Of course, this was merely Nathan's personal opinion.
Had Miles known of this matter, there would be no hesitation—he would have drawn his gun and shot him on the spot!
Damn it!
You've been here five days, and you've made a fool of me five times...
Nathan continued rambling on,
By the end, he sighed deeply, full of regret. "Ultimately, this is my fault. I humbly ask Miss Nicole to speak a few kind words for me before Mr. Miles—I would be forever grateful!"
"Ah?"
Nicole froze for a moment, then, after gritting her teeth, said, "Actually, I lied to you. I'm not Miles' girlfriend, and I don't have any relationship with him."
"What?"
Nathan stood there in shock, feeling a chill crawl down his back.
"You… you're not… not?"
Nicole gave a bitter smile and nodded.
Nathan's legs buckled, nearly collapsing to the ground.
The truth had finally come to light!
Damn!
At this moment, Nathan could only think one thing—he wanted to die!
How stupid could I be, not realizing this sooner?
With a mournful expression, he looked utterly defeated. "Nicole, oh Nicole, you've really ruined me! Now I understand why Mr. Miles treated me so coldly that day—his face, his tone…"
Nicole, equally awkward, apologized. "I'm sorry. You came over so suddenly that day, and I was frightened, so I… But I've already cleared things up with Miles. He won't hold it against you."
"Really?"
Nathan's hope flared once more.
He had truly feared that Miles might get angry and kick him and his brothers out. If that happened, their carefree lives would be over, and they'd never be able to live like this again.
"Yes!"
Nicole nodded earnestly.
She then recounted the events of that day without any trace of guilt, as though she had no intention of deceiving him.
After all, Miles wasn't the type to broadcast such matters, and Nathan would never come looking for trouble, so there was little risk of this secret leaking.
Moreover, this would make Nathan a bit more wary of her.
Though she was no longer Miles' girlfriend, she still had that connection to him.
As long as that relationship existed, and with her status as a rising star, any reasonable person would assume Miles must have an interest in her.
That alone would shield her from many troubles.
"That's a relief, that's a relief!"
Unfortunately, Nathan's level of insight was too low for him to ever see through her manipulations.
Nicole changed the subject and asked, "Nathan, aren't you all supposed to be performing tomorrow? If you need help, I could give you some guidance…"
A newly popular star, a top-tier actress—such a person would surely possess impressive acting skills!
Nathan glanced at Nicole's stunning face and immediately responded, "If Miss Nicole could help us, it would be an absolute honor!"
It wasn't clear if he was admiring her acting skills or something else, but Nathan quickly agreed without hesitation.
Nicole nodded, then hesitated before saying, "But I won't help for free. I need some food—just a little bit, nothing extravagant."
She looked at Nathan with some trepidation.
After all, asking for food at a time like this was almost like asking for a death sentence.
However, since Nathan had been living with Miles, while they weren't exactly feasting every day, they weren't in danger of starving either.
He eagerly agreed, "No problem! Would five packs of instant noodles be enough?"
"Too much, way too much…"
Nicole hadn't expected Nathan to be so generous. She quickly waved her hands. "Two packs would be fine."
To be honest, two packs of noodles right now could be worth two lives!
She thought Nathan was a bit simple, not realizing he was parting with food that he had no personal attachment to.
In a villa in District C, Nicole's "acting masterclass" was in full swing.
"The first key to acting: truth!"
She dipped a cloth in snow water and wrote a single word on the wall.
The men gathered around, eyes wide, as if injected with adrenaline, all staring at this super celebrity.
If this had been before the apocalypse, they wouldn't have dared to dream of something so extravagant.
This was Nicole!
She was the sweetheart of countless fans, the epitome of youth and beauty in the eyes of men. For someone like them, even thinking about her was sacrilege!
Yet now, Nicole was giving them a lesson!
Different thoughts stirred in some of their minds.
But before they could act on them, Nathan's words extinguished their thoughts.
"Miss Nicole is a friend of Mr. Miles. Anyone who dares to show disrespect, be careful of your heads!"
Indeed, Miles' name alone could silence the cries of children in the neighborhood!
The men quickly straightened up, sitting at attention with their hands on their knees, too afraid to make a move.
Nicole was on the verge of laughing but suppressed it, a hint of bitterness lingering in her heart.
She sighed and spoke coolly, "To act well, you must first immerse yourself in your role. Take, for example, a person on the brink of death. Every word, breath, movement, and expression must be in harmony…"
"You can't give up right away when you get there. That would be too fake…"
"Make it as miserable as possible, the more tragic the better. You want them to believe you're really oppressed here, to see the anger building up inside you…"
"Also…"
At this point, Nicole paused for a moment before softly continuing, "You need to paint Miles as cold-blooded and heartless. You want them to see how pitiful you are, how much you're suffering under his tyranny!"
…
Acting is something some are born with.
Though Nathan wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, his acting skills were still commendable.
Three days later.
He and his six brothers set out.
Before leaving, he made sure to bid farewell to their "teacher," Nicole, and promised that if the mission went well, Mr. Miles would surely reward them handsomely.
Nicole could only smile and deflect.
If he knew how Miles had treated her that day, he would probably flee in the dead of night, wouldn't he?
Nathan and his men searched for hours, finally finding a zombie.
Given their abilities, capturing a zombie was a sure thing. They quickly returned with their prize, proudly showing it off to everyone they met.
It was almost as if they feared people wouldn't know they had caught a super zombie.
Now, even ordinary zombies couldn't be traded for roasted chickens, let alone a chicken feather. They could only fetch a small loaf of bread.
However, super zombies were far rarer than the ordinary kind.
So when they returned with the bound zombie, many of the residents couldn't help but show envy, including Anthony and his crew.
"Well, well, if it isn't my little brother Nathan?"
Anthony staggered forward to block Nathan's path.
"Anthony, bro."
Nathan forced a sheepish smile and nodded at him.
Anthony didn't even glance at him, instead pointing at the zombie behind them with a greedy gleam in his eyes. "Where did you get this? Pretty impressive, huh?"
Nathan continued to act meekly, smiling. "Just luck, pure luck…"
"Luck?"
Anthony suddenly sneered. "Well, I wonder if I might have that kind of luck?"
Nathan quickly bowed, "Your luck is obviously better, Anthony bro, definitely stronger than ours, right?"
Behind him, the six brothers nodded in unison, groveling before Anthony, eager to flatter him.