After killing the two boys he had been listening to just a meter away, Adrius felt a strange sensation. His nausea and the bitter taste in his mouth grew stronger, and he even felt a slight sense of regret. However, another voice kept repeating in his head that he had only defended his life.
With a regretful and ashamed expression, he turned his back on the two corpses he had just killed and began to walk. He needed to get to a safe place so that he could think about the situation he was in, calmly. Along the way, he encountered three more zombies—one female and two male zombies. The two male zombies had blood around their mouths, and the female zombie had deep bite marks and heavy bleeding on the right side of her neck and her left arm. It was clear that the two men had turned her into a zombie.
Upon seeing the three zombies in front of him, Adrius was momentarily scared. He could clearly feel the increase in his heart rate and the adrenaline rushing through his veins. He had killed the previous two zombies while being in a state of shock and confusion, and he hadn't felt this level of fear then. However, now that his mind had begun to adjust to the situation and he had a moment to think, it seemed that fear was spreading throughout his body along with the flow of blood.
He observed the movements of the zombies carefully. The female zombie was two or three steps behind the two male zombies. According to the self-defense classes he had taken, he should have attacked the closest opponent first. This would not only disrupt the enemy's formation but also shift the situation in his favor.
"At least they're walking like turtles, they're so slow." he muttered under his breath.
He grabbed the signboard again like an axe and began running toward the female zombie with all his strength. His increased speed and power propelled him forward, and he quickly caught up with the two male zombies, reaching them faster than he expected. In order to get to the female zombie, he had to pass through the space between the two male zombies, so he didn't slow down, causing his shoulders to slam into them.
The two zombies were thrown to the ground as if a rugby player had crashed into an ordinary person. The collision didn't slow Adrius down even a little bit, and a second later, he struck the broad side of the signboard with all his newly enhanced strength into the zombie's neck. The sound of the bones breaking was loud and clear to him with his enhanced senses. The strike caused a weak groan from the zombie's mouth, and a moment later, it collapsed to the ground like a hunk of meat.
The powerful blow had broken the zombie's neck and severed its spinal cord, which explained why it was now motionless. The only thing the zombie could do was glare and scream at Adrius, who was already quickly moving toward the other zombie.
This time, Adrius didn't use the signboard. He kicked the zombie that was trying to get up with slow, awkward movements. The blow sent the zombie crashing back down to the ground. Then Adrius bent his knees slightly and jumped onto the zombie's back with all his strength, causing the sound of bones breaking once again. Apart from the fear and stress, he couldn't help but enjoy the power he had gained and even felt a bit proud of himself.
As the zombie's spine broke under his weight, it lost the ability to move, but its condition was better than the first zombie. Its arms still had movement, and it was trying to crawl toward Adrius, who was moving toward the last zombie. The third zombie had finally managed to stand, but before it could take a step toward Adrius, he stopped in front of it and drove the sharp end of the signboard up through its jaw and into its skull.
[> You have absorbed *The life flame* from the Level 1 (Zombie). 1+ Strength <]
[> Congratulations! You have successfully leveled up to Level 2. <]
[> You have gained 3+ free status points. <]
Adrius ignored the messages and pulled the signboard out of the zombie's head, kicking the dead zombie to the ground. Without paying attention to the other zombie crawling behind him, he moved toward the female zombie and plunged the signboard into her head.
[> You have absorbed *The life flame* from the Level 0 (Zombie). <]
He ignored the message again and turned to face the last zombie. He kicked the zombie in the head, sending it flying more than a meter away and crashing onto its back on the ground. This feeling of power was truly satisfying; it was as if he had regained control over his life and was no longer the worthless homeless man he had once been. He approached the zombie, which was struggling pitifully on the ground. From the last kick, the zombie had lost its left eye, and blood was pouring from its nose and mouth. Adrius stood above the zombie, paused for a moment, and then suddenly slammed his foot down on its head with all his might.
Contrary to his expectations, the zombie's head didn't crush under his foot. The kick only broke its jaw. Adrius kicked the zombie's head several more times, and after realizing he had overestimated his strength, he mockingly shook his head and drove the signboard into the zombie's skull.
[> You have absorbed The Flame of Life from the Level 0 Zombie. <]
He felt a bit disappointed in himself. He hated that he had gotten lost in the feeling of power and freedom. He looked around— the nearest zombie was at least a hundred meters away—but what if several more zombies were nearby? What would happen to him in this pathetic state if there were more zombies close by?
Of course, he did have some right to feel this way. After such a long time, he finally felt like he wasn't weak and worthless. After a long time, he had gained a little control over his situation. He took a deep breath and tried to calm his mind. In this state, he needed to keep his mind as calm and alert as possible.
After thinking for a moment, he decided to hunt more zombies before finding shelter for the night. It was clear that killing zombies and other creatures, like the dog he had killed earlier, not only saved his life but also increased his power. If he was lucky, he might even find one or more crystals.
Adrius made his decision and spent the next two full hours hunting zombies and any other creatures, avoiding humans. During this time, Adrius killed eighteen zombies, including two Level 5 zombies. As a result of his hunting, he leveled up from Level 2 to Level 5 and gained 2+ strength points and 2+ stamina points from the two Level 5 zombies, as well as a treasure crystal.
Throughout these two hours of relentless hunting, Adrius noticed that the stamina he lost while fighting zombies fully recovered with every level-up, leaving him physically revitalized and full of energy. Several times, he was tempted to learn the skill crystal he had obtained and use it in his battles, but each time, he refrained. He had decided to find a safe place to learn the skill because he wasn't sure what would happen after he learned it.
As he pondered his situation and wondered why he hadn't encountered any living humans during the past two hours, he suddenly heard the scream of a little girl:
"Please, let us go... we didn't do anything to you... why did you eat my dad...?"
After saying this, the voice broke into loud crying. To Adrius, it was as clear as day that the voice belonged to a four- or five-year-old girl who was fleeing from a non-human creature. Without thinking further, he immediately started running toward the sound with all 12 of his speed points.
After running for about seventy or eighty meters at full speed, he reached a woman who was holding her little daughter, with another teenage girl running after them. Behind them, about four or five meters away, a large white, fluffy cat was chasing them. The cat was almost twice the size of a German shepherd, and its yellow eyes seemed to glow with an eerie light. Small yellow lightning-like streaks seemed to dance around its body. There was no sound of meowing, only the ominous growl of a lion.
The cat moved with incredible speed and agility, leaping from point to point while maintaining its distance from the woman and her daughters. It seemed like it wasn't ready to attack yet and was enjoying the fear-induced screams of its prey.
Adrius analyzed the situation: "The way it moves shows that its focus is on speed, and those lightning streaks... they must be a skill it has acquired. But how did it get them?"
Adrius started running again, positioning himself between the woman and her daughters and the cat. He tightened his grip on the signboard, which he was holding like an axe, and stared at the cat, which had stopped moving. Adrius had reached Level 5 and had clearly become much stronger after five level-ups in just the past three hours since the world had started going mad. Although he hadn't checked his status window yet, he guessed that his strength was around 14 points and his speed around 12 points. However, the cat seemed to be at a higher level than the dog he had killed earlier, making this fight a challenging one. On the other hand, Adrius's main weakness against the cat was his weapon. Unlike Adrius, who was wielding a battered road sign, the cat's claws and teeth were its natural weapons, and they had likely grown more powerful after multiple level-ups.
Using the cat's hesitation to his advantage, Adrius opened his status window.
[> ------------------
Name: Adrius Wallace
Level: 5
job: None
Title: None
Specialty: None
Status Points: 15
|> Strength: 15 | Speed: 12 | Stamina: 12 | Resistance: 9 | Intelligence: 11 | Senses: 10 | Mana: 108 | Magic: 108 | Health: 10 <|
Active Skill: None
Passive Skill: None
------------------ <]
After reviewing his stats, Adrius decided to allocate five points to Strength and ten points to Speed. As soon as the points were distributed, he felt the immediate effects of his increased power and speed. Energy filled his entire body, and he felt lighter and more flexible.
It seemed like the cat sensed this change in Adrius too, because it suddenly decided to attack. The cat charged at Adrius with incredible speed, so fast that following its movements with his eyes became difficult, but the yellow lightning streaks made it easier to track. Of course, Adrius didn't back down. He released his 22 speed points all at once, propelling himself like a bullet toward the cat, causing the asphalt beneath him to crack.
Both of them crossed the distance between them in an instant. The cat, after a loud growl, opened its mouth to sink its sharp, serrated teeth into Adrius's shoulder and tear his arm off.