Thud! Thud!
Infected fell like flies zapped by a fly-zapper machine.
"I never knew we could attract them this way too!"
Feera was surprised on how his big brother baited the Infected without using the sound method.
"Sounds are good in a closed space or distracting the whole crowd away. But on an open space, it revealed its weakness."
Baiting by sound would attract Infected outside the targeted radius, as all their senses are twice as powerful compared to a human.
Particularly the olfactory senses.
"Erz-I mean Zeta, don't ever do that again!"
Mrs. Numee nagged him for using such a peculiar tactic to bait the Infected with blood!
He slit his wrist to smear a mini race-car to attract Infected by its smell!
Using this method, they could control the amount of Infected they want to bait without alerting other Infected.
Mrs. Numee does not want wrist-slitting to be a habit, even though she can heal them.
'I can heal physical injuries, but I can't heal psychological ones.'
The smell of blood would lead them to a secluded alley where they block with their car.
And once the prey has entered the kill zone..
Siu! Siu!
The team would snipe them from the roofs above the alley using crossbows.
Behind them, was Big Mark and Kara.
"I can't believe what I'm seeing."
Big Mark mumbled by himself.
A group of five people cutting down hundreds of Infected like wheatgrass!
Who are these people?
'SWAT? Special Forces?'
"Big Mark, Kara, we're done here. Make sure you have every single beads extracted."
Erza walked towards them and gave them instructions.
'Those who don't work, don't eat.'
As 'Pickers', they are hired to extract Evolution Nectars.
They will be rewarded with resources of their choice.
Food, weapons, Evolution Nectars.
It will be the most popular job in the future as they did not have to risk fighting the Infected.
At a corner, a young girl was swinging a hatchet, cracking open a spinal cord.
Her shirt and helmet were smothered by dirt and blood.
Erza gave them a helmet each for protection.
Also to make sure they didn't ingest any blood from the Infected.
Despite her shy and timid nature, she was a determined person.
She followed every single word Erza said.
'I need to thank him for his kindness!'
She vowed to become stronger and be kind to others, like Erza.
"We killed 236 Infected since an hour ago. If the numbers of the beads do not tally, don't blame me for being rude."
Although he allowed them to follow him, he made sure to 'remind' them from time to time.
'So that they won't get any funny ideas.'
The scarce resources will make people turn against each other.
It's not surprising if a kind-looking person is actually a sadistic in nature.
People do not really change, and the apocalypse only brings out their true nature.
Kara and Big Mark observed how Erza led the team.
His strategy was so brilliant that they cleared out the neighborhood within an hour.
'Know yourself and know your enemies, you need not fear a hundred battles.'
As a Class-2 Awakened in the past, he led teams of powerful Awakened.
"Big bro, we could've cleared the Infected much faster if we use our Talent!"
Feera whispered slowly while walking beside him.
There are reasons why he planned such strategy.
"Feera, how long can you last using your Talent's maximum power?"
Erza asked his brother.
Feera said about fifteen minutes.
"So if I were to attack you after fifteen minutes, you would be defenseless?"
Feera couldn't answer back.
It was because he knew that was true.
'Vultures' are the term for those who waited for another person or group to clear the Infected, only to rob their Evolution Nectars when they were down and tired.
"Once I've seen your powers, I have one thousand and one ways to kill you."
Erza laid down the cold, hard truth.
In a dog eats dog world, strength is absolute.
Someone parading their powers around like a kid, would not last long in the apocalypse.
"Although we're Awakened, it doesn't mean we are bulletproof."
The 'Vultures' would have snipers moving with them.
No matter how strong an Awakened is, their brain is still fragile.
"Unless truly needed, we must conceal our powers and conserve our Cell Energy."
One might never know what could happen to them.
Feera took his brother's advice to heart.
Strolling through the residences, they noticed some Infected was was stuck inside their compounds.
'Someone got bit and fled home, infecting the others.'
As the flesh-eating monsters has no intelligence, they do not know how to open doors.
The tactics used was quite simple.
"Big Mark, Kara, come here."
Erza instructed Kara to stand at a spot.
"Don't move, okay?"
Then he gave Big Mark a thick rope.
"Pull as hard as you can."
Then Erza approached the house with a red gate.
Roar!
The Infected in the house detected its prey.
It clawed and rammed the gate with reckless abandon.
"Remember Kara, stay still!"
In less than a second, Erza pried open the gate and released the Infected!
Shriek!
The first thing it saw was Kara, because she was just a few meters in front of the gate.
"Kyaa!!"
Kara screamed.
Twang!
The thick rope pulled by Erza and Big Mark vibrated!
Crash!
The Infected tripped on the rope and fell down face first.
In a blink of an eye, Erza pinned the Infected down.
"So who would do the honors?"
He raised up a mountaineering axe in the air.
Despite screaming out of fear, Kara was still at the same position.
Although instead of standing, she plonked to the ground.
Both Big Mark and Kara were trembling.
The horrendous Infected screamed and gargled at the prey in front of it.
With Erza pushing down at its body, it has no chance of getting back up.
"You guys wanted me to teach you how to survive, right? The only way for you to survive is to kill Infected and get stronger!"
If they couldn't even brave themselves to kill a Strain-1 Infected, their future will be uncertain.
Just as Big Mark was about to take the axe, Kara stepped forward.
"I'll kill it! Let me kill it!"
Tears and snot were pouring from her face.
She took the axe with her shaky hands.
"Right here."
Erza gestured to strike the Infected's head.
Her heart palpipated terribly.
She could see how gut-wrenching the Infected looks.
The stretched out mouth with teeth stained with blood only exists in creatures of nightmare.
After a minute of staring and quivering, she raised the axe high up behind her head.
Smash!
She struck down with both her hands.
"D-d-d-did I do it? Is it dead?"
She slowly opened her eyes.
"Roaaaar!"
The Infected isn't dead yet!
"Kara, try opening your eyes when you strike?"
Erza was doing his best trying to hold his laughter.
Her face blushed in embarassment.
Her strike only hit the tarmac beside the Infected's head.
Erza asked her to calm down.
"Take your time. Aim and take a deep breath before you strike."
It took almost five minutes for her nerves to subside.
"Ok!"
She attempts her second strike.
"Hup!"
Crack!
Silence followed through.
'I...Did I just killed an Infected?'
She looked down at the lifeless corpse with an axe in its head.
'I really did!'
She realised that when she saw her hand at the end of axe's handle!
Plop!
Her knees went weak.
Pssh-
A familiar scene happened right in front of them.
Kara wet herself again.
...
Afterwards, they repeated the same process.
Big Mark was awkward at first, but got the hang of it soon after.
They killed an additional 45 Infected.
"All better!"
A motherly voice resounded through the neighborhood.
Approaching the team was a teenage girl and a forty year old woman.
"No injuries, poor thing was just scared sh*tless."
Mrs. Numee thought Kara had sustained an injury when she knees gave out.
Erza then asked Bucky to control their vehicles and drive to where they are.
Mrs. Numee gave Kara her a spare outfit she prepared in the Rolls Reece.
At the same time, she consoled and calmed her down.
"We're also done here."
The team were right in front of Sixth Uncle's house.
...
They sent a drone to scout inside the house first.
"Anything from the Living Area?"
The drone positioned itself in front of a window next to the front door.
"Nothing. They shut the curtains, it's hard to see anything."
Erza nodded.
He walked to the house's stainless steel gate.
Creaaaaak!
He pushed his hand through the keyhole and ripped off a metal piece from it!
"What the f*ck-"
Big Mark exclaimed his shock.
Kara was speechless.
But to the rest of Erza's family, it's a normal everyday feat.
"Zeus and Zoltan, with me. Zarwi and Zephyr secure the perimeter. Big Mark and Kara, stay within the perimeter."
Knock knock!
"Hello? Sixth Uncle?"
The house was silent and frigid.
Erza breathe a sigh of relief.
It meant that nobody in the house turned into an Infected.
Erza destroyed the front door lock.
Then they proceeded to enter the house.
Although it was 10.00 am where the morning sun sits on top of their head, the house was eerily dim.
"Zoltan, can you connect to the house's electronics?"
When Bucky touched the TV, he shook his head.
"No electricity."
"Alright Zeus, you're up."
Erza instructed his father to restore the house's electricity supply.
"Hup!"
Bzzt!
In a few seconds, the whole place was lit up.
The first floor's scene was a wreck.
As the lights were turned on, they explored further.
'Oh? They might be here.'
Erza saw the stairs leading to the first floor.
He then turned to the barricade on the stairs.
"Sixth Uncle! It's Erza! Are you up there?"
He moderately called his uncle out.
Silence.
"Step back. I'm breaking through the barricade."
Erza prompted his younger brother and father to make some space.
The barricade in front of him was made from stacking furnitures, mattresses and big electronics.
'10%'.
Erza silently adjusted his power output.
Bang!
Each of his punches carries a weight of 250 kg!
Pang!
He broke the barricade structures into two with his strikes.
Couches, washing machine, fridge.
All of it broke into two, forming a pathway on the stairs.
In a few minutes, the stairs could be accessed once more.
Slowly, they ascend from the ground floor.
Kraak!
Their thick and sturdy combat shoes cracked the debris on the stairs, protecting their feet.
Sniff.
'Smells really bad.'
He could see the stools and chairs being knocked over everywhere.
Piles of rubbish were scattered.
Once they reached the first floor, three doors appeared.
There were three rooms on the first floor.
Erza knocked one of the doors.
Still no response.
'Sorry Sixth Uncle, I had to!'
Bang!
There is now a big hole in where the door knob used to be.
Erza peeked through the opening to see who's inside.
"They're here!"
Erza swiftly swung the door open!
He saw two humans lying down a bed.
"Sixth brother!"
From behind Erza, Mr. Zayf rushed to his brother's side.
Both Sixth Uncle and Sixth Aunt laid on the floor.
They didn't move, but they were still breathing.
"Yoon! Yoon! Wake up! Big brother is here!"
Mr. Zayf panicked.
He did not understand why his younger brother didn't respond to him.
"Ugh! What is this horrendous smell?!"
Bucky came in last, but immediately backed away.
There were vomit stains all over.
Their faces were pale and they are breathing lightly.
Erza relayed his message through the walkie talkie.
A few moments later, Mrs. Numee arrived.
Gasp!
'W-What happened to them?'
Mrs. Numee saw five relatives of theirs lined up like bodies in a morgue.
Their faces were pale and lips turned purple.
"Mum, they got food poisoning."
Erza signaled to his mother to heal them.
Without a second's delay, she put both her palms on Sixth Aunt's forehead.
After a few minutes, color returned to Sixth Aunt's face.
"Mum, how much Cell Energy do you have left?"
Healing is a tiring process.
She has refined her Talent's control, but when faced with five chronic patients all of a sudden, she went into a little panic.
"About 90% left."
'One tenth of Mum's Cell Energy for a case of food poisoning?! This is bad!'
The mutated Doronavirus-20 is not the only disease humans could catch during the apocalypse.
Malnutrition, fever, hypothermia.
Human beings are fragile creatures.
Analyzing the half-eaten foods on the floor and the excrements in the toilet, the food poisoning symptoms were as clear as day.
Out of desperation, humans would even eat rotten or moldy food to satiate their hunger.
...
After half an hour, all of Sixth Uncle's family and First Aunt has recovered.
Mrs. Numee was sitting down on a chair, catching up her breath.
The continous healing was equivalent to running for half an hour.
"Dear, thank you. Thank you for saving Yoon!"
Mr. Zayf hugged his wife.
"Silly husband, your brother is my brother too."
That simple gesture made her feel that all she did was worth it.
Erza carried his uncle and sat them in the car. The rest followed him and carried the other family members of Sixth Uncle.
"Team, let's head back home!"