Miranda and Patricia stared at Adrius in complete surprise, then Miranda said, "Are you sure?!! Downtown is definitely more dangerous than where we are...!"
After Miranda's words, Patricia anxiously asked, "Isn't one hour too soon? Wouldn't it be too early?"
Adrius stood up from the table, heading toward the kitchen exit, and replied, "In this situation, we need to find out the condition of the city first and whether the government forces have managed to secure part of the city or not... After that, we can decide what our next step will be."
He turned to Patricia and continued, "An hour from now is already too late... The more time we waste, not only will the zombies and other creatures get stronger, but even people will start leveling up, forming groups and claiming territories. You and your mother can't afford to fall behind."
Patricia's shocked expression showed that she wanted to ask something, but before she could, Adrius spoke again, "Before we leave the house, I want to clarify a few things for you all... In this situation, most people will react differently, driven by fear and circumstances. Since everything has changed, the government and the law no longer have the power and control they once had, and people can do whatever they want without facing any legal consequences... This means that theft, murder, bullying, rape, and anything else will gradually become normal... So, I ask you not to trust anyone except our group of four, always be suspicious of strangers, and expect any kind of behavior from people... We're no longer living in the society we used to know... Everyone's life is at risk now, and anyone will do anything to stay alive for even one more hour. There are people who, before all this happened, suppressed themselves out of fear of the law and police, but now, as long as they have the ability, they'll do whatever it takes to hurt others. So please, save your optimism and human kindness for people you can truly trust, not for everyone. And the last thing—never stray too far from me, even in the most dangerous situations, unless I ask you to."
For about a minute, Miranda and Patricia stayed silent, reflecting on Adrius's words. Only Charlotte, unaware of the conversation, was busy drinking her juice. Finally, Patricia asked, "What do you mean by leveling up? I don't understand."
Adrius first glanced at Miranda, then replied to Patricia, "It's about that white window that appeared in front of you last night. I explained what I learned to Miranda, and you can ask her to explain it to you as well."
After finishing his sentence, he left the kitchen, but on his way out, he raised his voice to Miranda and said, "I don't need the shoes you mentioned. But if you have a backpack lying around and you don't need it, that might be useful to me, please bring it to me. And each of you, only take one backpack with your essential stuff. We need water and food more than anything, so don't pack them so left some room for water and food."
after strapping the Executioner Sword to his waist sat on the couch, and began to think about the best route to downtown. Certainly, not all the police and government officials had turned into zombies, and their survivors had managed to secure parts of the city to rest and regroup. As long as the government issued a statement and confirmed its presence to the people, these places would still function somewhat like before, and the situation would improve after that. However, if the government had collapsed and there were no updates, it was likely that each of these government camps would declare independence, then aside from zombies and mutated creatures, people would start fighting each other for territory and resources. In that case, the situation would become much worser for weak refugees who hadn't started leveling up.
Adrius didn't completely dismiss the possibility of the government collapsing, unless the prime minister had taken control of the situation in the early hours. There were also the royal family and the Lancaster dukedoms, which would undoubtedly try to exploit this situation to restore the king to the top of Britain's power. This could lead to a civil war, but civil war was better than fighting every local police chief, mayor, governor, or even worse, local gangs and warlords, across the kingdom.
He then thought about who he should support between the king or the prime minister in these circumstances. Adrius had never been a supporter of democracy, he considering it one of the greatest lies of mankind. In this new world, where money and wealth no longer held value, democracy was doomed to fail. In the near future, it would be individual strength and ability that mattered, and a powerful person would never allow ordinary people to intervene. Thus, the world would likely revert to monarchy and empire. Powerful warlords might even emerge. So, the best choice would be the king, but not as a refugee—he would join the king's group as a powerful person. Of course, all of this was just speculation, and he would have to wait and see what would actually happen and how many of his assumptions would turn out to be true.
Exactly one hour later, Miranda and the girls were waiting for Adrius in the living room. Seeing them, Adrius snapped out of his thoughts and smiled, asking, "Did you manage to find a backpack for me?"
Miranda handed him a navy backpack with the letters "S.F" written on it and said, "We only packed clothes for emergencies, and aside from that, I filled the backpack with water, canned food I found in the house, and some biscuits and chocolates. I also packed painkillers, antibiotics, and bandages. But we couldn't fit everything into our backpacks, so I had to use yours as well. Is that okay?" She smiled, waiting for Adrius's response.
Adrius smiled back and said, "That's exactly why I asked for a backpack." He then looked over the three of them. As Miranda had said, each of them had a backpack. Even Charlotte had a light blue, toy-like backpack, which was packed as much as possible. From Patricia's face, it was clear she was extremely upset that she could only carry a backpack, which most of it was filled with food and water. Adrius checked his own backpack—inside, there were two bottles of water, three cans of meat and bean stew, and several packages of walnut cookies.
Suddenly, Miranda pulled a handgun and a box of ammunition from a paper bag and cautiously handed them to Adrius. "Eddie was a patrol police officer. He kept this gun and its ammo for emergencies at home. Do you know how to use it? I learned a few things from Eddie."
Adrius looked at the handgun—it was a standard Beretta, a tough and low-maintenance gun that was known for its durability and decent accuracy.
He nodded and pointed to the Executioner Sword, saying, "I have my own weapon, and I learned some new skills from the system last night. So, I don't need this gun. It's better you keep it for yourself, that way both you and the girls are safer, and you might be able to help me in emergencies. But make sure to hide it under your clothes so no one notices it. For precaution, give the knife from last night to Patricia. It's better to have it than not."
Miranda looked at the Executioner Sword Adrius had strapped to his waist. She was sure that when they entered the house last night, Adrius didn't have any gear with him.
Adrius noticed her surprise and said, "This is one of the system abilitys. I'll explain more about it to you on the way."
Finally, they all left the house. The sun was high in the sky, shining directly down, but the city felt like a ghost town—completely silent. There were no sounds of people or car traffic, not even birds or pets.
Adrius spoke in a voice a little quieter than usual, "If I'm not mistaken, we should be close to the Westminster Bridge Road, on Morley Street?"
Miranda nodded. Adrius continued, "I think the best route is the nearest one. We'll cross Westminster Bridge and head into Westminster. From there, we'll head toward the palace... I think if the king wants to do something, the palace and its surrounding areas would be the best place to set up a camp and house the people."
Miranda replied, "Yeah, St. James Park, Green Park, and Constitution Hill surround Buckingham. They're big enough to house a lot of people. But the prime minister and the government aren't at Buckingham. The king doesn't have any power. Are you sure it's the right choice?"
Adrius smiled and said, "The situation has changed... Trust me."
He then unsheathed the Executioner Sword, and they all headed toward Westminster Bridge. At first, the area was calm and quiet, but after about ten minutes, they encountered their first zombie in their path. The zombie had torn clothes and a bruised face, with blood covering its clothing, hands, and face. But it was a little faster than the previous zombies and, screaming, charged toward them.
Seeing the zombie, Charlotte screamed and clung to Miranda, who, along with Patricia, tried to hide behind Adrius. Adrius, like a child eager to play with a new toy, reached out his hand toward the zombie and activated the Shadow Master skill.
The zombie had closed the distance to about ten meters, and Adrius could clearly sense its shadow. The downside of his skill was the inability to use environmental shadows, which limited him to using only his own and the enemy's shadows. As he extended his hand, as though trying to grab something, he slightly bent his fingers and consumed exactly 30 mana. The shadow beneath the zombie darkened, and three sharp tentacles formed in three directions, quickly impaling the zombie's body and pinning it to the ground.
The zombie screamed, trying to free itself from the sharp tentacles. The power of the skill truly amazed Adrius—shadow tentacles were incredibly powerful, and despite the zombie's efforts, it couldn't free itself. The tentacles weren't thick enough to cause severe damage, with their diameter barely more than a water pipe, but their resistance was impressive. Adrius could even use his mana to make the tetacles stronger and more resistant.
Miranda, in complete shock, asked, "What are those black things?!!!"
As Adrius ran toward the zombie, he replied, "It's my new skill..." Then, with a horizontal swing of the sword, he decapitated the zombie.
[> You have absorbed *The life flame* from (Zombie) Level 9. +2 Stamina, +1 Strength <]
The Executioner Sword was truly incredible. When the blade struck the zombie's neck, Adrius felt no resistance, as if he were cutting through air. The power his skill provided and combined with the sword's sharpness, made him even more eager to fight and level up. This feeling of becoming stronger with each kill and each level-up was genuinely satisfying.
As he had guessed, over time, the levels of zombies increased. Adrius had to continue leveling up, or he would fall behind the other creatures and revert to being the weak person he had been before. His body slowly began to absorb mana, which, based on the rate of absorption, would take about ten minutes to fully replenish.
He still didn't fully understand the difference between magic and mana, but he suspected that the Magic stat was directly related to the power of mana, its impact, and perhaps even the rate of its absorption.
As they continued, Miranda, Charlotte, and even Patricia bombarded Adrius with questions about his strange abilities and Adrius answered as honestly as he could. The route was relatively safe, but things took a turn when they encountered a blockade of about 100 zombies near Westminster Bridge. Seeing the zombies, which seemed like a small army, drained the color from Miranda's face, and she instinctively moved closer to Adrius, clutching his hoodie. Patricia was in even worse shape, almost crying, holding onto her mother's arm while pressing Charlotte to herself.
The zombies were weak and slow, practically mindless, attacking purely on instinct, but even a simple scratch from them means death. Adrius scanned the surroundings and spotted a white van about twenty meters away from the zombie horde, with its passenger door open.
He turned to Miranda and whispered in the calmest voice he could manage, "We'll head toward the bridge. Once we're close enough to the van... I want you and the girls to get in as fast as you can and hide in the back."