The next morning, Miles woke up with two dark circles under his eyes.
Lisa was already up early, preparing breakfast for him in the kitchen.
However, it was clear she hadn't yet recovered from yesterday's events. Her listless demeanor made Miles feel a pang of sympathy…
Seeing him appear, Lisa managed to force a smile. "Master, you're up. Breakfast is ready — it's all your favorite."
"Mm, let's eat together."
Miles sat down and began peeling a tea egg, but Lisa didn't join him. Instead, she crouched on the floor, holding her own meal.
Is she really playing the part of a well-disciplined servant?
Good grief…
Miles sighed and shook his head, chuckling bitterly. "Come on, don't mess around, can we just sit at the table and eat?"
"Yes, Master."
Lisa nodded obediently and returned to her seat.
Miles couldn't even find words to express his feelings. After hastily finishing his breakfast, he quickly put on his protective suit and was ready to leave.
"Are you going to pick up that movie star, Master?"
Thud!
As Miles fumbled to put on his shoes, he stumbled and crashed into the door.
"I'm going to hunt zombies…"
"Oh, then please be careful, Master."
"Alright, I'll be careful…"
Watching Miles's clumsy retreat, Lisa finally couldn't hold it in anymore and stifled a laugh behind her hand.
"Ha! Serves you right for messing around outside. I'm not an easy one to deal with!"
Outside, Ryan and Nathan were already ready, having started the car and turned on the heater, waiting for Miles to hop in.
"Let's go!"
Miles stepped up and jumped into the backseat.
Nathan glanced back and, noticing Miles's appearance, was startled. "Mr. Miles, you're injured?"
He couldn't fathom how someone as powerful as Miles could possibly get hurt.
"Ha… hahaha! Hahahaha!"
Ryan finally lost control and burst into laughter.
Miles's face darkened to the color of coal as he glared at Ryan, baring his teeth. "Ryan, how was your night with your wife?"
"Uh…"
Ryan's laughter suddenly stopped, as though someone had jammed a chicken feather into his throat.
With Nathan's unexpected visit last night, Ryan had been forced to abandon his usual "daily exercise routine." Needless to say, he wasn't happy about it.
"Didn't sleep well, Ryan?" Nathan asked, puzzled. "I see Mr. Miles's dark circles are pretty heavy too. Did you both not get any rest?"
"Haha! Hahahaha!"
Ryan's discomfort vanished instantly, and he continued to laugh heartily.
Miles narrowed his eyes, staring at Nathan's clueless face, grinding his teeth. "You really are a piece of work, Nathan!"
The three of them left the villa and arrived at the neighboring complex to pick up Isaac.
Isaac, over the past few days, had become increasingly distracted, even losing his enthusiasm for zombie hunting.
Once he got into the car, the group exchanged a silent glance, and the atmosphere in the vehicle turned tense.
Soon, they reached the electronic factory Nathan had mentioned. It had been abandoned for years and had been ravaged by snowstorms for days, now completely unrecognizable.
"Just ahead…"
Nathan clenched his teeth, his voice heavy with sorrow. "I lost six brothers. I couldn't even retrieve their bodies. Those bastards!"
The four of them arrived at the largest factory building.
"Isaac, you two go ahead and scout. If there's danger, fire a flare."
Isaac and Nathan understood that Miles didn't fully trust them, fearing that someone might be waiting to ambush them. But they didn't have the luxury of arguing and simply followed the orders.
Miles pulled a sniper rifle from his space and set it up at the highest point.
He beckoned Ryan over.
"Ryan, cover me."
"Me?"
Ryan hesitated, eyeing the sniper rifle with interest but clearly unsure. "Isn't this a bit much…?"
He knew well how cautious and meticulous Miles was. Having witnessed his methods firsthand, Ryan didn't dare touch the weapon.
Miles smiled. "Don't tell me you don't trust me. Stop talking, I can already see your drool forming."
"Haha, alright, I'll do it. Don't worry, I won't miss a shot!"
Ryan, a seasoned scout in the military, had handled all kinds of sniper rifles. He wasn't about to claim he was the best, but he certainly had far more skill than Miles.
Meanwhile, Miles remained standing by, keeping his eyes on the factory.
He wasn't about to put himself in danger without absolute certainty.
Besides, he'd been feeding Isaac and the others for this very moment.
Isaac and Nathan cautiously entered the factory. The interior was pitch black.
Nathan switched on the mining lamp Miles had given him and ventured off to the right to search. Isaac, intending to follow, was deterred by Nathan's cold, indifferent glare.
"Fine."
Isaac knew Nathan still harbored resentment towards him, so he quietly moved to the left.
After about ten minutes of silence, Ryan, perched on the roof, squinted and muttered, "What's going on? Didn't Nathan say there were over thirty zombies here? Could we be in the wrong place…?"
Zombies, unlike the dead, were constantly on the move, and their paths were never predictable.
Miles, binoculars in hand, surveyed the area.
With his enhanced psychic abilities, he could see much further than most, and even the darkness didn't hinder his vision.
"There's no zombie horde here. Most are solitary, so the fact that so many are gathered in one place definitely raises some questions…"
A sudden thought occurred to him, and he turned to Ryan. "Ryan, do you remember when zombies first appeared? The situation in Cloud City was somewhat similar."
"Ah, right!"
Ryan's eyes widened as he recalled the incident. "It was Sini's team that discovered it first. They reported seeing over ten zombies together. But weren't those zombies captured the very next day?"
It was common knowledge that Sini had been breeding infected zombies for wealthy clients, and after Miles exposed her, the owners had torn her apart.
"I don't think it's that simple…"
Miles shook his head solemnly. "Even if those zombies were Sini's pets, how did she manage to make them gather in one place like that? Many of the owners saw it, and it couldn't have been staged. So these zombies are definitely being controlled somehow!"
"Controlling zombies?"
Ryan's skepticism was apparent. He found the idea almost absurd.
If zombies could be controlled, wouldn't the person doing it be invincible, much like Miles?
Miles nodded gravely. "It's a possibility. But based on what we're seeing, it doesn't seem like these zombies are fully under control. They still retain some autonomy."
"I don't get it…"
Ryan was completely lost, unable to keep up with Miles's reasoning.
Miles smiled softly. "What I mean is, if someone really is controlling the zombies, they might not have perfected their methods yet. That's why sometimes the zombies go out of control, and the ones you caught might have been stragglers from a group that lost their coordination."
"That… can't be right?"
Ryan thought Miles was starting to sound a bit far-fetched.
Miles, however, remained serious. "In the apocalypse, anything is possible. Otherwise, how would we explain the mutated zombies? Where did the radiation affecting them come from?"