The fifth day of the apocalypse.
Erza's family finished their training at 6.00 am.
"You guys thought today's circuit is going to easier? Dream on!"
Spartan Coach Erza spoke up in a ridiculing tone.
As their strengths enhanced, the workout routine's intensity also increased.
Although all five of them are lying down under their own puddle of sweat, no complaints were heard.
That includes Erza, who also exhausted himself while training his family.
After Bucky, Mrs. Numee, and Mr. Zayf swallowed the required Evolution Nectars to awaken their 'Talent', there were still 18 beads left.
Each of them received three beads each, and Erza got six.
It is a way of his family thanking him.
…
On the breakfast table, simple hearty meals of soft-boiled eggs, fried vermicelli noodles, and orange juice are served.
"Mum, Dad, you guys will come with us to hunt Infected, okay?"
If this was before they awaken, they would berate him for being irrational.
But now?
"Yeah, Dad's body is quite rusty for not doing any sports lately. Maybe these things can entertain me for a bit!"
Mr. Zayf spoke in confidence.
"I can finally go out and see what have you boys been up to! Don't worry, Mum is here to patch you up if you got injured!"
Mrs. Numee rolled her sleeves back and flexed her biceps to her sons.
'W-Why are they more excited than us?'
Their three brother's faces say it all.
They were expecting reasons, excuses, and hesitation but they got a totally different reaction instead.
…
Today, they will be clearing the 10th Floor.
"Big bro, once we've swept this floor, let's go for a swim."
Feera was excited because this floor has a pool.
It was also where the gymnasium, spa, Jacuzzi, and all other amenities were.
"No problem!"
Their operation began with Bucky scouting for Infected on the floor.
He used his Technopathy to access the whole building's surveillance system, which is very advantageous for them.
"There are thirteen Infected. Seven in the pool area, three in the gym, and three at the lift entrance."
Erza then devised a strategy utilizing their Talents.
This would help them polish and refine their control over the powers.
'Never rely on the Evolution Nectars too much. A skilled Class-10 Awakened could beat an unskilled Class-9 Awakened.'
Rankings do not determine your true strength.
"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles."
The family did a final check on their weapons and equipment. Minimizing mistakes and eliminating variables are the basics of battle.
Battle spirit permeated in the air.
"Start!"
The hunt begins!
…
After half an hour, the floor is cleared and thirteen Evolution Nectars was in their bag.
"Whoa, Dad! You're such a badass! You electrocuted three Infected in the pool!"
Feera's eyes glimmered with respect.
"Haha, your old father has always been an awesome figure!"
Mr. Zayf loves it when he is praised.
"Good job Mum. Congratulations on killing for your first Infected!"
Erza gave his mother a light hug.
"Their faces are so disgusting and sickly, they made me nervous! But when I thought, what a pity to have their bodies walk the planet even after death…"
Mrs. Numee has strong emotional intelligence. She could empathize and channeled it in the right way.
"I just can't bear to see these people, who might be somebody's sons or daughters have their bodies disrespected!"
She felt that putting them down and ending their misery is the best option.
It was a form of mercy.
Everybody folded their crossbows.
Erza bought enough weapons and ammunition for five people.
"Guys, let's have lunch at the bar."
They sat down at an empty long table beside the pool's bar.
"Here, lunch. Bucky, keep a close eye on the doors and lift."
The tanned youth nodded and silently monitored the surroundings through the security cameras.
Since the whole family is in the field, they would have lunch breaks together.
In the morning, Mrs. Numee would prepare lunch boxes alongside breakfast.
Erza gave a short briefing after they finished eating.
"We'll move out in 30 minutes. Meanwhile, if you need to pee or number two, go in pairs! Remember to scout ahead first, then inform the team if it's clear!"
He pointed to the in-ear military headsets on his left ear.
With money, he purchased quite a lot of high-quality gadgets.
"Son, good thing your father's urinating problem has been cured! These pink candies are wonders!"
Mrs. Numee was grateful for the Evolution Nectars.
Mr. Zayf has trouble peeing since a while ago.
'They say it's the onset symptoms of old age.'
Erza looked at his parent's faces.
What once were fatigued, lightly wrinkled, and slightly discolored faces, had tremendous improvements after they awakened.
"Mum, I also noticed you don't burp that much anymore."
Mrs. Numee had an irritating burping problem. It annoys her, especially during night time where she can't sleep properly because of her own burping.
"Hehe, my burps were so loud that I think those Infected would be scared!"
The whole family chortled.
"Right, big bro, how did I do today?"
Feera was asking for Erza's evaluation.
"You did a good job today, but I believe you can do better. When you use Psychokinesis to push back the Infected, you would have expanded a good chunk of your energy! What you could do is that you could trip their legs first, and then-"
Aside from a break session, it is also time for Erza to remind, re-strategize, and review what happened.
That way, they would learn and perform better next round!
…
They raided three more floors before heading back up for dinner time.
"Son, why didn't we clear out more floors? Mum is just getting used to this exercise."
Hss!
Feera and Bucky inhaled sharply.
The brothers were caught surprised by how fast could their mother adapted.
'Well, she's my Mum after all. Like mother, like son?'
Erza told her that Infected would be very active after dusk.
It is a type of evolutionary feature to increase its rate of disease transmission.
The virus grants the Infected superhuman abilities for them to prey on humans in the darkness of night.
The climb up from the 7th Floor to the 21st Floor was a breeze for Awakened like them.
Arriving on the 21st floor, Erza asked Bucky to access the surveillance cameras to check for any discrepancies.
Although they properly locked and secured their suite, being meticulous is better than being ambushed.
He made it a habit to check the area twice, just in case if he missed anything.
His family members got used to his attention-to-detail, although it annoyed them slightly in the beginning.
"Hah~ home sweet home!"
All of them took off their combat gear and placed them in a built-in coat closet beside the door.
They took a long, refreshing shower before having dinner.
…
Dinner tonight was made by Erza.
He cooked delicious fried chicken steak with sides of chips and roasted vegetables.
The vegetables were frozen earlier on because they couldn't stay fresh that long.
"Great job guys. We actually harvested 49 Evolution Nectars!"
Their eyes twinkled.
Killing Infected made them so focused and occupied that they almost forgot about their spoils of war.
Everyone received 13 Evolution Nectars each, with Erza getting 15 for his contribution as the team leader.
"Son, thank you for the dinner tonight. But Mum needs to ask you a very important question."
Mrs. Numee puts on a serious expression.
"Is it possible to save our relatives?"
Everybody had a foreboding feeling that she would ask the question.
"Mum, you know I'll never lie to you."
Erza promised his family that they will rescue their relatives once they cleared the hotel.
"The reason I'm doing this is because of safety. Although all of us are Awakened and have strengths of almost three average adults, we would still be in danger when we are surrounded by a 'Horde'."
A 'Horde' refers to a massive assembly of Infected.
To defeat a Horde, or even to escape from it, you need strength!
"We need to get to Class-9. Only then, we'll have sufficient strength to navigate through a Horde, and protect our relatives at the same time."
During times of chaos, trying to save another person without strength is a suicide!
"Bucky, show us the recent videos on the internet with a footage of a Horde."
The dining area TV lit up and various videos from YauTube and social media websites were played.
Swarms of rampaging Infected devoured groups of human.
Playbacks from the last five days showed the military battling the bloodthirsty Horde.
And they failed miserably.
Tens of thousands were killed and turned into an Infected.
"I might have knowledge from the future, but I can't move an entire nation."
With looks of despair, Erza clenched his fists.
If only he had enough influence! If only people would listen to his words!
Alas, he is just a mere civilian with no scientific proofs to back up his claims.
Although the army has weapons, it would take a while until they figure out that Infected only dies when their brains are destroyed.
"By the time they realize it, they are already short on ammunitions and manpower."
Erza said, the Naresian population were too used to peace, and depended heavily on the government.
Firearms are controlled items, so majority of the population do not own guns nor the knowledge to use it.
"But there's still hope."
Camps, shelters and army bases served as humanity's defense line.
The authorities would sweep the streets while gathering survivors.
"Son, any reason we shouldn't go to the survivor bases?"
Mr. Zayf understood his son.
'Erza always has a reason to do something.'
"It's quite simple, Dad. There are 7 million people in K City right now, and 20% are Infected. Now, the remaining 80% survives and survivors need to eat. K City imports food from the other cities. With a limited amount of food, water and shelter, what would happen to the survivors?"
The rest of them got chills.
Rations would be imposed.
Civilians would not be treated as polite as before.
Naturally, people with political influence, military might and skilled professionals get top priority.
As for the others?
"All five of us are ordinary citizens, yet we live in a very comfortable condition. I'm sure you guys could guess what would happen, when they discover us all well-fed, clean and stocked with food, weapons and ammunitions?"
The air turned solemn.
Social order has collapsed.
Looting, anarchy and assault filled the newsfeed in every single media.
With the authorities occupied with the disease, criminals would make the cities, towns and villages their playground.
And at times, humans are far worse than Infected as they are intelligent and could inflict harm to others while pretending to be harmless.
"Not to mention, all of us are now immune to the Infected. You know what happens to fascinating specimens like us when the scientists are looking for a cure."
In the future, countless bloody experiments were conducted on Awakeneds.
Erza silently vowed to save as many Awakened as possible.
"Son, Mum will listen to you."
With a heavy sigh, Mrs. Numee replied.
'My son is right. It would harm my children and husband if we were save the others without proper strength. It's like putting the cart before the horse.'
After watching the reports and updates from the internet, they switched off the TV.
"Big bro, one last question. You posted a lot of survival tips on the internet but none about the Infected. Why?"
As he scoured the world wide web for information, he noticed that his brother made a lot of posts and write-up on how to survive the crisis.
"I excluded it because it might alter this timeline significantly."
He explained that the incidents in the past 10 years would succumb to a 'Butterfly Effect' if he interfered too much.
'Besides, my priority is my family's safety. I believe destiny would naturally weed out the ones not suitable for the apocalypse. It would only leave the ones I believe would be humanity's hope in the future.'
Erza silently said it in his heart.
"Little bro, have you ever believed in some random guy's posting on the internet?"
Bucky shook his head left and right.
Erza made his point.
The age of information produced too much information, in a very short short time.
His posting would get drowned in a sea of information anyways.
"Let's turn in for the night, guys. We have a lot of work to do tomorrow!"
That night, burning feelings of salvation ignited in their hearts.