The sound of footsteps echoed through the narrow stairway as the squad moved upward. They climbed toward the second floor on high alert, every step measured and cautious.
Caleb and Tamsin were already standing near the entrance door, their heads slightly poking out as they observed the corridor for any strange movement.
Arthur approached them with a frown.
"Quit poking your heads out like fearful dogs. If you see nothing, proceed with extreme caution," he said as he walked through the door.
A faint blue screen appeared before his eyes.
[ You Advance Closer ]
[ It Waits ]
[ Return before or at 35:57:06 ]
[ …Or Confrontation Becomes Mandatory ]
Arthur paused for a moment, glancing at his squad. Judging by their expressions, they had all received the same notification through their individual system interfaces.
"This means we're going for an invasive sweep," Arthur said.
His gaze briefly shifted to the metal rod in Noah's hands and the thick wooden stick Caleb carried.
"We cover the space and find the way to the next floor. Call for help if anything is above you. If not, make sure the enemy is dead. Caleb, you're with me. Tamsin, go with Noah."
As he finished speaking, Arthur activated his mapping skill.
The squad nodded and went to work immediately.
Arthur kicked open the door of the first classroom. His eyes and gun scanned the room quickly.
Empty.
Caleb moved past him and checked the next classroom.
"Clear," Caleb announced.
Arthur walked briskly toward the next door and pushed it open.
The moment the door swung inward, he saw a zombie trapped beneath a slab of fallen concrete from a collapsed section of the wall. The creature groaned weakly, raising its head and staring at him with dull grey eyes.
'Enhanced smell confirmed,' Arthur thought.
He walked closer.
The zombie struggled to free itself as it screeched at him.
A single gunshot echoed through the corridor.
The zombie went still.
Arthur lowered the gun slightly.
Then he realized he had just made a mistake.
From the hole leading to the next classroom, he heard a wave of groaning. Several zombies were pushing against the weakened wall, their bodies pressing forward with growing force.
Arthur's eyes widened.
"Caleb! Don't open that door!" he shouted as he ran out of the room.
Too late.
The door was already open.
Caleb was being pushed backward toward the balcony. He held the wooden stick horizontally in front of him, barely stopping the attacking zombie from biting into his face.
Another zombie stumbled out of the classroom behind the first.
Arthur raised his pistol and fired.
The zombie pinning Caleb down collapsed instantly.
As it fell, Caleb twisted his body and swung his stick with force. The blow struck the second zombie in the side of its head.
It didn't die, but it fell to the ground.
Arthur rushed forward and positioned himself in front of the open classroom door while Caleb moved aside.
More zombies began pushing through the broken section of the wall.
Arthur shoved the Glock into his pocket and pulled out the Colt M4 EPR rifle strapped across his back.
He fired a burst into the approaching crowd.
Several zombies dropped immediately, but many of them weren't fully destroyed. Some were trampled under the weight of others climbing over them.
The corridor quickly turned chaotic.
"You need help, boss?" Caleb called out over the sound of gunfire.
"Join Noah and Tamsin. I'll handle this," Arthur replied as he removed the empty magazine.
Caleb hesitated for only a second before following the order. He dashed down the corridor toward the opposite side.
Arthur stepped backward slightly, creating enough space for himself to reload.
The fallen zombies were already starting to rise again.
Time was running out.
His hands moved quickly as he grabbed a fresh magazine and slammed it into the rifle.
During the reload, several zombies managed to close the distance.
Arthur swung the rifle in a wide arc.
The butt of the gun struck a zombie directly in the skull and sent it tumbling over the balcony railing.
Another lunged toward him.
Arthur kicked it hard in the knee, forcing the joint to bend unnaturally. Almost at the same moment, he delivered another kick to the side of its head.
The zombie's body flipped sideways and fell off the balcony.
With a small amount of space created, Arthur raised the rifle and fired again.
This time he aimed for the head.
Several zombies collapsed immediately.
A few bullets missed their targets and struck the wall behind them.
Again Arthur was forced to reload.
But this time he didn't have enough time.
'I can't use my remaining mana now,' he thought.
Instead, he tightened his grip on the rifle.
The butt of the weapon swung repeatedly in powerful arcs, crushing skulls or knocking zombies over the balcony.
[ Fatigue: 60% ]
Even so, the numbers were overwhelming.
Arthur knew it.
One of the zombies lunged at him from the side.
Just as he prepared to activate Telekinetic Strike—
A blur appeared.
Several zombies suddenly collapsed with punctured skulls.
Arthur blinked in surprise.
Before he could fully process what happened, another figure leaped over his head and crashed down onto a zombie that had been creeping behind him.
The creature's skull shattered against the floor.
Arthur quickly turned.
Caleb was standing in front of him, wiping blood off his arm.
Noah was several paces away, moving through the zombies in a blur as he struck them down with brutal speed.
'Fast… but mobility is even faster. Strong… but weapon augmentation is stronger,' Arthur thought as he straightened up.
He glanced toward the end of the corridor.
Tamsin stood there calmly, watching the aftermath.
"You took long enough," Arthur said.
Tamsin simply nodded with a faint smirk.
Arthur reloaded his final rifle magazine and checked his pistol before charging forward again.
With Noah moving through the zombies at such speed, the remaining enemies were already disorganized.
Arthur grabbed a zombie that lunged toward Caleb and lifted it by the collar before throwing it over the balcony.
Another one rushed him immediately afterward.
Arthur caught it by the throat and slammed its head against the metal railing before crushing its skull with the butt of his pistol.
The body dropped limply to the floor.
A third zombie slammed into him and pushed him against the railing.
Arthur grabbed it by the waist.
It had once been a teenage girl.
Without hesitation, he lifted the body and hurled it over the balcony.
[ Fatigue: 90% ]
Arthur finally stepped back and lowered himself onto the ground, breathing heavily.
His chest rose and fell rapidly as exhaustion set in.
When he glanced toward Tamsin, he noticed her crouching beside several zombie corpses.
She was reaching into their bodies, searching for something.
Arthur didn't care enough to ask.
Right now he just needed to breathe.
"Boss… are you okay?" Noah asked as he approached.
Arthur lifted his head slightly.
Their eyes met briefly.
He noticed Caleb standing nearby as well, a concerned expression on his face.
"I'm alright," Arthur said.
"If you still have the strength, find the way upward."
Noah looked at Caleb.
Both of them nodded before walking away to continue searching.
Tamsin joined them a few moments later.
Arthur remained seated for a short while.
Then something caught his attention.
'Wasn't Caleb just fighting as if his leg was fine? Why is he limping more now?'
Arthur frowned.
Strange.
He slowly stood up and glanced over the balcony toward the courtyard below.
The bodies of the zombies he had thrown down were scattered across the ground.
But something felt wrong.
A chill ran down his spine.
'The children zombies… where the fuck are they?'
His eyes narrowed.
'Did another person follow us here? Is Silas stealing the bodies? What the hell is happening?'
Just as he was piecing together the strange situation, footsteps approached from behind him.
Caleb, Noah, and Tamsin returned.
"We found it," Tamsin said. "The next stairway."
Arthur nodded and turned his gaze back toward the silent courtyard for a final moment.
Then he faced the group.
"Let's—"
The word died in his throat.
A presence suddenly locked onto the squad.
Arthur felt his heart tighten instantly.
Fear.
A slow, suffocating fear.
A feeling he had not experienced even during his first encounter with the Zombie Juggernaut.
He wasn't the only one who felt it.
The same terror was written clearly across the faces of his squad.
Noah's lips trembled.
"B… B… Behind you," he whispered.