

    ''I see way more fear than I would like to,'' Mathew thought while basking in all the attention focused on him from below.

    Save for Kasper''s wives and the girl of the couple he brought, there were only three more girls in the fold. While they were all pretty athletic, likely members of some sports club in the past¡­

    They didn''t have the qualities that made Mathew''s wives so damn great at fighting.

    They were chosen because of their physicality rather than the drive to approach the edge of the madness while remaining on the right side of it.

    The rest of the recruits were all male. Seven of them shared the same physical qualities that brought three girls into the hunters'' ranks. In other words, they were strong, quick and they looked like their faces were never sullied by a single deep thought.

    ''They are likely going to die first,'' Mathew thought before moving his eyes toward the remaining three.

    In the grand scheme of things, the three men that caught his attention did so by being as unnoticeable as one could get.

    They didn''t boast massive, muscr physiques nor looked like they knew their way around any sort of weapons.

    No.

    The only thing that drew Mathew''s attention towards them was the look in their eyes. Focused, determined, and also full of terror.

    They understood what they were signing up for¡­ but were willing to go against their wits and participate in it.

    ''I wonder what their reasons are to join the hunters,'' Mathew thought while squinting his eyes a little. He then heaved a deep sigh. ''But it''s not like it matters.''

    "Everyone!" Mathew shouted, finally starting the briefing for the mission. "I could keep you here all day to stress out many important points. I could tell you what you should be wary of and what you can safely ignore¡­"

    Mathew took a short pause, only to end up putting a vile smile on his lips.

    ''Right now, they need to rely on those who recruited them, not me,'' he reminded himself of the main goal behind the mission.

    It wasn''t to reach the castle ruins at the top of the hills but to train a new batch of hunters. As such, he couldn''t let the recruits rely on him in the time of need that would surelye!

    "But a single second of realbat will teach you more than I could by talking for hours upon hours!" Mathew stated before taking a step forward and dropping down an entire level to where the hunters and recruits gathered.

    He took a moment before standing up and casually patting his clothes to get all the dust off them.

    "You have your weapons," Mathew raised his head and said. "You have those who recruited you," he added while bringing his hands up and to the back before locking them at the back of his head. "So, in my book, you have everything you need for this expedition."

    This time, Mathew didn''t wait for the group to slowly absorb and digest his words. He allowed a small smirk to appear on his lips, released a single chuckle, and turned his back to the small crowd.

    Mathew took a step forward¡­ only to hesitate and turn his head over his shoulder, throwing the hunters a confused look.

    "What the hell are you waiting for, guys and gals?" he asked, baffled by how they still stood as they were. "Let''s go!"

 Chapter 390 Learning Experience

    ''This is nice, isn''t it?'' Mathew thought as he walked roughly in the middle of the entire group.

    He leads the hunters, both old and new, up to the gates of the schoolpound. Yet, the second they put their first step outside, Mathew turned fully passive.

    He was there to lead with advice if anyone asked, but he had no ns of going out of his way to point out the obvious unless absolutely necessary.

    ''Not having to think in everyone''s ce while worrying about the consequences and the greater picture¡­'' Mathew raised his eyes to the sky and took a deep breath. ''It sure is nice, isn''t it?''

    For the first time since the apocalypse began, Mathew could im that he had some real free time. Some time that he could spend thinking nothing and letting his brain regenerate a little.

    "What a broken man I am," Mathew muttered, voicing his thoughts without even realizing that fact.

    "Why is that?" Nadia asked, leaning her head to the side and looking at Mathew''s face at a weird angle.

    Mathew turned his eyes to the girl, slightly startled by the sudden question.

    The young man needed a second to realize what happened and what Nadia''s question was all about.

    "Right now, we are not free. We need to be on guard, ready to step in if things went quickly from bad to worse," he pointed out before taking a sweeping look along the entire length of their group. "And yet, this is such a nice change from being on a full guard, that I can''t help but treat it as a free time."

    Mathew released a small chuckle.

    "For me, it''s not a continuation of my job but a mere stroll," he revealed his take on their situation.

    "I can certainly tell where are youing from," Nadia admitted with a smile of her own, clearly enjoying the idea of basking her face in the sun while letting the morning wind carry her hair all around her head. "Whenpared with the usual rush, this peace¡­ it feels nice."

    Save for voicing out their enthusiasm to enjoy the weather, there was another reason for the two of them to speak about how leisurely the moment was.

    And it was how insanely slow the group moved through the city!

    The distance that Mathew and the girls would conquer with a simple, short hike, the hunters needed nearly half an hour to take.

    From one side, Mathew could hardly fault them. It was a result of their near-excessive vignce, their desire to check every door and corner for danger before allowing the bulk of the group to move on.

    ''It''s a good thing that they are cautious¡­ but right now, they are taking one hell of a risk by being so slow. There are so many of us so there is no way zombies won''t gather¡­''<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Mathew thought¡­ but kept his reasoning to himself.

    It was all a part of the learning process for the hunters, both old and fresh alike. They had to learn from their mistakes while Mathew and his girls were still around so that they wouldn''t do them again once there would be no one near to help them out.

    Being caught by the horde would mean a bit of fright and decreased valuation of the people responsible. But being caught up in the horde while on a mission meant a near-certain death!

    "I really want to smack some of them¡­" Carol stepped forth and joined the discussion, more than happy to rant about her underlings. "Half of what they are doing is unnecessary and outright wasteful!"

    Even though Carol didn''t have as much experience in the field as Theo and his other wives, she more than made it up with her determination and intelligence.

    "It''s a good thing for you to get heated, but also a great way for you to learn the problems of your people," Mathew pointed out, perfectly aware of what troubled the girl so much.

    "Right now you can observe their mistakes and shorings. There will be time for you to fix those problemster," Nadia chimed in, happy to share some of her own experiences with a sister-in-arms.

    " It''s still mildly infuriating¡­" Carol muttered, clearly unhappy to just let all the shorings of her underlings go.

    "You should try to look for things they are doing well too," Mathew pointed out. "It''s one thing to scold them, but you should give them some praise when they are doing well."

    Carol rolled her eyes and looked at Mathew as if he was a naive idiot.

    "Do you mean to say I should y both the good and bad cop at the same time?" she questioned while raising her left eyebrow high on her forehead.

    "You are free to look for someone to help you fill one of those roles," Nadia replied, only to scurry to the side and grab Mathew''s arm, as if to keep him away from the topic. "Just leave Matty out of it. God knows he has enough of his head already."

    ''How lovely¡­'' Mathew thought, his lower eyelid moving down as his soul filled with delight. ''Now I have someone to excuse me out of a job for me!''

    As important as it was for one''s partner to support them in their best efforts, it was also crucial for said partner to limit their other half''s burden as much as they could.

    Such was the very idea of partnership, an idea that Nadia effortlessly represented with just who she was.

    "You two better focus up," Mathew said, quite annoyed when his senses alerted him to the unwanted presence ahead. "We are about to strike a wandering horde," he added in a voice so full of acid one would wonder if it could be turned into a weapon.

    "I guess we will need to observe how they fare first," Carol muttered while her hand squeezed the handle of her saber. "But¡­" she turned her eyes to Mathew for a second only to avert them the very next moment. "But I''m not going to stand by and watch idly if they fail to handle the fight!"

 Chapter 391 Blunder

    ?

    "Zombies!"

    A single shout caused the entire procession toe to a stop.

    "A group of thirty, a full horde a mile behind them!"

    If the first report made everyone freeze in fear, the second called them all to action.

    ''Oh my,'' Mathew thought, stunned by the grace with which everyone, not only hunters themselves but also their recruits, rushed to their tasks.

    Some appeared on the frontline, all bearing their guns close to their chests. Others rushed to bring out the supplies and melee weapons, just in case the fighting prolonged or if the front line were to break.

    "Shouldn''t we thin out that horde in the back first?" Carol approached Mathew from the back and asked while throwing anxious nces toward the recruits.

    ''Is she showingpassion or trying to minimalize her losses?'' Mathew thought, quite curious about what reasons prompted Carol to put forth the suggestion.

    ''If the horde is a test for those newbies, this will be a perfect test for Carol,'' the young man decided.

    "No, we will not do that," Mathew said, taking only a single nce at hisst real wife before moving his eyes back to the hunters. "They need to learn how to deal with danger that appears to be overwhelming."

    And defeating the approaching horde would be an overwhelming challenge.

    Not a single of the hunters had a system. They each bore just a simple gun with extremely sparse ammunition for it too.

    With that sort of preparation, they could easily take the group of thirty ahead, but the horde that woulde after that was a whole different matter.

    "I don''t think we should put them through a horde right off the bat," Carol tried again.

    From the look of worry on her face, she started to take her position as the leader of the hunters quite seriously now that they found themselves in real danger.

    "It''s not right off the bat, they will have some time to decide what to do next if they pick up the ck and just go through that close group." Mathew countered.

    A zombie would take quite a while to walk a mile. Likely even more if it moved as a part of a massive group.

    But fighting the zombies off wasn''t an easy task, especially for those who hardly did any fighting before. And between those two things, zombies walking and humans fighting, Mathew wasn''t so sure which one would conclude first.

    "They areing, prepare!"

    One of the hunters took the burden ofmanding the entire force. From the look of things, it was one of the unassuming ''volunteers'' that Carol forced into their role on a whim.

    And strangely enough, despite not having any say when it came to his own fate, Mathew''s underssman found it in himself to resist the flow of events.

    Instead of allowing what was happening to dictate his actions, he caught fate by its horns and decided to wrestle for supremacy.

    "Fire!" the kid shouted, finally allowing Mathew to find his position.

    And just like the spirit in his voice indicated, he was right in front of all the hunters, leading by example with his gun rocking up and down in a slow but steady fashion. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    One bullet after the other, the young hunter sted the heads of the zombies away. In the end, after the short series that emptied out his magazine, he missed only a single zombie''s head.

    Sadly, the same couldn''t be said about other hunters. All in all, the opening salvo was only half urate, with every other shoot either missingpletely or finding a target that sadly wasn''t lethal for zombies.

    "Those with guns, step back!" the young hunter shouted.

    "A sound decision," Mathew muttered a word of praise under his nose. ''Right now, those guns are too valuable to risk losing even one.''

    Before they would be able to use the cores farmed on the mission, the few guns that Mathew provided were everything. And with only a third of the entire force carrying a firearm, they were too important of a tool to risk losing it.

    "But now the casualties will start mounting," Le added in a dark voice and with a grave expression.

    And surely enough¡­ her judgment was only dyed by a mere moment.

    At first, the newbie hunters that ended up with melee weapons gained the advantage. There were sixteen of them, against a group of only six zombies left.

    Soon, though, the town''s streets turned out to heavily limit the movement of human troops. Unable to move around the enemy, the newbie hunters couldn''t effectively push their advantage.

    And then, one of the zombies that fell to the hail of bullets started moving again.

    ''Shit!'' Mathew thought, bending his knees as he instantly put himself in the stance to charge forth. Still, he held himself back, unwilling to interfere unless it was absolutely necessary.

    ''Will they notice it?'' Mathew asked himself, counting fractions of the second as they passed¡­ with not a single hunter paying any mind.

    "Behind¡­."

    A shout diluted in time when Mathew''s entered a strange state of mind. All movements around him appeared to slow right when he lowered his hand to the grip of his saber.

    The young hunter, currently busy with thest few motions of changing the magazine, was the one behind the shout.

    "¡­you!" he finished his warning right as his mag clicked in ce.

    Before the sound of his shout could have a chance to vibrate out of existence, the young hunter already raised his arm halfway to the height he needed to aim at the leftover zombie.

    But it was already toote.

    Before the young man could shoot and right as Mathew tensed up his muscles and jumped forth, the zombie stumbled forth.

    It didn''t make a step but slipped on a pool of its own blood, instantly gaining the momentum he wouldn''t get otherwise.

    This unexpected change threw Mathew''s calction off, giving him less time to approach than he expected.

    Refusing to give up and in the middle of his leap, Mathew pulled his saber halfway out, ready to drag it through the zombie''s neck¡­

    Only for thetter to fall on the back of one of Kasper''s wives and sink its teeth into the tender flesh of her left shoulder.

 Chapter 392 Last Favor

    ?

    "Kill it!"

    Someone from amidst the newbies shouted.

    But Mathew was already on top of the situation. All he had to do now¡­

    Was what?

    ''I can''t cut it like that!'' Mathew despaired.

    Even if he were to sh the zombie''s neck and somehow avoid cutting the girl below it, the zombie''s head would still stay attached to the girl''s shoulder, its teeth messing up more and more of her flesh.

    "AAAAARGH!" the poor girl screamed her guts out while the flesh of her shoulder and neck were mangled by the broken teeth of the zombie.

    "FUCK!" With no other option, Mathew reverted his hold on the saber before throwing his fist right into the side of the zombie''s head.

    Pac¡­

    The rotten flesh and broken bones of the zombie''s skull offered little to no resistance to Mathew''s fist. Not stopped by anything solid, it went right through the side of the zombie''s head, ending up nearly halfway inside its head.

    Thankfully, as disgusting as it was, the damage to the zombie''s brain ended up massive enough toy it down to rest. As for the girl that it attacked, though¡­

    She was currently wriggling on the ground while holding both of her hands to the massacred side of her neck.

    A huge chunk of her flesh remained in the zombie''s teeth, leaving an ugly and already festering wound that kept on bleeding more and more.

    ''Shit, what do I do?!'' Mathew froze.

    Even if he had some magic bandage on him, the wound was too damn ugly!

    "Shit!" Unable to produce any smarter sound than a simple curse, Mathew dropped down while ripping his own shirt apart. Once by the girl''s side, he bundled the cloth in his hand before pressing it against the poor girl''s wound.

    "Keep it tight!" he shouted, hoping to somehow get through the girl''s pain to make her cooperate.

    For but a second, the bleeding somewhat stopped. Mathew''s shirt was so damn dirty that the dirt itself somehow solidified, turning into glue when interacting with water. And once it soaked in the girl''s own blood, it formed a nearly imprable barrier.

    At least for now, this makeshift dressing managed to somewhat stabilize the girl''s state.

    "What the hell are you standing around like that?!" Carol erupted as soon as she appeared on the scene,gging just a short moment behind Mathew.

    ¡¤?¦Èm Her face was tense.

    ''We were just talking about how she wouldn''t let anyone get hurt,'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth in a powerless fury.

    There was nothing he could do anymore. The makeshift bandage could only dy the inevitable. After all, the only way to save this girl right now was to grant her a system seed.

    Sadly, Mathew didn''t have enough cores to buy even a single seed. And even if he had, the girl would bleed out before they could carry her back to the fortress.

    ''Such a pity,'' Mathew thought, taking a quick nce at the girl.

    Her face was pale, likely due to the already extensive loss of blood. Her hands were nicely pressed against Mathew''s bloodied shirt¡­ But her eyes were strangely calm. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    ''She epted what happened?'' Mathew tensed up, weirded out by the temperament of the dying girl.

    "Quick!" Castor somehow ended up down before Mathew''s legs, already half in a bowing position. "The serum, give her the serum!"

    His eyes were honest. For how annoying he was¡­ he really did seem to care about those two wives of his.

    "It''s no use," Mathew spoke softly. "She''s already gone."

    The first real casualty of the expedition¡­ and likely one of the many toe.

    The power of the system that Mathew and his girls enjoyed skewed their preception of the threat of the zombies. For them, they were mere annoyances. Save for the big and challenging bosses, normal zombies were just objects to be farmed for cores.

    But before the people with systems came out, the majority of humanity lost to those zombies. And the newly recruited hunters¡­ were just that.

    Just a bunch of humans that dared to raise their hand against the fate that awaited everyone in this world.

    "What?!" Castor asked, shocked so much that he refused to just turn his head around and check for himself. "It''s impossible for her to die. We were talking about how we would survive this together just an hour ago¡­" he muttered, his voice growing more distant with each word.

    ''Shit¡­'' Mathew cursed in his thoughts again.

    And then, he did what a leader of this ragtag group had to do.

    The young man lowered himself on his knee and ced his hand on Castor''s shoulders.

    "Look at me," Mathew ordered in a voice that indicated anyone who would refuse wouldn''t bode well. "Look at me!" Mathew repeated while giving Castor''s arm a shake.

    "She''s gone."

    This time, Mathew allowed himself the use of a slightly more somber tone.

    "She bled out to death. The one sce is that she likely didn''t feel much pain in the end," Mathew added, more than willing to lie if he could somehow raise the now desperate morale of the expedition team.

    "How can you know that¡­" Casper whispered, digging his fingers deep into the flesh of Mathew''s sides.

    "I saw her eyes," Mathew said, saying some truth in between all the lies he was willing to utter. "At the end¡­ she was at peace."

    Mathew looked away from the guy at his feet and up to where the girl''s corpsey.

    The blood already stopped flowing out of her wounds. Her body visibly deted, deprived of the huge portion of the liquid that kept it in its natural state.

    Mathew closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

    This ugly situation wasn''t over yet. And before things could get far worse, there was onest thing that he had to do.

    "As gravely wrong as it sounds, she can consider herself to be lucky," Mathew stated before raising his eyes and looking across all the members of the expedition. "Right now, we can still bury her. Rather than turning into a monster, she will be at peace," Mathew said somberly before turning to look at Castor again.

    "And I believe it''s you who should do her thisst favor."

 Chapter 393 Shes The Strongest

    ?

    "Are you really sure about it?" Daria asked after pulling Mathew to the back of the group, some distance away from the rest of the hunters.

    They were still close enough to rush back into action if another unexpected event were to take ce, but far enough not to let the hunters and newbies hear what they were talking about.

    "The funeral?" Mathew asked while sending a nce at where all the members of the expedition gathered.

    Just like Mathew suggested, Castor organized a few things that he could find around before using those newfound tools to prepare a burial site for his wife.

    Letting the girl rest was nowhere near enough to let him soothe his grief¡­ but it was something. Something that likely no other member currently participating in the expedition could expect for themselves.

    "Yeah," Daria nodded her head, biting down on her lips as she looked to where the simplistic ceremony was taking ce. "We don''t have long before the horde arrives. And if they already struggled to take down a small group of zombies¡­"

    "They didn''t struggle," Mathew spoke over the girl. He then crossed his arms on his chest and heaved a long sigh. "They were doing just fine. Mostly because of that one hunter who took charge, but that doesn''t matter. When pressed, they all followed his orders," Mathew pointed out.

    "Howe they are burying one of them if they all stuck to the n?" Daria asked with a hint of irony in her voice.

    For some reason, Mathew wasn''t really moved by the death of one of his people.

    Sure, there was some sort of regret and sense of guilt festering at the bottom of his soul. It was his decision to pull those people out of the safety of the fortress which ultimately resulted in the first death in mere two hours since departing.

    ''By extrapting my reasons for organizing this expedition, that girl died due to myziness,'' Mathew thought, suddenly pressured by his own morals to find something that would make him feel worse about the entire thing.

    "It was just an ident," Mathew countered once he felt his heart tighten under the assault of the newfound sense of guilt. "And all ns are only good for as long as it takes to implement them," he added while tensing up his jaws a little. "Such is the w of putting theory into practice."

    No n could survive the meeting with the enemy. A weapon could malfunction. One of the members of the formation might happen to slip. A random vulcano could suddenly grow out from the ground and erupt, showering both sides with burning debris and stone chunks.

    Some things were easier, and possible for nners to anticipate.

    But no n ever survived contact with the enemy. Humans were¡­ humans, not robots. And they got to the top of the food chain on the not by epting their role as feeble apes but by forcing the world around them to adjust to their own liking.

    And just like it happened to the expedition, no newbie would expect that a mangled corpse of a zombie¡­ might be a bit more alive than they assumed.

    "It was an ident but also their mistake born out of theirck of experience," Mathew picked up the topic after a moment of silence, even though Daria already gave up on pursuing it. "And as brutal and heartless as it might sound this lesson¡­"

    Mathew hesitated for a bit.

    "This lesson they will never forget," Le finished for him, appearing from the far side of his vision.

    Contrary to the members of the expedition, meaning the hunters, the newbies, and Carol, the rest of Mathew''s wives couldn''t be bothered to participate. Just like Mathew himself, they grew numb to death during the first day of the apocalypse.

    After all, seeing scores of people die right before their eyes was a traumatic experience of such a level, one could cope with it only by getting used to it.

    And then, Mathew and his wives actively participated in zombie ying missions. They exerted themselves while fighting what would raise from the corpses of those who they saw killed.

    Their capacity to grieve over the death of someone they only vaguely knew¡­ was exhausted.

    "I thought you went to thin out the horde," Mathew muttered as he nced over at the girl, more than ready to move on from the topic.

    Even if he was used to seeing, experiencing, and talking about death, it wasn''t the topic he preferred.

    "Shut your mouth!" Le hissed, instantly throwing a worried look at the ceremony that was slowly reaching its end. To be more precise, she looked over to where Carol stood, clearly worried that she would learn of her exploits.

    "It''s okay," Mathew shrugged his shoulders, "once the hordees, she will likely notice someone altered it already," the young man pointed out with a shrug of his shoulders. "And then, you can just put all the me on Nadia," he added.

    "Nadia?" Le asked, raising her right eyebrow in surprise. "Nadia, huh," she then added in a lower voice while turning her eyes to the ground and letting a thoughtful expression appear on her lips.

    Mathew didn''t need to borate much more.

    All the surviving members of the expedition were nowpleting the finishing touches of the ceremony, each of them throwing a handful of earth on top of the small, makeshift casket that Castor himself lowered into the hole he dug with his own hands.

    Outside of them, all of Mathew''s wives and Mathew himself were gathered on the outside of the bigger group, overseeing them from a distance.

    And yet¡­ Only Nadia was left unounted for.

    "Are you sure it''s okay to let her go against the horde alone?" Le asked, a small hint of worry shing in her eyes.

    "It''s okay," Mathew shook his head before taking a nce at the stats disyed by the system. "It''s a horde of basic zombies, and out of the four of us, she is the strongest."

 Chapter 394 The Strongest One

    ?

    ''There are so many of them!'' Nadia thought as she sprinted through the crowd of zombies without paying any attention to hundreds upon hundreds of their attempts to grab at her.

    With the current state of her body, not even a whole group of zombies standing in a perfect stance and all trying to hold her down would have a shot atpleting such a task.

    Thrown by her own feelings into the very middle of the horde that stood on the path the expedition had to take, she now found a way to let her feelings speak through her actions.

    "Die, die, die¡­" she shouted with fury while sending her fists and legs forward, crushing a skull for every attack she executed. "Just fucking die already!"

    Nadia swirled around in ce, killing all of the basic zombies that dared to stand within her range.

    Then, rather than waiting a few seconds for the zombies to gather around her again, she rushed forward and ran fewteen steps ahead before starting the process all over again.

    ''There were at least a thousand zombies in this horde,'' Nadia thought as she kept on sending a flurry of strikes against the seemingly unending horde of animated corpses.

    With each strike, she would crack a skull open. With each kick, she would shatter whatever was left holding the zombie''s body together.

    Surrounded by nothing but undead and those that she turned into properly dead, she both looked and felt like the god of damn death.

    "DIE!" Nadia shouted for onest time as she sent forth a fist that crushed three skulls with a single swing, the courtesy of those dumb zombies standing close together.

    "AAAARGH!" Nadia unleashed a feral cry.

    She raised her head, howling in the direction of the brightly-lit sky.

    Her emotions were coiling inside the girl''s soul, leading to the howl that finally gave them the outlet they needed.

    "Haaa¡­" Nadia finished her scream with a long, exhausted sigh.

    She could keep on going for hours upon hours longer before feeling even the slightest sign of exhaustion.

    ''I have yet to expend a single percent of what this body is capable of,'' Nadia thought, using the time she bought by clearing all the zombies around to lower her gaze and stare at her blood-covered hand.

    ''And to think I used to feel lightheaded at the mere sight of blood,'' she thought while watching how chunks of brain matter and the shattered pieces of bone slid down her hands and fell to the ground, turning into a fertilizer that would boost the growth of grass in the area in the near future.

    ''Is that why I''m so tired?'' she thought before heaving yet another sigh and raising her hands.

    The short moment of rest she gained by clearing the zombies in proximity has now ended, with all of the undead rushing to fill the void around the girl.

    "I guess you really want me to cull your numbers some more!"

    Nadia was aware of Le''s momentary presence on the scene. While she never spotted the girl, she could somehow sense the rapid decrease of zombie numbers on the far nk of the horde.

    ''I wonder if she wanted me toe help, or if she just didn''t want to kill too many of them,'' Nadia thought.

    After all, for the expedition as it was right now, killing zombies proved to be of no benefit.

    Out of all the hunters, only Carol had a system that allowed her to turn the act of killing zombies into a training that permanently boosted her strength. For all those system-less hunters, killing the zombies was just a sad duty they had to fulfill to earn their right to get a system in the first ce.

    ''With that in mind, letting them fight such a massive horde, even if it''s mostly basic zombies¡­''

    Nadia pressed her lips together, turning them into a thin line.

    ''I''m sure I''m doing a good thing by cutting down their numbers¡­ But why do I feel guilty about putting Mathew on a spot in regard to this matter?''

    Rather than just disappearing from Mathew''s side to do what she felt like she had to do, Nadia dutifully informed Mathew about his wish. And while he initially tried to convince her not to involve herself¡­

    Way sooner than Nadia expected, Mathew changed his mind and simply waved his hand to showcase he didn''t really care.

    Still.

    ''I bet he didn''t want to impose his will on me rather than agreeing with my reasons,'' Nadia thought as she yet again jumped into the area crawling with zombies before unleashing her fury upon them. ''Or maybe there is something that I didn''t think about?''

    Nadia suddenly stopped, frozen by the consequences hidden in her realization.

    ''What if there was a reason why he initially didn''t want me to go?'' she asked herself, absentmindedly mowing down the zombies that stupidly repeated the mistake of their fallen peers and got within the girl''s range. ''Maybe he thought that facing this horde would make for a good lesson?''

    Nadia continued to move around in short bursts, killing all the zombies whenever she stopped only to move to another part of the horde again.

    ''Maybe he wanted to group all the corpses together to make it easier to gather the cores and bury them?'' The girl continued to search for answers while her body kept on doing its thing.

    Following nothing more but her sense of blood, Nadia could dive into her thoughts without a care in the world about the lethal danger that surrounded her.

    Just like her newfound sense of blood guided her fist while she thought about Mathew, it would warn her if a strong enemy were to appear anywhere near.

    "Ah," Nadia then stopped when she ended up on a small hill that in reality was just a crumbled-down pile of rubble that once used to be a tiny service building. "I''ve really killed quite a lot of them," she muttered while looking down at the scene below her feet.

    There were at least a thousand zombies in the horde when Nadia and Le descended like an Egyptian gue upon them.

    Le''s short rampage generated at least a hundred proper corpses. And Nadia''s absentminded dedication to cull their numbers, brought it down to a mere ten or twenty percent of the original zombie''s headcount.

    ''I guess that should be enough,'' Nadia thought as she wiped the blood and sweat from her forehead before turning around and looking in the direction the rest of her group was. ''Meaning, it''s high time for me to return. And if they can''t handle so few of the zombies with their numbers and guns¡­''

    Nadia hesitated for a second before jumping down from the pile of rubble and making her way back toward the group.

    ''Then I want to know where did they find the guts to call themselves hunters!"

    From over a thousand to a mere hundred and then some.

    What''s more, those remnants of the horde would be put against a group of nearly thirty humans. Even if only half of their initial salvo were to be effective, the number of zombies would easily fall below a hundred.

    And a single unarmed human was more than enough to deal with five or more basic zombies, as long as they kept calm and worked around their strengths.

    ''Oh, I think I got it now,'' Nadia thought as her face darkened a little. ''I just hope this test of his... will be of any value now that I killed more than I actually wanted.''

 Chapter 395 Misguided Pride

    ?

    ''She''sing back,'' Mathew thought, noticing Nadia''s presence way before he actually saw the girl.

    Still, her return was dyed by something.

    He could easily tell that culling down the numbers of the basic zombies was as hard as walking in the park for his first wife. He could also tell that contrary to how the rest of their tight group was, Nadia actually took the casualty of the expedition to her heart.

    He could tell that she went to kill the zombies not only to lessen the burden on the rest of the hunters in hopes no more death woulde but also to let herself massacre everything that moved to calm her own sense of guilt.

    But why she took so long to return, Mathew was pretty damn clueless.

    "Hey," Nadia called out with a light yet slightly anxious smile as she returned to her side.

    Her attitude was already suspicious¡­ but it was her looks that both answered Mathew''s question and also made him ask another one.

    ''Didn''t she just curb a few hundred zombies all on her own?'' Mathew asked himself as he couldn''t help but stare at the girl''s profile from the side. ''Then howe she''s all fresh and even slightly wet, as if she¡­''

    Mathew''s thoughts stopped when the realization struck him. And then, his question changed.

    ''Just how in all hells did she find a working shower to clean herself up?'' Mathew thought, puzzled by this seemingly unsolvable mystery.

    "What are you looking so intensely at?" Nadia asked once she noticed Mathew''s stare. She then put a small smile as she brought her hands to her crotch before pressing her arms together to put an emphasis on her bosom. "Could it be, your other wives¡­"

    "Auch!" Nadia cut her words short when Le nudged her in the side.

    "Don''t you dare to even try to put in on us!" she then warned Nadia with quite a feisty look on her face.

    ''Oh right, we didn''t actually fuck back then,'' Mathew thought when he suddenly recalled the time he had with Le.

    It was one of the few fond memories he had of the recent world¡­ but it went without question that indeed, he managed to get some rest from the devouring monster that hid between the legs of the great majority of girls.

    "Sorry, sorry," Nadia shook her head while properly apologizing. "I was just teasing him," she admitted only to stand up straight¡­ and then bow her head and even her upper body down to Le. "For teasing him in a way that put me on you, I''m sorry."

    "I¡­ I mean¡­" Faced with such an honest and formal apology, Le lost her mental ground and struggled to form a proper reply. "It''s nothing much¡­ I guess?"

    Nadia raised her face, finally allowing Le to see a huge grin stered all over her face.

    "Oh¡­" Le muttered, her eyes turning wide as she understood the apology¡­ was just another part of Nadia''s tease. This time, however, rather than at Mathew, it was directed at her!

    "You little¡­!" Le fired up, rushing forth to smack Nadia''s bottom¡­ Only to stop and turn her head to the side.

    Now that the funeral was over, the hunters sent Carol to urge Mathew and his wives to join them.

    "Why are they moving?" Mathew asked once Carol reported on the state of things. "This ce, albeit not perfect, could work as a great chokepoint to face the horde!" he pointed out, baffled by the idea of moving everyone out right before the horde was about to sh against them.

    "It''s stupid, I know," Carol admitted with an extremely annoyed look on her face. "But it''s the result of inner conflict within the hunters," she added while looking back over her shoulder¡­ only for the look of annoyance on her face to turn into one of disgust.

    ''Inner conflict?'' Mathew squinted his eyes.

    To say that he was baffled by the news would be a gross understatement.

    "Just who would be stupid enough to create conflict inside a group of hunters while out at the mercy of all the zombies that cane and attack us at any moment?" he then asked himself.

    "It''s Frank," Carol replied right away. She rested her hands on her hips and sighed. "It looks like he got worried when Pavel took charge of the fighting and now tried to enforce his authority as the quasi-leader of the group."

    ''Frank? Pavel?'' Mathew thought, trying to not show on his face how he had no idea who were the people the girl was talking about. ''From the context, isn''t Frank that one guy who volunteered when I created the first batch of hunters?''

    Even though Mathew didn''t recognize the names that Carol brought up, it wasn''t hard to figure out who was histest real wife about.

    ''Then, Pavel is the guy that I noticed,'' Mathew concluded his theory before putting his focus back.

    "Just like you told me, I didn''t involve myself¡­ But I really don''t think it''s a good idea for them to leave this spot. Not with zombies mere three hundred meters away or so," Carol added only to look over her shoulder once again.

    "Yeah, it''s stupid," Mathew agreed without a second thought. "Even if there are less than thirty of them, thew of weight applies to any group, no matter how big or small."

    "Thew of weight?" Le asked while giving Mathew''s side a slight nudge.

    Mathew waved his hand.

    "Set of rules that apply to the movement of entire units," Mathew replied before putting a smirk on his face. "Don''t worry about not knowing about this. I came up with the name for it just now," he added with a shameless smile while spreading his arms out.

    "You¡­" Le pursed her lips, taken aback by Mathew''s words. Her hands tightened into fists, threatening that her next nudge wouldn''t be as light as thest one.

    "Guys!" Carol shouted, forcing the group to refocus and look at her. "They are about to get massacred because of the misguided pride of a single guy," she pointed out the likely course of the events. "Are we really not going to do anything about it?"

 Chapter 396 Shot Fired

    ?

    "We are not going to do anything," Mathew said after a mere second of hesitation. "Not directly and not unless absolutely necessary," he then added some more details.

    Mathew took a deep breath before releasing it in a long, heavy sigh.

    He ignored the look of disappointment on Carol''s face. Yet, when it turned into anger, he realized that he couldn''t leave the girl on hold like that.

    "Listen and listen carefully," Mathew said in a heavy voice. "The only reason we are here right now is because I don''t believe those guys have what it takes to figure everything out on their own. But with the exception of saving them when they will reach the point of no return, I don''t want any of you to get involved."

    "And the burial from before proved how valid that strategy of yours is!" Carol snapped, her eyes narrowing while she tightened her hands into fists.

    She wasn''t going tosh out. That Mathew could tell from theck of unnatural activity of the energy inside of her. And even if she were toe at him with her fists¡­

    Well, her system ability was all about magic, not physical attacks. And for an all-rounder like Mathew, her fists could only ever amount to tickle.

    Still, even in spite of the futility of doing so, Carol was clearly just an inch away fromshing out.

    "Ask yourself this, what will happen in a week from now?" Mathew asked while continuing to walk forward, clearly unwilling to let the hunters get ahead of their smaller group by too much.

    The sight of losing one of the newbie hunters so early into the expedition taught him a costly lesson, after all.

    "It''s it obvious?" Carol shrugged with the same, angered expression on her face. "In a week from now, they will have enough experience to deal with whateveres at them. And¡­" The girl hesitated for a second only to end up shaking her head. "No, scratch that. But in a week, all those who show any promise will have a system, won''t they?"

    ''A valid point,'' Mathew thought only to heave a sigh. ''But it has nothing to do with what I want her to realize.''

    "In a week or so, we won''t be with them to help them out. We will be too far from them to tell them how to act, how to fight, or help them out if they stumble into an opponent that they cannot defeat."

    Unwilling to let the heated discussion between Mathew and Carol affect the morale of the hunters that they were approaching, Nadia stepped in and exined the situation.

    "And what does it have to do with what''s going on right now?" Carol asked, still refusing to ept Mathew''s point of view.

    This time, it was Nadia''s turn to heave a sigh.

    "I think we can all agree that it''s a better idea to stay where they were instead of rushing to meet the horde, can we?" Nadia asked before throwing a sweeping nce across the faces of her fellow wives and husband.

    And with no exception, everyone nodded in agreement.

    Such was obvious. It was far better to funnel zombies through a narrow chokepoint so that the hunters would only need to deal with a few of them at a time. And yet, ignoring that obvious tactical advantage, the hunters moved forth, beyond the choke point.

    What was supposed to be their greatest advantage for the fight became a massive risk if they ever needed to quickly retreat. And while a group of a bit more than twenty could cross the chokepoint far easier than hundreds upon hundreds of zombies from the horde, it would still slow them down.

    And given the nature of the conflict between humans and zombies, even a minimal dy during an escape was likely to cause a lot of panic which would lead to the group losing its cohesion. This kind of situation would only increase the casualty rate which would then lead to an even greater panic as more and more of the hunters would fall¡­

    And so, the vicious circle would close its loop, easily capable of turning a single, tiny blunder into a reason why an entire unit of hunters could get massacred in a fight that should be easy for them to win.

    "Are you going to just let them walk into a trap?" Carol asked.

    Now that they walked some distance and she had some time to think through what Mathew and Nadia spoke, her voice returned to its usual, calm version.

    "We are not letting them do anything. We are here just to observe and prevent a potential disaster," Mathew shook his shoulders. "But whatever trap they willingly walk into, it''s all on them."

    Just like in the future, he wouldn''t be able to help the hunters out if he was in a different part of the city, he couldn''t mediate their differences either. And the problem right now was purely of political nature.

    "Now that I think about it¡­ aren''t I a hunter?" Carol suddenly asked,pletely changing her approach to the situation.

    "You are their leader, not one of them," Mathew quickly replied.

    It was easy to see through what Carol wanted to achieve. By getting herself counted as a hunter, she could use her authority as Mathew''s wife to put aside the ongoing conflict between Frank and Pavel.

    But allowing her to do so would defeat the very purpose behind the rest of Mathew''s group standing aside and letting the disaster brew.

    "So I''m supposed to just let them walk into a trap? All because Frank dares to unt his authority?!" This time, Carol failed to control the anger in her voice. "He is implying that he''s the leader nominated by you! That''s the only reason why people are listening to him rather than to Pavel!"

    "Oh?" Mathew raised his eyebrows. ''That wasn''t a part of what I expected,'' he thought, squinting his eyes as he looked over to the group of hunters and newbies.

    He could already see the mass of zombies walking down the street mere two hundred paces ahead.

    Right now, it was only a matter of seconds before the fight would start.

    "I didn''t know that," Mathew admitted before hurrying his step. "And if that''s the case, then¡­"

    BANG!

    A discharge of the firearm shook the air and caused everyone to stop.

    ''It''s still too early for them to fire!'' Mathew instantly noticed, gritting his teeth as he raised his eyes toward the middle of the group of hunters¡­

    Only to see them all waver in ce before hurriedly retreating where they came from!

 Chapter 397 Pretty Damn Smart!

    ?

    "What the hell is going on?" Mathew muttered while still frozen in ce, struggling to connect the dots into a picture that would make any sense.

    Someone in the group of hunters fired their gun which led to everyone retreating in a more or less orderly fashion? And a mere moment after the shot?

    ''If it was an idental discharge, everyone would panic instead,'' Mathew thought before moving his eyes further down the street.

    And contrary to his expectations, not a single zombie gave any signs of being shot! Not a single animated corpse wavered from the force of the impact. Not a single one of them fell to the ground only to be crushed by the hundreds of rotting feet walking over it.

    No.

    Whoever fired, clearly didn''t aim their gun at the zombies at all!

    "Mathew!" A single person rushed out of the retreating group. Yet, rather than causing panic, everyone actually moved aside to let him pass.

    "What happened?" Mathew asked as he looked down at the panting Kasper.

    "I''ve shot him," Kasper answered through his heavy panting.

    Mathew raised his eyebrows.

    "Who did you shoot?" the young man asked even though he could already guess the answer. Still, if there was anything that this apocalyptic world taught him, it was that things always liked to happen outside of the area of his expectations.

    "That fake leader of ours," Kasper answered right away. "It was the only choice we had, or he would lead us all to death just to prove that he was the one leading the expedition."

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    "Did he die?" he asked shortly.

    Kasper took a few more breaths before closing his mouth and refusing to keep on panting. After a few seconds of letting his heart calm down, he raised his eyes and opened his mouth back again.

    "He''s still alive, but we''ve left him for the zombies to get distracted with," Kasper added¡­ only for his eyes to escape to the side.

    ''So he can easily admit to shooting a guy but is ashamed of leaving him to his death?'' Mathew thought, raising one of his eyebrows when the doubt filled his soul.

    "I guess that exins why the zombies have yet to jump on your asses," Mathew concluded as he looked over the retreating hunters and at the zombies behind them.

    And just like Kasper suggested and Mathew figured out, they were currently busy with something.

    Still, after a mere three seconds of Mathew''s observation, all the zombies suddenly lost interest in whatever they were doing and picked up their chase after the hunters.

    "Now I can''t help but wonder," Mathew admitted as he turned his eyes back to Kasper. "You admitted to shooting a guy and then leaving him to die. I know that you are taking the me for one of those things. I just can''t tell which."

    If someone was bold and cold-blooded enough to shoot one of theirpanions, they shouldn''t have a problem leaving them to die to the zombies. And yet, Kasper appeared to be ashamed of only one of the things he admitted to doing.

    "We don''t really have the time for this," Carol muttered, her eyes locked on the approaching wave of zombies.

    They were all clearly only the basic ones. Without the upgrade to their physique, their bodies couldn''t resist the decay of thest two weeks. It was a miracle that some of them could still move around with the degree of rot that took over their undead flesh.

    Yet, when faced with their iing charge, even those basic zombies managed to appear quite fierce.

    ''Are they going to do anything?'' Mathew thought, looking over his shoulder in the direction of the escaping hunters¡­

    Mathew''s face tensed up, quickly followed by the rest of the muscles in his body.

    ''We are standing right at the chokepoint!'' he realized upon seeing the entire front row of the hunters getting ready to cover the area with gunfire.

    "RUN!" Mathew shouted, grabbing Carol and  Kasper under each of his arms before dashing to the side.

    In theory, he bought absolutely no distance whatsoever by escaping perpendicrly to the direction of the zombie''s charge.

    But it wasn''t the zombies that Mathew was worried about.

    "FIRE!"

    The already familiar voice of Pavel filled the air only to get reced by the deafening noise of several firearms going off at the same time.

    Still, it was a salvo, not the repeating sound of the automatic fire.

    "FIRE!" Pavel shouted again, his words followed by another series unleashed by the hunters at the front of the group.

    ''Damn,'' Mathew breathed out, safely hidden with two of his stowaways behind a lone pir somehow still standing at the edge of the street. He raised his head and dropped both of his temporary wards to the ground, focusing on the battlefield instead.

    Thankfully, now that the troublemaker of the hunters was gone, Pavel could lead the hunters and newbies with no obstructions.

    Salvo after salvo, seven guns fired into the crowd of rushing zombies. Soon, though, two of the guns turned silent. Then three. And then, the fourth one turned silent as well, leaving only three active shooters in the front.

    ''Are they jammed?'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes as he turned his attention from the zombies to the hunters.

    Yet, from the rtively calm andposed actions of the former shooters¡­ he could tell that it wasn''t the case.

    Still, with the intensity of the fire now more than halved, the first few zombies managed to get past the choke point.

    "Do we deal with them?" Nadia asked, calmly appearing by Mathew''s side and watching how seven out of the eleven zombies that went past the narrow area turned their attention to their position instead of the hunters.

    "What, do you want to just keep them at bay for those kids to clean them up after it''s over?" Mathew asked, pulling out his saber. He then took a step forward and shed down, splitting the fastest of the zombies in half.

    Normally, such a cut would be near impossible as it went through a huge number of bones and other tougher parts of the human body. Starting with the skull, followed by the spine, a vertical cut like that could appear only in movies!

    But Mathew was far from being a normal human. His saber was far from being just a simple de. And the zombie¡­

    Despite how fast it was, it was rotted to the point even its bones didn''t pose many challenges to the de of Mathew''s saber.

    ''That''s weird,'' Mathew squinted his eyes, surprised by the ease at which he cut the zombie down in half. ''Its bones shouldn''t rot out that quickly!''

    It was clearly an important thing to notice¡­ but there were too many things going on right now for Mathew to really pay any attention to such a fact.

    Instead, the young man turned his eyes to the line of the hunters¡­ Only to see that the number of shooters now climbed back up to five!

    ''Oh, so that''s what they were doing!'' Mathew thought, opening his eyes wide in realization.

    Pavel most likely arranged the hunters so that some of them would stop shooting prematurely and went to load their magazines back to their full capacity. Then, once others started to run out of the few shots their magazines were limited to, those who stopped early came to rece them, keeping the wall of fire more or less constant!

    "Damn¡­" Mathew released a small moan of ave. "That''s pretty damn smart!"

 Chapter 398 Pavels Tactics

    ?

    Bang! Bang! Bang!

    The hunters didn''t shoot at the rapid pace one would expect from this day and age. They didn''t reach even a single percent of what firearms of the time would be capable of.

    But that didn''t really matter.

    ''They might just be able to clutch it,'' Mathew thought while shing down another of the zombies who picked the wrong way to end its false life.

    Under Pavel''s leadership, the hunters aimed steadily and didn''t hurry with their shots.

    One by one, they took down the charging zombies, always keeping them at a constant distance away from the front of their line.

    Still, the pace of their attack was perfect for now, but with every passing second, the zombies managed to gain a single inch ofnd. A single inch that they would run closer towards the hunters before another gunshot would fall them.

    The tactic was clearly effective. But it could onlyst them for so long.

    "Five steps, retreat!" Pavel shouted from the bottom of his lungs, only for the entire line of hunters and newbies to walk backward the few ordered steps.

    Just like that, the progress that the zombies made by mindlessly sacrificing at least a hundred of the horde members now was near fully nullified.

    ''Once again, a smart choice,'' Mathew thought whilezily dispatching any zombie that was mistaken enough toe charging at him and his wives instead of charging at the hunters. ''But for every step that they take back, the zombies will have an easier way to surround them!''

    Such was the sad reality.

    The only reason why the zombies didn''t squash the small squad of hunters was due to the chokepoint that allowed only a few of them at a time to pass. And while retreating appeared like a sound option now, for every step that the hunters took back¡­

    They were giving the zombies one step of space more to spread out and attack with a greater number at the same time.

    "Newbies, prepare to fight!" Pavel shouted, right as he received two fully-loaded pistols from someone in the back of his group. "Hunters! Lay them down!"

    This time, the tactic changed.

    Instead of artificially slowing down their fire rate to let the newbies help with reloading and thus maintain a constant wall of fire, Pavel decided it was the right time to go all in.

    ''I understand their desperation¡­ but what made him decide to attack?'' Mathew asked himself.

    He kept on observing the situation, ready to intervene if even a single of the hunters or the newbies happen to be in danger. Thankfully, for now, Pavel''s tactic managed to keep all zombies a safe distance away.

    Even if the scenario from before were to repeat, when a seemingly fallen zombie was to raise to execute a surprise attack¡­ all the zombies'' corpses were still way too far from the line of the hunters to be able to reach the living and start turning them over to their side.

    "Now! Fire!" Pavel shouted, before unleashing a rapid fury of shoots from the gun in his right. This time, he didn''t hold back the speed at which he could headshot the zombies.

    Bang, bang, bang!

    One by one, the zombies fell. And as the rest of the hunters joined in on the fun, soon, all the progress that the horde made distance-wise was nullified.

    But then, the problematic moment came.

    The hunters managed to finish off all the zombies that managed to get past the chokepoint¡­ but they did so by exhausting all the shots that they had loaded their guns with. And now, there was nothing but empty space that separated them from the zombies that got to avoid the onught.

    "NOW! KILL THEM ALL!" Pavel shouted, wisely turning sideways not to be carried away when everyone else went on ahead.

    And contrary to what Mathew expected back when the unit was formed¡­ the newbies didn''t shy away from the fight, listening to Pavel''s order instead.

    "Kill them all!" one of the hunters joined in on the call as he dropped the gun to the ground and grabbed a metal reinforcement before charging forth.

    "Third group, grab the guns and reload them!" Pavel shouted another order before pulling out a small axe that he sourced from god knows where before charging in himself.

    Then, the zombies and the humans shed right at the choke point.

    Side by side, men and women shed, cut, and crushed whatever came at them with the people from the row behind them using all sorts of long poking sticks that they could find to push aside the zombies that got too close for thefort of the first line.

    "Just a little bit longer!" Pavel cried out while dropping his small axe at the nearest zombie, crushing its skull with a single swing.

    "Guns ready!" one of the five newbies who stood back shouted before rushing towards the frontline at the chokepoint.

    Then, a mere moment of chaos ensued as the hunters retreated, leaving the defense of the chokepoint to the newbies in the second line.

    For but a moment, the stability of the front hung by a thin thread. The newbies were too weak and too new to this kind of thing to be able to hold the zombies back for longer than just a few moments.

    But those few moments were all that Pavel needed.

    "Guns are ready!" one of the hunters shouted.

    "Help the first line!" Pavel ordered right away, using his powerful voice to orchestrate the movement of hispanions across the narrowness of the chokepoint.

    And then, with the second line made up entirely of newbies nearly falling apart under the weight of the zombie''s attack¡­

    The hunters raised their guns above the shoulders of the former second line before unleashing the might of gunpowder upon the undead.

    ''Having guns fired so close to their ears¡­'' Mathew thought, shaking his head while his eyes filled with silent praise. ''It looks like they all went through the baptism of battle,'' he thought, his lips inevitably turning to smile when he saw the line of the hunters stabilize.

    ''Still¡­'' Mathew squinted his eyes. ''Now that they recovered the chokepoint, what is he going to do?'' he asked himself, directing his eyes towards Pavel.

    Yet, after a mere moment, Mathew had no other choice but to turn his attention elsewhere, as what he could see with the corner of his vision turned strange.

    Unable to see properly from his position, Mathew moved a few steps to the side, to a ce from where he could actually see past the chokepoint¡­

    Only to realize that save for a few stragglers who had their limbs maimed¡­ the horde was gone!

 Chapter 399 Death And Taxes

    ?

    ''What the¡­'' Mathew stood in ce, baffled by the sight. ''The horde I saw was way bigger!''

    Maybe it was thanks to thetest development of the fortress but its early ability to scan the surroundings grew more potent.

    And it allowed the young man to see far further into the unknown of the city. That was also when he noticed the horde for the first time.

    "Ah¡­" Mathew sighed when the realization struck him. He then nced over his shoulder to where his wives stood.

    Carol was just surprised. Daria didn''t really care. Le was equally as taken aback as Mathew and Nadia¡­

    She was looking down and away, her cheeks covered in a hint of red.

    ''Well, whatever,'' Mathew rolled his eyes and looked back at the hunters.

    "A job," Mathew spoke, only for his face to freeze when he noticed the total toll the battle took on the hunters. "A job well done."

    The casualty list started with the wannabe leader of the hunters. Then there was Kasper''s wife¡­ And then two hunters and three newbies.

    From the force of a total of twenty-two when excluding Mathew and his wives, only fifteen people in total remained.

    And it was their very first real fight with a horde that Mathew''s wives already thinned out to a mere fraction of what it used to be!

    ''This will serve as a good baptism,'' Mathew thought, taking a moment to look at the five corpses remaining at the ce of the battle.

    Two hunters and three newbies. Five people in totalid their lives down.

    It was an inevitability that I managed to prepare for.

    With the growing number of people under my management, I had no other choice but to ept the necessary losses.

    "I want to know if they were with someone," Mathew spoke.

    As the leader of the group of human survivors, taking care of those left behind was one of his solemn duties.

    "I will have it arranged," Daria muttered, the solemn mood of the moment filling her voice.

    "Congrattions," Mathew didn''t allow the sorrow tost for more than just a few seconds. "You''ve survived your first battle!"

    ''We need this moment to be joyous, not one full of regret!''

    Maintaining the morale of the group was just another of Mathew''s duties as the leader.

    The thinned-out crowd of the surviving members of the expedition rustled.

    Everyst hunter and newbie that made it through took the news in a different way.

    "But sir," Pavel stepped up, talking to Mathew properly for the very first time. "There are still some left!" he mentioned with a tense look on his face while pointing his hand at the few stragglers.

    Those zombies had their limbs either heavily wounded, rotted, or outright missing. That''s why, while still a part of the horde, they were taking considerably longer to reach the chokepoint. In fact, the twenty or so of the stragglers were only now reaching it!

    Mathew sighed.

    "There are some left indeed," he admitted before ncing over to where his wives stood. "Carol, would you be so kind?"

    Carol turned her head up a bit and looked right into Mathew''s eyes.

    "For real?" she asked, sparks of excitement appearing in her eyes. "Can I?"

    She was the one most interested in thinning out the horde. And from the looks of it, she, save for Daria, was the only one who didn''t actually do so.

    "Just don''t waste your mana," Mathew pointed out. "Just your saber should suffice for this, I believe."

    Carol grinned and lowered her hand to her hip.

    Even though her system was centered around magic, the bunch of maimed zombies that were now pouring through the chokepoint were far from being a challenge for her de.

    "Go," Mathew urged the girl while beckoning at her with his hand.

    Carol grinned even harder before stepping forth.

    She wasn''t in a hurry, as there was no need for her to be. She casually walked over to the nearest zombie and shed its head off in passing. Then, with no change to her demeanor, she moved over to the next one.

    With no sign of worry, fear, or even anxiety, she casually reaped all the remaining zombies in just a few moments while taking a thoughtful stroll.

    The joyous atmosphere of the survivors dimmed when they were faced with this disy of rtively limited might. Carol wasn''t anywhere close to being the strongest member of Mathew''s group, after all. And yet, with the tiny bit of strength that she had, she could already do so much and so damn easily!

    "Right, I think this is a good moment to mention it," Mathew didn''t wait to seize the moment. "But right now it''s time to clean all the cores from those corpses," the young man put on a huge smile before looking at now returning Carol.

    "And I think Carol would be the right person to take those cores back to the fortress and pick what system seeds you guys will receive."

    This, not the mere celebration of the victory, was the key point for the expedition.

    The reward that they all risked their lives for.

    "I think I saw a huge field with corpses while scouting nearby," Nadia mentioned offhandedly, turning her face to the side while an even bigger blush appeared on her cheeks.

    Mathew sighed heavily.

    "Fine, let''s add those cores to the pool too," he ''reluctantly'' agreed.

    Then, he turned his eyes to the battlefield.

    ''Judging from Nadia''s stance, she killed quite a lot of them,'' Mathew thought, looking closer at the pile of corpses left at the chokepoint.

    ''And with about two hundred here, there could be slightly over a thousand in total.''

    Mathew took a deep breath and hung his head to the back.

    ''With fifty cores per seed, and with all of them only bearing basic cores...'' he took a moment to calcte.

    "Carol, once all the cores are harvested, you will bring them back to the fortress and purchase fourteen basic system seeds for fifty cores each!" Mathew announced out loud, quite interested in letting every hunter and newbie hear the news.

    "I want you to also use a hundred cores to buy a slightly better system seed and pick who you will grant it to," Mathew added with a small smile.

    Now was the time for the sour part of the news.

    "The two hundred left will contribute towards the upkeep of the fortress and the supplies we need to keep it going," Mathew announced.

    Then, he grinned.

    "What, did you guys forget?" heughed. "There are only two things certain in this world. Death..." he paused for a short moment only to let his grin grow even wider. "Death and taxes!"

 Chapter 400 Somethings Not Right

    ?

    Originally Mathew expected that only the hunters and that was already in the best possible scenario, would gain their systems after just the first battle.

    But the fight turned out not only far bloodier than Mathew expected but also ended up with a lot more loot.

    Sure, most of the cores woulde from the corpses of Nadia and Le''s making. Still, after a period where no zombies would appear anywhere near the fortress, stumbling upon a horde so early on¡­ was a boon.

    ''Some of the hunters ended up dying¡­'' Mathew''s lips twitched when a scene from a legendary cartoon appeared in his mind. ''But it''s a sacrifice I''m willing to make.''

    "Hurry it up!" Le shouted, pulling Mathew out of his thoughts. "We don''t have all day!"

    For once, this encouragement wasn''t directed at the young man.

    The survivors of the battle were now walking knee-deep into the pile of corpses, extracting core after core from the fallen zombies.

    The hunters were already used to the job after their assistance in the previous missions. The newbies, on the other hand, could only sneak peeks at their seniors while trying to figure out a working system that suited their own approach.

    There were only so many ways in which one could open up a corpse''s skull¡­ all equally as disgusting.

    Yet, regardless of how unpleasant the harvest was, it was a necessary activity, the very core - ekhem - of farming cores.

    Why else would humans go out and risk their life if not to obtain this universal currency of the apocalypse?

    "We should be able to gather around two hundred."

    Rather than participating in the harvest himself, Pavel did exactly the same thing that he did back during the battle. He focused onmanding and overseeing the people at the cost of leaving the entire task to them.

    And quite surprisingly, no one seemed to be bothered!

    "Thanks for the report," Mathew nodded his head in the direction of the promising officer-to-be, before looking over his shoulder, to where Nadia and Le showed theirpassion. "Any idea about the amount over there?"

    Pavel turned his head around and cast a seeking nce towards the second field of corpses, left in the wake of Mathew''s wives.

    He then raised his hand and scrubbed the side of his head.

    "Honestly, I can''t even guess," Pavel admitted with a dejected grimace on his face. "Five hundred? A thousand?" he shook his head before shrugging his shoulders. "But I''m just guessing. I''ve never cleaned a zombie''s corpse-yard so I can''t really say."

    ''It''s better than trying to lick my ass anding up with an imaginary number,'' Mathew thought before moving his eyes over to some of the newbies.

    They had no experience. It was clear in every attempt they made at extracting the cores.

    Still, bit by bit, they were getting there.

    Their movements grew more certain, assured. Their cuts turned bolder and surprisingly smaller once they started to learn just how much they needed to cut to reach the core.

    "Things are moving rather smoothly," Nadiamented. She walked up to Mathew and stood by his side, sweeping the entire area with her eyes.

    "They do indeed," Mathewzily nodded his head.

    ''Now that I think about it, why did the horde even appear?'' Mathew thought, finally finding some time to look back at all the doubts he had so far. ''And one made out of basic zombies,'' the young man continued to y around with the puzzle pieces that he had, hoping to chance upon a connection.

    "Is it because we used the cores for the upgrades, I wonder," Mathew muttered, hoping that by voicing his doubts, he could make them somehow easier to figure out.

    "The horde?" Nadia asked. She took a quick, sideways nce at Mathew''s face before looking back toward the field of corpses. Then, her eyes moved up the street, past the chokepoint and the bigger of the two corpse fields.

    "It just doesn''t feel right," Mathew said, his face tensing up as his brain started to storm the shit out of the topic. "I mean, this horde is exactly what we needed. An opponent weak enough for the expedition to handle but one that provides us with at least some cores¡­"

    Mathew walked up a pace and kicked away the nearest, headless corpse. He then crushed the skull of the stranded head before leaning down and plucking out the core from the bloody mess.

    "But didn''t we move way past this kind of enemy?" Mathew turned back and flung the core at the girl.

    "Thest time we encountered those weaklings¡­" Nadia grabbed the stone with ease and muttered, looking down as she focused on scouring through her memories.

    Then, she raised her eyes.

    "Wasn''t it back at that shopping mall?" she suggested while raising her eyes.

    "Yeah," Mathew nodded his head before looking around. "Back when we stepped outside of the immediate surroundings of our zone of control," he added before putting on an uneasy grimace.

    "Mathew?" Nadia called out, turning around on the spot and focusing her eyes on her husband''s face. She nced at the young man for but a second before her face tensed up as well. "What''s wrong?"

    She didn''t need anything more but just a hint of unease to pick up on Mathew''s anxiety.

    Mathew pressed his lips together into a thin line.

    "Carol!"

    "Yes!" the girl rose from the pile of corpses several steps ahead.

    Now that the fighting part of the expedition was done, she made sure she was allowed before jumping into the job. In fact, it was her example and her tips that allowed most of the newbies to learn how to harvest the zombies in such a short amount of time.

    "I need you to take the cores that you''ve gathered so far and run back to the fortress," Mathew ordered.

    ''It''s just a possibility¡­ but it''s better to be safe than sorry,'' he thought, making up thest part of his mind.

    "There, I want you to pick up two system seeds. Once you are done, I want you to check out the scan of the area."

    Carol slightly raised her eyebrows. She took a moment to look at Mathew''s face, clearly suspecting that something was going on.

    Yet, whether or not she decided to believe her gut or not, she rose up and patted the dust and dirt off her clothes.

    "I will be right back, then!"

 Chapter 401 Special Place In Mathews Heart

    ?

    "Are you sure it was a good idea?" Nadia asked with an ufortable look on her face a mere moment after the youngest of Mathew''s actual wives left to do her job.

    "To let her pick the system seeds?" Mathew asked for rification. "Since she''s the one that''s supposed to lead the hunters, I thought¡­"

    "No¡­" Nadia shook her head even before Mathew could finish up what he was saying. "To let her go there all on her own and then return all on her own again," Nadia sighed. "Did you forget there are zombies and monsters that can avoid the search of the fortress?"

    Mathew''s face turned still. Then, a not-so-distant memory of what Nadia was talking about appeared before his eyes.

    ''I only checked for the visible presence of the zombies but not for the side effects of their passage,'' Mathew realized. ''And what if they changed the tactics? What if, instead of covering the tracks for an entire horde they now switched to moving in small units that are impossible to notice because their footprint is just too small?''

    A thousand possibilities descended on Mathew''s mind, swarming his thoughts with all sorts of worries.

    "It''s a good thing she only left to gather some more cores for now," Mathew muttered, looking in the direction the girl left before turning his eyes back to his prime wife. "Thanks for the pointer, I really didn''t think about it."

    The world of the apocalypse was like a catalyst that sped up every possible non-physical process.

    Normally it would take months if not years for Mathew to grow confident in himself enough to ept advice, critique, and pointers. It was something that before the apocalypse he always took personally.

    Rather than a piece of helpful advice, Mathew used to look at all those hints, points, and suggestions as mere attacks at his own belief, thought system, andstly intelligence.

    But in mere few weeks'' worths of experience of surviving in a world of zombie apocalypse allowed him to get over that insecure part of himself and ept a good word for what it was - casual advice.

    "It''s no biggie,"  Nadia replied with a small smile. "Do you want me to go with her or something?"

    Rather than replying right away, Mathew pursed his lips and took a moment to think.

    ''In theory, this isn''t a bad solution. Nadia should be able to handle all sorts of threats alone. But¡­''

    But.

    A single word that canceled out everything that went before it. Just like in many of the jokes, the speaker was not a racist or any other kind of person, but¡­ And so followed the rest of the joke that showcased every possible characteristic of the name used at the start of the joke.

    I''m not a racist but people of color¡­

    I''m not a sexist but women¡­

    I''m not a genocidal maniac, but they didn''t ept me into the art school and so on.

    ''But I can''t risk her getting hurt if they stumble upon an enemy that would need more of us to handle!''

    Surprisingly enough, Nadia was Mathew''s one oasis of peace, rest, and calm.

    Sure, it was nice to be close with several girls at the same time, especially when they all knew and epted the rest of Mathew''s rtionships. It was great to be able to get intimate with all sorts of different girls, with each of them having different quirks and acting generally different when in private.

    But still, with all the respect that Mathew had for the rest of his wives, Nadia still upied a special ce in his heart.

    ''I didn''t save and then order around all those people just for Nadia to keep on risking her life,'' Mathew thought as he cast a long, sideways nce at the girl. ''And in that case¡­''

    Mathew took a deep breath. He even went as far as to close his eyes as he continued to calm himself down¡­ or rather, swallow the guilt borne out of the decision he already made in his mind.

    "Matty!" Carol called out once she returned from her harvesting run.

    Mathew opened his eyes and sized the girl up and down. The sizeable bag with blood dripping from its bottom that she held in her hand proved that albeit the newbies were still learning, they were getting faster and faster at harvesting the cores.

    "I will be off!" Carol shouted, already turning around on her heel and ready to depart.

    The fortress was just two or three minutes worth of sprint away, so even if there were dangers lurking around¡­ Carol was still in the perfect shape and form to take them head-on! And the worst case scenario, she could always run away from¡­

    ''From what, exactly?'' Mathew thought, gritting his teeth right as he raised his arm.

    "Carol, wait!"

    ''We don''t know what lurks in this space, so I can''t let her go alone.''

    That decision Mathew reached long ago.

    ''But I don''t want to let Nadia alone apany her. No, in fact, I don''t want her to apany Carol at all!''

    Even though, in theory, Mathew was weaker than his prime wife¡­ he still couldn''t imagine a safer ce for Nadia to be but by his side.

    "Yes?" Carol stopped right as she was about to start running and turned around to look at Mathew, eager to find out what he had to call her for.

    "Take Le and Daria with you," Mathew ordered while feeling a sense of guilt explode in his heart.

    "Matty?" Surprised by the way things developed, Nadia stopped and asked.

    She was already getting herself ready to follow along¡­ only to learn that while Carol wouldn''t be traveling alone, it wouldn''t be her that would apany the girl.

    "We don''t know what dangers might lurk between us and the fortress, so it''s better to be safe than sorry," Mathew called out to make sure his voice reached over the distance that separated him from Carol.

    "On it!" Carol called back before turning around and dashing away, her head moving around as she scanned the surroundings in search of the two of Mathew''s wives.

    "Mathew!" Nadia called again, this time her voice turning stern. "What was that all about?" she asked, pointing her hand in the direction Carol ran away to. "Wasn''t I supposed to protect her?"

    The dejection in Nadia''s eyes was real.

    She was the one to point out the problem and she was the one who volunteered for the job. And just like that, Mathew deprived her of the task for reasons he didn''t even bother to disclose.

    It was only right for her to feel bad about the unspoken rejection. After all, she already invested herself mentally into the task!

    "I''m sorry, but I cannot let you go," Mathew revealed in a much lower voice. Even though he was out in the open, he took a step towards the girl before resting his hands on her shoulders and pulling her a little bit closer into an embrace.

    "Is something wrong?"

    Rather than busying herself with acting angry, Nadia quickly figured out that there had to be an important reason behind Mathew''s decision. And since she couldn''t see it, the easiest way to get her answers was to¡­

    "You are the one andst foundation of my sanity in this crazy world," Mathew revealed his thoughts before Nadia could even ask about them. "And you are thest person alive that I will allow to take any unnecessary risks."

    Mathew pulled back a step while keeping his hands on the girl''s shoulders. He then turned his head away, looking at how Carol''s back turned smaller and smaller with each step she ran.

    "And this mission is one of those," Mathew muttered before looking back at his first wife. "An unnecessary risk."

 Chapter 402 Coming To The Terms With Reality

    ?

    "If there is anything I hate the most in this world, is this uncertainty," Mathew muttered while resting his chin on top of Nadia''s shoulder.

    He held the girl in front of himself, hugging himself into her back while keeping the girl close with his arms.

    "It can be really unnerving," Nadia chimed in.

    They went through enough shit to understand the meaning of this strange ambiance.

    Carol, Le, and Daria have left on the journey back to the fortress. Given their physical ability, the round trip shouldn''t take any longer than ten, maybe fifteen minutes.

    It wasn''t anywhere close for the hunters to finish harvesting all the cores from the primary battlefield, not to speak about the area Nadia left in her wake.

    It only made sense for them to split, each overseeing the tasks that would take either time or attention toplete.

    The hunters would take approximately two or three more hours before they would take all the value from the encounter. Four if they would tire quickly.

    Mathew couldn''t speed the process up. Even if he were to join personally in the gathering¡­ it would hardly make any dent in the amount of work needed toplete this particr task.

    And those hunters needed someone to look over them while they were busy gathering as they were far too weak to face the terrors that lurked behind every corner.

    ''While we are locked here, watching over those folks, the three of them might be fighting for their life,'' Mathew thought, only tobat his grim thoughts by sinking his face in the corner between Nadia''s shoulder and neck.

    It was cozy in there. Nadia''s body was warm, soft, and fragrant, offering Mathew the greatest refuge he could ask for. The refuge from all the stench, ugliness, and brutalism of the world surrounding them.

    "Don''t worry about them too much," Nadia whispered, more than happy to amodate Mathew in his moment of weakness. "They will be alright. What we talked about were all just the worst-case scenarios. While the chance they will happen may exist, don''t even get me started on how small it is."

    Mathew hid his face even deeper in Nadia''s flesh. He shut his eyes tight as if refusing the notion of returning to reality while rubbing his forehead against Nadia''s shoulder to throw off the girl''s attempt to wake him back up.

    ''I cannot stay like this forever, can I?'' Mathew asked himself.

    He then took a deep breath¡­ and with great hesitation, he pulled himself out of the hug and raised his eyes.

    The field was still littered with zombie corpses¡­ But most of them had their skulls now opened, their brains cleared out from any and all valuable cores.

    ''Are they working faster than expected or was I in the retreat of my thoughts for so long?'' Mathew thought, shaken by either of the notions.

    "Is it just me or are we nearing the point when we will have to move everyone ahead, to the second field?" Mathew muttered.

    "Now that you mention it¡­" Nadia raised her eyes and looked at the very same scenery that Mathew did. "I guess you are right. But that''s¡­"

    There was no real, logical reason for them to stay back. The second field of corpses was just a minute''s worth of normal walk away and a few seconds''s worths of a proper sprint.

    But what if those few seconds would be the deciding factor of whether or not Carol, Le, and Daria could reach the rtive safety of their group? What if the three of them would end up chased by some sort of a powerful monster and moving the expedition forces just a few hundred meters away would settle the fate of the girls?

    "I never expected that being a leader would be so heavy," Mathew muttered, gritting his teeth as he forced himself to stand up and take a step away from Nadia.

    Her body¡­ No, her whole presence offered way too muchfort. Too much rxation and a break from the harshness of the world that surrounded them.

    And while asking her for help once in a while wasn''t wrong at all, doing so too often or for too long could easily dull Mathew''s senses and ability to keep up with the rapidly changing events.

    "Once you confirm they harvested all of the corpses, give the order to move out," Mathew ordered as he reached the most logical conclusion he could find.

    "You are not going to wait for them here?" Nadia asked, proving that she judged the reason for Mathew''s doubt quite correctly.

    "It''s like you said. The chances of it making a difference are abysmal," Mathew admitted with a sigh. "On the other hand, there are enough of us here to draw any and all the zombies around towards us. Just like it happened to the people gathered at the fortress in the early days," Mathew pointed out as he walked forward and took a slightly longer look at the field of corpses.

    Now that he took a proper look, Mathew could finally make a more precise judgment regarding their number.

    ''There were a hundred and fifty cores when Carol left, and from the leftover corpses¡­ They should be able to gather at least fifty more,'' Mathew concluded before throwing a look to one corner of the field where hunters and newbies were hard at work extracting thest few cores from the remaining corpses.

    ''The horde was above a thousand in terms of numbers when I spotted it back at the fortress. And assuming a quarter of them got as far as here, there should still be three times as many cores to harvest deeper into the town.''

    Mathew looked off into the distance and fell right back into deep thought.

    He could already picture many ways to make the best use of those cores¡­ Despite knowing that it would not happen.

    ''After the speech I gave, I cannot deprive them of a single core more than I announced I would,'' he thought, turning his eyes towards the working hunters.

    They were the ones to put their lives on the line. And even though it was Le and Nadia who killed the zombies in the further field of corpses¡­ Mathew already decided to treat it as the hunters'' spoils of war.

    ''I guess hurrying up with any project requiring cores will force me to take matters into my own hands, at least before I form a real army,'' he thought while gritting his teeth.

    The entire idea of creating a bigger unit of hunters was supposed to take some burden off the backs of Mathew and his wives. And yet, even though Mathew was hard at work to make it happen, even once the number of hunters would swell to more than twice their original rooster¡­ They would only be starting to get useful, given how little of a tax Mathew decided to put on them.

    "Well, I guess every growthes with its own pains," Mathew muttered, taking a deep breath as he came to terms with the limitations of his current situation.

    Yet, right as he was about to raise his head to order the hunters towards the second field, a single shout filled the open area.

    "They are back!"

 Chapter 403 They Looked Right

    ?

    Mathew surprised even himself when he suddenly rushed forward, eager to meet with the returning group to such a degree he couldn''t simply stand around and wait for them to approach him instead.

    He ran across the field of corpses, quickly arriving at the edge of the area situated in the direction of the fortress. While taken by surprise by Mathew''s sudden dash, Nadia easily kept up with his pace, arriving at the edge a mere momentter than the young man.

    "You guys are alright," Mathew muttered as he slowed down and then stood his ground in front of the three girls.

    "Eh?" Le raised her eyebrows a little. "Was there a reason why we should not be?" she asked, leaning her head over her shoulder with a confused expression. Then, her face tensed up a little as she straightened her posture. "You know, if there was something for us to be wary of out there, I would appreciate it if you would inform us in advance next time, okay?"

    Le took on a disapproving look, with her left eyebrow raised high on her forehead and her arms crossed on her chest.

    "No, it''s not like that," Mathew shook his head. "If it was about something I''m aware of, you wouldn''t even need to lecture me about it, as I would be the first to tell you about it," he vouched before shaking his head. "It''s the stuff that I cannot foresee that made me worried."

    "Is something the matter?" Daria asked, taking a step forward to put herself towards the center of the discussion. "If there is any problem¡­" she added while cing her hand on the handle of her own de.

    "Once again, nothing is wrong," Mathew repeated himself before turning around to take a sweeping look at the surroundings. "At least, that''s what I hope for."

    Mathew''s face tensed up a bit.

    It was still rtively early in the morning. The whole excursion,bat, and now the first part of harvesting was done before midday, leaving them with several more hours'' worth of daylight to exploit.

    ''It sure doesn''t feel like only three hours have passed,'' Mathew thought before shaking his head and turning his attention towards Carol.

    "Wanna share what system seeds you picked out?" Mathew asked, eager to move on from the topic that quite honestly, after falling into a momentary deep thought, he detached himself too far from to even recall what it was all about!

    "I only got two hundred and fifty cores when I left, so I decided on a single better seed worth a hundred cores and three simplest ones," Carol quickly exined while raising her hand to expose a small, makeshift bag hanging down from her arm. "I found out beginner hunter system seeds for mere fifty cores, so I thought it was fitting to pick them."

    ''Is this girl for real?'' Mathew allowed himself a moment of exasperation. ''They were hunter system seeds so she picked them up because they were fitting?''

    He had to repeat what he just heard in his thoughts. Because the message that this single sentence conveyed was too damn ridiculous for Mathew to ept it!

    "So you didn''t look at what they offer and went with ones that have a fitting name instead?" Mathew asked out loud, just to make sure he wasn''t mishearing something.

    "Huh?" Carol jumped a little, something deep in Mathew''s voice startling her out of a sudden. "That''s right?" she then confirmed, although while leaning her head to the side and giving Mathew a confused look.

    Mathew inhaled the air deep into his lungs, filling them all the way to their limit.

    Then, he slowly exhaled, taking his time to empty his lungs.

    Yet, even this exercise did a poor job of calming him down.

    ''Just shut the fuck up and y along,'' Mathew ordered himself.

    "After all I''ve heard of you talking about those systems and all, I thought that those cores wouldn''t be as conveniently named and prized if they weren''t a perfect fit!" Carol clearly noticed that something was wrong and tried to rationalize her actions.

    ''Wait, maybe that''s a good point?'' Mathew asked himself, opting to face Carol''s points head-on, regardless of how ridiculous they sounded.

    Yet, the more he thought about the topic¡­ the more sense Carol''s words made.

    ''I guess I didn''t talk about system near her enough,'' Mathew ultimately sighed.

    Even after taking some time to calcte various things, the chances that the system and the merchants would oh so conveniently provide them with exactly what they needed at exactly the price they were willing to pay¡­

    ''It''s more likely that she was scammed out of the first few cores she could spend,'' Mathew thought, releasing yet another heavy sigh.

    Still, rather than openly admonishing the girl, he still decided to y along.

    "Welp, ignore my remarks, then," Mathew said while waving his hand. "Rather than assuming you did something wrong because that''s what I think, we should check what those seeds are all about, right?"

    There was no use arguing whether Carol''s choice was right or wrong. And with quite a few newbies and hunters close enough to see and generally notice themotion, it was outright stupid for Mathew to openly scold Carol.

    She was to be the leader of all the hunters, after all. That was the reason why Mathew picked her up to get the seeds in the first ce.

    Right now, he had no other choice but to shut up about the worries that he harbored and make himself seem supportive of Carol''s results.

    "Shall we, then?" Mathew suggested.

    "Sure thing," Carol raised her head high and said before passing by Mathew and moving over to the biggest gathering of the hunters.

    And as luck would have it, that was also where Pavel currently managed the rest of the hunters.

    "I''m going to give him the better core," Carol announced as she reached into her bag to pull out the seeds.

    "Do you have anyone else that caught your eye?" Mathew asked before the girl could even look down.

    "Hmm¡­" Carol thought for a second. "There is one. I saw one of the newbies that picked up a gun from the fallen hunter and never showed any signs of fear or hesitation as the battle went on."

    Mathew smiled a bit.

    "Great," he said before reaching out and patting Carol''s shoulder¡­ only to suddenly grab it and pull her ear closer towards his mouth. "Then wouldn''t he make for the best subject to test whether those who absorbed one core will be able to switch to a higher grade er?"

 Chapter 404 Absorbing The System Seed

    ?

    The existence of system seeds was the element that took the bnce of the world and turned it on its head.

    In short and simple words, it gave humans a fighting chance¡­ But that''s all assuming those seeds worked how Mathew envisioned them to work. And his vision included the ability for the system owners to switch over to a better system once they were ready for it.

    And there was a simple way to test it out¡­ by trying to actually have it done.

    "Hey!" Carol called out, approaching the guy she mentioned the second Mathew whispered his instructions to the girl''s ear. "Eee¡­" the girl hesitated for a second. "John, was it?"

    The newbie hunter raised his eyes. He twitched a little when he saw the girl standing right in his face. His throat moved as he gulped his saliva down.

    "Yes," he confirmed Carol''s guess regarding his name, "that''s me. How can I help?"

    The kid''s voice was on the verge of breaking¡­ but he still managed to keep up a proper facade.

    The calm look on his face was as fake as it could get, but it was better than him giving out just how terrified he was at the moment.

    Which he did either way, given how much his knees were shaking right now.

    "First, I need you to absorb this seed of a system," Carol exined while pulling out a crystal-looking ball from her makeshift bag.

    ''It looks¡­'' Mathew gulped down his saliva. ''Strange.''

    The orb was roughly the size of Mathew''s fist. It was perfectly round with aplex set of lights dancing around within the confines of the orb.

    Just a single look was all it took for Mathew to realize that albeit the movement of the lights looked extremely chaotic, there was some hidden rule to it.

    "Okay¡­?" John muttered a hesitant response.

    The sparkle in his eyes indicated the orb caught his attention, but the fear in his soul was clearly too much.

    "Take it, you moron," someone from the sidemented. Then, someone else struck John''s back. "This is what we all want, so don''t make them offer it to you twice!"

    John''s face twitched.

    "T-thanks¡­?" he muttered before reaching out with his hand.

    "Here you go," Carol acted as if she didn''t notice the kid''s hesitation at all, happily raising the orb in her hand before dropping it down on the extended palm of John''s hand.

    The orb rolled out of Carol''s fingers as if it had a certain will to itself. It then dropped down to John''s palm¡­ only to sink right through his skin, merging with his flesh as if it was a puff of smoke rather than a solid material that Carol just held in her hands a moment earlier.

    "What the¡­!" John jumped up, startled by the sight of the orb sinking into his flesh. He stared at his hand with his eyes popping wide open¡­. Only for an unexinable expression to then take over his face.

    His eyes squinted. John clenched his jaws and breathed in, before closing his mouth and tensing all over¡­

    And then, he rxed. He opened his eyes once again, this time gaining a strange shine in them.

    "That''s it?" John muttered, blinking his eyes a few times. He then stretched his hand out before moving it as freely as all of its joins allowed. "I don''t feel any different, though?" he spoke and raised his eyes to Mathew.

    As the first person to have a system in their entire group of survivors and the one who granted his own system to those who he imed as wives, Mathew was now the greatest expert on system-rted matters that the survivors had.

    Which didn''t mean he had any sort of expertise to justify calling himself an expert.

    "System doesn''t make you stronger just by having it," Mathew sighed and exined, easily reading into the confused gaze of the fellow former student.

    He could still recall how confused he was when he first discovered his own system. And in the end, all the way until thest moment of his former life, Mathew failed to see through its power.

    "What''s important is that you should be able to absorb a part of the power of all the zombies and monsters you y," Mathew summed the situation up before fixing his position and shaking his shoulders. "Systems only serve to give us another avenue of growth besides investing in the cores. In a sense, they are here for us to clean up all the energy that would otherwise be left unattended."

    Mathew only mentioned the topic in the passing, but it was something that he was seriously concerned about.

    ''Nothing in physics can stop existing. Stuff can only transform,'' Mathew thought, taking a step back and giving Carol a nod once she looked at him, indicating that his orders were still good to go. ''So, when a person without a system kills a zombie, what happens to the energy that the system user would absorb?"

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    He could still recall how he felt about the battlefield brought by the might of firearms alone.

    Back there, every corpse of the zombie appeared to be full of something strange. A foreign power that albeit weak individually, could easily grow quite massive when taking the number of its owners into ount.

    ''Back then, we cleaned out the battlefield quite soon, but I''m quite damn sure there was less of that energy than we would find if we were there when the battle happened,'' Mathew thought, watching with the side of his eye how Carol whispered something to John before sneakily feeding another orb, this time a slightly more beautiful, to the young man''s hand.

    And just like before, the orb kept its perfectly round shape while diving into the kid''s flesh.

    Mathew felt weird just by looking at the process, just like he felt back when he first saw someone dive into a ss tank filled with water.

    Back then, it was the way the water changed and how the light scattered that led to the confusion.

    But even after observing the event twice by now, when it came to how the orb absorbed itself into human flesh¡­ Mathew didn''t even have a shred of an idea!

 Chapter 405 The Main Objective

    ?

    "So, do you feel any different now?" Carol asked.

    Her only reaction to the second orb sinking into John''s palm was to gulp down the saliva gathered in her mouth.

    "The same as before," John sighed. "Which is, the same as even before that."

    ''Was it a failure?'' Mathew thought, only to roll his eyes a momentter. ''I really shouldn''t let the moment influence how much my mood swings,'' he thought, slightly disappointed with his own reaction.

    It was to be expected for the users of the system seed not to feel anything. As expected as it was for them to lose consciousness, cry out in pain, or moan out in ecstasy.

    This was the first time anyone on this absorbed the seed of a system, so Mathew had no clue what the process would look like.

    What he knew, though, was that the system itself didn''t make its owner powerful. Killing zombies to absorb the fleeting energy that powered them and then further gaining that energy from the zombie cores was the process that any system owner had to go through to grow stronger.

    In fact, the system didn''t offer strength at all. Only the opportunity to gain it.

    "I guess we should distribute the rest of the systems, then," Mathew suggested. "Since now we know there is no starting bonus for the new system owners."

    This was also one of the many possible oues. Mathew had a tiny hope that all those who received a system seed would gain some sort of a starting bonus, an initial advantage to make them stronger than just normal humans¡­

    Thankfully, that hope wasn''t big enough for Mathew to feel disappointed now.

    "I guess that''s what we should do," Carol muttered, taking a step back while averting her eyes to hide the ufortable look on her face.

    "Wait, is that it?" John suddenly asked, sensing how everyone suddenly wanted to retreat.

    "Yeah, pretty much," Mathew replied, letting Carol retreat another step.

    Of how easy it was for her to interact with others, she clearly had no wish to stay near the man right now.

    He was one of the people who promised a system seed and all the opportunities that came with it. As such, it was damn hard for her to behave when those seeds¡­ didn''t turn out to be as much of an instant gratification and powerup as the seed recipients clearly expected!

    "If you want to see the effects of your system, you will have to start killing zombies.  Alternatively, once we go back, if you will earn any cores from the fighting, you will be able to use them to grow stronger too."

    This was a n all along, an idea nted in Mathew''s head long before he announced the tax that he would levy off all the cores the hunters would earn.

    Still, the total sum of cores gathered during the expedition would be decreased by Mathew''s tax, then by the cost of all the system seeds they would need to buy for every surviving member. Then came the additional costs of the equipment the hunters would need to buy as well¡­

    ''It now all depends on them whether they will even get a single core for themselves once we return¡­'' Mathew thought.

    Even with all the deaths, the upfront costs for outfitting the surviving hunters were¡­ huge. And decreasing said cost¡­ was hard. But there was also one more element that the hunters had to take into ount.

    "You received an upgrade to your system seed because we wanted to see whether it will work or not. But keep in mind, that any further upgrades¡­" Mathew paused his voice and threw a long look at John''s face. "Keep in mind, that you will have to pay for them yourself."

    Mathew then turned around on his heel and left the scene, quickly catching up with Carol.

    "Okay, we learned what we wanted," she said while throwing an anxious look behind Mathew''s back. Then, her head returned to its natural position as she moved her eyes over to Mathew''s face. "So? What now?"

    Mathew looked at the girl before looking away, to where they all came from.

    "We clear the second field of corpses first, then advance to our destination."

    The main goal of the expedition was to reach the castle ruins, not to turn the newbies into hunters.

    Letting the newbies grow stronger, gain system seeds, and be a formidable force was just a side-task that would makepleting the main objective all the easier. But as the time went on, Mathew couldn''t help but wonder whether the dy was worth it, in the end.

    ''At this rate, even if we stumble into another horde, it will be better to just avoid it,'' he concluded after taking a short walk through the current location of the group.

    In the short time since he left John, Carol distributed the rest of the cores that she brought to the hunters and now wasying the finishing touches to get everyone to move over to the second field with corpses.

    ''Hopefully, that will be ourst stop on our way to the castle,'' Mathew thought, his annoyance growing with each minute that passed.

    Thankfully, he didn''t need to wait for long.

    "We are all ready!" Carol shouted once she managed to gather all the hunters and newbies in one ce.

    And as one would expect, she also carried a small bag filled with the leftover cores that the hunters gathered on the field of their battle.

    "We are now moving to the second field of zombie corpses!" Mathew called out, more than ready to just get a move on. "Don''t be careless, some of those corpses might still be alive. Even if you see a severed head, make sure to puncture its brain before it suddenly snaps and bites you in your ankle!"

    There were a lot more dangers involved in gathering the cores from the zombies. Just scratching one''s finger on a broken piece of bone while reaching to pluck the core was as good as being bitten. There were also the half-dead zombies that simply lost their mobility but not their lives¡­

    And the more abundant the corpses on the field, the easier it was for someone to get careless and make a fatal mistake.

    "This time, though, we are not going to clean all the corpses. Once we arrive at the scene, I''m giving you all¡­" Mathew took a pause to look up, tracking the position of the sun in the sky. "Four¡­ No, three hours! In three hours, we are moving for the castle!"

 Chapter 406 Was It Necessary?

    ?

    "Excuse me, can I take but a moment of your time?" Pavel asked as he approached Mathew in the position from where he overlooked the entire new camp of the expedition.

    "Oh, it''s you," Mathew muttered with his hands crossed on his chest. "Took you longer than I expected to approach me."

    The young man looked at and then scanned Pavel from up close.

    This particr young hunter caught Mathew''s attention quite a while ago already. Ever since his exploits during the battle, Mathew kept a close eye on what Pavel was doing, learning a little bit more about the potential leader of the hunters than just how he acted in times of battle.

    And to be frank, what Mathew saw struck so close to home, he couldn''t help but entertain the idea of recing Carol in her position as the official leader of the hunters.

    Not because Carol did anything wrong to deserve the demotion, but because Pavel was just such a great fit and had every right to remand a promotion!

    "Let me guess, it''s about that guy¡­"

    Mathew rolled his eyes the second Pavel opened his mouth.

    "There are a lot of things that we need to discuss. And the topic you mentioned is just one of many," Mathew muttered before looking around and spotting a ce within the ruins of the town that looked like a nice area to sit at. "For now, let''s go there," Mathew suggested, pointing at the area he just noticed. "It should hide most of the sounds and sights if we talk there."

    Harvesting the zombies was no easy or pretty task. Still, it had to be done¡­ Or rather, gathering the cores from the zombie corpses was the second most important job that the hunters had during this mission and the most important job they had in general!

    Still, even after seeing all sorts of things in thest few weeks, Mathew still couldn''t get used to all the gore.

    He could live with the bloody and messy imagery that surrounded him from every side, but it wasn''t something he particrly enjoyed.

    And what was quite interesting, Pavel appeared to be just like Mathew in this regard¡­ Or to be more precise, in quite a lot of other areas as well.

    "So?" Pavel attempted to kickstart the discussion once they retreated from the small hill in the very middle of the field of corpses of Nadia''s making and to the zone that Mathew noticed.

    It used to be an underpass located at the very corner of the street, with residential apartments hanging above themercial buildings on the ground floor.

    Shielded from the sky by the upper floors, the two of them instantly felt a little bit more secure. With the front of the shops behind them and concrete columns holding the upper floor barring huge numbers of people zombies from passing through the underpass, Mathew could speak his heart out without any worry that someone would approach the two of them without him noticing.

    "Let''s not dy this any longer," Mathew sighed right as Pavel sat down. He then sat down right by the exceptional hunter and leaned to the back. "First thing first, the topic that you came to discuss, the guy that you shot and then left for zombies to finish the job."

    Pavel''s face visibly darkened.

    All the institutions in the world that forbid all sorts of crimes¡­ were gone.

    There was no military to enforce government rule. There was no police to make sure thews were followed.

    But even though there was now no one who could judge him, Pavel''s actions were too heavy for the people around him to ignore them.

    "Regarding that topic, I only have one question," Mathew muttered before taking another pause.

    Sure, he liked Pavel. Not on a personal level as he never really interacted with him before, but Mathew more than just enjoyed Pavel''s approach to a variety of topics.

    From how he handled the rest of the hunters during the battle, even though the decisiveness that he showed when ridding the hunters of the element nearly led towards their annihtion, and at how great he was at pushing the menial work on others¡­

    Mathew liked all of those qualities, as they perfectly suited the position that he had in mind for the guy.

    But that didn''t mean he was going to make things easy for him!

    "What is it?" Pavel asked after enduring only a few moments of silence.

    Mathew took a long breath. He then looked up, as if the texture of the underpass roof was worlds more interesting than Pavel''s face.

    "Was it necessary?" Mathew finally asked the question once he ran out of the means to dy it. And this time, it was Pavel''s turn to stall.

    At first, he opened his mouth, ready to reply right away¡­ But in the end, he didn''t do so. He pulled his mouth shut and lowered his head, staring at the tips of his shoes while a long wrinkle appeared across his forehead.

    "Back then, we were just a bunch of kids who were thrown onto the battlefield and told to survive," Pavel started. "It was already as hard as it would get to keep everyone''s morale rtively high, but when he started to bring chaos for his¡­

    "Was it necessary?" Mathew asked again, butting in right in the middle of Pavel''s sentence. "This is the only question I asked. I don''t need you to exin the circumstances. Just answer the question."

    Once again, the underpass filled with silence.

    Pavel was struggling. He had his jaw clenched and his hands pressed into fists. Still, he sat down obediently on the outside bench that Mathew noticed.

    "Yes," Pavel finally came to find his answer as he raised his face and looked Mathew in the face. "Maybe there was a way to prevent what happened from taking ce. Maybe if I acted faster¡­" Pavel cut his voice and lowered his head again.

    This time, Mathew didn''t interrupt, waiting for his schoolmate to organize his thoughts.

    "No, that doesn''t matter," Pavel came to some sort of a conclusion and he raised his face again. "Back then, in that very moment? Yeah, it was necessary."

    Mathew looked back at the fellow young man. And after one heck of a tense moment, he allowed a small smile to crawl up on his lips.

    "I see," he muttered before stretching his hands up and then leaning his entire body to the back. "The topic''s settled then. Now, let''s talk about system seeds."

 Chapter 407 You Shall Only Answer To Me

    ?

    "So I can''t expect any sort of instant power-up, huh?" Pavel muttered under his nose. He caressed his chin with his fingers for a few moments before raising his eyes back up.

    "That''s right," Mathew nodded his head. "They are not a boost to your power. Those seeds just give you the ability to grow your foundation."

    ''I know that''s not a perfect truth, but while we can hardly afford to outfit everyone with even the most basic cores, there is no need to get into the topic of how some more potent onese with instant perks.''

    Mathew took a deep breath before leaning back and resting his back against the wall behind the bench.

    It was already a while when the topic of the system seeds began, but there was simply too much information that Mathew had to pass over for the topic to die out rather quickly.

    After all, along with all the perks that Pavel secured by disying the level of his innate ability to lead and organize people, he was going to receive quite a lot of responsibilities.

    And the task of filling in all the hunters on the details of the system seeds that Pavel would deem necessary was just one of such responsibilities.

    "Now, an important point," Mathew picked up the talking after taking some time to let his brain rest. "It''s going to take us a while to get you a system seed."

    Pavel at first didn''t react to the revtion. Only after he took a few breaths did his head suddenly rock up, revealing his widened stare directed straight into Mathew''s face.

    "Huh? Why?" he asked, first hints of panic appearing in his eyes. "Did I do something wrong? Is it because of¡­"

    "It''s not because of anything that you did," Mathew attempted to calm the man by raising both of his hands and then slowly lowering his palms as if to direct the other party to breathe out. "Or wait, it''s precisely because of that, albeit for a different reason than you might expect!"

    Sensing that some more interesting part of the conversation finally came up, Mathew stood up from the bench and took a few steps towards the end of the underpass.

    Then, the young man took some time to observe how the rest of the hunters were busying themselves dismantling the zombies'' skulls to harvest the cores hidden in their brains.

    "I wasn''t the one to pick up what system seeds all of them will receive," Mathew revealed before slowly turning back to face Pavel once again. "But there is one thing inmon that connects all the system seeds that most of them will receive."

    Mathew took a step towards the promising officer before putting a small smirk on his face and leaning forward a tiny little bit.

    "Do you care to indulge me and put forth a guess?"

    Pavel''s face tensed up a little.

    He scanned Mathew''s expression for a while, likely to figure out what sort of vibe he was supposed to aim for.

    Was Mathew expecting him to give a clever answer? Maybe it was a task that required him to think outside of the box? Or maybe Mathew was just ying him, while the answer was right before his eyes all the time?

    "They are all¡­ the same?" Pavel finally attempted the challenge. His voice, however, clearly betrayed how little confidence he had in his answer.

    "Close, but not correct," Mathew revealed. He then straightened his back and retreated from the step that he took before. "First off, they are not all the same. One of them is a bit better since I had to test something out. And secondly, it''s not about them being the same."

    Mathew turned on his heel once again. He then locked his hands behind his back before staring off into the distance.

    There was still some time left before midday¡­ but the temperature was quickly rising. And while it was a blessing that it was still a few weeks before the summer would start, the stench of the rotting flesh was slowly growing unbearable, even for Mathew who stood at the edge of the field of the corpses.

    "They are all cheap," Mathew revealed the correct answer after staring off into the distance for quite some time. "Every system seed that we will provide to the hunters only costs fifty cores each," the young man gave out the exact number. "And a good weapon bought from the same store that deals with the cores can cost upwards of a thousand cores."

    This was the true degree and the main problem of shopping with the cores.

    When it came to outfitting Mathew''s group of three to six people, it was still manageable. Sure, the cost of good weapons for everyone quickly added up too often to mind-boggling sums, coupled with how those very cores could be used to permanently improve their own strength¡­

    And even with just so few people in his group, Mathew already struggled to save any cores on all the hunting. From the cores for raising one''s status, through the cores to rece the broken and used-up weapons, all the way to the cores necessary for supplies and all¡­

    It was really hard to save some!

    And now, Mathew had a task of doing the same¡­ but with more than twenty people? And with all of them requiring both the system seed¡­ but also a weapon?

    "It will be impossible for me to grant everyone a good system from the get-go. That''s why I tested out and confirmed that systems can be upgraded by a better system seedter on," Mathew exined.

    "Is that why you decided to make this unit¡­ quite damn autonomous?" Pavel suddenly asked.

    "Excuse me?" Mathew squinted his eyes, taken aback by Pavel''s unexpected remark.

    "I mean¡­" Pavel took Mathew''s shocked silence for a green light and started to borate, "You only take a small cut from whatever we will earn. That wouldn''t make sense in a scenario where you provide us with everything¡­ So, it will be up to us to save up the cores to keep our systems and outfits fitting for the challenge, right?"

    Mathew''s face softened as a huge smile flowered on his lips.

    "That''s right, but with one caveat," Mathew pointed out before raising his hand, erecting his forefinger, and then swinging it to the sides only to finally point it at Pavel.

    "You guys will be autonomous, but you will be the one in charge of two things," Mathew finally moved on to the actual details of how the deal would work in practice. "While I will delegate the right to operate, for the most part, however, you wish, it will be up to you to bring the tax and keep everyone else in line."

    Pavel''s face darkened a little¡­ only for a small, scheming smile to then rece the ugly grin that momentarily shed on his lips.

    "So, in other words, all the hunters will answer to me and me only, right?" Pavel asked, clearly hoping to get a straightforward deration directly from Mathew''s mouth.

    "There is still the topic of how Carol is supposed to lead, but you don''t need to worry about it. I will deal with this matter on my own," Mathew pointed out only to then wave his hand as if to dismiss the topic of his wife being the de-jure leader of the hunters. "Yet, for all of that, you need to keep in mind one fact," Mathew then raised his eyes and looked straight into Pavel''s face.

    "While all the hunters will answer to you, you will answer only to me."

 Chapter 408 What Does That Means In Practice?

    ?

    ''This is really taking too long,'' Mathew thought as he stared down at the second field of corpses from yet another vantage point at its perimeter.

    In theory, gathering all the cores was just the first step. The problem was, what exactly should they doter.

    ''Sending for more system seeds to let all the hunters have at least a basic one should be the most obvious strategy,'' Mathew thought, squinting his eyes a little as he fell into deep thought.

    This was the obvious and most efficient solution.

    Sure, they could rush to the castle ruins¡­ but they would still need a considerable number of cores to even learn whether it was a good ce to set up a fortress.

    ''I''m quite sure we won''t get enough cores from those corpses,'' Mathew thought as he forced his tired eyes open and took another look at the field. ''Even if some of them have more valuable cores¡­ it still won''t be enough. Meaning¡­''

    Mathew pursed his lips into a thin line.

    Regardless of what they would do from now on, Mathew had to procure more cores to make his mission possible. Or, in other words, there were more battles toe.

    And with that in mind, allowing all the hunters and newbies to grow in every fight they have seemed like a reasonable solution¡­

    ''But am I really going to split my forces again?'' Mathew asked himself, leaning his head to the back as he looked up at the blue sky.

    He could easily recall the dread of worrying about his wives when they went to fetch the first batch of the system seeds.

    Mathew took a deep breath.

    "Haaa¡­"

    His sign lingered in the air for a bit.

    "I guess I don''t have much choice here," he muttered before shaking his head to remove all the traces of his drowsiness.

    Even though it was still early into the day, Mathew was slowly reaching his limits.

    The intensity of thest few days was simply¡­ too much.

    A sudden movement in the distance pulled Mathew''s attention right as he was about to return closer to the center of the corpse field.

    It was Nadia vigorously waving her head, clearly hoping to draw Mathew''s eyes toward her.

    Nadia''s sight had to be great, given how she instantly recognized when she gained Mathew''s attention. Then, she started to twist her arms and set them up in varying poses.

    ''We¡­'' the young man tried to decipher Nadia''s message as she reached out to all of the people on the field.

    ''Done?'' Mathew attempted to guess when the girl pulled both of her hands forward and raised her thumbs.

    Mathew deeply bowed, trying to convey how he understood the message.

    Then, he finally managed to breathe a sigh and most of his boredom and anxiety with it.

    "Finally," Mathew muttered, tapping his hands against his sides to wake himself up a little. He then picked up on his task of moving back to the rest of the group.

    "We have a total of seven hundred and thirty cores," Nadia reported once Mathew joined her side. She then swung her arm, as if to reveal a bunch of bags that sat in neat rows at her feet.

    There was a total of eight bags, with one of them being visibly smaller than the rest.

    "Did you ount for more valuable cores?" Mathew asked, looking at the girl with the side of his eye.

    "Oh, I didn''t think about it!" Nadia jumped slightly. She raised her hand to cover most of her mouth with the tips of her fingers. Her eyes then moved down to the bags before turning slightly cloudy. "It should round up to eight, eight fifty," she guessed a short momentter.

    But rather than focusing on the number of cores, Mathew couldn''t tear his eyes away from the small transformation around Nadia''s lips.

    She initially raised her hand to cover her mouth. Yet, as she wracked her brains toe up with a reasonable number for her guess, Nadia''s fingers started moving slightly on their own.

    And by the time she raised her eyes to Mathew''s face, her forefinger bent inwards a little and ended up hooking on Nadia''s bottom lip, stretching it a tiny little bit down.

    ''I must be really tired,'' Mathew thought, gulping his saliva down when he noticed a certain strange behavior on his body.

    Just by looking at Nadia''s lips, he suddenly started growing quite the hard one!

    ''Is this all the stress getting to me?'' Mathew panicked a little, taken off guard by the sudden spasm of lust that exploded in his groin. He quickly shook his head, hoping to clear his thoughts from the unnecessary filth.

    After all, they were standing in the middle of a field full of corpses with a neat row of bags with blood spilled all over them. The stench of the early rot of the corpses was unbearable¡­ And there was still the threat of some known or unknown danger approaching them as they stood!

    ''It''s hardly a ce for romance,'' Mathew thought, finally exploiting his logical side to quell the strange outburst of desire.

    "Matty?" Nadia asked, leaning her head slightly to the side as she gave Mathew a puzzled look. Her eyes shone a little as she stared deeply into the young man''s expression, seeking the answer to her curiosity.

    "Ah, it''s nothing," Mathew quickly waved his hand before shaking his head for the nth time today. "Anyway, I decided against splitting our forces again," he then casually announced in passing.

    Mathew took a step, ready to put some distance from Nadia¡­

    "Wait, hold on!" the girl called while raising her hand and squinting her eyes a little. "What does that mean in practice?" she asked while a look of suspicion arose on her face.

    "Nothing much," Mathew shook his shoulders before averting his eyes. "I''m just going to drag everyone back to get them their system seeds," he exined. "We already have casualties. People died. I''m not going to needlessly risk anyone by sending them off alone, just to save a bit of time."

 Chapter 409 Between Power And Autonomy

    ?

    The reactions to Mathew''s decision to pull out from the mission prematurely were¡­ varied, at best.

    Some of the newbie hunters were more than happy to take things slow.

    They were the ones who understood the value of having a system while killing zombies and thus were willing to pay with time for the opportunity, even if the cost was steep.

    On the other hand, the majority of the newbie hunters, drunk on their recent victory, quickly formed a dissatisfied camp of those who believed they should keep on going.

    They likely saw the casualties up to this point as either unfortunate idents, unavoidable costs, or simply the danger of weeding the weak links of their group out.

    Regardless of what was the source of their confidence in their ability to keep on going, they weren''t happy with Mathew''s decision to retreat. Thankfully, though, they were also aware of how they had no power to enforce their own take.

    It didn''t matter how many zombies they could take on all by themselves. Not when just one of Mathew''s wives was easily capable of massacring a horde several times bigger than what they faced¡­ all by her lonesome!

    ''But this status quo won''tst long, not when I''m about to give them all an opportunity to grow stronger,'' Mathew thought, pressing his lips together as he continued to wrestle the ideas in his mind. ''I know I need to have the grow stronger¡­ but at the same time, it really makes me ufortable!''

    Up until this point, everything in their group was working fine.

    Those with real power were all grouped up in a tight clique of Mathew, his wives, closest equals, and allies.

    Mathew''s girls were happy to obey his directions, ending up as his closest aides and confidants. Others, like Beatrice or Daniel, were still on Mathew''s side, but their influence came at a cost of autonomy, in the form of mere cooperation in Beatrice''s case and nearplete separation when it came to Daniel.

    Then, there were people like Norbert and now also Pavel, both possessing a degree of power on their own, but opting to closely cooperate with Mathew as his half-autonomous officers.

    All of those people had interests strictly aligning with Mathew and formed a rtively tight group where everyone''sbined goals could easily triumph over any personal animosity.

    But the same couldn''t be said about the newbie hunters¡­ or even the first batch of them!

    First, their number was too great.

    Second, they never really spent all that much time bonding with the people at the top, creating a natural, social barrier preventing the two parties from seriously merging on a personal level.

    And it was this detachment, this abyss that separated Theo''s clique from the rest of the survivors, that made him worried.

    Because now that the newbie hunters were about to gain power, their desire to gain autonomy would soon follow.

    After all, humanity made it as far as it did not through a course of academic discourse but by bashing the heads of fellow humans, paying the price of blood to establish a working hierarchy.

    And now, as the levels of everyone''s power were shifting, it was only a matter of time before those changes would develop and bring forth inner turmoil in the group.

    ''In other words, I only have as much time as it will take those hunters to grow strong enough to be a threat to ensure the cohesiveness of our group,'' Mathew decided, only to step on a sharp stone.

    And as the bout of delicate difort spread from his foot up, he suddenly realized another problem.

    ''I didn''t really bother with Daniel for quite some time¡­ But I can''t dismiss the idea of him growing stronger all on his own!''

    With all the worries regarding the hunters that Mathew was currently interacting with, he forgot to really think about the most autonomous of his allies, the only one who got the chance to govern a whole fortress all by himself!

    ''And judging by what I saw when I visited him recently¡­'' Mathew thought, pursing his lips even harder, all the way to the point where the blood escaped from his mouth, robbing them of their signature red color and turning his lips white.

    Mathew heaved a deep sigh and closed his eyes.

    ''No, I better not think about it too much,'' he decided with a shake of his head, raising his eyes on the road, only to see the familiar outline of the area of his home ground.

    "Are you sure you are not overthinking things?" Nadia asked, joining Mathew''s side after observing him from behind for quite some time.

    "What do you mean?" Mathew asked, confused when his wife''s question forcibly removed him from the line of thought he was developing.

    "It''s your face," Nadia exined. "You make a very specific expression when you are struggling to decide on something."

    Nadia sped her steps up, only to grab Mathew''s hand and pull ahead even further. Already in front of the young man, she turned around while using Mathew''s hand to stabilize herself as she started to walk back while facing her man.

    "And I think I know how we can solve the problem of your overthinking," she then said while a small grin started to grow from the corners of her mouth.

    "What is that method, I wonder," Mathewmented while rolling his eyes, only to suddenly freeze mid-step before struggling to keep himself upright after that.

    "Who?" Mathew threw a short question, snapping his eyes up and locking them on a group of people waiting by the fortress'' gate.

    "Wee from Daniel," someone that Mathew wasn''t familiar with stepped forward only to then turn sideways and point at a huge wheelbarrow filled with a disgusting mesh of blood, zombie''s flesh¡­ And what looked like at least a thousand cores!

    "And what is that?" Mathew asked, lowering his eyes as suspicion took over his soul.

    How else was he supposed to interpret the sudden appearance of Daniel''s people, right as he realized how he might be growing too strong to remain as a vassal group to Mathew''s?

    "A just share of what we gathered recently," the leader of the messengers spoke before smiling, "or do you want to tell me that you are not interested in it?"

 Chapter 410 Stench Of Trouble

    ?

    "Okay, let me get everything straight," Mathew muttered while looking at the list people brought out from the media building.

    Apparently, over the course of the merest two days, Daniel gave up on his role as a leader of the entire group, ceding his responsibilities to yet another person whose name Mathew never registered.

    As it turned out, this unknown guy came up with a set of improvements to the maze Daniel created before that.

    Once the improvements have been implemented, the rate at which the media building could dispose of entire hordes became something¡­

    Something that could suddenly exin several changes that I''ve noticed in the area.

    "It''s because of this improved maze that all the hordes in the proximity got wiped out," Mathew spoke, raising one of his hands above the small table and erecting his forefinger. "You found out that keeping a huge number of cores out in the open attracts zombies like nothing else," Mathew raised a second finger.

    "And that''s how you obtained so many cores, you can easily spare over a thousand of them," Mathew finished his list before moving his eyes from the piece of paper in his left to the raised fingers in his right hand.

    His eyes jumped as he overestimated the movements of slowly counting his own fingers.

    "Okay, I think I get nearly everything," Mathew nodded his head before once again focusing his eyes on the piece of paper containing all the nitty-gritty details that the young man honestly couldn''t be bothered with.

    ''I didn''t create such a huge organization to be the one keeping tabs over every tiniest bit of everything!'' he thought, more than happy to cede this responsibility to one of his allies.

    With no talent in the area of finances whatsoever, Mathew was a poor choice of treasurer for the group from the very start. He ended up as one simply because the situation called for centralized leadership, with all the power amassed into his own hands.

    "So, just one question," Mathew slowly raised his eyes and looked at the messengers with vivid curiosity. "Why am I only learning about this all now?"

    The distance between the schoolpound and the media building wasn''t all that great.

    ''Heck! We moved thrice as far with the newbies today!'' the young man thought while watching the group from the allied area.

    And if an hour was all it took to pass on a message, there was virtually no reason for Daniel not to do so!

    That is, assuming he had an interest in keeping us informed about the events.

    "You said Daniel stepped down, so, what is he doing right now?"

    The face of the envoy from the media building twitched a little.

    ''Right, because I just couldn''t get some time to rest, even though we only have a moment to recover before moving out again¡­''

    I struggled to hold back a deep sigh for a moment, knowing full well how childish it would look at this precise moment.

    Even before the trio could answer, I could guess the general idea of what was going on.

    Daniel, the man who stood up to me and earned amand over the very second area my group attempted to take over. And mere days after bing the leader and proving his worth, he was already ousted by someone no one heard about before?

    Adding the strange dy when it came to passing the news and how a new ruling party was already established enough to send out envoys with tribute while clearly expecting weapons in return¡­

    "Officer Daniel decided to focus his energy on managing the maze," the envoy reported with a smile. "He imed that his talents can be put to better use fighting zombies over debating the development of the area."

    Mathew''s eyes opened up a little bit wider, creating a long yet narrow wrinkle across his entire forehead. His face then tensed up, his eyes squinting as his cheeks slightly pumped up.

    "That''s pretty¡­ like him," Mathewmented with an exhausted sigh. He then shook his head before bowing slightly in an apology. "I''m sorry, it''s quite the bomb you are dropping on us, right when we came to get a mere moment of rest."

    This wasn''t a topic that could be decided in the heat of the moment.

    ''It''s either a coup or someone exceptional somehow managed to stay low-key and now started to bare his fangs,'' Mathew thought, massaging his chin as he took a moment to analyze everything.

    ''But why does the wording those guys used to sound so¡­ familiar?''

    It wasn''t the specific words that the envoys used. It couldn''t be heard in their voice, nor deciphered from the rhythm of their sentences.

    What Mathew detected couldn''t be ssified in any real category.

    A mere feeling, that''s all it was.

    But for some reason, a third possibility shed in the young man''s mind.

    ''What if he''s one hell of a geek?'' Mathew shook his head. ''At this point, would that even be at all surprising?''

    They were all in the middle of the apocalypse. A time when obscure or generally sidelined knowledge could shine. Although only in a few cases and to a limited degree, one''s knowledge of how to build and maintain a bunker, how to survive in the wild, how to scavenge fallen cities¡­

    All the things that only geeks would be interested in before the apocalypse now turned into the golden tickets of knowledge that could transform one''s life from a mere misery to a proper existence.

    ''The rapid pace of improvements proves he had some sort of a direction in mind when he started,'' Mathew thought, still considering his options.

    But this topic was simply too much. Too much for him to handle on the go.

    "For now, I will have you excuse us, as we need to prepare several drills," Mathew spoke as he stood up from his chair and reached out while offering his hand to the main envoy. "As we are going to leave for a mission soon, I will discuss your requests with my officers and eventually drop off what you asked for at the media building¡­"

    Mathew put a wide smile on his lips while shaking the envoy''s hand.

    "Ourselves."

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