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Julian brought Shiro to the main building.
The master switch for the island's entire power grid was located in the basement of this building. Once it was connected to the main line coming from the solar panels, every piece of equipment on the island would have electricity.
With a stranger suddenly showing up, Hana and Mafuyu quietly fixed their eyes on Shiro.
A chill ran down his back.
The two women gave off a dangerous vibe. It honestly felt like being stared down by zombies.
"Shiro, the toolbox is here," Julian said.
"Just focus on the job. Don't overthink things."
He patted Shiro on the shoulder. It sounded casual, but it was also a subtle warning.
If he behaved and worked properly, there would naturally be rewards.
But if he got any other ideas...
Well. That would be unfortunate.
"Don't worry, bro!" Shiro said quickly.
"I'm the kind of guy who works hard and talks little. I guarantee I'll finish the job perfectly."
He grabbed the toolbox and headed down into the electrical room.
This kind of work was second nature to him by now.
"Hana, if you control two or three zombies, how long can you keep it up?" Julian asked.
"If it's only two or three, and they stay within a small area, I can manage one or two hours easily," Hana replied.
The last time she'd collapsed from exhaustion was because she had tried to control dozens of zombies all at once.
"Alright. Go to the bridge and bring two or three zombies here to guard the place," Julian instructed.
"If Shiro gets any funny ideas, let the zombies deal with him."
With Hana's abilities, taking care of Shiro herself wouldn't be a problem. But she was too innocent. If Shiro turned out to be crafty, she might not handle it well.
So letting zombies keep watch from a distance was the safest approach.
After arranging everything, Julian got back in the vehicle with Mafuyu and continued hauling supplies.
By the time they finished their second trip, the entire power system was finally connected.
The cold storage units roared to life.
The three zombies that had been guarding the entrance were released and pushed into the sea.
Shiro never realized that three terrifying zombies had been watching him the entire time.
"Bro, it's done!" Shiro said, dusting off his hands.
"The wiring design here is actually pretty good. As long as no one damages it, it should run for years without problems."
"Nice, nice," Julian said with a grin.
"Looks like having a technical skill is pretty useful for surviving the apocalypse."
"Ah, come on, bro. I just hooked up the power. It's nothing."
"If you ever need anything else, just call me!"
Then Shiro suddenly spotted something nearby.
"Whoa! Are those DJI drones?!"
"How about it? You know how to use them?" Julian asked with a smile.
"Of course!" Shiro puffed out his chest.
"We had two drones back at our villa community. They were originally for security patrols. Now we use them to lure zombies away by hanging speakers under them."
"I even wrote the patrol programs for them myself."
One of the reasons there were so few zombies near the Donghu Villas was because Shiro frequently used drones with speakers to lead the zombies away.
"Damn. Being a security guard these days requires that many skills?" Julian said in surprise.
"What did you study before?"
"Oh, I graduated from Huazhong University of Science and Technology. Software engineering," Shiro replied, looking a little embarrassed.
"I just picked up electrical work on the side."
"Seriously?!" Julian was stunned.
"And you still chose to be a security guard?"
Shiro's university sounded a lot more prestigious than Julian's third-rate college.
"Bro, you don't know. The pay for security guards in that community is insanely high," Shiro said.
"And the schedule is great too. Three days on, two days off. Super easy."
"Being a programmer pays a little more, but I didn't want to start going bald in my twenties."
"And besides, the neighborhood is full of rich people. If some rich auntie happens to take a liking to me… then I wouldn't have to work hard anymore, right?"
Shiro said it with complete honesty.
After thinking about it, Julian realized it actually made sense.
A rich woman stuck at home all day noticing the strong young security guard in her community…
Yeah. That kind of thing definitely happened.
"Bro, do you have any special requirements for the drones?" Shiro asked.
"I can write simple programs."
"I want the drones to hover high in the air and monitor all directions from a distance," Julian said after thinking for a moment.
"If they detect any moving objects, they should send an alert to the control center."
"And when the battery gets low, they automatically return to base."
"That's about it."
"No problem, bro!" Shiro replied immediately.
"Give me one day and I'll set it up!"
"But I'll need to go back and write the program first."
"Alright."
Julian nodded.
Then he grabbed a bundle of cucumbers, a dozen beers, and ten pounds of flour products and stuffed them into a woven sack.
After that, he added a PS one console and several game discs.
"Bro, you're too generous!" Shiro said excitedly.
Right now he only received about two pounds of food per day.
And just for helping with a small job, Julian gave him this much...
He almost felt embarrassed.
"It's nothing. Take it," Julian said.
"If I run into any technical problems later, I'll come find you."
"I'll drive you back first. I still have more supplies to move."
He patted Shiro on the shoulder.
Honestly, he was pretty satisfied with Shiro.
The guy worked diligently and wasn't overly curious.
Even after seeing so many supplies, he hadn't shown the slightest bit of greed.
Someone like that was worth cultivating.
Julian dropped Shiro back at the villa district, then continued transporting the remaining supplies with Mafuyu.
Finally, around six in the evening, everything had been moved.
The supermarket was now completely empty, except for a few refrigerators and some useless appliances.
After luring several dozen zombies to guard the bridge, Julian sat on the rooftop of the hotel's main building with his two companions and the dog, watching the sun slowly sink into the ocean.
"Master, where are we staying tonight?" Hana asked.
She still needed to prepare the beds and clean the rooms.
"For now, we'll stay in the villas," Julian said.
"The scenery's better."
"As for Little Goldie…"
He thought for a moment.
"Build it a kennel near the bridge."
"It'll be our guard dog from now on."
Eventually they would move into the main building. The higher floors gave a perfect view, and they could easily monitor any movement on the bridge from far away.
But for now, they might as well enjoy the villas.
"Whimper…"
Little Goldie looked wronged.
Why do you all get to live in villas while I have to guard the gate?
Staying outside alone at night is scary, okay?
I'm still just a kid!
"Master, with zombies guarding the area at night it should be safe," Hana said softly.
"Little Goldie is still young. Maybe wait until it grows up a bit more."
She felt a little sorry for the dog.
After all, they'd fought over food together before. That kind of experience built a bond.
"Alright, alright," Julian said with a sigh.
"Then I'll assign you your own villa. Happy?"
He rubbed Little Goldie's head.
A dog living in a seaside villa… honestly…
"Woof!"
Little Goldie immediately sat up happily.
As long as it didn't have to sleep outside.
A villa? Sure. I guess I can settle for that.
After finishing dinner on the rooftop, Julian led his companions to the best-located villa.
The sea breeze was a little chilly, which helped cool them off.
At night, every sound faded away into the endless rhythm of the waves.
"....."