Kael kept his eyes on the watch Alice had handed him, his heart beating in rhythm with the ticking. It was almost 19:00, a bit over an hour left until the system event, and yet the day was already dark.
With no one there to switch on the lights in the building, and the survivors unwilling to stick out like a sore thumb, the campus appeared dark and gloomy.
'No, I can't wait till tomorrow.'
He thought, before getting to his feet and approaching the door.
"Hey, where are you going?" Nathan suddenly called out from behind.
"I have to go." Kael turned to him.
Nathan frowned slightly, yet that simply added another form of charm to his pleasing appearance as he asked: "Why?"
Kael studied Nathan's face for a moment before replying, "I need to go save my little sister."
Nathan's eyes widened in part surprise and part confusion. 'He has a sister in the school? But I thought he was the cleaner.' Seeing the latter turn and about to leave, Nathan hesitated for only a moment before he gritted his teeth.
"I will come with you."
Kael turned once again, but this time with genuine surprise coloring his features. "Are you sick?"
Nathan narrowed his eyes at the unpleasant remark, causing Kael to quickly add: "I mean, why would you risk your life to help someone you don't know?"
Nathan simply shrugged. "Isn't that normal? Is it bad to offer my help to someone who needs it?"
Kael was stumped on the spot and couldn't answer. This was something he hadn't expected to see again in this wretched apocalypse. Still, he composed himself some moments later, doing something that surprised Nathan.
"Thank you." Kael bowed his head deeply for a few seconds before rising back. "But it will be better to go alone."
He wanted to add that Nathan was too weak to help, but he wasn't willing to hurt the ego of someone whom he acknowledged, even if he still found his appearance displeasing.
"Don't worry. I am sure I can help. Don't forget about my shadow."
A flicker of hesitation flashed across Kael's face once again before he nodded.
---
Back at the stairway entrance, Kael and Nathan crouched at the side as they observed the outside. Now that it was nighttime, it seemed the undead were a bit lethargic under the darkened sky. Nodding to themselves, and after making sure the undead they had seen were nowhere close by, Kael swiftly moved and crouched behind the shrubbery, Nathan soon following after him.
The duo silently crept toward the main building while keeping their eyes trained on the stiffly moving zombies. Thankfully, nothing major happened on the way, and soon after they closed the distance, the line of green shrubbery came to an end.
Kael stuck his head out for a bit before studying the surroundings. He noticed a few zombies roaming the corridor on the first floor, but luckily none of them were close by.
The elementary section was on the first floor, and as fate would have it, his sister's class was the one before him. He wasn't sure he would find her there, but he had to start from somewhere. He turned toward Nathan behind him and motioned to the open door.
They waited for a short while as Kael monitored an undead whose head was turned in the direction they needed to go. As he watched the zombie move, he quickly motioned with his fingers.
One.
Two.
Three.
Kael instantly sprang into motion. With 3 units of his Energi now recovered, he sent a point into his agility stat, causing his body to turn into a blur that bridged the distance to the open door, and without any hesitation, he plunged into the darkness.
At the same time Kael moved, Nathan did too. Alas, he was still only Level 1—epic class or not—and was far slower than Kael. Seeing the zombie at the end of the corridor shift its head back in his direction, Nathan's foot caught the side of the stairs leading to the main building, and his body fell forward uncontrollably.
'No no no...'
Nathan's eyes widened in horror. Even the distance between him and the door was a bit too large for his shadow step to work. He could only teleport a short distance of a meter with his ability at the moment.
Just as Nathan's body almost touched the floor, and the zombie was almost fully turned, a shadow suddenly flew out from the dark room, closing the distance to Nathan in a split second and catching him before he touched the ground.
'Ah—wha...?'
Nathan, who was screaming in his head, suddenly widened his eyes in surprise as he felt a grip around his chest. Then, before he could react, the hand moved to his waist and Nathan felt the world shift. Next thing, he found himself in darkness.
Nathan gasped for breath as he fell to the ground with his back to the wall. He sensed someone else beside him, also gasping for breath. Turning his head, he strained to see in the darkness and could barely make out Kael's figure.
'W-what? Is he the one who saved me? But how?'
His mind churned with many questions, yet it seemed Kael wouldn't give him time to ask them.
---
After using up all his Energi points to save Nathan—something Kael would have normally cursed for—Kael quickly caught his breath before shifting his attention to the room.
The place was pitch black, a tomb-like silence hanging in the air that was only broken by the distant, rhythmic scraping of zombie nails against the hallway floor. He could barely see a meter before him even if he strained his eyes. Yet he could make out some whispers coming from the other side of the partitioned room.
'Rose?'
He quickly sprang to his feet and left the still gasping Nathan behind without a thought. With his heart beating rapidly within his chest, he approached the entrance lacking a door and noticed the shadows flickering within the room. Without any hesitation, and with hope in his heart, Kael entered.
---
Claire glared at the few figures before them in anger as she stood before Rose and Sophia. Ten zombies stood between both parties, and Claire was sure that if it weren't for their presence, the other party might have already acted. What made Claire more frustrated was that they were humans and not monsters.
After the system global message, Claire and the little girl, together with Rose's help, had been killing the undead. The zombies controlled by Rose would simply bring their members who were already wounded back for Claire and Sophia to kill. They had never truly been in danger.
But it seemed the strange sight had attracted a human scout. Now, an hour before the system event, the other party had appeared, claiming they wanted to "help."
Claire had gently refused. She knew their leader: Ben. A young teacher who had frequently hit on her without success. The scene before her proved her instincts right. She could glimpse the lustful light he was trying to hide in his eyes whenever his gaze swept over her. And most importantly, she knew what they had really come for.
Rose.
The text floating above the little girl said it all. They wanted to control her—use her before she could get any more powerful. But Claire wouldn't allow it. Not over her dead body.
The two groups were locked in a tense stalemate. As the torchlight held by Claire and Ben flickered, sending long, distorted shadows dancing like specters against the blood-stained classroom walls, Ben's voice rang out again.
"I don't know why you are acting stubborn, Claire. You saw the system message. Do you really think you can survive the night by yourself?"
"Sure, you guys have some strong zombies on your side, but won't it be better to have more humans—ones that could actually reason and help too?"
Claire glared at them and didn't bother to reply. Seeing this, Ben was just about to open his mouth when the scout whispered: "Someone is coming."
"Huh?"
Both parties suddenly grew tense. They raised their makeshift weapons and turned toward the entrance. The zombies moved ahead of Claire, snarling silently.
It was then a figure entered the room. He carried himself with a chilling, predatory confidence that seemed to push back the very darkness of the room. Despite his weary appearance, his eyes swept through the room with the precision of a hawk before landing on the small girl behind Claire.
*****
AN: Thank you for reading. Vote power stones if you enjoyed the chapter😁.