Thomas headed toward a section of the lobby labeled Admin Offices. The frosted glass doors were slightly ajar, marked with a gold sign that read Management Only. He pushed one open and stepped inside. The air inside was stale, but it was quiet—exactly what he needed right now.
The office was spacious but cluttered. Papers and documents were scattered across the mahogany desk, while overturned chairs and broken picture frames littered the floor. A faint layer of dust covered everything. Despite the state of disarray, Thomas could already envision this space becoming his command center.
He cleared some debris from the desk and pulled out the large leather chair, settling into it. The chair creaked slightly as he leaned back, but it held firm. He allowed himself a brief moment of calm, resting his arms on the table.
"This'll do," he muttered.
He accessed the system interface, bringing up his stats and recent rewards.
[User: Thomas Estaris]
[Level: 11
Experience Points: 77,435/85,000
Blood Coins: 727,740
Special Tickets: 1
Souls: 1025]
Thomas stared at the Special Ticket in his system interface for a moment. This was the reward that he received from establishing the base. He wondered how it works.
He tapped the Wheel of Fortune option in the system. A holographic image of a large, colorful wheel appeared in front of him, spinning slowly in place. The eight sections were labeled with different amounts:
100,000 Blood Coins
250,000 Blood Coins
500,000 Blood Coins
750,000 Blood Coins
1 Million Blood Coins
1.5 Million Blood Coins
2 Million Blood Coins
3 Million Blood Coins
Thomas glanced at the third section and thought it wouldn't be too bad to land there, though he obviously had his sights set on the highest prize.
"Alright, here goes nothing," he said, gripping the virtual spin lever and pulling it down.
The wheel spun rapidly, colors blurring together in a hypnotic swirl. The hum of the system's spinning mechanism filled the room. Thomas leaned forward, his eyes tracking the slowing sections as the wheel began to decelerate.
"C'mon... something big," he muttered under his breath.
The wheel clicked through the 1.5 million section, then 2 million, before the momentum slowed further. The pointer hovered briefly over 500,000, then ticked forward again, landing solidly on 750,000 Blood Coins.
[Congratulations! You have won 750,000 Blood Coins!]
Thomas raised an eyebrow. "Third highest... not bad at all."
The notification chimed as his balance updated.
[Updated Blood Coins: 1,477,740]
"Damn," he muttered, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. "That'll go a long way."
Thomas leaned forward in the leather chair, opening his Summon Interface once more. He glanced at his current resources and then at the amount of souls he had—1025. It was enough to summon a significant force, but he knew that maintaining too many summons was unsustainable in the long run. Resources would be stretched thin without survivors to assist in running day-to-day operations.
He considered his options carefully. The base needed a sustainable workforce, not just combat specialists. Cleaning, patrolling, and maintaining the hotel and mall would require a combination of security and support personnel.
"I'll need security teams patrolling the perimeter and floors regularly. And also for labor. The infantry will handle that. Medics will be on standby, and engineers will help with keeping this place operational and constructing defenses."
He tapped the Infantry Summon option. "Let's start with basic security patrols."
Thomas selected 30 infantry—a manageable number that wouldn't overwhelm the current infrastructure. These soldiers would work in shifts, providing 24/7 surveillance of the base.
[Souls Used: 30 | Blood coins spent: 30,000 | Infantry Summoned: 30]
The same familiar blue glow appeared as infantry soldiers materialized in front of him, each in full combat gear, standing at attention. Their equipment was basic but effective—combat uniforms, rifles, and tactical gear.
"Stand by for assignment," Thomas ordered. They saluted silently in response, awaiting further orders.
Next, he summoned 10 medics, costing 20 souls and 10,000 gold coins for their equipment and tools. They materialized with white armbands marked by red crosses. Each was equipped with field medic gear, including trauma kits and sidearms.
Finally he summoned eight engineers for a total of 40 souls and 5,000 gold coins. The medics and engineers, all male, appeared before him, making the admin room crowded.
"Medics, you'll be deployed to the infirmary. It's located on the second floor, near the main staircase. Get it set up and ready to handle injuries or any medical emergencies. Take inventory of whatever supplies you can find and report any critical shortages."
One of the medics, a tall man with short-cropped hair, nodded. "Understood, sir. We'll secure the area and get the infirmary operational."
"Good. Move out," Thomas ordered.
The medics saluted before gathering their trauma kits and heading toward the second floor as instructed.
Turning to the engineers, Thomas continued. "Engineers, you're headed to the maintenance and engineering office. It should be in the lower level of the building, near the utility rooms and backup generators. Your job is to assess the structural integrity of the building. Look for weak points, damaged wiring, and any systems that need immediate repairs—especially power, plumbing, and ventilation. Once you've identified key issues, give me a full report. Got it?"
The lead engineer, a burly man with a tactical vest and a wrench hanging from his belt, stepped forward. "Copy that, sir. We'll check the critical infrastructure and let you know what needs fixing."
"Good. Get to it. We need this place fully operational as soon as possible," Thomas instructed.
The engineers gave a collective nod and exited through the lobby, their footsteps fading into the distance.
Thomas watched them leave and then glanced at the remaining infantry. "Alright, now for you. Well, I intentionally summoned you for patrols and security but we can set that aside as there are no immediate threats as of the moment. I want you to help clean this place, burn the zombies, clean every corpse, sweep the floors, gather spent casings, and make this entire place livable," Thomas finished, locking eyes with the infantry squad leaders.
One of the soldiers cleared his throat. "Sir, with all due respect, we don't think we can do that with our numbers and it's out of scope of our work. Isn't there non-combat staff in your summon that can do the job instead of us?"
"What?" Thomas was quite baffled slightly from their response as he didn't expect it. "There aren't any options…"
In order to make sure, he checked his summoning tab and scrolled through the available categories. His eyes landed on a section labeled Non-Combat Personnel—a tab he hadn't noticed before. He tapped on it, and a new interface appeared, listing various support roles.
[Available Non-Combat Summons:
Maintenance Crew (1 Soul each)
Cleaners (1 Soul each)
Administrative Staff (1 Soul each)
Cooks (1 Soul each)
Logistics Coordinators (1 Soul each)
…]
Thomas's lips curled into a grin. "Well, I'll be damned. I guess I overlooked this."
He selected the Cleaners category and summoned 40 of them at once, using 40 souls. They materialized in the office moments later, dressed in simple work uniforms, carrying brooms, mops, and cleaning supplies. The workers stood at attention, awaiting instructions.
"Alright, you'll be responsible for the full clean-up operation—removing zombie corpses, clearing debris, and making this place sanitary. Work in teams and start with the mall's main areas, then move floor by floor," Thomas instructed.
"Yes, sir!" one of the lead cleaners replied, nodding confidently.
Next, Thomas tapped on the Maintenance Crew option and summoned 20 workers. They appeared with toolkits and utility belts, ready for assignments.
"Maintenance crew, you'll assist the engineers with repairs and inspections. Prioritize electrical systems and structural integrity. Report any major issues directly to the engineers."
"Understood, sir," said the lead maintenance worker, giving a brief salute.
Thomas quickly summoned twenty Cooks to establish a basic kitchen setup. Their job would be to prepare meals for his personnel using any supplies found in the mall or hotel storage areas. Finally, he summoned five Logistics Coordinators, who would handle the inventory of supplies and manage resource distribution.
Once the non-combat staff dispersed to their assigned tasks, Thomas turned to the summoned infantry.
"Now that support staff are handling the clean-up and logistics, you'll return to primary duties. I want teams assigned to patrol and secure critical areas: the hotel perimeter, stairwells, rooftop access points, and the mall's major entrances."
"Yes sir!"