Eila sat on a small chair, her heart pounding uncontrollably as she watched John, who was busy making coffee in the tiny kitchen. While she was engrossed in observing his back, John turned around and gestured that he was done.
"Sorry, I don't have any tea or milk" John said as he sat down and handed her the coffee.
"It's fine, Uncle. I'm not picky," she replied nervously, then quickly sipped her coffee.
"Bruff, ouch, hot! Hot!" she yelped, fanning her mouth. John immediately handed her a bottle of water from who knows where. She grabbed it hastily and took a gulp. Once the burning sensation in her mouth subsided, she looked at John, who remained silent.
"Ugh, how embarrassing," she muttered softly.
John, seeing this, wanted to laugh but held it back to avoid making the girl feel worse.
A vibration in his pocket made John stand up. He said to Eila, "There's bread over there. I'll be back."
Pulling a communication device from his pocket, he walked out of the room, focusing on the report from his subordinate.
"Move them to the main base now," John commanded firmly.
"..."
"I'll follow once everyone here is evacuated."
"..."
"And don't leave behind a single crystal core," John said before ending the call and reentering the room. Unbeknownst to him, behind a partition, a woman had overheard the entire conversation.
o0o
Karina, unable to sleep, decided to wander the corridor. If she got lucky, she might find a crystal core, aided by the small knife she had hidden since John had confiscated her weapons as part of the "heaven" rules.
However, it seemed all the zombies on the third floor had been cleared out, as she didn't encounter a single grotesque creature.
Hearing something approaching, she hid behind a partition, ready to attack. But what she expected didn't happen. Instead, she overheard a conversation. Judging by the voice and stature, it seemed to be John Obhiren.
"Gathering cores… could it be there's someone else reborn like him?" Karina thought, John's words echoing in her mind.
"Damn it," she cursed, gripping her folding knife so tightly that a few drops of blood stained the cold, dark floor, leaving behind a sinister red trace.
A morning that should have been bright was instead filled with dark clouds and the smell of blood, accompanied by loud noises disturbing her sleep.
Opening her eyes, she saw an argument between an adult woman and the man who had grabbed Haikal's collar the day before, with no one stepping in to mediate.
"How dare you accuse me of stealing your cheap noodles!" Hearing the shout, Karina decided to leave the storeroom and get some fresh air outside.
However, upon reaching the second floor, she was greeted by a horde of zombies heading straight for her. Without any weapons, she had no choice but to run.
She ran fast, but the zombies weren't much slower. "Damn it, why are they still chasing me?"
When she reached outside the supermarket, even more zombies were waiting to block her path. With bare hands, she started hitting them. Cold sweat ran down her face, showing her exhaustion.
"Damn it!" she shouted loudly. Without a weapon, she couldn't hit the zombies' vital points, so she kept retreating, only to find herself cornered.
0o0
"Is this the end of my life?" she thought as she closed her eyes while a zombie approached, her hands too sore to fight back anymore.
Whoosh!
She felt sticky liquid splatter across her face. Opening her eyes, she saw the zombie collapse in front of her. Looking ahead, she saw a man in black attire, complete with a face cover.
Quickly, he cleared the zombie from her path and extended his hand to help her up. Without hesitation, she took his hand.
"Thank you."
"No problem. Follow me," the man said, heading to a military vehicle.
Karina followed him. Once inside the vehicle, the man removed his black mask, revealing a face she recognized—Jeffry, the strongest hunter in A20's base in her previous life.
"Give me your hand."
Hearing the man's request, Karina glanced at her right hand. The man took it, and to her shock, she realized her right hand had been sliced by a knife. No wonder it hurt so much.
Carefully, the man cleaned her hand with alcohol and gently bandaged it.
"This blood is what's attracting the zombies. Be more careful with your hands next time."
"Huh?" Karina asked, confused about how he knew that.